Before we get to the annual list of draft winners and draft losers, let’s focus on the event’s biggest leader: Getting the draft up close and personal in Montreal again. It was the first time since 2019 in Vancouver that the NHL held a proper draft, with executives at tables in the middle of an arena, media working the interviews and fans joining in to celebrate the future of their teams. Having it in Montreal made the return to some semblance of normality all the more grand, and not just because NHL commissioner Gary Bettman was happy to lash out at those fans who booed him every time he took the podium. The packed crowd during Thursday night’s first round roared for the Canadiens, jeered the Toronto Maple Leafs and reacted to every unpredictable pick. That included the home team’s No. 1 overall pick, as winger Juraj Slafkovsky took over for center Shane Wright, who had been expected to go first overall for years. The noise the Montreal crowd made was part cheer, part jeer, part gasp, and part “what?” “I don’t think I even heard my name. I just heard ‘Slovak’ and then I was shocked and then I didn’t even hear,” Slafkowski said of the moment. “I was like shaking and having goose bumps. Yeah, incredible moment for me.” There were other jaw-dropping moments during the 2022 NHL Draft — as well as less awe-inspiring decisions. Here are some winners and losers for this year’s draft: (Potential) franchise centers are hard to find. Seattle got lucky when one landed in its lap. When Montreal selected Juraj Slafkovsky at No. 1, it set off a chain reaction by allowing Shane Wright — the previously presumed top pick in this draft — to reach the Kraken at No. 4. It was an incredible result for Seattle to land another The elite center after drafting last year’s top pivot Matty Beniers at No. 2. 2 Related Kraken general manager Ron Francis has said all along that he was going to build the franchise through the draft, not through explosive trades or elaborate free-agent signings. Now Francis has two backbones that can develop into anchors of Seattle’s top six for years to come. Wright in particular will come to Kraken with a chip on his shoulder, which was obvious even before he admitted it. When Wright took the stage Thursday after the Kraken’s call, he shook commissioner Gary Bettman’s hand while sweeping the Bell Center with a smile — until his gaze went to the Montreal Canadiens table and that smile turned into a stare down. No chill. More importantly, though, Wright is more NHL-ready than the average No. 4 pick. He’s also a dynamic, exciting player who will reinvigorate Kraken fans who, while understanding the need for patience, could use some more to cheer about since Seattle was one of the league’s bottom dwellers in 2021-22. Francis continued to stock the front office with other prospects, making a total of 11 picks in the 2022 draft. But none will be more widely accepted or quickly influential than Wright. Maybe we can’t give Francis all the credit for getting Wright, but his transparency certainly bodes well for Seattle’s future. — Shilton Shane Wright’s slide was good news for the Kraken. Dave Sandford/NHLI via Getty Images What’s going on in the Windy City? Because it’s not entirely clear, after the last two days anyway, what general manager Kyle Davidson’s plan is. First, there was the Alex DeBrincat trade on Thursday that sent Chicago’s dynamic wing scorer to Ottawa for … three draft picks? When DeBrincat is a 24-year-old with two 40-plus goal seasons already under his belt and a developing two-way game? Was this the return for a trade that shouldn’t even have happened? Credit to the Senators for making a bold move to grab DeBrincat — who is an unrestricted free agent after this season — but what was the benefit for Chicago? A looming question mark remains. Unless the Blackhawks are aiming to be even worse than last season, it doesn’t make much sense. Then there was the acquisition of Petr Mrazek from Chicago. The Blackhawks had no goaltenders signed for next season and obviously that needed to be addressed. But the Mrazek deal was a strange one. Everyone knew Toronto had to forfeit the final two years of Mrazek’s contract for cap space reasons, and Mrazek is coming off his worst season in years. All Chicago asked to alleviate the Leafs’ problem was to take Toronto’s No. 25 overall pick in 2022 and give up No. 38. That’s a 13-point difference. It doesn’t look like much. Granted, Mrazek could return to form and have a terrific season for Chicago. For now, though, the Blackhawks may have been fleeced. The Blackhawks’ only real win of the week? Duncan Keith may retire. Chicago traded Keith to the Edmonton Oilers last July, believing they were missing out on the final two years of Keith’s $5.5 million per season contract. When Keith hangs up his skates, it will create a cap recapture penalty, adding $5,538,462 in 2022-23 and $1,938,456 in 2023-24. This helps Chicago reach the salary cap. Small victories. — Shilton
