First round nothings (a celebration)

[mv23]

Couple of years ago (a lot of projects going at the same time ) after reading Terry Ryan's "Tales Of A First-round Nothing: My Life as an NHL Footnote", I started looking into players who were drafted in the first round but never made it to the NHL (Ryan did play 8 games in the NHL but gave me the inspiration here).
Here is my celebration of these extremely talented hockey players who for whatever reason were never able to take that final step from being a first round draft pick to play in the NHL.
I'm skipping the 1963 to 1978 Amateur Drafts and starting from 1979, when they started calling it the Entry Draft.

1979
None (all played in the NHL)

Well sort of starting from 1979. This was an exceptional year, largely helped by the "juniors" from the disbanded WHA who were now eligible for the NHL draft. Even the player with the least NHL games from the first round of this year's draft, Ray Allison, was relatively established with 238 career NHL games.

1980

14th overall by the NY Rangers Jim Malone C Toronto Marlboros [OHA]

Jim is the little brother of Greg Malone (700 NHL games with the Penguins, Whalers, Nordiques) and father of Brad Malone (currently with the Oilers). His career was cut short by a knee injury which eventually forced him to retire after the 1984-85 season. Jim played in three of the big minor leagues of the time (AHL/CHL/IHL) with a combined total of 66 points in 146 games. No cardboard appearances for him so we will have to do with this photo of him with the Tulsa Oilers (Central Hockey League).

1981

17th overall by the Buffalo Sabres Jiri Dudacek Kladno [CZE]
“Dudacek” - would be the answer to the question of who was the first Czechoslovak player drafted in the first round of the NHL Entry Draft. He never made it to North America (I guess at that time it would have meant defecting from Czechoslovakia) but represented his nation in two Canada Cups. Jiri has 400 games and 293 points in the Czechoslovakian league to his name. His only card/sticker appearance seems to be from the 1983 Semic World Championships sticker set, although he never made the final cut to play in that tournament.

19th overall by the Montreal Canadiens Jan Ingman Farjestads BK Karlstad [SEL]
Jan Ingman played his whole career for Farjestad in the top league in Sweden and racked up 244 points in 339 games. He never represented Sweden in any Olympics or adult World Championships. Jan appears in several Semic/Panini stickers from the elite league in Sweden

20th overall by the St. Louis Blues Marty Ruff D Lethbridge Broncos [WHL]

Marty Ruff is one of the four Ruff brothers, Lindy being naturally the most famous. His career was ended by a knee injury as well. Marty combined for 29 points in 96 games in IHL/CHL before his retirement. No cards as far as I know and I could not track down any photos etc on Ebay.


1982
19th overall by the Montreal Canadiens Alain Heroux F Chicoutimi Sagueneens [QMJHL]

Alain played 52 games and gathered 20 points over two seasons in the AHL. I don't know much about Alan, apart from the fact that his brother Yves was a one game wonder in the NHL. No cards for Alain as far as I know.

1983
None (all played in the NHL)
The weakest link, judging by games played, was the current Head Coach of the Boston Bruins, Bruce Cassidy, with 36.

1984

13th overall by the Minnesota North Stars David Quinn D Kent H.S. [Conn.]

It says something about David Quinn's character and his love for the game that he ever played in the minor leagues at all. In 1986 he was diagnosed with a rare disorder which prevents his blood from clotting properly and he was forced to retire from the game. In 1992 David was able to find funding to fight the disorder and presume his playing career. He played half a season in the AHL and almost a full season in IHL before retiring in 1993. David totalled 21 points in 79 across these two minor leagues. He is better known as a coach, currently with the NY Rangers.

20th overall by the NY Islanders Duncan MacPherson D Saskatoon Blades [WHL]
Several years ago I remember reading articles about Duncan MacPherson. There are some very well written ones for example the one in the Esquire magazine which should be easy to find online. Unfortunately, his is not a happy story. In 1989 Duncan had given up hope of making it into the NHL and left to play in Scotland after 157 games in the AHL/IHL combined, with 31 points on the score sheet. Before he ever made it to Scotland he went missing in Austria whilst on skiing holiday. His body was found only 14 years later in 2003 in the mountains under melting ice and snow.


