Newsday's NHL Mock Draft
Canada's Connor Bedard (16) shoots against Latvia during the second period of an IIHF junior world hockey championships game Wednesday, Aug. 10, 2022, in Edmonton, Alberta. Bedard, 17, who is highly anticipated to be selected first in the NHL draft by the Chicago Blackhawks, joins his fellow draft-eligible prospects in participating at the NHL combine. Credit: AP/JASON FRANSON
The biggest ovation(s) at Nashville's Bridgestone Arena during the upcoming NHL Draft will undoubtedly be for former Islanders coach Barry Trotz, who was behind Nashville’s bench from its inaugural season in 1998 until 2014, and for David Poile, the Predators’ first general manager who will officially turn over the job to Trotz on July 1.
That and Chicago making it official and selecting generational talent Connor Bedard first overall will highlight the two-day draft. The real suspense — and what may dictate how the early part of the draft goes — is at what point top Russian prospect Matvei Michkov, who has three seasons remaining on his KHL contract, gets picked.
The first round will be on Wednesday at 7 p.m. (ESPN) and rounds two through seven will be conducted the next day starting at 11 a.m. (NHL Network).
The Rangers will select 23rd overall while the Islanders again do not have a first-round selection, having sent what turned out to be the 17th overall pick to the Canucks — who in turn traded the pick to the Red Wings — as part of the package for Bo Horvat on Jan. 30. The Islanders last picked in the first round in 2019.
Newsday’s Mock Draft for the first round:
More Islanders
