Here are the first-round results from every draft since 2003, including trades made during the opening round.
The NHL Entry Draft consists of seven rounds, with each team assigned one pick in each round. Draft picks can be traded at any time.
Draft Order
The Draft Lottery
The selection order in the first round is subject to a lottery, held among the teams that hold the top 14 picks. There is only one winning team in the lottery. That team moves up a maximum of four places in the draft order. The lottery is weighted to favor the teams with the fewest points. It was introduced to prevent a weak team from deliberately losing to guarantee itself a high draft pick.
Eligible Players
Players who turn 18 by September 15 and are not older than 20 by December 31 are eligible for selection. In addition, non-North American players over the age of 20 are eligible.
A North American player who is not drafted by the age of 20 is an unrestricted free agent. All non-North Americans must be drafted before being signed, regardless of age.
Re-entering the Draft
A player not signed by his NHL team within two years of being drafted can re-enter the draft, as long as he is 20 years old or younger at the time of the subsequent draft. Players over 20 become unrestricted free agents.
NCAA players are an exception: NHL teams retain the rights to a college player until 30 days after the player has left college.
A team that does not sign a first-round draft pick is awarded a compensatory pick in a future draft upon losing the rights to that player.
A player who has been drafted a second time cannot re-enter.
Recent Changes
The NHL Entry Draft: A Brief History
The NHL Amateur Draft (later renamed the NHL Entry Draft) was introduced in 1963 to ensure equitable distribution of talent among teams. Up until then, player acquisition was strictly a case of first come, first served, with teams “sponsoring” - or reserving - amateur players as quickly as they could find them.
Because teams retained all players sponsored prior to 1963, there was little quality talent available in the early years of the draft and it was not unusual for teams to decline their picks. But by 1969 a new generation of unsponsored players was coming of age, and the draft quickly expanded to become a vital tool in team building.
The early draft years focused almost exclusively on Canadian junior players. But the event now reflects the international diversity of the NHL. In 2002, the 290 players drafted included 110 from Europe, 101 from Canadian Major Junior leagues, 41 from the NCAA, six from U.S. high schools and 32 from other North American leagues.
Despite today’s highly advanced and thorough scouting methods, the evaluation and selection of young hockey players remains an inexact science. NHL stars who gained little notice during their draft years include Brett Hull (selected 117th in 1984), Peter Bondra (156th in 1990) and Daniel Alfredsson (130th in 1994). Ed Belfour, Curtis Joseph and Adam Oates are among those who were never drafted.