1985

17th overall by the Calgary Flames Chris Biotti D Belmont Hill H.S. [Mass.]

Couldn't gather much info about Biotti, apart from the fact that he is Harvard educated and a successful banker. He played three seasons with the Salt Lake Golden Eagles (189 games, 74 points) in the IHL, before heading to Italy for three seasons.


1986
16th overall by the Calgary Flames George Pelawa Bemidji H.S. [Minn.]

Pelawa's life was sadly cut very short. He died in a car accident three months after the draft.

1987

19th overall by the Calgary Flames Bryan Deasley L U. of Michigan [CCHA]
Deasley mostly played in the IHL, where he appeared in 211 games for Salt Lake, registering 107 points. He also played half a season in the AHL with the Halifax Citadels where he registered 20 points in 37 games.

21st overall by the Edmonton Oilers Peter Soberlak L Swift Current Broncos [WHL]
Soberlak spent his whole professional career with the Cape Breton Oilers. He managed 70 points in 152 games. A search on the interwebs also tells me that he was a very good fighter, but unfortunately (or fortunately) he absolutely hated it.

1988

16th overall by the NY Islanders Kevin Cheveldayoff D Brandon Wheat Kings [WHL]

These days everybody knows Cheveldayoff as the General Manager of the Jets, but he was a punishing d-man drafted 16th overall by the Islanders in 1987. In 276 AHL/IHL games he sat 642 minutes in the sin bin. He was also a casualty of a career ending knee injury.

17th overall by the Detroit Red Wings Kory Kocur R Saskatoon Blades [WHL]
Kory Kocur is Joey's cousin which I remember from Kory's Score card. He is one of those players from the early 90s who have an RC card but never played in the NHL. Kory was more of a finesse player, getting near point per game in roughly 150 IHL games. He was much less productive in the AHL, but definitely never a fighter.

1989

15th overall by the Edmonton Oilers Jason Soules D Niagara Falls Thunder [OHL]

Not sure what happened to Soules but he only appeared 52 times for the Cape Breton Oilers, notching 9 assists. He also made it to an Upper Deck NHL card as an Oiler, but let's keep the style intact and go here with his AHL card instead.

Will make a break here and take on the 90s next time around

 

[gomaz]

Cool info and stories. Thanks for enlightening us!

 

[richie.rocket.cards]

This is a cool thread, I appreciate a celebration of lesser known players in the game!
From an autograph standpoint, these are way harder to come by than a lot of the superstar 1st rounders.

Cool that you have Malone...are you going to track down the other former players on the list above?

 

[TanguayFan]

This is awesome to read. I can't wait to read your report on the 90's. That will bring back some memories for sure. LOL

 

[creasecollector]

This is a fun little project here, great job so far.

 

[gobuffalo2331]

Interesting stuff there

 

[bto3105]

I gotta ask.... How the heck did come to read Terry Ryan's book and your in Finland ?

I knew Terry did a plug on Sportsnet here in Canada but really only thought people from Newfoundland would read it. Guess I was wrong and I'm sure Terry is loving his book was read across the pond.

Such a great thread and enjoyed some of those facts.

 

[99goals]

Ya this was dope ..

 

[mv23]

Thanks for all the comments guys!
Not necessarily looking for the autographs here, just happened to get that Malone as it was really the only item available. Would love to get some sort of a photo of Marty Ruff and the others who have no official cards.

I gotta ask.... How the heck did come to read Terry Ryan's book and your in Finland ?

I knew Terry did a plug on Sportsnet here in Canada but really only thought people from Newfoundland would read it. Guess I was wrong and I'm sure Terry is loving his book was read across the pond.

Such a great thread and enjoyed some of those facts.

Can't remember how I found the book, but I like reading the less well known stories. For example: Val James - Black Ice, Zamboni Rodeo: Chasing Hockey Dreams from Austin to Albuquerque, The Tropic of Hockey, Tod Hartje - From Behind the Red Line: A North American Hockey Player in Russia (*1992 when nobody was yet doing it). I can see that the Ryan book was reviewed what I would say to be the main hockey site in Finland, so people must be reading it! No Finnish translation though (don't think there will be)

 

[mv23]

The 90s

On to the golden 90's then.

