LAS VEGAS — Welcome to the first round of the 2024 Upper Deck NHL Draft. On Friday at Sphere in Vegas, 32 young men will officially begin their NHL journey. NHL.com deputy managing editor and draft guru Adam Kimelman is in Las Vegas and will provide information and analysis on 32 first-round picks.
Sphere has become the center of the hockey universe as the time has come for the 2024 draft.
The San Jose Sharks will start the festivities with the No. 1 pick, which they won in the NHL Draft Lottery on May 7. They are widely expected to select Boston University center Macklin Celebrini.
The Sharks will be one of the busier teams during the two days here with nine picks in all, including No. 11 in the first round, which they acquired Thursday in a trade with the Buffalo Sabres for the No. 14 selection.
San Jose is one of six teams with multiple first-round picks, along with the Chicago Blackhawks (No. 2, No. 18), Anaheim Ducks (No. 3, No. 31), Montreal Canadiens (No. 5, No. 21), Calgary Flames (No. 9, No. 28) and Philadelphia Flyers (No. 12, No. 32).
You can check out how NHL.com’s draft experts think the first round will go with their final mock draft here.
1. San Jose Sharks — Macklin Celebrini, C, Boston University (NCAA)
NHL Central Scouting ranking: No. 1 (North American skaters)
Celebrini was third in the NCAA with 64 points (32 goals, 32 assists) in 38 games as a freshman at Boston University and won the Hobey Baker Award as the top men’s player in NCAA ice hockey, becoming the youngest player to win the award and the fourth from Boston University, joining Jack Eichel (2015), Matt Gilroy (2009) and Chris Drury (1998). Celebrini, the youngest player in NCAA hockey this season, didn’t turn 18 until June 13 but was named rookie of the year and player of the year in Hockey East, becoming the fourth player to win both awards in the same season, joining Eichel (2015), Paul Kariya (1993) and Brian Leetch (1987). Born in North Vancouver, British Columbia, Celebrini opted to advance his development playing Tier 1 AAA hockey for the San Jose Junior Sharks, prep school hockey at Shattuck-St. Mary’s in Minnesota and with Chicago of the United States Hockey League before joining BU this season. He’ll determine whether or not he’ll return to college after the draft.
“He competes with himself, competes with others, but that’s just how he is,” BU coach Jay Pandolfo said. “I think that’s what makes him a special player, but I think that’s going to serve him very well in the National Hockey League.”
NHL.com analysis: The Sharks finally make official what’s been assumed since the draft lottery with the selection of Celebrini. His skill set and work ethic has been compared to former Chicago Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews and Pittsburgh Penguins captain Sidney Crosby. If Celebrini signs and joins the Sharks this season, he’ll join Will Smith, the No. 4 pick of the 2023 NHL Draft, to form the foundation of what the Sharks hope will be a return to contention for the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
2. Chicago Blackhawks — Artyom Levshunov, D, Michigan State (NCAA)
NHL Central Scouting ranking: No. 2 (North American skaters)
The right-handed shot (6-2, 205) was named Big 10 Defensive Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year, and earned spots on the All-Big 10 First Team and All-Freshman Team. The 18-year-old, the third-youngest player in men’s college hockey, ranked second among NCAA freshmen defensemen and tied for ninth among all defensemen with 35 points (nine goals, 26 assists) in 38 games. He led the Big 10 with a plus-27 rating while playing on the top defense pair all season. Levshunov looks to become the third player and first defenseman from Michigan State to be selected among the top three picks after forward Joe Murphy went No. 1 to the Detroit Red Wings in the 1986 NHL Draft, and forward Craig Simpson went No. 2 to the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 1985 NHL Draft.
“He’s a player who can be defensive and also bring offense and I think that’s why he brings so much value,” Michigan State coach Adam Nightingale said. “He’s very gifted offensively. He’s very good on the power play, he’s got deception, he can shoot through screens and put it on guys’ tape. But he really values defending. He wants to play in the NHL and wants to play meaningful minutes, and to play meaningful minutes you got to do it on both sides of the puck.”
NHL.com analysis: The Blackhawks got their building block at forward at the 2023 NHL Draft with Calder Trophy-winner Connor Bedard, and this year shift the focus to building their defense with Levshunov. He has NHL-ready size, and has said he’ll wait until after the draft to decide if he wants to play another season of NCAA hockey or jump to the NHL. Either way, Levshunov projects to be a top-pair defenseman and be the lynchpin of a young group that saw Kevin Korchinski and Alex Vlasic make big strides last season, and 2022 first-round pick Sam Rinzel (No. 25) is close to being pro-ready.
3. Anaheim Ducks — Beckett Sennecke, RW, Oshawa (OHL)
NHL Central Scouting ranking: No. 13 (North American skaters)
The 18-year-old has good size (6-3, 182), strength and skills, and those combined with his hockey sense help him consistently generate quality scoring opportunities. Sennecke had 68 points (27 goals, 41 assists), scored seven power-play goals and led the Generals with seven game-winning goals in 63 regular-season games. During the Ontario Hockey League playoffs he tied for fourth with 10 goals in 16 games. Sennecke is an all-around 200-foot player with a positive work ethic at both ends of the ice.
NHL.com analysis: The Ducks make the first surprise pick of the draft, but Sennecke projects to be a top-six wing who can provide a great running mate to one of their emerging young centers, Mason McTavish, Leo Carlsson or Trevor Zegras. Sennecke is a strong skater and knows how to pull pucks out of traffic and make plays in tight, and he’s got a great shot. It will take time for him to fill out his frame, but with another season or two of development should have him join the Ducks’ flock of other top-end prospects they’ve accumulated the past few seasons
4. Columbus Blue Jackets — Cayden Lindstrom, C, Medicine Hat (WHL)
NHL Central Scouting ranking: No. 3 (North American skaters)
Lindstrom (6-3, 213) is a powerhouse who remained a top forward option for the draft despite missing the final 36 regular-season games because of injuries to his back and hand. The 18-year-old had 46 points (27 goals, 19 assists) in 32 games prior to leaving the lineup Dec. 16. After recovering from surgery for a back injury, he returned March 29 and had two points (one goal, one assist) and 17 shots on goal in four Western Hockey League playoff games.
“Lindstrom is an elite NHL prospect that any NHL club would covet, and the NHL projection does not change due to the fact that he has missed time due to injuries that were not deemed to impair his future career,” Central Scouting director Dan Marr said. “Central Scouting chose to rank him in the same position because he remains one of the best prospects in this class and we haven’t filed any reports to displace him.”
NHL.com analysis: The Blue Jackets clearly are confident the back issue that sidelined Lindstrom for the entire second half of Medicine Hat’s season is behind him. Lindstrom did his rehabilitation work with an NHL team doctor, and all 32 teams have been updated on his condition. Lindstrom is a goal-scorer with great speed helped by his track background, and an impressive nasty streak. A 1-2 center punch of Lindstrom and Adam Fantilli gives the Blue Jackets a strong foundation as they try to climb back into Stanley Cup Playoff contention.
