2024 NHL Draft Round 1 Losers: Flyers, Maple Leafs Struggle
Zack Cook
Host · Writer
Toronto Maple Leafs
It's easy to pick on the Toronto Maple Leafs when they go off the board in the first round for the second year in a row. Maybe we should give them the benefit of the doubt after how Easton Cowan panned out last year. In saying that, regardless of how high you are on Ben Danford, it still felt very early for his name to be called in Round 1. Danford has the potential to be an NHL player, but it's hard to be sold on his ceiling, which is typically what you're swinging for at this stage of the first round.
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Philadelphia Flyers
Let's get one thing out of the way, it's way too early to call any of these players busts or disappointments. When you're looking at "losers" in Round 1 of a draft, it's typically the teams that selected low ceiling players early on that stand out. That's exactly the case with Jett Luchanko and the Philadelphia Flyers. There's strong potential that Luchanko one day lands as a solid third line center in the NHL, but it's hard to get excited about that with the 13th overall pick, especially when the dynamic Zeev Buium was on the board before they traded down with Minnesota.
St. Louis Blues
If we had more tape on Adam Jiricek, it's possible that we'd have been more bullish on the prospect. For now, there's not a ton to go off of with this player after a year that ended early due to injury. It's difficult when you miss this much time in a big development year, which probably makes us slightly lower on this player. With higher upside plays like Stian Solberg and EJ Emery still available, the Blues probably could have found better upside at the position with their selection.
Washington Capitals
On paper, there's real qualities to like about Terik Parascak. He brings a lot of the goal scoring tendencies you're looking for in this range of the draft. Still, with Cole Eiserman, Michael Hage, and even Trevor Connelly still on the board, it's hard to get really excited by Washington selecting Parascak. You can understand why they'd pass on Connelly with the off ice issues, but Hage and Eiserman were better bets at this range of the draft. The Capitals are in a strange spot right now as an organization and it'll be interesting to follow how this plays out.
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Edmonton Oilers
The Edmonton Oilers made a rather puzzling trade to move up and select Sam O’Reilly. This was a prospect we had going in this range, but the trade the Oilers landed on to select him is where our confusion lands. Sure, the Oilers expect to be contending for the Stanley Cup against year, but there are no guarantees with the parity that the NHL sees on a yearly basis. Although O'Reilly projects as an NHLer, it's hard to get really excited about his eventual contributions in this organization.
Toronto Maple Leafs
It's easy to pick on the Toronto Maple Leafs when they go off the board in the first round for the second year in a row. Maybe we should give them the benefit of the doubt after how Easton Cowan panned out last year. In saying that, regardless of how high you are on Ben Danford, it still felt very early for his name to be called in Round 1. Danford has the potential to be an NHL player, but it's hard to be sold on his ceiling, which is typically what you're swinging for at this stage of the first round.
Stay ahead of the game and elevate your sports betting experience with SportsGrid.
Philadelphia Flyers
Let's get one thing out of the way, it's way too early to call any of these players busts or disappointments. When you're looking at "losers" in Round 1 of a draft, it's typically the teams that selected low ceiling players early on that stand out. That's exactly the case with Jett Luchanko and the Philadelphia Flyers. There's strong potential that Luchanko one day lands as a solid third line center in the NHL, but it's hard to get excited about that with the 13th overall pick, especially when the dynamic Zeev Buium was on the board before they traded down with Minnesota.