1990

13th overall by the NY Rangers Michael Stewart D Michigan State University [CCHA]
Michael Stewart played roughly 250 games in the AHL and another 250 in the IHL, before heading to play in Europe. He became naturalised as an Austrian and represented his adopted country in two World Championships. After 10 seasons in Europe as a player, he retired after the 2009-10 and went straight into coaching. He is currently the head coach of Augsburg in the top level in Germany.

17th overall by the Edmonton Oilers Scott Allison W Prince Albert Raiders [WHL]
Scott Allison also has a Score RC card with him wearing the Edmonton Oilers jersey. He continues the terrible luck for the Oilers in the late 80s, early 90s draft. Allison went over to play in Europe after roughly 300 games and 700 penalty minutes in the minors.

1991

17th overall by the Montreal Canadiens Brent Bilodeau D Seattle Thunderbirds [WHL]

Bilodeau was born in Dallas, Texas. His father Yvon was playing for the Dallas Black Hawks at the time. Brent spent the biggest chunk of his career in the ECHL where he appeared 414 games and registered 542 penalty minutes. After retiring in 2004-05 as a player he went directly in to coaching and made stops in the ECHL, CHL and WHL.

1992

7th overall by the Philadelphia Flyers Ryan Sittler L Nichols [N.Y. H.S.]
Darryl (8th, 1970) and Ryan Sittler (7th) were the first father and son to be drafted in the top ten of the NHL draft. Ryan played 121 games in the AHL with 39 points and 111 games in the ECHL with 65 points. He made it into some Upper Deck Junior Cards and also the above Images card with the Hershey Bears. Serious injuries cut his career short. He still seems to be very much involved in hockey as Director of Youth Hockey in West Palm Beach, Florida.

21st overall by the Vancouver Canucks Libor Polasek C Vitkovice [Czech.]
Polasek played over 4 different seasons in the AHL scoring only 20 times in 189 games. He continued his career in Czech Republic until the 2009-10 season.

22nd overall by the Detroit Red Wings Curtis Bowen L Ottawa 67's [OHL]
Curtis Bowen played parts of three different seasons with the Adirondack Red Wings in the AHL and part of one season with the Manitoba Moose in the IHL. He then went onto play 7 more seasons in England and in Northern Ireland and is probably best known on this side of the pond as one time boyfriend of Christine Bleakley.

1993

18th overall by the Calgary Flames Jesper Mattsson R Malmo IF [SEL]
Saint John was Mattsson's home for the 2 and half seasons he spent in NA. He finished with 96 points in 141 games. That doesn’t sound so bad, not sure why he was never given the chance to try in the NHL. He had a good career once returning back to Sweden, where he continued to play until the 2011-12 season. He represented Sweden in two World Championships and is currently the Assistant Coach for Malmo in the Swedish Elite League.

24th overall by the Chicago Blackhawks Eric Lecompte L Hull Olympiques [QMJHL]
If not taking Junior hockey into consideration, NLB (the second highest level) in Switzerland was the league where Lecompte played the most games with 211 games played. Lecompte's last appearance was in the LNAH with the Thetford Mines Isothermic during the 2012-13 season.


1994

15th overall by the Washington Capitals Alexander Kharlamov R CSKA Moscow [Russia]
Alexander Kharlamov was part of the Russian Penguins who played against all the 13 IHL teams during the 1993-94 season. Those games counted as points for the IHL standings. Would love to see some clips of the Russian Penguins playing against IHL teams but at least a quick search did not bring any results. Apart from that brief appearance in the IHL, Kharlamov also played in the AHL for the Portland Pirates, registering 56 points in 121 games.

21st overall by the Boston Bruins Evgeni Ryabchikov G Molot Perm (Russia)
Over three different seasons Ryabchikov played in 16 games for the AHL Bruins. Apart from that he only played in the lower leagues such as ECHL and WPHL before heading back to Russia.

22nd overall by the Quebec Nordiques Jeff Kealty D Catholic Memorial H.S. [Mass.]
Not sure why Kealty stopped playing after only 71 games for the Milwaukee Admirals in the AHL, but I am guessing an injury. He has been scouting ever since and is currently the Director of Scouting for the Nashville Predators.

