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NHL Mock Draft: Scott Wheeler's final predictions for the first two rounds
After Macklin Celebrini, who goes next at the 2024 NHL Draft? Scott Wheeler projects the first 65 picks.
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Welcome to my final mock for the 2024 NHL Draft.
Throughout the year and especially over the last several weeks, I’ve worked to gather info about team leanings, specific interest and the consensus range for players in this draft. Here, I’ve paired that with my understanding of each organization’s needs and the amateur scouting department preferences of each club. This two-round, 65-pick mock is my educated best guess for where things stand. Throughout, I’ve also made note of likely contingency plans and other considerations.
Round 1
1. San Jose Sharks: Macklin Celebrini, C, Boston UniversityNo-brainer. No explanation necessary.
2. Chicago Blackhawks: Artyom Levshunov, RHD, Michigan State University
I’ve seen some others include Cayden Lindstrom and Anton Silayev in this conversation, and while I believe the Blackhawks like each, I think it has primarily been Levshunov versus Demidov here for a while and I think that’s exactly the right place to land. Ultimately, as impressive as Demidov is, I’d wager the rangy, talented, free-spirited stud defenseman will win out. The Blackhawks have prioritized speed up front and size on the back end, and Levshunov would give a strong group that already has Kevin Korchinski, Alex Vlasic, Sam Rinzel, Ethan Del Mastro, Nolan Allan and others the piece it’s missing in a potential first-pairing stud.
3. Anaheim Ducks: Anton Silayev, LHD, Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod
The Ducks have been pretty quiet about where they’re leaning but the feeling I and others I’ve spoken to from around the league have about their pick is that they’re going to take a D at No. 3 (though if they don’t I do think Cayden Lindstrom is a Pat Verbeek type and I know Demidov’s stock is at its highest after Gold Star Hockey’s camp in Fort Lauderdale last week). They’ve got a really strong track record of hitting on D in recent years, I think they’d trust their group to develop a player like Silayev properly, we all know what they now have at forward with Mason McTavish, Leo Carlsson, Cutter Gauthier and company, and Silayev’s length, skating and defensive upside would just fit so naturally next to an Olen Zellweger or a Pavel Mintyukov long-term. That doesn’t mean they rule out Demidov, especially if they’re intent on moving off of Trevor Zegras and feel they could use a high-skill winger (I believe Demidov is firmly in the conversation for every team after San Jose), but Silayev feels like the best fit. I don’t think Sam Dickinson is completely out of the question here either because of his potential fit with a Zellweger or Mintyukov as well (and because of that track record with CHL D).
4. Columbus Blue Jackets: Ivan Demidov, RW, SKA St. Petersburg
I thought this pick was going to be Lindstrom (the idea of Fantilli and Lindstrom as a 1-2 down the middle is too exciting/rare to pass up, right?) right up until the last few days when I started hearing about just how impressive Demidov was in Fort Lauderdale. He’s in excellent physical shape (him looking 6 feet got the press but I was told he looks really strong and I have only heard good things about his work ethic). His English is stronger than expected. He was confident in himself and his timeline. All I kept hearing was that he was the real deal. The Blue Jackets have already got a pair of pure-skill wingers in Johnny Gaudreau and Kent Johnson, but I think Demidov plays a more competitive and driven style than either and it just feels like teams are going to have a tough time passing on him. I know they had dinner with Tij Iginla at the combine as well, but Iginla feels more like a backup plan/move-back candidate. Same goes for Zeev Buium, who I think belongs in this range and who I think the Blue Jackets like. Others will likely draw a line between Silayev and the Russians within the Blue Jackets organization or point to him being different than David Jiricek and Denton Mateychuk and therefore a fit, but he just doesn’t strike me as their type. The Russian connections also help with Demidov and I don’t get the sense that concerns some have expressed in recent months about SKA, his brother being there, etc., hang over him quite as much anymore.
