THUNDER BAY – The NHL draft is where hockey dreams begin.
The New York Rangers will most certainly taken consensus top pick Alexis Lafreniere with the No. 1 pick and everything else should fall into line after that.
Back in the day, by now I’d have probably mocked out the first round, maybe two, trying to figure out without the Internet and only The Hockey News’ faithful draft guide, who was going where, what teams needed and essentially, where I wanted to see some of my favourite junior players land.
Today I spend a lot less time watching major junior hockey, too consumed with the Thunderwolves, North Stars and even the Kings, when I find time.
But this year’s draft brought me back to 2017, when Thunder Bay hosted the All-Ontario Bantam Championship.
Three years later, many of the players who suited up in that tournament are up for grabs in this year’s draft.
Two of them most certainly will hear their names called early on Tuesday night.
Quinton Byfield was the second-ranked North American skater, according to the NHL’s Central Scouting Bureau, and picked to go third, to Ottawa behind Lafreniere and Germany’s Tim Stuetzele, according to The Athletic’s Corey Pronman.
Byfield was clearly a star-in-the-making three years ago, a guy everyone said was going to be a top pick in 2020. He was the first overall selection of the Sudbury Wolves in 2018, and he showed why last season, scoring 82 points in 45 games as a sophomore in the Ontario Hockey League.
Then a forward with the York-Simcoe Express, he put up six goals and 14 points in eight games at Fort William Gardens, leading his team to the gold-medal game. His then teammate Evan Vierling is listed as the No.66 North American prospect, described as a speedy two-way player who can score and doesn’t mind doing the heavy work in the corners, according to EliteProspects’ 202o0 NHL Draft Guide. He was a point-a-game player for Flint and Barrie last season.
The Express would go on to lose that game to the Toronto Marlboros, led by budding blue-liner Jamie Drysdale, Central Scouting’s No. 3-ranked North American skater.
Pronman pegs Drysdale to go sixth, to the Anaheim Ducks. He scored once and had nine points for the champions, who have four other players who might be chosen over the two days of the NHL draft.
Forward Will Cuylle was the second-leading scorer in the tournament, collecting seven goals and 11 assists, and is ranked 34th among North American skaters.
The Athletic thinks he’ll slip a bit when European players are factored in, but still has the young left-winger going 48th to Montreal. He’s currently with the Windsor Spitfires, playing for Thunder Bay’s own Trevor Letowski.
Forward Stephen Halliday, who led all scorers in 2017, is ranked 123rd on the North American list and may be a target of the Philadelphia Flyers at No. 178 overall, according to the Athletic’s mock draft.
His former teammate, Reid Valade, is 148th on the Central Scouting chart and could be headed to the New York Rangers in the seventh round, if Pronman is bang on with his rankings.
Defenceman Lleyton Moore could also hear his name called, ranked 149th by Central Scouting. He led all defencemen with 17 points in 2017.
He’s ranked as high as 99th by Elite Prospects and put up six goals and 28 points for Oshawa last season.
If you were at the All-Ontario’s three years ago, there was plenty of potential future NHL talent in the building – including a couple of guys who could go in the top 5 in 2020.