1995

12th overall by the San Jose Sharks Teemu Riihijarvi R K-Espoo Jrs. (Finland)

Before 1995 only one Finnish born player, the "other" Teemu (Teemu Selanne) had been drafted higher (10th overall) than Teemu Riihijarvi (Aki Berg then went 3rd overall in 1995). San Jose had a bit of fixation on Finnish players this year as they selected 6 Finns altogether. Only Vesa Toskala ended up making it to NHL out of those players. Riihijarvi was a very big player, but did not use his size. He was a 3rd - 4th liner in Finland and Sweden, never really close to making it to NHL. At least his high draft status meant that he made it to plenty of these Classic-Upper Deck junior sets.


1996

22nd overall by the NY Rangers Jeff Brown D Sarnia Sting [OHL]
Jeff Brown (b. 1978) not to be confused with Jeff Brown (b. 1966) who played nearly 750 NHL games. This Jeff Brown only managed 72 games and 6 assists in the AHL, spending most of his career in the lower Northern American leagues and in Britain. He has two very tough to find AHL team issues, which I could not locate, so here we go with a card from his final professional season (2006-07) in the UHL with the Kalamazoo Wings

23 rd overall by the Pittsburgh Penguins Craig Hillier G Ottawa 67's [OHL]
Craig Hillier got all the way to open the gate at the NHL when he served as a backup goalie for the Penguins during few games in the late 90s. He also played 47 games in the AHL before heading to Europe via ECHL.


1997

15th overall by the Los Angeles Kings Matt Zultek L Ottawa 67's [OHL]
Matt Zultek was in fact drafted twice. The 2nd time was in 1999 when the Bruins waited until the 2nd round to draft him. He only managed 6 points in 43 career AHL games and spent most of his time in the ECHL.

19th overall by the NY Rangers Stefan Cherneski R Brandon Wheat Kings [WHL]
Cherneski was another victim of a knee injury. He injured his knee badly during his first professional season in 1998. He was forced to retire due to that injury in 2001 after only 40 professional games (all in the AHL) with 11 points.

26th overall by the Colorado Avalanche Kevin Grimes D Kingston Frontenacs [OHL]
Kevin Grimes played most of his career in the ECHL. He only appeared in 9 IHL games with no points and 17 penalty minutes. In the ECHL he sat 847 minutes in the sin bin in only 286 games so sounds like he must have been a tough customer.

1998

13th overall by the Edmonton Oilers Michael Henrich R Barrie Colts [OHL]
Henrich recorded 78 points in 219 AHL contests. He also spent 9 seasons in Europe, with stops in Sweden, Austria, Germany, Italy and England. He retired after the 2013-14 season.

1999

15th overall by the Phoenix Coyotes Scott Kelman C Seattle Thunderbirds [WHL]
98 games and 36 points for Kelman in the AHL. He also finished his career with Coventry Blaze in England as did Michael Henrich. Coventry attracts quite a lot of good players not because of the quality of the hockey but for the fact that they can offer their players to study in the local university.

24th overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs Luca Cereda C Ambri-Piotta [Swiss-A]
Cereda missed the whole of 2000-01 due to a heart condition. He was able to return to hockey and played 171 games and got 40 points for the St.John's Maple Leafs before returning to his native Switzerland. He retired from the game after the 2006-07 season and has been coaching ever since. He is currently the head coach of Ambri-Piotta in the Swiss Elite League.

27th overall by the New Jersey Devils Ari Ahonen G JyP HT Jyvaskyla [SM-liiga]
Ahonen was probably bit unlucky never to make it any further then the bench in the NHL. He was the back-up for the New Jersey Devils for 18 NHL games. There are plenty of NHL cards for him although he never officially iced in the NHL. He continued to play until last season, spending that year in Denmark.

And I will return with the noughties sooner or later!

 

[gobuffalo2331]

Love those old Albany River Rat jerseys and team name

 

[TurcoCollector3]

Thanks for sharing this. Some very familiar names... Scott Kelman was a graduate of my high school, long before I attended it. Cherneski billeted with good friends of my parents and I got to meet him on several occasions when I was a lot younger. Have several signed cards and a game used stick somewhere. Love these post.

