Broadcaster Blog: 2013 NHL Draft Helped Shape Preds and Avs Series

As we went through Round One, it struck me how much the 2013 NHL Draft had impacted the Predators and Avalanche series. That draft was full of surprises because there was so much mystery heading into it.
Days before the choices began, we spoke to TSN Draft Analyst Craig Button on Slapshot Radio. There was so much pre-draft intrigue as the draft order was set with Colorado, Florida and Tampa Bay just ahead of Nashville.
Coming off the 48-game season, Colorado had allowed the fourth-most goals in the League (Nashville was 11th). The Avs did have 25-year-old Erik Johnson and 21-year-old Tyson Barrie on defense, but that was about it. So clearly, the Avalanche's priority should have been defense:
With all of that in mind, it seemed Colorado was set on Nathan MacKinnon. At the time, Draftniks also had centers Alexander Barkov and Jonathan Drouin (MacKinnon's teammate with the Halifax Mooseheads of the QMJHL) as the other most desirable forwards. Shane Malloy of NHL Network Radio's Hockey Prospects Radio, commented on another scenario:
As it turned out, the Avalanche were not posturing. As expected, they got an excellent player in MacKinnon. Only one other player from that draft has scored more goals (Calgary's Sean Monahan with 138) than MacKinnon's 114.

Aleksander Barkov, who some had opined would end up with Nashville in the fourth spot, instead went second to the Florida Panthers, so if the Predators were dreaming of "settling" for a physical top center, those hopes were dashed. At that point, there was no concern at the Predators' draft table, because Nashville General Manager David Poile knew who he would pick if everything fell into place.
Almost as soon as the Lightning anointed Jonathan Drouin with their selection, Poile sprinted to the podium to announce Seth Jones as the Predators' pick. Jones is a big (6-foot-4, 210 pound) defenseman. He was 19 when his rookie season began with the Predators. He played 199 games for Nashville, never getting significant time playing in the top four, with Roman Josi, Shea Weber, Mattias Ekholm and Ryan Ellis ahead of him.
In early January of 2016, the Predators had a chance to acquire Ryan Johansen, a (6-foot-3, 203 pound) center from Columbus. The Blue Jackets would not make the deal without the inclusion of Jones. The Predators' centers at that time were Mike Ribeiro, Mike Fisher, Calle Jarnkrok and Paul Gaustad. The deal was struck on Jan. 6.
Jones has gone on to play on the top pairing in Columbus and has prospered. While the Predators did not get Barkov, Ryan Johansen is now the pivot on the Predators "JOFA" line, so both sides did well with that trade.
Going into the upcoming series with the Winnipeg Jets, the Predators have won five playoff rounds since that 2016 trade, and they need the size Johansen offers, along with the grit and scoring provided by another 2013 first-round draftee - Ryan Hartman (obtained this season from Chicago) - as they go against the size and speed of Winnipeg.
And so much of this started with the intrigue of the 2013 NHL Draft!