2022 NHL Draft: Atlantic Division needs

The 2022 Upper Deck NHL Draft will be held July 7-8 at Bell Centre in Montreal. The first round will be July 7 (7 p.m. ET; ESPN, ESPN+, SN, TVAS) and rounds 2-7 are July 8 (11 a.m. ET; NHLN, ESPN+, SN, TVAS). NHL.com is counting down to the draft with in-depth profiles on top prospects, podcasts and other features. Today, a look at needs for teams in the Atlantic Division. NHL.com's full draft coverage can be found here.

The 2022 Upper Deck NHL Draft provides an opportunity for teams to strengthen positions of need with young talent.
Here is what Atlantic Division teams could be looking to do at the draft (listed in alphabetical order):
BOSTON BRUINS
Top priority: Defenseman
First pick: No. 54
The situation: Boston, which lost 3-2 to the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference First Round, has made the Stanley Cup Playoffs six straight seasons but hasn't advanced past the second round since losing to the St. Louis Blues in Game 7 of the 2019 Stanley Cup Final. The Bruins' biggest issue has been depth scoring. The top line of Patrice Bergeron, Brad Marchand and David Pastrnak was its usual productive self, while the rest of the lineup failed to provide sufficient support. It remains unclear if Bergeron, who turns 37 on July 24, will return for a 19th NHL season; he can be an unrestricted free agent July 13. The top prospects in the pipeline might be forwards
John Beecher
(No. 30, 2019 NHL Draft),
Fabian Lysell
(No. 21, 2021 NHL Draft) and Jack Studnicka (No. 53, 2017 NHL Draft) and defenseman
Mason Lohrei
(No. 58, 2020 NHL Draft). Boston's first selection will come in the second round after trading its first pick to the Anaheim Ducks for defenseman Hampus Lindholm.
Possible fits:
Danil Zhilkin
, C, Guelph (WHL);
Jagger Firkus
, RW, Moose Jaw (WHL);
Gleb Trikozov
, LW, Omsk 2 (RUS-JR)
BUFFALO SABRES
Top priority: Best player available
First pick:No. 9
The situation: The Sabres missed the playoffs for the 11th consecutive season and were tied for 22nd in the NHL at 2.79 goals per game average, the 10th straight season they have finished in the bottom-third of the NHL in scoring. They also allowed 3.50 goals per game, eighth-most in the NHL. Buffalo has 10 draft picks, including Nos. 16 and 28 in the first round. It's built an impressive prospect group led by forwards
Jack Quinn
(No. 8, 2020), and
JJ Peterka
(No. 34, 2020), defensemen
Ryan Johnson
(No. 31, 2019) and
Mattias Samuelsson
(No. 32, 2018), and goalie
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen
(No. 54, 2017), who had a 2.74 GAA and .917 save percentage in nine NHL games this season. Defenseman Owen Power, the No. 1 pick of the 2021 draft, graduated to full-time NHL player when he signed a three-year, entry-level contract April 8 after two seasons at the University of Michigan.
Possible fits:
Matthew Savoie
, C, Winnipeg (WHL);
Kevin Korchinski
, D, Seattle (WHL);
Pavel Mintyukov
, D, Saginaw (OHL)
DETROIT RED WINGS
Top Priority: Forward depth
First pick:No. 8
The situation:The Red Wings' rebuilding effort is showing promise: defenseman Moritz Seider (2019, No. 6) won the Calder Trophy voted as the NHL rookie of the year, and forward Lucas Raymond (2020, No. 4) was third among NHL rookies with 57 points (23 goals, 34 assists) in 82 games. Detroit has a few other prospects who might be a season or two away, among them forwards
Jonatan Berggren
(2018, No. 33) and
Theodor Niederbach
(2020, No. 51), and defensemen
Simon Edvinsson
(2021, No. 6) and
William Wallinder
(2020, No. 32). The Red Wings have 10 draft picks, seven in the first four rounds.
Possible fits:
Marco Kasper
, C, Rogle (SWE);
Jonathan Lekkerimaki
, RW, Djurgarden (SWE); Matthew Savoie, C, Winnipeg (WHL)
FLORIDA PANTHERS
Top Priority: Defenseman depth
First pick: No. 93
The situation:Florida's first selection will come in the third round after trading their picks in the first round (Sabres, forward Sam Reinhart) and second round (Calgary Flames, forward Sam Bennett). The Panthers won the Presidents' Trophy as the best team in the regular season but were swept by the Tampa Bay Lightning in the Eastern Conference Second Round. Defenseman Aaron Ekblad had an NHL-best 57 points (15 goals, 42 assists) in 61 games this season and MacKenzie Weegar was plus-40 in 23:22 of ice time in 80 games. Adding to their prospect depth at the position should be a priority;
Evan Nause
(2021, No. 56) and
Michael Benning
(2020, No. 95) might be the two top defensemen in the pipeline.