 

[Krakenfan]

My 14 year old son has Brent Bilodeau as his Rep hockey coach this season. Bilodeau has his two sons on the team. Really nice guy. On a side note I just got that Terry Ryan book signed last Saturday night. He was in town at the Tri-City Americans game signing books for anyone who bought one. He played his junior hockey for the Americans.

 

[JTMcCool]

What a cool idea! Thanks for sharing. Such high hopes for Luca Cereda!

 

[primetimepawich]

My 14 year old son has Brent Bilodeau as his Rep hockey coach this season. Bilodeau has his two sons on the team. Really nice guy.

I remember thinking Bilodeau was gonna be the hulking multi-purpose d-man and next big thing for my Habs. I even created him as a player in anticipation in the first Super Nintendo NHL games that had that feature. Alas, it wasn't to be.

 

[mv23]

Noughties onwards

Thanks for the comments! Great hearing all those stories - maybe these will bring back even more memories?

2000

15th overall by the Buffalo Sabres Artem Kryukov F Yaroslavl Torpedo [Russia]

Kryukov played his entire career in Russia. He seems to have retired after the 2015-16 season with 216 games and 53 points in his bag from the KHL.


2001

15th overall by the Carolina Hurricanes Igor Knyazev D Moscow Spartak [Russia]

Knyazev on the other hand did make it to NA but he only stayed for 2 seasons, notching only 14 points in 140 games for the Lowell Lock Monsters and Springfield Falcons in the AHL.
I believe there is a very rare Young Guns card showing Knyazev with the Hurricanes. As far as I have understood this was produced but never entered into packs as Knyazev did not qualify for a card
according to the regulations. Even in Russia it seems that he played mainly in the lower leagues, only managing 111 games in the top level.

18th overall by the Los Angeles Kings Jens Karlsson L Vastra Frolunda HC [SEL]

Karlsson never made it to NA and split his time between the Elite league and the 2nd highest league in Sweden.

28th overall by the New Jersey Devils Adrian Foster C Saskatoon Blades [WHL]

Adrian Foster played in 205 AHL games and also made a European tour with stops in Austria, Latvia, Germany and Sweden. He was last seen with the Stony Plain Eagles of the Chinook Hockey League in 2015-16.

2002

15th overall by the Edmonton Oilers Jesse Niinimaki C Ilves Tampere [SM-liiga]

Jesse Niinimaki played 24 games for the Edmonton Roadrunners in the AHL and scored a goal in those games.
He played a long career in Finland with some good seasons, but never lived up to the hype.
He was last seen playing in the Belarussian league (not KHL).

19th overall by the Phoenix Coyotes Jakub Koreis C Plzen HC [Czech]

Jakub Koreis, a big center, played three seasons in the AHL for Utah Grizzlies and San Antonio Rampage. He scored 14 times in 226 games. He retired from playing after the 2016-17 season which he spent in the Czech League. He scored 32 times in 441 games in that league, so judging by the numbers he was a defensive center.

26th overall by the Dallas Stars Martin Vagner D Hull Olympiques [QMJHL]

Martin Vagner dropped "quite" a bit in the draft when re-entering it in 2004. He was drafted 268th overall by the Carolina Hurricanes.
His North American experience consists of four junior seasons in QMJHL. He is still playing in the Czech 2nd Division for Usti Nad Labem

27th overall by the San Jose Sharks Mike Morris F St. Sebastian's [Mass. H.S.]

Mike Morris' career was cut short by injuries, he only managed 26 games and 13 points over two seasons for the Worcester Sharks before having to retire.

2003
None (all played in the NHL)

2004

12th overall by the Minnesota Wild A.J. Thelen D Michigan State University [CCHA]

Thelen played only 10 games in the AHL and 210 in the ECHL. He was forced to retire at the age of 25 due to his history of concussions.

30th overall by the Tampa Bay Lightning Andy Rogers D Calgary Hitmen [WHL]

Rogers made his professional debut with the Springfield Falcons in 2006-07. He appeared in 48 games for them which unfortunately turned out to be the most games he played in any of his professional seasons.
He retired after the 2009-10 season with 10 assists and 109 games to his name in the AHL.


