At their current rate, the Detroit Red Wings would have another high draft pick. With some lottery luck, they might even draw the first overall selection.
But they might need to wait until the summer of 2022 to make that pick.
The NHL reportedly is considering the possibility of pushing back the 2021 draft, scheduled for July 23-24, to next year, giving teams the opportunity to better scout and evaluate prospects whose leagues were shut down due to COVID-19.
If this happens, there would be back-to-back drafts in 2022, one for 2021-eligible players, based on the 2021 standings and lottery, and one for 2022-eligible players, based on the 2021-22 standings and lottery.
TSN’s Darren Dreger reported that general managers “are very much in favor of this and you got to think the 2021 draft-eligible players would also be in favor of it, given the fact a majority of these kids aren’t playing hockey right now.”
He added that this a CBA-related issue and that the NHL Players Association is not involved yet.
Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill understands this line of thinking.
“There’s a whole group of players that haven’t played, and how do you evaluate guys that haven’t played?” Blashill said Thursday. “It doesn’t seem to be right. I think the draft of the 18-year-old birth year is extremely hard anyways, probably should be a later draft.
“Certainly, it would allow teams to get it more right. Now you have a hard, complex job and you can’t get a chance to evaluate. I’m not sure how you’re able to make those decisions. There would be a lot of different factors you’d have to consider in making these decisions, but certainly I would understand why they’re looking into it.”
Of Canada’s three major junior leagues, only the Quebec League is playing. The Western Hockey League plans to start on Feb. 26. The Ontario Hockey League, suspended indefinitely, still hopes to have an abbreviated season.
Several European leagues and U.S. colleges have either suspended play or canceled games due to the pandemic.
It has made scouting much more challenging, which Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman addressed prior to the season.
“You’re restricted by travel, getting into countries,” Yzerman said. “Even some of the leagues that have been playing, they’re not allowed to have scouts (in the building). When games are being played, our people, our scouting staff, are getting to the games in their areas. Going from the U.S. to Canada isn’t possible right now, so the guys in Canada are doing the job in Canada.
“Scouting for the draft is going to be hard. If these leagues get up and running, it’s going to be shortened schedules. If we do go ahead with the draft in (July), it’s going to be a real challenge because you’re going to have limited viewings on players and evaluating players that have played 24 games, maybe, and have sat around virtually for almost an entire year and haven’t played. Some of these kids will be restricted to or limited as to how much they can skate or how much they could have trained. I’m not sure how this is going to play out this year for the draft. Maybe we should consider doing the draft at a different time.”
Blashill noted that few players make the jump from the draft to the NHL anyway.
“Even if they did (go directly to the NHL), 99 percent of the time it’s probably not the best thing for them,” Blashill said. “Once in a while you get a guy like (Auston) Matthews or (Connor) McDavid, that are just so good at that level that they have to walk in and play. But most of them, even the top picks, if you look at their first years, probably would have been better served playing somewhere else.
“So, if this delays that a little bit, I think that’s a positive for those individuals’ development.”
Fresh opponent
The Red Wings (3-9-2) visit Nashville (5-8-0) tonight (8 p.m., Fox Sports Detroit Plus), the only Central Division club they have not played.
Thomas Greiss will make his seventh consecutive start. Blashill said Jonathan Bernier (upper-body injury) might be available for Saturday’s game in Nashville.
Luke Glendening (upper-body injury) will sit for the second game in a row.
The Red Wings are 10-2 in their past 12 meetings with the Predators and have won six in a row in Nashville.
Blashill said Tyler Bertuzzi has not skated since suffering an upper-body injury on Jan. 30 and it is uncertain whether he will practice immediately after the team returns to Detroit on Monday.
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