5. Montreal Canadiens: Cayden Lindstrom, C, Medicine Hat Tigers
If the Ducks and Blue Jackets don’t take Lindstrom, I think Montreal or Utah will. I know they had dinner with Tij Iginla at the combine and there is some chatter about Sennecke going really high (I had one OHL source tell me there has been chatter as high as No. 3 about Sennecke), but those feel more like Plan Bs and Lindstrom feels like a perfect fit within the forward group they already have in Montreal. If he’s a center, the Canadiens have their 1-2 with him and Nick Suzuki. If he’s a winger, it’s not hard to imagine him playing alongside (and off of) the smarts of a Suzuki. In the unlikely event that both Lindstrom and Demidov are available, I do wonder if the winds are blowing in Demidov’s direction. And if they do surprise and go with a D, I’d guess that Buium makes the most sense logically.
6. Utah HC: Sam Dickinson, LHD, London Knights
Utah didn’t tip its hat at the combine, taking a large group that included Berkly Catton, Sam Dickinson, Beckett Sennecke and Tij Iginla out for dinner. Of that group, I think Sennecke and Dickinson are the most natural fits both with how they’ve drafted in the past and within their org chart. Personally, I’d argue for Buium here. It would keep him on the West Coast close to Denver and San Diego, and he feels like the perfect foil to the lengthy D the Coyotes have targeted in the past in Maveric Lamoureux and Dmitri Simashev (if Silayev lingers and they want to triple-down on that type, he’d fit with how they’ve drafted in the past).
7. Ottawa Senators: Zayne Parekh, RHD, Saginaw Spirit
If the Senators go forward, I could see both Sennecke and Iginla making some sense (Sennecke in particular). But I still think a D makes more sense and that Parekh, in particular, feels like the perfect fit not just because he gives them something a little different to Jake Sanderson, but because he’s a righty. I believe Buium, despite being a lefty, would firmly be in this conversation, though (Dickinson too if he’s there).
8. Seattle Kraken: Zeev Buium, LHD, University of Denver
Buium should go higher than this, and I think there are good odds he does, but this has to be his floor. I don’t think there’s a better potential fit in this top 10 than Buium and the Kraken. He gets to stay close to home. The Kraken get the premium D prospect they’ve yet to draft, and one who checks all of the boxes their scouting team seems to have coveted in its infancy. I thought it was notable that he didn’t have any dinners at the combine and that none of the scouts in my scouting survey ranked him as the top D in the draft, but none ranked him last among the big group of six either and his play in college was as impactful as any freshman D I’ve watched at that level.
9. Calgary Flames: Tij Iginla, C/LW, Kelowna Rockets
I believe the Flames would be interested in one of the top D here but I’m not convinced they’d take Yakemchuk if he’s the only one left. The Flames-Hitmen ownership ties and his Calgary roots (he trains locally with Doug Crashley, etc.) are a factors worth considering, but I wonder if their familiarity works against him, too. He wasn’t in the top 10 for most teams I’ve spoken to about him. I believe he hurt his case in the testing/interview process at the combine, too. If it’s not a D here, the belief is Iginla and Sennecke will go in this range and I think both fit with the Flames. I kept coming back to Iginla, though. There’s some smoke there, and not just because of his dad!
10. New Jersey Devils: Beckett Sennecke, RW, Oshawa Generals
There’s a belief among some scouts that Sennecke is going to go earlier than this but if he doesn’t, the Devils, who are loaded on defense and have Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier as their 1-2 down the middle long term, feel like a natural landing spot for one of the draft’s most talented wingers. Teams are excited about Sennecke’s skill level and ceiling once he adds some muscle to his lean but long frame. He’d be a great pick for the Devils. I’d expect them to consider Berkly Catton and Konsta Helenius here as well (Helenius could be an impactful middle-six center behind those other two and his timeline aligns with their desire to get better sooner than later), but Sennecke’s the consensus choice and I could see the Devils fancying the wingers. If they don’t trade the pick, he’d be a great fit.
