2014 NHL Entry Draft
The Florida Panthers select…. from the Barrie Colts defenceman Aaron Ekblad. Are we going to hear these words in a few hours as the NHL draft gets under way in Philadelphia? Lost of buzz around the draft and rumors persist that Ryan Kesler has just been traded from the Vancouver Canucks to the Anaheim Ducks, so hockey fans, GMs, coaches, players and teenagers waiting to be drafted are all anxious.
As it stands right now, the first round draft order looks like this:
First Round |
||||
| Pick | Team | Player | POS. | 2013-14 Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Florida Panthers* |
– | – | – |
| 2 |  Buffalo Sabres |
– | – | – |
| 3 |  Edmonton Oilers |
– | – | – |
| 4 |  Calgary Flames |
– | – | – |
| 5 |  New York Islanders |
– | – | – |
| 6 |  Vancouver Canucks |
– | – | – |
| 7 |  Carolina Hurricanes |
– | – | – |
| 8 |  Toronto Maple Leafs |
– | – | – |
| 9 |  Winnipeg Jets |
– | – | – |
| 10 |  Anaheim Ducks** |
– | – | – |
| 11 |  Nashville Predators |
– | – | – |
| 12 |  Arizona Coyotes |
– | – | – |
| 13 |  Washington Capitals |
– | – | – |
| 14 |  Dallas Stars |
– | – | – |
| 15 |  Detroit Red Wings |
– | – | – |
| 16 |  Columbus Blue Jackets |
– | – | – |
| 17 |  Philadelphia Flyers |
– | – | – |
| 18 |  Minnesota Wild |
– | – | – |
| 19 |  Tampa Bay Lightning |
– | – | – |
| 20 |  San Jose Sharks |
– | – | – |
| 21 |  St. Louis Blues |
– | – | – |
| 22 |  Pittsburgh Penguins |
– | – | – |
| 23 |  Colorado Avalanche |
– | – | – |
| 24 | Anaheim Ducks |
– | – | – |
| 25 |  Boston Bruins |
– | – | – |
| 26 |  Montreal Canadiens |
– | – | – |
| 27 |  Chicago Blackhawks |
– | – | – |
| 28 | Tampa Bay Lightning*** |
– | – | – |
| 29 |  Los Angeles Kings |
– | – | – |
| 30 |  New Jersey Devils+ |
– | – | – |
However anything can happen on draft day and during the draft weekend. Remember last year when the Canucks dealt Cory Schneider in a surprise move to the New Jersey devils? Last year’s NHL draft featured some surprise moves. This year we can expect to see some as well. Many suggest that this is no a super strong draft year yet there is a lot of discussion about team trading up into the top three to get centerman or perhaps the hulking lone defenseman expected to go in the top 5 in Eklbad.
Here is a look at potential predictions for the 2014 NHL Entry Draft. Of course trades could be made, players could fall as did Seth Jones last year, but here is a look at where some of the top draft picks may end up tonight.
| PICK | NHL TEAM | PLAYER | POSITION | 2013-14 TEAM |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | FLA |
Aaron Ekblad | D | Barrie (OHL) |
| 2 | BUF |
Sam Bennett | C | Kingston (OHL) |
| 3 | EDM |
Leon Draisaitl | C | Prince Albert (WHL) |
| 4 | CGY |
Sam Reinhart | C | Kootenay (OHL) |
| 5 | NYI |
Michael Dal Colle | LW | Oshawa (OHL) |
| 6 |  VAN |
Jake Virtanen | RW | Calgary (WHL) |
| 7 | CAR |
Haydn Fleury | D | Red Deer (WHL) |
| 8 | TOR |
Nick Ritchie | LW | Peterborough (OHL) |
| 9 | WPG |
Nikolaj Ehlers | LW | Halifax (QMJHL) |
| 10 | ANA* |
Kasperi Kapanen | LW/RW | KalPa (FIN) |
| 11 | NAS |
William Nylander | LW | Modo (SWE) |
| 12 | ARZ |
Brendan Perlini | LW | Niagara (OHL) |
| 13 | WAS |
Julius Honka | D | Swift Current (WHL) |
| 14 | DAL |
Dylan Larkin | C | USNTDP |
| 15 | DET |
Jared McCann | C | Sault Ste. Marie (OHL) |
| 16 | CBJ |
Sonny Milano | LW | USNTDP |
| 17 | PHI |
Anthony DeAngelo | D | Sarnia (OHL) |
| 18 | MIN |
Robert Fabbri | C | Guelph (OHL) |
| 19 | TB |
Travis Sanheim | D | Calgary (WHL) |
| 20 | SJ |
Kevin Fiala | RW | HV71 (SWE) |
| 21 |  STL |
Ryan MacInnis | C | Kitchener (OHL) |
| 22 |  PIT |
Alex Tuch | RW | USNTDP |
| 23 | COL |
Adrian Kempe | LW | Modo (SWE) |
| 24 | ANA |
Jakub Vrana | RW | Linkoping (SWE) |
| 25 | BOS |
Nick Schmaltz | C | Green Bay (USHL) |
| 26 | MTL |
Ivan Barbashev | C/LW | Moncton (QMJHL) |
| 27 | CHI |
Marcus Pettersson | D | Skelleftea (SWE) |
| 28 | TB |
Nikita Scherbak | LW | Saskatoon (WHL) |
| 29 | LA |
Roland McKeown | D | Kingston (OHL) |
| 30 | NJ |
Brendan Lemieux | LW | Barrie (OHL) |
