Today, the guys revisit one of the most interesting, and debated, drafts in recent history, the 2017 NHL Draft, and reflect on how it has panned out nine years later. The class featured some of the best players currently in the league including Cale Makar, Nico Hischier, Nick Suzuki, Miro Heiskanen, and Jason Robertson, as well as some picks that just didn’t pan out like Nolan Patrick and Lias Andersson. Plus, to close things out, the guys break down Scott’s latest NHL Draft rankings.
#nhl #nhldraft #hockey
0:00 Intro
1:00 The “Nico Hischier vs. Nolan Patrick” debate hasn’t withstood the test of time
3:11 Is Nick Suzuki the best forward from this class?
4:47 Gabriel Vilardi is a unique case from this draft
8:09 How has the Detroit Red Wings picking Michael Rasmussen at No. 9 panned out?
9:39 Thoughts on the wingers taken in the 2017 first round
12:33 Jason Robertson vs. Drake Batherson
17:43 Klim Kostin’s draft year struggles
19:55 Cale Makar and Miro Heiskanen save the defense from this draft
27:13 Jake Oettinger is the standout from the 2017 goalie class
27:51 Lias Andersson is the most disastrous pick from this draft
30:21 Things should’ve gone terribly for the Vegas Golden Knights in the 2017 draft
34:05 The guys redraft the top ten
37:07 Scott’s latest 2026 NHL Draft ranking
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12 Comments
Rasmussen at 9 was thought to be a mistake when it happened and has remained a mistake he’s a below replacement level player while getting worse every year
As a Flyers fan… how dare you??
Makar
Heiskanen
Robertson
Necas
Hiscier
Thomas
Suzuki
Not Moose
There's a passage in "Moneyball" where there's a human fallacy in scouting that you can't help but assume it was fate that you saw a certain prospect to justify the countless hours on the road. I happened to be visiting friends in Seattle in 2016 and saw a game where Brandon (Nolan Patrick) won the WHL championship. When the Devils won the draft lottery a year later, I couldn't help but think it couldn't have been a coincidence that I saw that game. Patrik Elias had retired the previous season, so replacing a Patrik with a Patrick seemed fitting.
https://youtu.be/26bgeUAbXNw?si=_BZ5Z5ayvPldBsFJ&t=36
I flew to Chicago for that draft with Hischier and Patrick nameplates and ended up being on the Sportsnet broadcast briefly after Nico was picked. There was a rumor that Makar was in the discussion. I was seated near the NBCSN production crew and one of the guys spoiled the pick for me, but he was just trying to help me get on TV.
The TSN/NBCSN broadcast mentioned how Vegas (in their first draft) was trying to make a splash to land Patrick at #1 (they'd get him a few years later). Darren Dreger mentioned that the Devils were open to offers but were only willing to drop to #3 (in that scenario at least one of Hischier/Makar would have still been available). Vegas approached Dallas about trading down from #3 but were rebuffed. Dallas apparently also turned down #7 + #21 from the Rangers who sounded like they wanted Elias Pettersson and knew they had to leapfrog Vancouver at #5.
Crazy how Avs dropped from 1st to 4th and still had the best player from the draft 😂
Jack Hughes could’ve been drafted by the Avs. At the time I was more pissed when they lost that lottery 😆 imagine MacKinnon and Hughes as your 1-2 centers
as a Flyers fan I dread recalling this draft….it killed the Flyers franchise and lifted the Dallas Stars to prominence. Both clubs had three picks in the top 39 picks. Flyers came away with Patrick, Frost and Isaac Ratcliffe. Dallas came away with Heiskanen, Oettinger and Jason Robertson. Unbelievable!!!. I actually thought Frost was okay, but they gave him away to avoid having to sign him to a contract when he was about to become a UFA….they traded Frost and Farabee to Calgary and virtually got nothing back in return except to free up cap space.
Rangers could have had Suzuki, Necas, Vilardi at 7 and Jason Robertson at 21 😠
If detroit could go back and not draft trashmussen!
What a terrible draft class for Ken Holland. An absolute waste of a draft! Him and Tyler Wright were useless in the 2010s
Rasmussen was such a wasted opportunity. Nothing personal against the guy, but it could’ve solved our 2C situation with multiple guys drafted after him. Will be glad to get him off the books unfortunately. I wish he would’ve worked out, but I am ready to move on.