What To Look Forward To In The 2018 NHL Entry Draft

Unless something changes between now and the night of June 22nd, the first round of the NHL Draft is going to be less than thrilling for fans of the Vegas Golden Knights.
GM George McPhee sent his first round pick this year to the Detroit Red Wings as part of the trade to acquire Tomas Tatar at the deadline.
After making 12 selections last year, including three players on Friday night's first round and four in the top 34 slots, Vegas has seven selection heading into Dallas. McPhee has his second round selection, two in the fourth round (Vancouver, Pittsburgh), two in the fifth (Carolina, Vegas) and two in the sixth (Toronto, Vegas).

While McPhee has seven picks this year, he still has five surplus picks in the draft through 2021. The 2019 and 2020 drafts are pick heavy for McPhee as he has 11 picks in the top three rounds of those two drafts which is more than any other team in the NHL.
Draft experts are viewing the 2018 Draft as a question mark. The obvious No. 1 selection is Rasmus Dahlin and he's expected to be a franchise defenseman in the NHL. Every draft is different and VGK assistant director of player personnel Bob Lowes says this year's crop has players he likes.
"There are definitely players in this draft we would like to select," said Lowes, who heads up the club's amateur scouting department. "We've worked to prepare our list and there will be players in every round which our scouts will want us to select. I find it hard to characterize a draft class. There are good players at different levels in this draft. There will be players selected later in the draft which become pros and players selected earlier which do not. That happens in every draft. I find it hard to say a draft class is weak or strong. Our job is to do our work and find players we want at the different levels."
Here are the final draft rankings provided by the NHL's Central Scouting bureau:
Central Scouting Top European Skaters
Central Scouting Top North American Skaters
Drafting is an art and not a science. The art is in the possibility of progression for a player. He may be a skinny center with an awkward skating stride on his draft day but what will he be in three years? In five years? Vegas selected 11 players at the 2017 draft and here's a look at them heading into the summer of 2018.
Cody Glass, Forward
Country: Canada
Hometown: Winnipeg, Manitoba
Height: 6'2''
Weight: 179 lbs.
Age: 19
Drafted from: Portland Winterhawks (WHL)
Shoots: Right
Notes:
-Led Winterhawks in points in 2017-18 season with 102 (37 G, 65 A) and assists with 65 in 64 games played
-Finished 2017-18 playoffs with 13 points (4 G, 9 A)
-Appeared in the WHL All-Stars, Canada/Russia Series acquiring one goal and one assist
-Named a WHL Western Conference First Team All-Star in 2017-18
Nick Suzuki, Forward
Country: Canada
Hometown: London, Ontario
Height: 5'11''
Weight: 183 lbs.
Age: 18
Drafted from: Owen Sound Attack (OHL)
Shoots: Right
Notes:
-Led Owen Sound in points during 2017-18 season with 100 (42 G, 58 A) in 64 games played, fourth-highest total in OHL
-Acquired 12 points (3 G, 9 A) in OHL Playoffs 2018
-Won back-to-back William Hanley Trophy in 2017 and 2018 as the most sportsmanlike player in OHL
Erik Brannstrom, Defenseman
Country: Sweden
Hometown: Eksjo, Sweden
Height: 5'9''
Weight: 181 lbs.
Age: 18
Drafted from: HV71 (Swedish Hockey League)
Shoots: Left
Notes:
-Had 15 points (2 G, 13 A) in 44 games played with HV71 in 2017-18 season
-Won a silver medal with Sweden at the 2017 World Under-20 Championship
-Helped HV71 win Le Mat trophy as SHL league champion in 2016-17, finishing with six points (1 G, 5 A) in 35 games
-Models his play after Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere, per NHL Central Scouting
Nicolas Hague, Defenseman
Country: Canada
Hometown: Kitchener, Ontario
Height: 6'6''
Weight: 214 lbs.
Age: 19
Drafted from: Mississauga Steelheads (OHL)
Shoots: Left
Notes:
-Led Steelheads in points during the 2017-18 season with 78 (35 G, 43 A) in 67 games
-Named the CHL Defenceman of the Year in 2018
-Won Max Kaminsky Trophy as OHL Outstanding Defencemen in 2018
-Led all OHL defensemen in goals with 35 in 2018
-Had four points (4 A) in six OHL playoff games in 2018
-Appeared in five games with American Hockey League Chicago Wolves acquiring one assist
-Compares his style of play to Arizona Coyotes defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson, per NHL Central Scouting
Jake Leschyshyn, Forward
Born in: Raleigh, NC, USA
Hometown: Grasswood, Saskatchewan, Canada
Height: 5'11"
Weight: 185 lbs.
