Erie Otters NHL Draft Central

Category: ArticleOctober 6, 2020

It has been a long and wild ride to get to this day, but the NHL Entry Draft is upon us. Normally held during the last weekend of June, the draft and its celebration of hockey talent was postponed with the rest of the sports landscape. The weekend originally planned in Montreal, Quebec will have to wait a year as the NHL and potential picks will be part of a virtual draft online beginning Tuesday, October 6^th with the first round beginning at 7pm, followed by rounds 2-7 on Wednesday, October 7^th beginning at 11:30am.

The Erie Otters have seen great success developing talent for the NHL Draft in the near 25-year history of the organization on the Pennsylvania shores of Lake Erie. Over that time, 39 Erie Otters have heard their names called at the NHL Draft, including ten first-round picks and a five-year streak of first rounders from 1997-2001. Connor McDavid remains the only first overall pick in team history, a feat only eight OHL teams can boast, when the Edmonton Oilers took the hockey prodigy to open the 2015 NHL Entry Draft. 2007 highlights the Otters most successful draft with five players chosen: Nick Palmieri, Anthony Peluso, Luke Gazdic, Zack Torquato, and Josh Kidd.

This year the Otters have a chance to match their 2007 NHL Entry Draft team record with five players from their roster ranked in the NHL Central Scouting Service final rankings: Jamie Drysdale (#3), Austen Swankler (#200), Maxim Golod (#213), Brendan Hoffmann (#217), Aidan Campbell (#28G). Follow along with our draft coverage here and through our social media channels on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for the latest Otters pick information.

ERIE OTTERS DRAFT CHATS: Jamie Drysdale, Austen Swankler, Maxim Golod, Brendan Hoffmann, Aidan Campbell

NHL DRAFT TRACKER: NHL.com

WATCH: Round 1: Oct. 6, 7 p.m. ET (NBCSN, SN, TVA), Rounds 2-7: Oct. 7, 11:30 a.m. ET (NHLN, SN)

Since 1969, a total of 2,379 OHL players have been selected in the NHL Draft representing over 20% of all players chosen by clubs and a figure higher than any other league solidifying the OHL as the number one supplier of NHL talent.

Here’s a look at the history of the Erie Otters at the NHL draft:

Year	Player	NHL Team	Pick (Overall)
1997	Jason Ward	Montreal Canadiens	11^th
	Patrick Dovigi	Edmonton Oilers	41^st
	Adam Nittel	San Jose Sharks	107^th
1998	Michael Rupp	New York Islanders	9^th
1999	Tim Connolly	New York Islanders	5^th
	Sean Dixon	Montreal Canadiens	167^th
2000	Nikita Alexeev	Tampa Bay Lightning	8^th
	Brad Boyes	Toronto Maple Leafs	24^th
	Michael Rupp	New Jersey Devils	76^th
2001	Carlo Colaiacovo	Toronto Maple Leafs	17^th
	Adam Munro	Chicago Blackhawks	29^th
2002	Brian Lee	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim	71^st
	Scott Dobben	Ottawa Senators	113^th
2004	Josh Disher	New Jersey Devils	185^th
	Chris Campoli	New York Islanders	227^th
2005	Ryan O’Marra	New York Islanders	15^th
	Michael Blunden	Chicago Blackhawks	43^rd
2007	Nick Palmieri	New Jersey Devils	79^th
	Anthony Peluso	St. Louis Blues	160^th
	Luke Gazdic	Dallas Stars	172^nd
	Zack Torquato	Detroit Red Wings	178^th
	Josh Kidd	Los Angeles Kings	184^th
2008	Mitch Gaulton	New York Rangers	171^st
2009	Ryan O’Reilly	Colorado Avalanche	33^rd
	Jaroslav Janus	Tampa Bay Lightning	162^nd
	David Shields	St. Louis Blues	168^th
2010	Greg McKegg	Toronto Maple Leafs	62^nd
	Andrew Yogan	New York Rangers	100^th
2012	Adam Pelech	New York Islanders	65^th
	Connor Brown	Toronto Maple Leafs	156^th
2013	Connor Crisp	Montreal Canadiens	71^st
2014	Kyle Pettit	Vancouver Canucks	156^th
2015	Connor McDavid	Edmonton Oilers	1^st
	Dylan Strome	Arizona Coyotes	3^rd
	Travis Dermott	Toronto Maple Leafs	34^th
2016	Alex DeBrincat	Chicago Blackhawks	39^th
	Taylor Raddysh	Tampa Bay Lightning	58^th
	Jordan Sambrook	Detroit Red Wings	137^th
2017	Ivan Lodnia	Minnesota Wild	85^th

Erie Otters NHL Draft Central

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