What’s Wrong With The NHL? The Draft: Last Is First
Guess what? The NHL has indicated that they are studying changes to the draft process. (They must have read last week’s article about the flawed NHL Draft lotter) However, one of the rumours coming out of NHL central is this change in policy:
“If a team obtains the number one draft in a given year, they automatically are disqualified from getting the first overall pick in the next year!”
Now, here is a seriously dumb idea. Teams don’t finish in last place year after year because they choose to! Teams that finish at the very bottom of the league in consecutive years really need the most help in improving. I believe that the NHL should change the draft odds for lower standing teams as indicated in our previous article on the subject, and the NHL should drop this idea of disqualifying the team that drafted number one overall from repeating that process in the following year.
Now, having said all of that, we have proof that getting the first overall pick multiple times in succession doesn’t guarantee success. Take the Edmonton Oilers who picked Taylor Hall, Ryan Nugent Hopkins and Nail Yakapov in three consecutive seasons. And after a season off from picking first, they drafted Connor McDavid number one overall in 2015. Scouting is critical to the lifeline of any NHL team. If you don’t scout players well, your team’s position in the draft is less important.
Final Thoughts
NHL hockey is a great game to watch! Some small tweaks could make it even better!
That’s what we think. What do you think?
By Garth Vanstone