Tag: 2022 NHL Draft

Sportsbooks whiffed on the No. 1 NHL Draft pick, just like they did on the NBA and NFL

Another surprise at the top of the draft rocked the house

Juraj Slafkovsky’s shocking No. 1 overall selection by the Montreal Canadiens during Thursday’s NHL Draft, apparently wasn’t as much of a surprise to the betting public once again. While Slafkovsky closed as the favorite (-160) to hear his name off the board first, as recently as a week ago, that wasn’t the case.

Up until the very last moment, Shane Wright was most people’s consensus No. 1 pick and his -5000 opening odds at some sportsbooks represented that. Yet, the number became increasingly less favorable as the draft neared.

At the same time, Slafkovsky opened with +500 odds and no real shot to go first in the draft. One thing led to another and — BOOM — his draft-day odds rose to eventually become the odds-on favorite.

Per Pete Truszkowski of Yahoo! Sports:

“Bettors who backed Slafkovsky had a nice payday. Some got in at +500, while many got in at prices near +200.”

That makes three straight major drafts where the betting public seemingly nailed the No. 1 pick over industry insiders. Before the NFL draft, Aiden Hutchinson was long expected to go No. 1 overall by most prognosticators. Trevor Walker ruined those predictions. Then last month at the NBA draft, Jabari Smith Jr. seemed almost guaranteed to go No.1—until Paolo Banchero proved that oddsmakers can’t take ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski word for absolute fact.

Betting on the draft is already hard enough. It appears handicapping the top pick might be even tougher.

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Michigan State sophomore defenseman David Gucciardi drafted by Washington Capitals

MSU defenseman David Gucciardi has been selected by the Washington Capitals in the 2022 NHL Draft

David Gucciardi joined the Michigan State hockey program for the 2021-22 season and quickly became a household name for his play on the blue line during his freshman season. Now, a young player on the rise within the Michigan State program, he has a new feather to put in his cap. Gucciardi was selected in the seventh round of the 2022 NHL Draft by the Washington Capitals.

In 36 games, Gucciardi recorded 5 goals and 6 assists. He will be a key cog in helping new coach Adam Nightingale rebuild the Spartan hockey program.

Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan state news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Cory Linsner on Twitter @Cory_Linsner.

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The Coyotes’ front office wore matching blueberry suits to the NHL Draft and fans crushed them

They’re gonna like the way they look. It was guaranteed.

While they had a top-three pick in the 2022 NHL Draft, the Coyotes have had better days lately. Let’s walk it back for a second.

First, they lost their lease with Glendale Arena. Then, Arizona State (yes, a college) mandated that the team share logos on center ice with their squad. Throw in their seventh losing season in the last decade, and Arizona pro hockey might genuinely be on edge.

The man tasked with revitalizing the Coyotes, Bill Armstrong, has different aspirations. Armstrong took over as Arizona’s GM in 2020, knowing he’d have a significant on-ice rebuild ahead of him.

Before Armstrong and his front office brain trust made their top-three selection official in this year’s, he and his crew wore identical blueberry suits to the festivities:

Can you imagine all the calls they had to make the night before to ensure they all wore the same thing? What a headache.

Canadiens’ home crowd has mixed reactions to surprising selection of Juraj Slafkovky at No. 1 in the NHL Draft

Not exactly the warm welcome Montreal envisioned.

The 2022 NHL Draft kicked off on Thursday night in Montreal. As usual, with a glut of talented prospects, and no shortage of significant trades, the sheer spectacle of the first round was palpable.

The biggest shock of the night arguably came as soon as the draft began with the host Canadiens at No. 1 overall. Instead of taking the long-time consensus top pick in center Shane Wright, Montreal opted for, shall we say, a different direction.

The Habs picked Slovakia’s Juraj Slafkovky. He’s a talented left-winger for sure, but that doesn’t mean the home crowd at the Bell Centre had to love the pick. The fans’ chorus of emotions as the Canadiens revealed Slafkovky would be their next hopeful core piece was evident:

Oh, man. I mean, it’s not like that audience is outright jeering Slafkovky in his first NHL moment. But they’re not exactly head-over-heels elated with their reaction either.

To be fair, Canadiens fans might have had the same mixed-bag reaction regardless of who their favorite team picked. It’s the spirit of the draft, after all.

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2022 NHL Draft Tracker: Grading every pick in the first round

The 2022 NHL Draft is officially here!

Welcome to the 2022 NHL Draft!

The NHL offseason is officially in full swing now, with the Stanley Cup awarded to the Colorado Avalanche after one of the best playoffs we’ve had in years. And now that the summer has rolled around, hockey fans are beginning to have hope again for their favorite teams as the season slate resets back to 0-0-0 across the board.

As of Thursday afternoon before the 7 p.m. ET event begins, the biggest trade of note is the Avalanche acquiring goaltender Alexandar Georgiev from the Rangers. Considering the NHL Draft is a major time for trades and deals, however, expect the next few days to be a flurry of activity.

Plus, of course, there’s also the actual draft to think about! The Montreal Canadiens hold the No. 1 overall pick this year, with either Shane Wright or Juraj Slafkovsky the likely candidates to be selected first. For the rest of the draft, it seems to be anyone’s game, with picks likely to be changing hands often as NHL general managers scramble for ways to better their franchise’s position.

Keep an eye on this page as we update this tracker with analysis and grades once the 2022 NHL Draft begins!

Ranking the top 32 hockey prospects ahead of the 2022 NHL Draft