Looking back at the 7-15th picks from the 2009 NHL Draft

5 years ago

With the NHL Entry Draft less than a month away, I’ll be spending the next week putting together a year-by-year breakdown of the players that were selected with the 7-15th overall picks to see if there’s a pattern on what we might expect with the Oilers picking at 10. So far, we’ve seen some great picks, some busts, and some others that have landed somewhere in the middle, and we’re only into the second year of our countdown.

Today, we dive into the 2009 Draft class. What will we find? Let’s find out together.

Nazem Kadri (7) – C – Toronto Maple Leafs

2017-18 Season: NHL: 80GP – 32G, 23A for 55 points
Rookie season (2012-13): 48GP – 18G, 26A for 44 points

Pre-Draft Scouting Report:

“Kadri is a highly skilled forward who can make plays at a whim in the offensive zone. He’s fearless on the ice which compensates for his small frame. While there are questions surrounding his game-to-game compete level and some of his decision making, his positives outweigh those negatives.”

Season	Team	Lge	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	+/-	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2017-18	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	80	32	23	55	42	2	4	0	2	2	19
	NHL Totals		488	145	168	313	344		17	2	6	8	37

Scott Glennie (8) – C – Dallas Stars

2017-18 Season: Did not play, probably selling cars somewhere
Rookie season: Still waiting for one.

Pre-Draft Scouting Report:

“He can play centre and has a wicked shot with great straight line speed but has never produced goals at the pro level as he did playing with Brayden Schenn and Matt Calvert for Brandon in junior hockey. He is not a natural playmaker and his defensive play has been a work in progress during his AHL career. More of a technical player who is not combative or imposing despite his size and strength, he can play a perimeter game at times. His work rate and determination have improved and he is a productive forward at the AHL level but he is not likely to be the type of scorer envisioned when he was first drafted.”

Season	Team	Lge	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	+/-
2016-17	Manitoba Moose	AHL	45	7	13	20	34	-9
	NHL Totals		1	0	0	0	2

Jared Cowen (9) – D – Ottawa Senators

2017-18 Season: Did not play
Rookie season (2011-12): 82GP – 5G, 12A for 17 points

Pre-Draft Scouting Report:

“Cowen is a force to be reckoned with based on his size, strength and skill package. In the defensive zone he simply dominated junior-aged players with his physical attributes and excellent positioning. The mobility has returned and he makes good decisions with the puck in his own end. On the offensive end he has good instincts and will rush the puck when the opportunity presents itself. He will need to continue working on his puck-handling at the point to be a complete two-way defenseman. The Senators management is impressed with his maturity, commitment and work ethic.”

Season	Team	Lge	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	+/-	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2015-16	Ottawa Senators	NHL	37	0	4	4	16	7	—	—	—	—	—
	NHL Totals		249	15	31	46	174		17	0	4	4	25

Magnus Paajarvi (10) – LW – Edmonton Oilers

2017-18 season: NHL: 79GP – 8G, 4A for 12 points
Rookie season (2010-11): 80GP – 15G, 19A for 34 points

Pre-Draft Scouting Report:

“Paajarvi is a very speedy and skilled winger. His acceleration is top notch and what really characterizes his game is the way he drives to the net. In full speed, he gets around the opposing defenseman with ease and usually gets the puck on the net with a quick wrist-shot. Offensively, he is also blessed with above average hockey sense, nice technical skills and the ability to set up his teammates with passes. He is a creative player with smarts that usually scores quite spectacular goals and does things that are hard for the defensemen to read.”

SEASON	TEAM	LGE	GP	G	A	PTS	PIM	+/-	PGP	G	A	PTS	PIM
2017-18	ST. LOUIS BLUES	NHL	44	2	2	4	8	-3
2017-18	OTTAWA SENATORS	NHL	35	6	2	8	4	-8
	NHL TOTALS		387	51	54	105	72		11	1	3	4	2

Ryan Ellis (11) – D – Nashville Predators

2017-18 Season: 44GP – 9A, 23A for 32 points
Rookie season (2011-12): 32GP – 3G, 8A for 11 points

Pre-Draft Scouting Report:

“The common refrain heard throughout the league is that if Ellis was just three inches taller, he’d be a sure-fire top-five selection. Unfortunately, in many ways, the NHL is a big man’s league and Ellis’ dynamic power-play quarterbacking abilities and offensive production may be overshadowed by his lack of height. Ellis has an outstanding shot from the point and is consistently able to jump-start the offense with a well-timed pass or breakout through the defensive zone. He has also worked on his defensive abilities (leading the team at plus-52) and has drawn praise for his effort and leadership.”

