While it's wise to draft the best player available, every NHL team's roster and prospect pipeline has certain distinct needs. Starting with the Eastern Conference, we assess what the Canadian franchises should prioritize adding June 27-28.
Check back Friday for our evaluation of the Western teams.
Montreal Canadiens
Top prospect: RW Ivan Demidov (2024, No. 5 overall)
Picks in Rounds 1-3: No. 16, 17, 41, 49, 79, 81, 82
Priority: Defenseman
General manager Kent Hughes is a savvy tactician, and because of his forethought in 2022, he gets to add multiple first-round talents to a strong pipeline.
Montreal was at the bottom of the standings when Hughes acquired a future Flames first-rounder - No. 16 this year - along with Sean Monahan's burdensome contract. The club rehabilitated Monahan's game and value, flipped him to the Jets for a 2024 first, and came away with breakout center Michael Hage.
Forwards headline the upper echelon of this draft. The Canadiens can zag and take a standout defenseman with one of their back-to-back picks. Blake Fiddler's an example of a big, mobile righty who could compete with Logan Mailloux and David Reinbacher to reach the NHL, fortify Montreal's defensive structure, and help future Demidov-led teams chase championships.
Some relevant context: The Islanders in 2018 were the last team to make consecutive picks in Round 1. They chose Oliver Wahlstrom at No. 11 and Noah Dobson at No. 12. The Devils muffed the seventh selection in 2020 (Alexander Holtz) but got better in one swoop by scooping Dawson Mercer at No. 18 and Shakir Mukhamadullin, who was later traded for Timo Meier, at No. 20.
Toronto Maple Leafs
Top prospect: RW Easton Cowan (2023, No. 28)
Picks in Rounds 1-3: No. 64, 86
Priority: Overlooked gem
In the process of acquiring Jake McCabe, Ilya Lyubushkin, and Ryan O'Reilly over the past several years, the Leafs offloaded all their own selections in Rounds 1 through 4. Their only picks in the span are Florida's second-rounder and Colorado's third-rounder.
GM Brad Treliving can throw a dart and take a chance on a skilled faller whose game has been underrated or nitpicked. He was at the table when the Leafs defied consensus by drafting Cowan with a late first. The slight yet relentless winger promptly grew a couple of inches and started torching OHL goalies.
Treliving's aspiration in Round 2 should be to mine a gem like Matthew Knies. The power winger slipped to 57th overall as an older member of the 2021 draft class. Knies ratcheted up his point production in college, sniffed 30 goals in his second NHL season, and is now beloved in Toronto.
Two brilliant recent second-rounders, Lane Hutson and Logan Stankoven, were knocked for being small. Their slides down the board look farcical in retrospect. Slick 5-foot-7 center Adam Benak - a top USHL scorer and NHL Central Scouting's 58th-ranked North American skater - is a guy who could tumble into Toronto's range, then outperform his stature and eventual draft slot.
Ottawa Senators
Top prospect: RHD Carter Yakemchuk (2024, No. 7)
Picks in Rounds 1-3: No. 21, 96
Priority: Impact skater
Because of the bare cupboard he inherited, position matters less to GM Steve Staios than the assurance his top pick will become a contributor.
Maligned predecessor Pierre Dorion brought in three cornerstones - Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stutzle, and Jake Sanderson - but proceeded to waste draft capital. Dorion reached to grab scuffling prospect Tyler Boucher in 2021 and dealt his next two first-rounders for Alex DeBrincat and Jakob Chychrun, who proved to be poor fits.
At least the DeBrincat trade tree sprouted branches and let the Senators add goalie Linus Ullmark. Set in net, they need to plug promising entry-level skaters into the lineup during the core's competitive window. Options in this class include Malcolm Spence, the energetic scoring winger headed to the University of Michigan, and Fiddler or Logan Hensler, who'd help the dynamic Yakemchuk strengthen the right side of the blue line.
No. 21 is a big selection for Staios. He swapped his second-round pick for Fabian Zetterlund and moved his third-rounder in a salary dump to be able to sign Shane Pinto. Unless the league relents and shows mercy, he'll forfeit next year's first as punishment for Dorion's failure to disclose Evgenii Dadonov's no-trade clause.