Age: 19
Drafted from: Regina Pats (WHL)
Shoots: Left
Notes:
-Appeared in 64 games with the Western Hockey League's Regina Pats, finishing the season with 40 points (18 G, 22 A)
-Had three goals and two assists in 2017-18 WHL Playoffs
-Played in 2017-18 WHL All-Stars Canada/Russia series
-Appeared in 189 games with 99 points (45 G, 54 A) during WHL career
-Father Curtis Leschyshyn won Stanley Cup with Colorado in 1996 and skated in 1,033
career NHL games with Nordiques, Avalanche, Capitals, Whalers, Hurricanes, Wild, and Senators
Jonas Rondbjerg, Forward
Country: Denmark
Hometown: Horsholm, DNK
Height: 6'0''
Weight: 176 lbs.
Age: 19
Drafted from: Vaxjo Lakers (Swedish Hockey League)
Shoots: Left
Notes:
-Had 11 points (6 G, 5 A) in 35 games for Lakers in 2017-18 season
-Represented Denmark in both the 2018 World Junior Championships and 2018 Division IA U20 World Championship
-Helped Lakers win Le Mat trophy as SHL league champion in 2017-18
Maksim Zhukov, Goaltender
Country: Russia
Hometown: Kaliningrad, Russia
Height: 6'3''
Weight: 187 lbs.
Age: 18
Drafted From: Green Bay Gamblers (USHL)
Catches: Left
Notes:
-Had a 2.45 GAA and 0.909 SV% in 53 games played for Green Bay in 2017-18 season
-Had a 3.60 GAA and 0.882 SV% in two games played in 2017-18 Playoffs with Green Bay
-Says his hockey idol is 2017 Vezina Trophy Winner Sergei Bobrovsky, per NHL Central Scouting
Lucas Elvenes, Forward
Country: Sweden
Hometown: Angelholm, Sweden
Height: 6'1''
Weight: 172
Age: 18
Drafted from: Rogle BK (Swedish Hockey League)
Shoots: Left
Notes:
-Had 16 points (5 G, 11 A) in 28 games for Rogle BK in the 2017-18 season
-Represented Sweden at the 2017 U18 World Championship
-Represented Sweden U18 at the 2016 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament
-His father, Stefan, was drafted 71st overall by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 1988 NHL Entry Draft and played 22 years of professional hockey in Sweden and Denmark
Jack Dugan, Forward
Country: United States of America
Hometown: Pittsford, NY
Height: 6'2''
Weight: 185 lbs.
Age: 20
Drafted from: Chicago Steel (USHL)
Shoots: Right
Notes:
-Had 66 points (31 G, 35 A) in 47 games in 2017-18 season for Chicago Steel
-Made USHL First All-Star Team
-Represented team USA Under-19 and won Silver Medal, acquired four points (3 G, 1 A)
-Drafted in the first round (second overall) of the 2017 USHL Entry Draft (Phase II)
-Committed to play for NCAA's Providence Friars starting in 2018
Nick Campoli, Forward
Country: Canada
Hometown: Toronto, Ontario
Height: 5'11''
Weight: 190 lbs.
Age: 19
Drafted from: North York Rangers (OJHL)
Shoots: Left
Notes:
-Had 49 points (20 G, 29 A) in 46 games played for North York during the 2017-18 season
-Recorded 11 points (7 G, 4 A) in 10 playoff games for the Rangers in 2018
-Won OJHL Top Prospect Award in 2016-17
-Will play for the NCAA's Clarkson University in 2018-19
Jiri Patera, Goaltender
Country: Czech Republic
Height: 6'2''
Weight: 209 lbs.
Age: 19
Drafted from: Cedar Rapids RoughRiders (USHL)
Catches: Left
Notes:
-Had 3.24 GAA and 0.901 SV% in 34 games played for RoughRiders in 2017-18 season
-Had 3.40 GAA and 0.871 SV% in three games at the 2017 U18 World Championship
-Will play for HC Ceske Budejovice in the 2nd Czech Republic Hockey League in 2017-18
Ben Jones, Forward
Country: Canada
Height: 6'0''
Weight: 187 lbs.
Age: 19
Drafted from: Niagara IceDogs (OHL)
Shoots: Left
Notes:
-Had 79 points (30 G, 49 A) in 68 games played for Niagara in the 2017-18
-Finished with 12 points (5 G, 7 A) in 10 playoff games for the IceDogs in 2018
-Selected by Niagara in the first round (seventh overall) in the 2015 OHL Priority
Selection
-Won the OHL Cup with the Toronto Marlboros (GTHL) in 2015
Keegan Kolesar, Forward
Country: Canada
Hometown: Brandon, Manitoba
Height: 6'2''
Weight: 227 lbs.
Age: 21
Current team: Chicago Wolves (AHL)
Notes:
-Appeared in 44 games with the AHL's Chicago Wolves acquiring 13 points (5 G, 8 A) during the 2017-18 season
-Scored one goal for the Wolves in three 2018 Calder Cup Playoff games
-Appeared in 20 games with the ECHL's Quad City Mallards finishing with 16 points (9 G, 7 A) during the 2017-18 season
-Won the WHL Championship with Seattle in 2016-17 and had one goal in three games
in the 2017 Memorial Cup Tournament
-Went to the same high school in Manitoba as Golden Knights 2017 first round pick Cody Glass