Hindsight is an amazing thing, and allows us to look back and wonder “what could have been.” Although perfection is attempted, scouting and draft selection is far from an exact science and sometimes, it doesn’t work out the way teams – or players – intended. For everyone Patrick Kanethere is a Patrik Stefan.
We’re looking back at the 2008 NHL Entry Draft and asking how it would shake out knowing what we do now. Will the first round remain the same, or will some late-round picks jump up to the top of the board?
On Sunday, we asked the PHR community to weigh in on who should have been the top pick and over 70% of the votes cast went towards history repeating itself. Steven Stamkos being the number one selection. For comparison, Patrick Kane had over 85% of the votes to stay as the top selection in our 2007 series so while it was still a sizable majority, it was a little closer this time around as we move on to the next selection.
That pick was made by the Kings who opted for defenseman Drew Doughty. He was coming off of two high-scoring seasons with Guelph of the OHL which had him ranked as the top defenseman available by most scouting services so the selection didn’t come as too much of a surprise.
It’s safe to say that it has panned out quite nicely. Doughty played his way onto the roster – no small feat for an 18-year-old defenseman – and made an immediate impact as he logged nearly 24 minutes a night. The following year, the offensive promise he showed at the major junior level came through as he picked up 16 goals (the most of his career to date) and 59 points (second-most).
All in all, Doughty is the only player from the 2008 draft class to play at least 1,000 career NHL games while he has been a four-time Norris finalist, winning the award once in 2016. He has two Stanley Cup championships under his belt. In 2012 and 2014 and at the age of 32, he still has been going strong, averaging more than 25 minutes a night in each of the last ten seasons. It’s safe to say the Kings are happy with how things turned out with their selection.
But it was the right one; would they have been better off with someone else instead? With the second pick of the 2008 NHL Entry Draft, who should the Los Angeles Kings select? Cast your vote below.
(App users, click here to vote.)
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