10 TAKEAWAYS: NHL Draft First Round Edition

It was quite the night for the New Jersey Devils as the latest piece of the puzzle has been added to the roster. The Devils franchise took a giant step forward after using their first round, first overall selection to kick off the 2019 NHL Draft!
1. Welcome to New Jersey, Jack! After weeks of speculation on which way the New Jersey Devils management would go, it's Jack Hughes who is the newest addition to the Devils family.
"I've been waiting for this moment all my life but now this is a new chapter for me," Hughes said after being drafted.

3. An entire section stood up at the call of Jack Hughes' name at Rogers Arena, the 18-year-old sensation had 65 family and friends on hand to witness the moment he was taken first overall.
   Tweet from @NJDevils: ���With the first pick overall, the New Jersey Devils are proud to select from the US program, Jack Hughes.��� pic.twitter.com/z4OAVorFOw
   4. Make it two years in a row! The Hughes family could get used to this! For a second straight NHL Draft, a Hughes has been drafted in to the NHL. At the 2018 NHL Draft, Jack's older brother Quinn was selected by the Canucks and made his NHL debut last season.

5. It's never an easy decision when you have to choose between two players like Jack Hughes and Kaapo Kakko, who went second overall to the New York Rangers. But General Manager Ray Shero did admit he had his mind officially made up mid-week before the draft. Shero is equally as excited to see Kakko go number two to the Rangers to "add a little spice" to the rivalry between the two clubs.

6. Jack meets Ty! Awaiting Jack in the Devils suite was New Jersey's 2017 first round pick, defenseman Ty Smith. The two met and chatted in New Jersey's suite and will be reunited shortly on the ice when the Devils host their Development Camp.

7. It took a while for Hughes to make his way up to meet his family in the Devils suite. Hughes was often held up passing televisions in Rogers Arena. Jack would stop consistently to see where his USNTDP teammates were being drafted. As he passed the draft board, Hughes glimpsed at his own name listed as the Number One selection and turned to me and said, "Man, that looks good!"
   8. Surprise selection! The Detroit Red Wings provided the first stunner of the night after selecting German defenseman Mortiz Seider with the sixth overall pick in the draft. While Seider was always expected to be a first-round pick, being drafted as high as sixth was unexpected.
   9. Just one trade was made on the draft floor after the first round completed. The Philadelphia Flyers traded their number 11 pick in this year's draft to the Arizona Coyotes for their number 14 pick overall and the 45th pick in the draft. With that 11th pick, the Coyotes selected defenseman Victor Soderstrom from the Swedish Hockey League. The Flyers later selected Jack Hughes' USNTDP teammate, defenseman Cam York.
   10. It was a record-breaking night for the program that Jack Hughes played for. A total of eight USNTDP players were selected in the first round of the NHL Draft.
   BONUS: We could never forget the fans back in New Jersey! They turned out in incredible numbers at Championship Plaza outside Prudential Center. The Devils Draft Party was an incredible success, see for yourself with the crowd reaction!
   Tweet from @NJDevils: And the crowd goes wild in Newark! pic.twitter.com/MpLFKveyAe
   Stay tuned tomorrow as the Devils work their way through the remaining rounds of the draft, Shero and his management team have another nine picks on the board and NewJerseyDevils.com will keep you fully locked in to all the happenings!