17 hours Ago
The most common assets used at the trade deadline are draft picks, with the first-round pick often being cited as the gold standard of trade assets. But what do those first-round selections end up becoming? I thought I would look at the 22 first-round picks traded from 2020 through 2023 and who was ultimately picked to provide some context. While draft slot matters, for the most part, the picks tended to be in the mid-teens or the 20s, as contenders often are the ones moving those picks.
Daniil But was the lone high-teens pick among this group. Advertisement Johnston is one of the more interesting draft picks in recent years. He didn’t play at all during his draft season due to the OHL season being canceled.
He has developed into an impact forward on a top team, though. Detroit didn’t even keep the pick it got for Mantha, trading up in that draft to select Sebastian Cossa. Chychrun was a major trade chip that Arizona took its time dealing.
The coup for him, in part, was But, a huge winger with NHL foot speed and skill who has the potential to be a quality top-six winger in the league. Detroit moved out an average-sized puck-moving defenseman in Hronek and hoped it would replace him long-term with ASP. He is a very intelligent and hardworking defender with a cannon of a shot, though his size will be an issue defending NHL forwards.
Bonk isn’t a flashy defenseman, but he does a lot of things very well. He’s a tall, mobile right-shot with strong skills and offensive sense who can make stops, too. He has the potential to be a two-way second-pair defender one day.
Greig has become a regular in Ottawa’s lineup. He’s a skilled center, but the most appealing part about his game is his compete and physicality. He may not be the most dynamic player you’ll ever see, but he can be a legit third-line center on a good team for a while.
At this point, you’re starting to see a bit of a drop-off. Moore is a very good prospect, as are Cowan, Molendyk, et al., but there is a decline from guys you are projecting as probable top-six forwards or top-four defensemen into the next tier.
Moore is a player who could be an excellent third-line center, though, due to his elite skating. Cowan could be a really good two-way middle-six winger, and Molendyk and Mukhamadullin could be No. 4/5 defensemen in the NHL.
Advertisement Around here, we are starting to see the other side of the spectrum. Starting at No. 15 with Gaucher, I’m not fully confident these first-round picks are going to play a meaningful number of NHL games.
Starting at Wiesblatt’s spot at 18, I’m not even sure those prospects are going to get to 50 career NHL games. (Photos of Wyatt Johnston and Axel Sandin Pellikka: Robert Edwards / Imagn Images and Mathias Bergeld / Sipa via AP Images).
