Power Rankings: Dramatic Draft Photos

On one hand, the NHL Draft is the main source of where NHL teams prepare for the future: they choose players who they think can contribute to their team in the future.
On the other hand, the NHL Draft is also the source of many, many amazing and awkward photos of 17 and 18-year olds. In honor of the 2017 Draft, we went through some of the current Sharks draft photos and ranked them.

9. Danny O'Regan

No risks, no rewards. This ultra-safe photo ensures that O'Regan doesn't look silly, but it's also rather boring, which places this draft photo firmly at the bottom of this week's rankings.

8. Mikkel Boedker

Solid photo, but slightly awkward smile places him higher than than rookie but still near the bottom.

7. Kevin Labanc

Guess who was very happy he got drafted?
Kevin Labanc. Kevin Labanc was very happy he got drafted.

6. Tomas Hertl

This is the most somber Tomas Hertl has ever looked. The complete disconnect between this photo and Hertl in day-to-day life drops this photo down the rankings, even though his "taping his stick while keeping eye contact with the camera" skills are solid.

5. Pat Falloon & Ray Whitney

Solid contenders for "World's Most Awkward Handshake," the first two draft picks in San Jose Sharks history get middle of the pack status due to the historical nature of the photo in combination with how absurdly early 1990s it is (we can practically hear those ties with how loud they are).

4. Timo Meier

This is a photo of a guy who knows how to spell intense. Timo Meier brings the drama with this photo, though points are taken off for the slightly disconcerting lack of eye contact with the camera.

3. Logan Couture

How do you make holding a stick look jolly \and\ slightly awkward? Do what Logan Couture is doing in this photo. Points for not acting so serious.

2. Joe Thornton & Patrick Marleau

How often is it that the two top picks in one draft are the cornerstones of your team for over 10 years? Not often. And the fact that Joe Thornton and Patrick Marleau went 1 and 2 - while looking delighfully '90s in the process - almost takes them to the top spot.
BONUS: This isn't a draft photo, but it is a photo of 17-year-old Joe Thornton and his brothers that was found during the compilation of this power rankings that we found necessary to share.

1. Brent Burns

No contest.