The Golden Knights made 11 selections in their first NHL Entry Draft in Chicago, including Cody Glass, Nick Suzuki, and Erik Brannstrom, who became the first 1st round picks in franchise history. The draft a few days prior, which netted the majority of the Golden Knights inaugural franchise, brought in seven 1st round picks as well.
The Expansion Draft is usually, and understandably, viewed through the lens of “where did he come from” not “when was he picked.” Here’s a look at when each player was drafted to see how the team looks from an Entry Draft perspective. (Individual player list at bottom)
| Draft | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th | 7th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 6, 13, 15 | 34, 62 | 65 | 96 | 127, 142 | 158, 161 | 189, 194 |
| 2016 | x | x | x | x | x | x | x |
| 2015 | x | x | 69 | x | x | x | x |
| 2014 | 18 | x | x | x | x | 168 | x |
| 2013 | 26 | 57 | x | x | x | x | x |
| 2012 | 4, 29 | x | 89 | x | 151 | x | 185, 202 |
| 2011 | x | 31, 53 | 66 | x | x | x | x |
| 2010 | x | 38, 49, 57 | x | 111 | x | x | x |
| 2009 | x | x | 66, 69, 85 | x | x | x | 182 |
| 2008 | 19 | x | x | x | x | x | x |
| 2007 | 26 | x | x | x | x | x | x |
| 2005 | x | 33 | x | x | x | x | x |
| 2004 | x | x | 79 | x | x | x | x |
| 2003 | 1 | x | x | x | x | x | x |
| 2000 | x | x | x | x | x | 194 | x |
Unsurprisingly, and true to the “playoffs in three, Cup in six” mantra, George McPhee was focused on grabbing players in the 23-26-year-old range, which meant many players from the 2009-2012 Drafts.
Looking at the grid, you can see the importance of a player like Keegan Kolesar, who was the lone player from the 2015 or 2016 Drafts. Vegas gave up a 2017 2nd for a 2015 3rd (Kolesar) using a surplus to fill a need.
Marc-Andre Fleury is the only #1 overall selection in the draft, but David Perron, Luca Sbisa, Griffin Reinhart, Alex Tuch, and Shea Theodore were also 1st round picks acquired through Expansion. Vegas also signed Steffan Matteau on July 1st, who was the 29th overall pick in 2012.
Vegas has seven players who were selected in the 2nd round by other teams. A total of nine players currently under Golden Knights control went undrafted.
Here’s the whole list, sorted by alphabetically by last name.
Pierre-Edouard Bellemare – Undrafted
Jake Bischoff 2012, 7th, 185
Erik Brannstrom 2017, 1st, 15
Nicholas Campoli 2017, 6, 158
William Carrier 2013, 2nd, 57
Chris Casto Undrafted
Oscar Dansk 2012, 2nd, 31
Jack Dugan 2017, 5th, 142
Reid Duke – 2014, 6th, 169
Cody Eakin 2009, 3rd, 85
Lucas Elvenes 2017, 5th, 127
Deryk Engelland 2000, 6th, 194
Dylan Ferguson 2017, 7th, 194
Marc-Andre Fleury 2003, 1st, 1
Jason Garrison Undrafted
Cody Glass 2017, 1st, 6
Nikita Gusev 2012, 7th, 202
Nicolas Hague 2017, 2nd, 34
Erik Haula 2009, 7th, 182
Brad Hunt Undrafted
Ben Jones 2017, 7th, 189
William Karlsson 2011, 2nd, 53
Keegan Kolesar 2015, 3rd, 69
Maxime Lagace Undrafted
Brendan Leipsic 2012, 3rd, 89
Jake Leschyshyn 2017, 2nd, 62
Oscar Lindberg 2010, 2nd, 57
Jonathan Marchessault – Undrafted
Stefan Matteau 2012, 1st, 29
Brayden McNabb 2009, 3rd, 66
Jon Merrill 2010, 2nd, 38
Colin Miller 2012, 5th, 151
James Neal 2005, 2nd 33
Tomas Nosek – Undrafted
Jiri Patera 2017, 6th, 161
David Perron 2007, 1st, 26
Calvin Pickard 2010, 2nd, 49
Teemu Pulkkinen 2010, 4th, 111
Griffin Reinhart 2012, 1st, 4
Jonas Rondbjerg 2017, 3rd, 65
Luca Sbisa 2008, 1st, 19
Nate Schmidt – Undrafted
Reilly Smith 2009, 3rd, 69
Clayton Stoner 2004, 3rd, 79
Nick Suzuki 2017, 1st, 13
Shea Theodore 2013, 1st, 26
Paul Thompson – Undrafted
Alex Tuch 2014, 1st, 18
T.J. Tynan 2011, 3rd, 66
Maksim Zhukov 2017, 4th, 96
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