I apologize for the delay in publishing this article, as personal obligations and technical setbacks conflicted with my usual publication timeline. We’re here now, and I will provide something of an introduction this time.

For as much as I was somewhat confused by this draft at times, particularly given its absurd amount of trade activity, it still provided me with my favorite aspect of any draft. Some value reaches of picks due to the potential to create chaos, but as a prospect tracker who appreciates these players’ individual journeys, I am fond of steals and high value selections due to the potential they open up for underdog tales of unexpected success or the chance to prove doubters wrong. This is why I’ve made a point for this article to be created after every draft. Now, then, who fit the narrative this year?

For the guys I already provided extensive, granular analysis of in my draft board, I will keep my comments somewhat abstract and succinct. For those that didn’t make the cut there but nevertheless deserve commendation for fitting the bill here, I will give them the same treatment the board selections got. Sound good? Okay, here we go:

9th overall, San Jose Sharks: D Keaton Verhoeff

At minimum, this was a top five worthy selection. In my eyes, Verhoeff is also the greatest defenseman in this class. He had one of the best offensive seasons you’ll ever see from a true freshman blueliner (as the fifth youngest player in all of college hockey), while also showing well-roundedness in other areas. The missing piece from the youth contingent for San Jose, with no disrespect intended at all to Sam Dickinson, was an unambigous future 1D. Verhoeff has that potential as an extremely rare archetype due to his physical build and playing style combo. As he continues to grow into himself, we will see just how much of a heist the Sharks pulled off here at ninth.

11th overall, St. Louis Blues: C Tynan Lawrence

Doug Armstrong is an executive I have had no hesitation subjecting to considerable criticism throughout the entire time Black Stitch Hockey’s operations have gone on. However, he did something worth respecting in his final draft before being surrendering the GM title to Alexander Steen and remaining solely as PoHO. Not only respecting, but commending, as Lawrence was drafted as the most likely future 1C in the 2026 draft class. This was a VASTLY better selection than Caleb Malhotra, who I do think has a solid NHL future in front of him nevertheless, at third overall. While his NCAA stint this season was a teeth cutting session with a young team, Lawrence is both dynamic and a smart player, and his strong production and impressive microstat profile in the USHL suggests a future All-Star in the NHL. The Blues may have their successor to Robert Thomas here, and they got him just outside the top ten.

17th overall, Utah Mammoth: LW Ethan Belchetz

The majority of goals in the NHL are scored in close. In Belchetz, the Mammoth have found someone who understands this all too well and puts it to practice to great results. Those who expect a traditional power forward will be disappointed, but those who understand how the role has evolved will be quite satisfied. Belchetz perfectly fits the contemporary version of the power forward archetype. I anticipate that he and Porter Martone in Philadelphia will be providing similar forms of entertainment and goal scoring in the coming years. Fittingly enough, Belchetz will be making the same leap that Martone did by taking his next dev steps to carve himself out even more at Michigan State, coming from the OHL.

23rd overall, Detroit Red Wings (from Boston via Utah): LW JP Hurlbert

Remember my point about not overthinking production when it looks THIS good? It happens to be the case that Byron Bader made a relevant observation when Detroit made this selection. This output has been consistent across Hurlbert’s journeyman path of sorts, wherein he has played for Dallas Stars Elite AAA, the US NTDP, and Kamloops in the WHL. Bader specifically highlights Matt Boldy as a high end potential outcome production-wise at the NHL level based off of his profile in the model. Detroit fans will certainly be excited to have that level of potential in the pipeline as they face an uncertain future as the Yzerplan still has yet to get them out of no man’s land at present, and will certainly be monitoring his progress in-state with the Wolverines this coming season.

28th overall, Anaheim Ducks (via Montreal and Vegas): LW Marcus Nordmark

However, it needs to be said that Anaheim made an even better value selection five picks later. Nordmark looks identical to Hurlbert in the Bader model. Additionally, his exceptional Z-Scores in his Lassi Alanen card have him as 96th percentile and 96th overall profile. When I first had eyes on him, he impressed me with the edgework and acceleration components of his skating and his ability to find soft ice and score goals from those dangerous spots. However, I feel as though what has gotten me the most in the long run is how his exceptional playmaking via his vision, passing ability, and processing has only evolved further since then. Nordmark has been on a strong trajectory, and while he had to cut his teeth in his SHL stint this year, I think he will acclimate to professional hockey just fine when all is said and done.

34th overall, Chicago Blackhawks: D Xavier Villeneuve

I had anticipated that Villeneuve’s uphill battle as a sub-6’0″ defenseman would lead him to day two selection status. However, Chicago recognized his value quite quickly and scooped him up as early as possible in the second round, accounting for the second pick of the round. I can’t stress it enough: In Villeneuve, they have a similar prospect to Chase Reid with exceptional Z-Scores up and down his Mitch Brown card (as well as the Bader model for production, with both looking pretty strong/identical to one another in it), with impressive skating ability in the form of true four-way mobility, as well as elite offensive awareness. We’re looking at what might be the biggest steal of the draft. What happens for him in Hockey East at the House that Jack Parker Built will be quite telling, and I’m fully expecting him to be a nightmare for in-conference rivals and a big assist in BU re-asserting themselves as a competitive program.

96th overall, Utah Mammoth (from Carolina): F Adam Valentini

This one is examining potential somewhat. I think that Valentini has some work to do in creating breakouts and playing offense off the puck, and his poor Z-Scores in his Brown card in the transition category reflect this. However, the confidence and strength will improve with development. As observed by Bader, guys who put up Valentini’s level of offensive productivity at 17 in the NCAA have a strong track record of success. You can see the company he’s in here. The success was not a fluke. His offensive zone awareness is exceptional and I think he has the capacity to take over shifts already when he has the puck on his stick. With more seasoning at Michigan next year and more chances to become sturdier, we could be looking at a very productive talent in the long run.