5 Most Recent First Overall NHL Draft Picks

The NHL Entry Draft took place on June 27, and the New York Islanders selected defensemen Matthew Schaefer with this year’s number one pick.

Schafer, a native of Hamilton, Ontario, most recently played for the Erie Otters in the OHL. In 17 games played in the 24-25 season, he had seven goals and 15 assists and was a +21. 

He’s drawn comparisons to another former Islander, Devon Toews. 

Should we expect Schaefer to start lighting the league on fire? Well, the recent track record of number one picks has been mixed. Here’s a look at who’s been picked first since 2019. 

2020 – Alexis Lafreniere, LW, New York Rangers

Lafrenière was drafted with the first overall pick in the first COVID-affected NHL Draft. It was conducted via Zoom and took place in October. 

New York won the first overall pick in the lottery after going 37-28-5 in an abbreviated regular season and making the playoffs. 

Before the draft, Lafreniere was playing in the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League for the Rimouski Océanic. He posted 112 total points in his last season with 35 goals and 77 assists. 

Since entering the NHL immediately in the 2020-21 season, Lafreniere has been a decent contributor to the Rangers. His highest point total in a season came in 2023-24, when he had 28 goals and 29 assists. In October of 2024, he signed a seven-year $52 million contract extension with New York. 

Last season, Lafreniere had 17 goals and 28 assists in 82 games played. 

So far, he has 193 total points in his career. Three players drafted below Lafreniere have more points than he has so far in their careers: Tim Stützle, Lucas Raymond, and Seth Jarvis.  

2021 – Owen Power, D, Buffalo Sabres

In another COVID-affected season and draft, the Sabres selected Canadian defenseman Owen Power with the first overall pick. 

Buffalo entered the draft lottery with the best odds at the first overall pick after going 15-34-7 in a shortened season. 

Power had played one season at the University of Michigan before being drafted by the Sabres, where he had three goals and 13 assists in 26 games played. He returned to Michigan the following season and had three goals and 29 assists. 

After his sophomore season in college, he played eight games in the NHL at the end of Buffalo’s 2022 season, scoring two goals and one assist. 

The following season, Power had four goals and 31 assists in 79 games played and was named to the NHL’s All-Rookie Team. 

In October of 2023, Power signed a seven-year $58 million extension with the Sabres.

Some significant players were also drafted after Power, including Wyatt Johnston, Mason McTavish, Matthew Knies, and Luke Hughes. 

2022 – Juraj Slafkovsky, LW, Montreal Canadiens

The Canadiens drafted Slafkovsky first overall in 2022 out of the Finnish Elite League. 

While Montreal had played in the Stanley Cup Finals just one year before the draft, they had a 22-49-11 record in the 2021-22 season, earning them the first overall pick. 

Slafkovsky, 17, from Košice, Slovakia, became the highest drafted Slovakian in NHL history. He had five goals and five assists in 31 games played the previous season for Turun Palloseura. 

In his first season in the NHL, he played in only 39 games, partially due to his participation in the Olympics at midseason. At the 2022 Games, Slafkovsky helped Slovakia earn its first-ever medal in Olympic Ice Hockey. 

The following season, Slafkovsky played in all 82 games, scoring 20 goals and recording 30 assists. 

In July of 2024, he signed an eight-year $60 million extension with the Canadiens. 

He’s the points leader for his draft class, with Logan Cooley two points behind and teammate Lane Hutson in third place. 

2023 – Connor Bedard, C, Chicago Blackhawks

Bedard was one of the most hyped prospects of the post-Crosby, post-Ovechkin era in the NHL. 

An ESPN article before his draft, which was titled ‘How Connor Bedard became hockey’s next young superstar,’ said he was the most hyped draft pick since Connor McDavid. It also detailed the sellout crowds he drew in the WHL and cited a source that claimed Bedard had brought the minor league an additional $1.5 million in revenue in his final season. 

In his final season with the WHL’s Regina Pats, Bedard had a whopping 71 goals and had 72 assists in 57 games played. 

The Blackhawks, in desperate need of a new young identity at the time, earned the first overall pick in that draft after a 26-49-7 season. They earned the first overall pick despite having the third-best odds with fans claiming the draft had been ‘rigged’ for Chicago. 

Since entering the league, Bedard has mainly lived up to the hype but has failed to elevate the Blackhawks to a higher level than they were when he was drafted. Since picking first in ‘23 they’ve had the second and third overall selections in the following two drafts. 

In this past regular season, Bedard had 23 goals and 44 assists in 82 games played. He was a -36 on the ice. Overall, he has 128 points in 150 games played so far. 

In the two years since this draft, only a handful of players have become notable outside of Bedard. Adam Fantilli, who was picked 3rd overall by Columbus, has 81 points through 131 games and Matvei Michkov has 63 points through 80 games played. 

2024 – Macklin Celebrini, C, San Jose Sharks

While less hyped than Bedard, Celebrini had his fair share of buzz going into the 2024 Draft. 

Celebrini played at the famed Shattuck’s St Mary’s prep school in Minnesota for two seasons, it’s a well-known NHL factory that’s been called the ‘Hogwarts of Hockey’. He was a five-star recruit when he committed to play for Boston University Terriers in the NCAA. 

After one season at BU, he won a slew of awards including his conference’s player of the year and rookie of the year awards, he was also Hockey East’s scoring champion. Celebrini became the youngest player to win the Hobey Baker award, college hockey’s Heisman equivalent. 

San Jose won the first overall pick after a 19-54-9 season. 

In his first year with the Sharks, Celebrini had 25 goals and 38 assists in 70 games played. 

San Jose finished near the bottom of the standings again last year, earning the second-overall pick despite having the best odds for the top pick.