Who are the top players still available for the Wild in the second round?
Like every year, some projected first-round picks slide out of the first round and enter the second round. The Wild will be picking at 45. This means 13 players will be picked before the Wild's pick unless the Wild move up or down.
The Wild have five picks left in the draft. They have the 45th, 110th, 140th, 142nd, and the 174th pick, as of now. Minnesota could trade any of these picks or acquire more picks, but as of now, the Wild have five picks left in the Draft.
So who are the best available picks?
Cole Hutson, D, USNTDP (USHL)
The 5-foot-10 defenseman was ranked by some draft rankings as a first-round pick. Other rankings don't even have him as a top 20 player left after the first round. If Hutson is available at pick 45 when the Wild are up, I would think he'd be too good to pass on, despite the team drafting a defender in the first round.
Hutson, the younger brother of Lane, is an offensive puckhandling defenseman who played in the USNTDP last season. He recorded 15 goals, 36 assists, and 51 points in 51 games. He is set to join Boston University next season.
Nikita Artamonov, RW, Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod (KHL)
Most of the best available players for the second round of the Upper Deck NHL Draft are defensemen but there are a handful of good forwards available and Artamonov is one of the best.
The 5-foot-11 forward played a big role for Torpedo of the KHL and thrived. The Russian forward recorded seven goals and 23 points in 54 games in the KHL last season and got regular power play time as well.
Julius Miettinen, C, Everett Silvertips (WHL)
The 6-foot-3 center projects to be a bottom-pairing center with the upside of being a good two-way third-line center. In his first season in North America, Miettinen recorded 31 goals and 67 points in 66 games with the Silvertips of the WHL.
Before the WHL, Miettinen played in Finland. He is a big physical center who is already a pretty good net-front guy with some offensive skill as well. This would be a good pick for the Wild if they were to take Miettinen at 45.
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