11. Buffalo Sabres: Carter Yakemchuk, RHD, Calgary Hitmen
The Sabres should probably trade this pick, but if they don’t I like the idea of them, with the depth of their pool and organization at both forward and defense, taking a big swing at No. 11 on a high-upside-but-also-flawed player like a Yakemchuk or a Cole Eiserman. Catton and Helenius, especially the former, should be in the conversation here, but they look a lot like what the Sabres already have. They’re in a position to try to find something different where the risks of a Yakemchuk or an Eiserman may not hurt them in ways others with a premium asset could if they don’t develop in some important areas. They can afford to shelter Yakemchuk behind the quartet of Rasmus Dahlin, Owen Power, Mattias Samuelsson, and Bowen Byram while he works through things, too.
12. Philadelphia Flyers: Berkly Catton, C, Spokane Chiefs
I don’t think Catton should be available for the Flyers, and I know he impressed folks in the interview process at the combine, but if he is here I can’t imagine the Flyers pass on his skill level as a potential complement to Matvei Michkov. Even if that pairing doesn’t have ideal size, the Flyers need an injection of skill into the organization and a potential first-line center for Michkov. Catton is the best bet to be that and be available. If Catton’s not here, I think Helenius is a natural fit as well, even if he doesn’t have the dynamic quality that a Catton has. Helenius is one of the smartest, most well-rounded players in the draft. He’d be able to keep up with Michkov from an IQ standpoint while also giving him more of a defensive conscience/battler than a Catton.
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Konsta Helenius makes a lot of sense for the Wild with the No. 13 selection at the 2024 NHL Draft. (Mikko Kankainen / Jukurit)
13. Minnesota Wild: Konsta Helenius, C, HIFK
I had Eiserman to the Wild in my first mock and nearly picked him this time again for the same reasons, but I still believe they need and want to add down the middle and his smarts and work ethic are things they’ve targeted in players in the past. I actually think there are some lines to draw between Helenius and Marco Rossi and Marat Khusnutdinov, and I’m sure they’ll have a conversation about whether you can have too much of that thing, but the same things that drew them to those players will likely also draw them to Helenius and he might be the best of the bunch in the end.
14. San Jose Sharks (via Pittsburgh Penguins): Cole Eiserman, LW, U.S. NTDP
If Yakemchuk lingers, which I don’t think is out of the question, I’d expect the Sharks to take him here. If the big six D are gone, they feel like the earliest team that could take Stian Solberg and Adam Jiricek as well (the sense I have is that Solberg will go first). But as one scout told me recently: “My circles say if Eiserman is there at 14, San Jose won’t pass on him.” Taking Eiserman would continue to leave a huge hole in the Sharks’ pool on the back end relative to at forward, but I think the gap between Eiserman and the field of D here is strong enough that if the Sharks feel the same, I don’t mind it at all. Eiserman’s close friendship with Celebrini (they’re like family) doesn’t hurt either. Would be a great story.
15. Detroit Red Wings: Michael Brandsegg-Nygard, RW, Mora IK
If the draft plays out like it has and all of the quote-unquote big names are off the board, I think this pick probably comes down to four players: Michael Brandsegg-Nygard fits their profile the most; Michael Hage and Trevor Connelly (I think the Red Wings are the earliest Connelly could go, though I’d set the line at him being the pick here as the lowest of these four players) if they want to inject some skill into the pool up front; and defenseman Stian Solberg, who offers the competitiveness and physicality they’ve targeted in their D and gives them something a little bit different to a Simon Edvinsson or an Axel Sandin Pellikka. I know Red Wings fans are tired of us mocking Brandsegg-Nygard to the Red Wings, but every time I’ve thought they were going to depart from their well-rounded, 200-foot types in favor of a more pure puck-skill type they’ve doubled down, so I’m not going to predict against their mold anymore (watch this be the time, though). He’s got some skill and scoring, too, so I think Red Wings fans should still be happy with this pick if it’s him. Don’t sleep on Solberg as a potential pick here if the Sharks don’t take him, though. And if Sennecke were to somehow fall, I was told he wouldn’t get past the Red Wings. I believe this is the earliest Cole Beaudoin could go as well.