2005

13th overall by the Buffalo Sabres Marek Zagrapan C Chicoutimi Sagueneens [QMJHL]

Zagrapan is still only 32 years old and playing in the Slovakian Elite League. During his last North American season he registered 49 points in 80 games for the Portland Pirates.

14th overall by the Washington Capitals Sasha Pokulok D Cornell University [ECAC]

Pokulok is active in the LNAH, having just finished his seventh season in that league. He appeared in only 68 AHL and 93 ECHL games before heading to Europe.

16th overall by the Atlanta Thrashers Alex Bourret R Lewiston MAINEiacs [QMJHL]

Bourret has also played the last seven seasons in the LNAH. He managed 100 points in 176 AHL games, and 86 points in 84 ECHL games.

2006

19th overall by the Anaheim Mighty Ducks Mark Mitera D U. of Michigan [CCHA]

Mitera appeared in 185 AHL games and registered 40 points. He retired after the 2012-13 season, which he spent mostly with the Reading Royals of the ECHL.

20th overall by the Montreal Canadiens David Fischer D Apple Valley H.S. (Minn)

After being drafted in 2006 David Fischer proceeded to play the next four seasons for the University of Minnesota. He then only played 2 AHL games and 129 ECHL games after turning pro. He has now played the last 7 seasons in Europe. Currently with an Austrian team from Klagenfurt.

24th overall by the Buffalo Sabres Dennis Persson D Vasteras IK [Swe-1]

Persson played parts of 4 seasons (171 GP and 33 PTS) in the AHL for Portland Pirates and Rochester Americans. He seems to have retired after the 2015-16 having spent most of his career in Sweden.



2007

17th overall by the NY Rangers Alexei Cherepanov R Omsk Avangard [Russia]

Most people will know the sad story of Alexei Cherepanov. He died during a KHL game due to a suspected heart failure at the age of 19.
His jersey #7 is retired by Avangard Omsk and the Rookie Trophy in KHL has been renamed the Alexei Cherepanov throphy.

19th overall by the Anaheim Mighty Ducks Logan MacMillan L Halifax Mooseheads [QMJHL]

Logan MacMillan is the son of former NHLer Bob MacMillan. Logan played last season for the Manchester Storm in England. He played 72 games in the AHL with 12 points.

20th overall by the Pittsburgh Penguins Angelo Esposito C Quebec Remparts [QMJHL]

Esposito retired from playing after the 2016-17 season which he spent in the Czech 2nd Division. He spent parts of four seasons in Europe also making stops in Italy and Finland. His AHL career consists of 38 points in 124 games.

25th overall by the Vancouver Canucks Patrick White C Tri-City Storm [USHL]

Patrick White is quite a common name so did not manage to dig out too much information about him. After being drafted White played the following four seasons for the University of Minnesota.
That is off course not odd, but the fact that he then went to play on the fourth highest level in Germany does come across as a strange decision.
The last season before retiring from hockey he spent in France with Dijon. He also played 26 KHL games without points.

30th overall by the Phoenix Coyotes Nick Ross D Regina Pats [WHL]


Nick Ross has spent the last 7 seasons in Europe mainly with Innsbruck in Austria. He is a fairly productive defenseman over there. In AHL he registered 27 points in 115 games.

2008

11th overall by the Chicago Blackhawks Kyle Beach L Everett Silvertips [WHL]

Kyle Beach has also played in Austria. He had a dominating season with 30 goals and 123 penalty minutes in 54 games during the 2016-17 season. For the 2018-19 season he transferred to the second highest level in Germany and seems to be heading to Slovakia for the next season.
He played in the AHL for quite a long period with 208 games, 83 points and 480 penalty minutes.

18th overall by the Nashville Predators Chet Pickard G Tri-City Americans [WHL]

Due to his back-up duties for the Predators, Chet Pickard has several NHL cards as well. He is currently playing in Germany, having spent the last five seasons in Europe.

