Hurricanes and the NHL draft: The best picks, and the worst

The NHL Draft is filled with hits and misses, and the Carolina Hurricanes have had their share of both with their draft picks the past 20 years.

Jeff Skinner was a hit. Taken with the seventh pick in 2010, the forward looked impossibly young but played impressively well from the start, scoring 31 goals as an 18-year-old rookie and winning the Calder Trophy. Tony MacDonald, the Canes’ director of amateur scouting, calls Skinner a “home run.”

Philippe Paradis was a whiff. Taken with the 27th pick of the 2009 draft, the forward never played for Carolina. Drafted in June, he was traded and gone by December.

“Sometimes,” MacDonald said, “you swing and miss.”

Here’s a look at some of the Canes’ draft picks, good and bad, in the past 20 years:

The good …

1. Justin Faulk, defenseman

2010 draft, second round, 37th overall

Why a good pick: Many, including Faulk, believed he had first-round talent. He has been a three-time NHL All-Star and a U.S. Olympian. The Canes’ best offensive defenseman, he has served as an alternate captain.

2. Jaccob Slavin, defenseman

2012 draft, fourth round, 120th

Why a good pick: The Canes used a fourth-round draft pick obtained in a January 2012 trade with New Jersey to pick Slavin. In two NHL seasons, he has become the Canes’ most consistent blue liner.

3. Erik Cole, forward

1998 draft, third round, 71st

Why a good pick: The consummate power forward, Cole was a big part of Canes teams that won the 2006 Stanley Cup, reached the 2002 Stanley Cup finals and the 2009 Eastern Conference finals. Played 557 games for Carolina.

4. Jeff Skinner, forward

2010 draft, first round, seventh

Why a good pick: Skinner had an immediate impact. He gave the Canes their first Calder Trophy winner in 2011 and has had three 30-goal seasons in seven years in the NHL, scoring a career-high 37 last season.

5. Cam Ward, goalie

2002 draft, first round, 25th

Why a good pick: Ward became a franchise goalie, justifying the first-round pick. He won the 2006 Conn Smythe Trophy as playoffs MVP in the Canes’ Stanley Cup run and holds several team career records, including 295 victories.

… and the bad

1. Igor Knyazev, defenseman

2001 draft, first round, 15th

Why a bad pick: The Russian wore a tuxedo to the podium on draft night but that was his only favorable impression. He spent two years in the American Hockey League, went back to Russia to play hockey and basically was never heard from again.

2. Nikos Tselios, defenseman

1997 draft, first round, 22nd

Why a bad pick: Tselios, who had imposing size at 6-5, was the first draft pick by the Carolina Hurricanes after the franchise relocation. His NHL career: two games, in 2001-2002 for Carolina,

3. Danny Richmond, defenseman

2003 draft, second round, 31st

Why a bad pick: The 31st pick in one of the strongest drafts ever – the Canes took Eric Staal with the second overall selection – Richmond was taken ahead of such defensemen as Shea Weber. He played 10 NHL games for the Canes and 49 in his career.

4. Philippe Paradis, forward

2009 draft, first round, 27th

Why a bad pick: The Canes believed the forward from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League offered size and a promising offensive upside. He had size. Paradis was traded to Toronto in December 2009 for forward Jiri Tlusty and has not played an NHL game.

5. Jeff Heerema, forward

1998 draft, first round, 11th

Why a bad pick: A big scorer in juniors, he played just 10 games for the Canes and 22 for the St. Louis Blues – 32 NHL games in all – before ending his hockey career in Nottingham, England.

This story was originally published June 23, 2017 at 9:44 AM with the headline "Hurricanes and the NHL draft: The best picks, and the worst."