The Sabres, Devils and Blues are just some NHL teams that could upgrade their roster now by trading a first-rounder. Could the Senators even consider doing it again?
Trading a first-round NHL draft pick can help put a competitive team into Cup contention territory, but that's not all it can do.
In recent years, some NHL teams that finished lower in the standings moved their first-rounder to acquire a young player who can help them get over the hump and into the playoffs.
The Ottawa Senators traded the seventh overall pick in 2022, along with second and third-round picks, for Alex DeBrincat in the hope his goal-scoring prowess would end their playoff drought. It did not work out, as the team traded DeBrincat a year later for a lesser return.
Later that same day, the Montreal Canadiens traded defenseman Alexander Romanov to the New York Islanders for the 13th overall pick before flipping it to the Chicago Blackhawks for center Kirby Dach. They had a plethora of future draft picks, and they needed a center who fit their timeline as the rebuild was in its early stages. Dach has been very good for the Habs when healthy, and he will grow with the core in Montreal.
Let’s look at the teams that missed the playoffs and could consider using their first-rounder to acquire young NHL-effective talent.
Buffalo Sabres, 11th overall
The Sabres were everyone’s darling. They were supposed to be this year’s 2022-23 New Jersey Devils and jump up the standings into the playoffs.
They are loaded with young talent, have been rebuilding for years and were expected to break their 12-year playoff drought. They instead extended it to 13 years.
Buffalo fired coach Don Granato and brought back Lindy Ruff, the last bench boss to lead the team into the playoffs.
The Sabres are ready to roll now. Whoever they draft at 11th overall won’t be ready to make an impact in the NHL for at least a couple of years. It makes sense to see if they can deal the pick for a player who can help immediately – maybe a legit defensive blueliner to go with the firepower they have back there. A young, dynamic winger is another option to replace the departing Victor Olofsson, whose season point total dropped to 15 in 51 games from 40 in 75 games last year.
New Jersey Devils, 10th overall
The Devils were one of the most exciting teams in hockey a year ago and then fell apart this year because of injuries, goaltending failures and incredible inconsistencies.
The team brought in some young players to bolster their already young core. Jack Hughes has emerged as one of the most electric players in hockey, but multiple injuries limited him to 62 games, which is still, unfortunately, the second most in his five-year career.
Dougie Hamilton missed most of the season, which threw off the entire blueline. It forced rookies Luke Hughes and Simon Nemec into much bigger roles than originally anticipated.
The Devils need a goalie. They have a fantastic prospect pool, and while adding another high-end player would be great, they must bring in a legitimate No. 1 goaltender or possibly a high-end prospect in net.
Would the 10th overall pick be a big enough trade chip to get a Juuse Saros or Jacob Markstrom? Would it be enough for a young netminder like Jesper Wallstedt or Yaroslav Askarov? Only time will tell.
Ottawa Senators, Seventh overall
They’ve done it before. Why not do it again?
The Senators' prospect pool has faded, ranking 15th in the NHL in THN's Future Watch Issue, so they could certainly use a player at seventh overall. But they will also be under extreme pressure to make the playoffs next season after years of telling fans the rebuild is over. They have plenty of young talent, such as Brady Tkachuk, Tim Stutzle and Jake Sanderson, but they need more.
They tried it once with DeBrincat, but that didn’t work. They tried again with Jakob Chychrun, and there's no certainty he'll return once his contract expires after next season. Maybe the third time is a charm, or maybe it’ll just be another mistake.
St. Louis Blues, 16th overall
The Blues had three first-round picks in last year's draft, so it’s not as if they have a lack of prospects.
St. Louis has looked to retool on the fly rather than bottom out in the NHL. They could use this pick to bolster their current roster, knowing Dalibor Dvorsky (10th overall in 2023), Otto Stenberg (25th) and Theo Lindstein (29th) have all had solid years and are developing along the path they were hoping for.
The Blues have a solid roster in general but could use a boost. If they're willing to part with the 16th pick, they could add some scoring punch or an effective offensive blueliner. It could be worth it in the long run as they wait for those three first-rounders from the 2023 NHL draft to develop for another year or so.