Possible fits:
Jeremy Langlois
, D, Cape Breton (QMJHL);
Graham Sward
, D, Spokane (WHL);
Michael Mastrodomenico
, D, Lincoln (USHL)
MONTREAL CANADIENS
Top priority: Center
First pick: No. 1
The situation: The Canadiens failed to make the playoffs one season after losing to the Lightning in five games in the Stanley Cup Final. Montreal has an NHL-high 14 picks in the draft, including No. 26 in the first round and seven in the first three rounds. The organization has a stable of good defenseman prospects with Justin Barron (trade, Colorado Avalanche, March 21),
Kaiden Guhle
(2020, No. 16),
Mattias Norlinder
(2019, No. 64) and Jordan Harris (2018, No. 71), but help is needed down the middle where centers
Ty Smilanic
(trade, Panthers, March 16) and
Jan Mysak
(2020, No. 48) might be the only top prospects at the position. Montreal could fill that void with the selection of right-shot center
Shane Wright
, No. 1 in
NHL Central Scouting's final ranking of North American skaters
. The 18-year-old (6-foot, 199 pounds) from Kingston of the Ontario Hockey League has been compared to Bergeron.
Possible fits:Shane Wright, C, Kingston (OHL);
Logan Cooley
, C, USA U-18 (NTDP);
Juraj Slafkovsky
, LW, TPS (FIN)
OTTAWA SENATORS
Top priority:Best available player
First pick:No. 7
The situation: Ottawa failed to qualify for the playoffs for the fifth straight season, the longest drought in its history. The Senators last qualified for the postseason in 2016-17, when they advanced to the Eastern Conference Final before losing in seven games to the eventual Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins. Ottawa will be selecting in the top 10 of the draft for the fourth time in the past five years. They have assembled a strong group of prospects with those picks, among them defensemen Jake Sanderson (2020, No. 5),
Jacob Bernard-Docker
(2018, No. 26),
Tyler Kleven
(2020, No. 44) and
Lassi Thomson
(2019, No. 19), and forwards
Tim Stutzle
(2020, No. 3),
Ridly Greig
(2020, No. 28), Shane Pinto (2019, No. 32) and
Tyler Boucher
(2021, No. 10). Ottawa has 11 picks, including five in the first three rounds.
Possible fits:
Joakim Kemell
, RW, JYP (FIN);
Cutter Gauthier
, LW, USA U-18 (NTDP); Marco Kasper, C, Rogle (SWE)
TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING
Top Priority: Best player available
First pick: No. 31
The situation: Tampa Bay lost in six games to Colorado in the Stanley Cup Final after winning the championship in 2020 and 2021. The Lightning could opt for a defenseman in the first round since Victor Hedman (31 years old), Ryan McDonagh (33) and Zach Bogosian (31) are nearing the end of their prime seasons. The Lightning have seven picks in the 2022 draft but just one in the opening three rounds. History has shown it doesn't matter how many or where the Lightning pick in the draft, because assistant general manager and director of amateur scouting Al Murray seems to have a knack for uncovering diamonds in the rough.
Possible fits:
Reid Schaefer
, LW, Seattle (WHL);
Lane Hutson
, D, USA U-18 (NTDP);
Noah Warren
, D, Gatineau (QMJHL)
TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS
Top priority: Forward and defenseman depth
First pick: No. 25
The situation:The Maple Leafs, who set team records for wins (54) and points (115) and finished second in the Atlantic Division, were eliminated from the playoffs by the Lightning in seven games in the Eastern Conference First Round. Toronto has qualified for the playoffs six consecutive seasons but hasn't won a series since defeating Ottawa in Game 7 of the 2004 Eastern Conference Quarterfinals. The Maple Leafs have a few good prospects in the pipeline, among them defenseman
Topi Niemela
(2020, No. 64) and forwards
Rodion Amirov
(2020, No. 15),
Matthew Knies
(2021, No. 57), Nicholas Robertson (2019, No. 53) and Nick Abruzzese (2019, No. 124). Knies had 33 points (15 goals, 18 assists) in 33 games as a freshman at the University of Minnesota, and had two points (one goal, one assist) in four games for the United States at the 2022 Beijing Olympics. Rookie forward Michael Bunting was a finalist for the Calder Trophy after leading first-year players with 63 points (23 goals, 40 assists) in 79 games. For the second straight year, Toronto has three picks in the draft. They have no selections in the second, fourth, fifth or sixth rounds.
Possible fits:
Isaac Howard
, LW, USA U-18 (NTDP);
Brad Lambert
, C, Pelicans (FIN);
Michael Buchinger
, D, Guelph (OHL)
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