We end this weeklong series looking back at recent drafts by going to the 2018 class, my ranking of which has, as you’d expect, changed the most since draft day given how long it’s been. You will also notice that this list is the shortest of the four. This isn’t due to the strength differences of the class — rather, it’s to be expected because with more data we have a better understanding of whether players are actually on the NHL track or not.
Evaluations are based mostly on prior seasons, so any new information from NHL training camps or the first few weeks of the season in other leagues has not been incorporated unless it was overwhelming.
For players to be eligible for this article, they need to have been drafted, and drafted during the 2018 NHL Draft.
Note: This exercise is not intended to be a mock draft. Rather, this is my personal take on how the ordering of players from this draft class has shifted.
TIER 1: Projected bubble elite NHL player and NHL All-Star
1. Brady Tkachuk, LW (No. 4 pick)
Tkachuk has developed into one of the league’s premier power wingers. He’s an absolute menace to play against, provides a lot of offense and was named a captain of an NHL team at a very young age.
TIER 2: Projected NHL All-Star
2. Andrei Svechnikov, LW (No. 2 pick)
3. Quinn Hughes, LHD (No.
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