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Do #1 overall picks pay off?

By Steve Paulus

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA - JUNE 21: Kaapp Kakko smiles after being selected second overall by the New York Rangers during the first round of the 2019 NHL Draft at Rogers Arena on June 21, 2019 in Vancouver, Canada. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA - JUNE 21: Kaapp Kakko smiles after being selected second overall by the New York Rangers during the first round of the 2019 NHL Draft at Rogers Arena on June 21, 2019 in Vancouver, Canada. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /
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Sixth overall pick Mika Zibanejad (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /

How do the Rangers compare?

The good news is despite the fact that the Rangers traded away their first round picks for four straight yeas from 2013-16, the have stockpiled a number of first rounders via trades.  Here’s the breakdown on this year’s Rangers.

  • First round picks:  11
  • Second round picks: 3
  • Third round picks:  4
  • Fourth round picks: 1
  • Sixth round picks: 1
  • Seventh round picks: 1
  • Undrafted free agents: 3

The first rounders include Kaapo Kakko picked second overall, Ryan Strome at fifth overall (Islanders) and Mika Zibanejad at sixth overall (Ottawa).  Jacob Trouba was Winnipeg’s ninth overall pick in 2012.   Marc Staal was selected 12th overall in 2005, making him only the second pick actually selected by the Rangers of their five in the top 15. Later first round picks include Chris Kreider and Anthony DeAngelo at 19th overall, Filip Chytil and Julien Gauthier at 21st overall, and Brett Howden and Brendan Smith, both picked 27th overall.

18 of the 24 players on the current roster were picked in the first three rounds.  It’s important to note that the Blueshirts have three players who were not drafted including their top scorer, Artemi Panarin along with Alexandar Georgiev and Micheal Haley.

The good news is that with Vitali Kravtsov at ninth overall, K’Andre Miller at 22nd overall and Nils Lundkvist at 28th overall there are three more first round picks we can expect to be ready to help the Rangers as soon as this summer (in Kravtsov’s case).   Seventh overall pick Lias Andersson’s future with the Rangers has shown signs of a revival.

Ranger fans should not despair if they fall short in the qualifying round and lose in Phase Two of the lottery.  While much has been made about the 12.5% odds of winning, that also means teams have a 87.5% shot at losing.   New York will still end up with a pick at 13th or 14th along with a second first round pick.

All signs are that the Rangers a constructing  a roster that is built to win, with  or without Alexis Lafreniere.  And that is good news for Blueshirts fans.

Related Story. Bob McKenzie's top prospects & the Blueshirts. light

Writers note: An earlier version of this story didn’t include Ilya Kovalchuk’s trip to the Finals in 2012 with New Jersey.   Thanks to a reader for pointing it out!

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