Top Prospects

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Jonathan LekkerimakiSweden vs Germany (Hlinka-Gretzky Cup 2021)8/2/2021Drives the net, pulls across, shoots far side, saved.

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Brian Fogarty Top Prospects By Team

Top Prospects: The NHL System Rankings

#1: San Jose Sharks

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Number of Ranked Prospects: 42

Number of Forwards in the Top 50: 5

Number of Defensemen in the Top 50: 3

Average Rank of Top 10 Prospects in Pool: 32th

Top Forward Prospect in The System: Macklin Celebrini (1st)

Top Defenseman Prospect in The System: Sam Dickinson (9th)

System Score: 5

 

The Sharks committed fully to their system rebuild after Doug Wilson retired in 2022 and the team brought in Mike Grier to reconstruct the prospect pipeline. In the five years prior to Grier's arrival (2018-2022), the Sharks had only one top-ten draft pick, and just four first-round picks in total. Of those picks, one William Eklund (taken seventh overall in 2021) has become a full-time NHL player, and his 110 points through his first 174 games shows that he is a budding star in the league. However, other picks such as Ryan Merkley (taken 31st overall in 2018 and currently playing for Kunlun Red Star in the KHL) and Artemi Kniazev (taken 48th overall in 2019 and currently playing for Kazan Ak-Bars in the KHL) show that the team under Wilson showed little success from the draft. 

However, Grier has started to add true top-end talent to the team. In the last two drafts, the Sharks picked as many times in the first round as they had in those previous five years combined, and of their four picks, two have already become full-time NHL players vying for top rookie consideration. The other two are likely to begin fighting for their spots in the Sharks lineup as early as next season.

Brian Fogarty Top Prospects By Team

Top Prospects: The NHL System Rankings

#2: Calgary Flames

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Number of Ranked Prospects: 38

Number of Forwards in the Top 50: 4

Number of Defensemen in the Top 50: 3

Average Rank of Top 10 Prospects in Pool: 47th

Top Forward Prospect in The System: Matvei Gridin (25th)

Top Defenseman Prospect in The System: Zayne Parekh (3rd)

System Score: 5

 

The Calgary Flames have missed the playoffs in three of the last four seasons, and only five times in the last fifteen years. However, they have collected and used fifteen top-three-round draft picks in the last five years, and have been (mostly) quietly building a quality stable of top prospects. Yes, the Flames may have traded or otherwise lost every first-round pick that the team made in the 2010s (Matt Tkachuk, Juuso Valimaki, Sam Bennett, Sean Monahan, Mark Jankowski, Sven Baertschi and the rest are all gone), but they have been tighter fisted in recent years and as a result have one of the best prospect pools in the league.

Brian Fogarty Top Prospects By Team

Top Prospects: The NHL System Rankings

#3: Detroit Red Wings

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Number of Ranked Prospects: 47

Number of Forwards in the Top 50: 2

Number of Defensemen in the Top 50: 4

Average Rank of Top 10 Prospects in Pool: 60th

Top Forward Prospect in The System: Michael Brandsegg-Nygard (13th)

Top Defenseman Prospect in The System: Axel Sandin Pellikka (5th)

System Score: 4.75

 

Steve Yzerman took over the Detroit general manager role in the spring of 2019. Tasked with rebuilding one of the most storied teams in NHL history, the Hall of Fame player began mining for diamonds and gold in the draft, looking deep into European leagues to build a highly skilled, smart prospect pool. In the 2019 draft, Yzerman selected German defenseman Moritz Seider sixth overall, despite major pundits having the player ranked much lower than that (Hockey Prophets had him ranked 19th). Seider would go on to win the NHL's Calder Trophy as the league's top rookie in the 2021-2022 season, and at this point has played in 300 NHL games, with 167 points. The following draft, the Red Wings selected left winger Lucas Raymond out of the top Swedish league at fourth overall (ranked 7th by Hockey Prophets). Raymond is currently leading the Red Wings in scoring with 58 points in 54 games this year. Detroit took Austrian center Marco Kasper eighth overall in 2022, and he, too, has become a starting member of the Red Wings lineup.

Brian Fogarty Top Prospects By Team

Top Prospects: The NHL System Rankings

#4: Anaheim Ducks

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Number of Ranked Prospects: 40

Number of Forwards in the Top 50: 3

Number of Defensemen in the Top 50: 3

Average Rank of Top 10 Prospects in Pool: 38th

Top Forward Prospect in The System: Beckett Sennecke (10th)

Top Defenseman Prospect in The System: Olen Zellweger (14th)

System Score: 4.75

 

After a decade-long run as one of the NHL's top teams, the Anaheim Ducks in 2018 entered a major rebuilding phase. In 2019 the Ducks drafted the hyper-creative center Trevor Zegras from the US development squad and Jackson LaCombe from Shattuck-St. Mary's. In 2020 they drafted the offensive blueliner Jamie Drysdale (since traded to Philadelphia for Cutter Gauthier), and in 2021 center Mason McTavish. The 2022 and 2023 drafts brought in defender Pavel Mintyukov and Swedish center Leo Carlsson. Each of these top-round picks have become full-time NHLers and comprise a solid core for the Anaheim team (save for Drysdale, but more on his return below). Those players have already combined for over 700 NHL games,  140 goals and 250 assists despite. Further picks have yielded several promising prospects (some already in the NHL) as Anaheim has been slowly but steadily creating not only a solid, young team but one of the best prospect pools in the league. 

Brian Fogarty Top Prospects By Team

Top Prospects: The NHL System Rankings

#5: Utah HC

 

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Number of Ranked Prospects: 40

Number of Forwards in the Top 50: 3

Number of Defensemen in the Top 50: 3

Average Rank of Top 10 Prospects in Pool: 51st

Top Forward Prospect in The System: Tij Iginla (6th)

Top Defenseman Prospect in The System: Dmitri Simashev (18th)

System Score: 4.75

 

The long and meandering desert journey of the once-Winnipeg Jets ended last summer when the NHL essentially took control of the organization and sold it to Utah billionaire Ryan Smith, and the Arizona Coyotes moved to Salt Lake City to become the Utah Hockey Club. General Manager Bill Armstrong has been with the team since the fall of 2020, and in that time he has completed four drafts in which the team has added 42 players. Two of those picks, Logan Cooley (drafted 3rd overall in 2022) and Dylan Guenther (9th overall in 2021) have become mainstay players and key contributors at the NHL level for the club. 

The depth of the UHC prospect pool and the relative strength at the top end result primarily from the accumulated top-round draft picks over the past couple of years. Fifteen first- and second-round picks over four drafts can give an instant boost to any prospect pool, and Armstrong has been working hard--and successfully--to rebuild the team's young talent. 

  1. Top Prospects: The NHL System Rankings - MON
  2. Top Prospects: The NHL System Rankings - SEA
  3. Top Prospects: The NHL System Rankings - CHI
  4. Top Prospects: The NHL System Rankings - CBJ

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