21st overall by the Washington Capitals Anton Gustafsson C Frolunda Jrs [Sweden]

Anton Gustafsson has played only 1 AHL game and got 2 assists in that game. Capitals at the time were thinking that it would be better for him to play in Europe so loaned him
to a Swedish club. He came back the following season, but failed to make either the Caps or the Bears AHL squad. He then refused to play in the ECHL and the Caps suspended his contract.
He has continued to play in Switzerland ever since. He is the son of 80s Caps great Bengt-Ake Gustafsson and would have been a special story if the son would have become a star for the Caps.

29th overall by the Atlanta Thrashers Daultan Leveille C St. Catharines Falcons [GHJHL]

Daultan Leveille was the first player in NHL history to be drafted out of a Jr. B level league in the first round. He played a full College career after being drafted.
He mainly played in the ECHL and also 24 games in the AHL with 4 points. He split the last season of his playing career (2016-17) between three different ECHL teams.


2009

27th overall by the Carolina Hurricanes Philippe Paradis L Shawinigan Cataractes [QMJHL]

Paradis last AHL season was for the Syracuse Crunch in 2015-16. He has 249 AHL games to his name. He has also appeared in 5 ECHL games. He did not play during the 2016-17 season, but has returned since and played in Slovenia last season. He is only 28 years old.


2010
None (all played in the NHL)

2011

22nd overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs Tyler Biggs R U.S. National Development Team [USHL]

Tyler Biggs is still only 26. He split the last season between the Kalamazoo Wings of the ECHL and Nottingham Panthers of EIHL (England). He has appeared in 119 AHL games.
His dad, Don, played 12 games in the NHL and recorded a 138 points season in the AHL.
Meanwhile I have to do with the Panini card without a picture of him (that is why I bought the print). He also appears in the 2012-13 Oshawa Generals team set, but so far I have been unable to locate a copy. Let me know if you can help!
The front of the Panini card is poor without the rights to the photo, but I like the back which is a really informative right-up.

28th overall by the Minnesota Wild Zack Phillips C Saint John Sea Dogs [QMJHL]

Phillips has spent the last three seasons in Europe (Sweden, England and Hungary). He has also played in 260 AHL games.

2012
None (all played in the NHL)


2013
None (all played in the NHL)


And here I draw the line. It is off course possible (although unlikely) that some of the players above will still make a debut, but most of the guys below will likely make a debut or in any case too early to tell (I will be back with an update in 2030 ) Here is the list of the players from the last few years who have not made a debut yet:


2014
23rd Colorado Conner Bleackley C Red Deer Rebels [WHL]

2015
None (all played in the NHL)


2016
25th Dallas Riley Tufte L Fargo Force [USHL]
28th Washington Lucas Johansen D Kelowna Rockets [WHL]

2017
28th Ottawa Shane Bowers C Waterloo Black Hawks [USHL]


2018
19th Philadelphia Jay O'Brien C Thayer Academy (US H.S.)
21st San Jose Ryan Merkley D Guelph Storm [OHL]
24th Minnesota Filip Johansson D Leksands IF [Swe-1]
25th St. Louis Dominik Bokk L Vaxjo HC [SweHL]
26th Ottawa Jacob Bernard-Docker D Okotoks Oilers [AJHL]
28th NY Rangers Nils Lundkvist D Lulea HF [SweHL]
30th Detroit Joe Veleno C Drummondville Voltigeurs [QMJHL]
31st Washington Alexander Alexeyev D Red Deer Rebels [WHL]

2019 - at least this one is way too early to tell

And few random stats as a bonus

1st round “nothings” by team:

5: Oilers (Soberlak, Soules, Allison, Henrich, Niinimaki), Rangers (Malone, Stewart, Brown, Cherneski, Cherepanov)
4: Canadiens, Flames, Sabres
3: Capitals, Coyotes
2: Blackhawks, Canucks, Devils, Hurricanes, Islanders, Kings, Maple Leafs, Mighty Ducks, Penguins, Red Wings, Sharks, Thrashers, Wild
1: 9 different teams

Highest draft pick: Ryan Sittler 7th Overall

Thanks for the look!

 

[creasecollector]

Nice update! I especially like reading about those goalies.

 

[steveottfan]

Great project. I'm doing the same thing but with autographs but I'm nowhere near complete. This is awesome.

 

[CeddieB]

Cool post. Thanks for sharing.

This project requires a lot of patience!