Winners: Prospects with personality
Isaac Howard made the first impression. Oh, excuse me. He is the ‘Ice Man’. When the Tampa Bay Lightning drafted the USA National Team draft pick No. 31, it was obvious from his attire — crisp white suit, blue turtleneck, American flag belt buckle and gold chain — that Howard didn’t it was a wall flower. If there was any doubt on that front, Howard hastily squashed it. “I’m the best-looking guy here,” he told Sportsnet in a post-draft interview. “So I thought I’d be the best dressed too.” Do hockey players have no personality? The next generation is not here for that. Howard got the nickname “Ice Man” from his dad since he would never come off the ice as a kid. That paid obvious dividends — and planted seeds of confidence — given where Howard ended up. It’s a refreshing change to have inbound prospects who embrace their individuality. Ty Nelson — a Seattle Kraken pick — wore a smart blue fedora (with a feather!) on Friday. Anaheim Ducks draft pick Nathan Gaucher had a jacket stitched inside with scenes from Montreal and the draft. There is always a time and place for the classics. But on the biggest night of these prospects’ young careers, it was good to see them have fun. — Shilton
Loser: The Fashion Sense of 31 NHL Teams
The Arizona Coyotes showed up in Montreal on a mission. They wanted to use their many, many picks to build their prospect pool, which they did with a strong class that included No. 3 overall pick Logan Cooley. They also wanted to be the best-dressed front office in the NHL. Again, mission accomplished. The Coyotes may have been the first NHL team to synchronize their draft fashion. When GM Bill Armstrong, team president Xavier Gutierrez and Arizona’s front office took the stage to announce the first-round picks, they all wore matching bright blue suits with red ties. “I don’t like it when everyone wears different colors. So if anyone has complaints it is [on] me,” Armstrong said. “We are a team. We should look alike.” Inside the lining of these jackets? Arizona Coyotes logos, of course. The @ArizonaCoyotes synchronized suit exterior was awesome. The interior was EPIC. #nhldraft2022 pic.twitter.com/qUONAARpBN — Greg Wyshynski (@wyshynski) July 8, 2022 As is tradition, fans on social media mocked the Coyotes. (We especially liked those who wondered if the front office would attend a screening of “Minions 2” after the draft.) But Armstrong believes the Coyotes will be trendsetters. “Remember in Carolina when they did the post game celebrations?” Armstrong said, referring to Storm Surge. “Everybody was making fun of them. Now it’s culture. It’s fun. The NHL will buy it. Even the investment.” — Uysinski
Winner: Slovakia
Slovak hockey is having a moment. It started at the 2022 Beijing Games, when the men’s national team took bronze for the country’s first Olympic medal. It continued in the draft when two players from that team went first and second overall: winger Juraj Slafkovsky at No. 1 to the Montreal Canadiens and defenseman Simon Nemec to the New Jersey Devils at No. 2. It was just the second time in NHL history that a country outside of Canada or the United States has fielded the top two picks in the draft — the only other time was Russia in 2004, with Alex Ovechkin and Evgeni Malkin. “Yeah, I think out of five million people, at least four are up there cheering us on,” Slafkovski said when asked about what the moment meant back home in Slovakia. “At the end of the day that’s important. We’re from Slovakia and we’re representing the country and I’m happy that it happened to us.” As Slafkovsky said, it’s a small country, but one that has made its mark on the NHL over the years and in this draft: Four Slovakian players went in the first 63 picks, including winger Filip Mesar at No. 26 of Canadiens. In total, six Slovaks were selected. “Yes, little one [country]but we have very good players, and now more and more players will be better as we are,” Nemec said. “Everybody’s proud, and we’re proud, too.” — Wyshynski Marc-Andre Fleury might be the most beloved hockey player in the world. But his new contract with the Minnesota Wild is causing some drama surrounding Cam Talbot. Minnesota announced Thursday that Fleury, 37, had agreed to a two-year extension to remain with the team. GM Bill Guerin previously lured his old friend away from Chicago before the March trade deadline, and Fleury shared the crease equally with Talbot to end the regular season as they made 11 starts apiece. Before that, Talbot had a solid season in his own right as Minnesota’s No. 1 prospect (25-12-1, .910 slugging percentage). That didn’t seem to matter much. Fleury fell over Talbot as…