Season	Team	Lge	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	+/-	PGP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2017-18	Nashville Predators	NHL	44	9	23	32	6	26	13	0	5	5	8
	NHL Totals		396	55	118	173	140		58	5	22	27	26

Calvin de Haan (12) – D – New York Islanders

2017-18 Season: 33GP – 1G, 11A for 12 points
Rookie season (2013-14): 51GP – 3G, 13A for 16 points

Pre-Draft Scouting Report:

“De Haan is in his first full season with the Islanders in 2014-15 after impressing in a 51-game stint after joining New York at the end of November last season. Already seeing full-time duty with the Islanders, he has not yet put up the eye-popping offensive numbers at the pro level that he did in juniors. He should contribute more in the offensive zone as becomes more familiar with the NHL game.”

Season	Team	Lge	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	+/-	PGP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2017-18	New York Islanders	NHL	33	1	11	12	8	11
	NHL Totals		304	12	69	81	118		16	0	3	3	4

Zack Kassian (13) – RW – Buffalo Sabres

2017-18 Season: 74GP – 7G, 12A for 19 points
Rookie season (2011-12): 44GP – 4G, 6A for 10 points

Pre-Draft Scouting Report:

“Kassian projects as an imposing power forward at the next level with good enough hands and hockey sense to potentially play on the second line someday. He uses his body effectively in the offensive zone and creates mismatches along the wall for opponents because of his strength. Kassian could ultimately end up anywhere from a fringe first liner to a scoring third liner depending on his development over the next few years.”

Season	Team	Lge	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	+/-	PGP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2017-18	Edmonton Oilers	NHL	74	7	12	19	92	-8
	NHL Totals		387	52	65	117	614		21	3	0	3	33

Dmitri Kulikov (14) – D – Florida Panthers

2017-18 Season: 62GP – 3G, 8A for 11 points
Rookie season (2009-10): 68GP – 3G, 13A for 16 points

Pre-Draft Scouting Report:

“In addition to his superb hockey sense and confidence beyond his years, Kulikov is no slouch in his own end and he’s smooth enough on his skates to quickly be in a position to break up any counter-attack that he may come against. Still adjusting to the physical grind of the longer North American season, he’ll only get better as he continues to fill out and mature.”

Season	Team	Lge	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	+/-	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
2017-18	Winnipeg Jets	NHL	62	3	8	11	22	6	1	0	0	0	2
	NHL Totals		569	33	121	154	348		14	1	4	5	10

Peter Holland (15) – C – Anaheim Ducks

2017-18 Season: 23GP – 1G, 3A for four points
Rookie season (2012-13): 21GP – 3G, 2A for five points

Pre-Draft Scouting Report:

“Holland has begun to put his game together in the past couple of seasons. Where he was a player who could have been described as having all the tools but no toolbox, Holland has evened out his effort and consistency. He is a big player with a soft touch. Although he is more of a shoot-first center, he has the vision and passing skills to be a respectable setup man.”

Season	Team	Lge	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	+/-
2017-18	New York Rangers	NHL	23	1	3	4	7	-10
	NHL Totals		266	36	49	85	112

THE WRAP…

Looking at the 2009 list, I see a bunch of guys that are well on their way to playing 300 NHL games+ with varying levels of success and that’s a pretty solid success rate, all things considered. The funny thing about working on this project is that every year seems to add even more weight behind the idea of actually using the pick rather than trading it. Yes, there are always going to be busts in every draft class and some players that work out better than others, but I’m still seeing that the majority of the players that are picked within this range are contributing at the NHL level, and that should mean something.

For me, it’s hard to look at how many players that were drafted in the 7-15 range and go on to have some NHL success and still believe that trading the pick is the best available move. Could it help in year one? Sure, but is that in the best long-term interest of the organization? Will you potentially have to wait a few years before the prospect is able to contribute at the NHL level if you do use it? Probably, but the counterpoint is that you could also be missing out on a guy that could potentially be on your roster for a decade. So what’s the right answer? It could be using the pick.