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Three main takeaways from the 2020 NHL Entry Draft

By Andrew Steele-Davis

SECAUCUS, NEW JERSEY - OCTOBER 06: Signage is seen on location prior to the start of the first round of the 2020 National Hockey League (NHL) Draft at the NHL Network Studio on October 06, 2020 in Secaucus, New Jersey. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images)
SECAUCUS, NEW JERSEY - OCTOBER 06: Signage is seen on location prior to the start of the first round of the 2020 National Hockey League (NHL) Draft at the NHL Network Studio on October 06, 2020 in Secaucus, New Jersey. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images) /
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Will Cuylle #13 of the Windsor Spitfires.
Will Cuylle #13 of the Windsor Spitfires looks on before a face-off during an OHL game. (Photo by Chris Tanouye/Getty Images) /

2. Rangers stay close to home

Of the nine total picks the New York Rangers made in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft, six of them were Canadian.

You have to go all the way back to 2005 to find a year where the Rangers drafted so many kids from Canada, although they did draft eight back then with veteran defenseman Marc Staal their First Round pick (No. 12 overall).

If Braden Schneider, the No. 19 overall pick in the 2020 Draft, can carve out a similar career to his Canadian counterpart, then the Rangers will be happy.

The Rangers drafted three players from the Western Hockey League, including Schneider, while No.1 overall pick Alexis Lafreniere came from the QMJHL.

So, what can we read into the fact that the Rangers drafted so many Canadians this year?

It could be that they simply had more footage from the Canadian leagues given that the European leagues were severely disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

That could certainly have been part of it.

Or, another way of looking at it is the fact that drafting Canadians are normally a safe bet because they are accustomed to the North American way of playing and, as a result, there isn’t as much of a transition period.

We’ve seen how much of a risk it can be going the European route with Lias Andersson, who could go down as one of the biggest busts in the history of this franchise.

The seventh overall pick in the 2017 NHL Draft, Andersson never really worked it out in New York and that whole sorry saga was brought to an end on Wednesday after he was dealt to the LA Kings for the 60th overall pick in this year’s draft.

So, and while there are plenty of busts from Canada too, maybe the Rangers felt more comfortable staying closer to home and picking prospects they had more background on.

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