Redrafting the 2009 NHL Draft as top-three picks hit milestones

On the hype scale, the 2009 NHL Draft didn’t fall in the Generational Superstar tier, a-la 2005 (Sidney Crosby), 2015 (Connor McDavid) and 2023 (Connor Bedard), but it did generate plenty of excitement. John Tavares was the first player to earn exceptional status to play major junior, don’t forget. While he wasn’t quite perceived as a gift-wrapped Hall of Famer, he was unquestionably hailed as a franchise savior when the New York Islanders landed him first overall.

Behind him, the Tampa Bay Lightning were believed by most to have scored a future franchise cornerstone, albeit one who needed more time to grow into his towering frame, in Victor Hedman at No. 2. The Colorado Avalanche added serious speed and a potential star in Matt Duchene at No. 3.

It’s not particularly common for all three top picks in a given draft class to pan out for star-caliber careers. Jack Johnson went third in 2005, for instance. Zach Bogosian went third in 2008. It’s thus fascinating to see all three top picks of the 2009 class in line to hit impressive career milestones within days of each other this week.

Tavares needs just four points to reach 1,000 and has a real shot at it this week with three games on the Toronto Maple Leafs’ schedule. While he won’t be remembered as a world-class superstar, he’s had an excellent career befitting his draft slot. He’ll likely be a 500-goal scorer by the time he hangs ’em up. He’s a two-time Hart Trophy finalist, a first-team All-Star and a captain of two different NHL franchises.

Hedman, meanwhile, played career game 1,000 Monday night, ticking one more box on a Hall of Fame resume that includes a Norris Trophy, a Stanley Cup and a Conn Smythe Trophy.

Later this week: Duchene will also reach 1,000 games, and he sits well north of 300 goals and 700 points. Almost any franchise would take that production from a No. 3 overall pick, and he’s not finished, either.

Hedman would go No. 1 in a 2009 do-over. How else might the deck shuffle?

With the 2009 Draft Class turning 15 next spring and its top three hitting meaningful benchmarks this week, let’s take a crack at a 2009 first-round redraft.

What stands out most: while this class didn’t yield many stars, it delivered so many winners. Stanley Cup rings galore.

(Original draft slot in brackets)

THE REDRAFTED TOP 10

1. Victor Hedman, D (TB, 2^nd)

Hedman has been everything you want in a No. 1 defenseman. Over his 15 seasons, he has the third most points of anyone at his position. But he’s done so while also playing with an edge and functioning, during his peak seasons, as an all-situations shutdown horse logging 25 minutes a night. Between 2016-17 and 2021-22, he was a first- or second-team All-Star and Norris finalist six years in a row. He’ll retire as one of the all-time greats at his position.

2. John Tavares, C (NYI, 1^st)

Tavares’ legacy will be viewed differently if he ever wins a Stanley Cup. Even if he doesn’t, he’ll at worst be known as a fitting No. 1 overall pick who achieved the stardom that was promised. He has cracked the NHL’s top 10 in goals four times and points twice. He has eclipsed 30 goals six times. Maybe he’s closer to the Hall of Very Good than the Hall of Fame, but he likely will have strong enough numbers to get in based on the selection committee’s established standard.

3. Ryan O’Reilly, C (Col, 33^rd)

What a summit 2018-19 was for O’Reilly. In his first season after coming to the St. Louis Blues in a blockbuster trade, he won the Selke Trophy as the NHL’s best defensive forward, the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP and the Stanley Cup. He’s one of the top two-way players of his era, having cracked the top five in Selke voting four times. Just as impressive: the fact he has a Lady Byng Trophy, too. To play a shutdown game while also never getting your team into trouble takes tremendously controlled stickwork, a trait for which O’Reilly has always been celebrated.

4. Nazem Kadri, C (Tor, 7^th)

Am I grading Kadri with too much of a Stanley Cup bias? Maybe, but isn’t that the ultimate goal for any player? Kadri is a winner who played a major role on the Avs’ 2021-22 championship team. He has also scored 30 or more goals twice, 20 or more goals five times and has played his entire career with a live-wire edge to his game. He has gotten himself into trouble because of his temper, but the bottom line is: Kadri at his best and worst has always made an impact on the game. In his best years, he was rarely a passenger.

5. Chris Kreider, LW (NYR, 19^th)

Kreider has the type of toolset that makes scouts drool. He’s big, he’s famously athletic enough to jump out of a pool, he’s physical and he can really skate for his size. He’s the only member of the 2009 draft class to deliver a 50-goal season. As a winger, Kreider at his best wasn’t as dominant as some of the names above him, but he has been a tremendous complementary piece and leader during his career with the New York Rangers.

6. Brayden Schenn, C (LA, 5^th)

Schenn has never been a superstar and probably not even a star, but he’s been a rock-solid power forward for the majority of his career, capable of playing anywhere in a top-nine forward group, at center or on the wing, while blending offense with a physical game. Almost any player would gladly take Schenn’s career on draft day: 15 years, seven seasons of at least 50 points and a 2018-19 Stanley Cup.

7. Evander Kane, LW (Atl, 4^th)

He has been a polarizing player throughout his career, no doubt, often excelling whenever he lands in a new environment only to wear out his welcome with teammates and/or run into off-ice trouble. But if we zoom out: a lot of players who have lived Kane’s rollercoaster would’ve washed out of the league by now. He has hung around for almost 900 games across 15 seasons. Kreider and Schenn are power forwards in the modern sense, but Kane is a throwback to the glory days of Brendan Shanahan and Rick Tocchet: a deadly goal scorer who is also a mean S.O.B. and can throw down with heavyweights.

8. Matt Duchene, C (Col, 3^rd)

Too low for the second-leading scorer in the draft class? The speedy Duchene has impressed in his various peaks, eclipsing the 70-point mark three times, the 30-goal mark three times and the 40-goal mark once. But I dock marks for Duchene’s wild fluctuations in scoring, and perhaps effort, from season to season. He hasn’t been a winner, missing the playoffs in nine of 15 seasons and advancing past the first round once. Very solid career, but he hasn’t been a guy who drags you into the fight in April and May despite his considerable raw skill.

9. Mattias Ekholm, D (Nsh, 102^nd)

Ekholm hasn’t had the flashiest career, but the Oilers paid a huge price to land him last year for a reason: he possesses so many of the traits contending teams crave. He can move the puck for a big man, he uses his huge wingspan so well as a shutdown defender, and he’s built to munch major minutes.

10. Ryan Ellis, D (Nsh, 11^th)

On pure ability, Ellis would easily crack the top five on this list, to be clear. He was one of the players who bridged the gap to the modern era of two-way blueliners. Back in 2009, he was expected to star in the NHL as an undersized offensive specialist, but he became a stalwart in Nashville because he was so good as a play driver all over the ice. Sadly, 35 players in the Class of ’09 have logged more games. Ellis has struggled to stay healthy and is unofficially retired after 566 games. If he could’ve played a full season at his best, he might have challenged for a Norris Trophy.

BEST OF THE REST

11. Oliver Ekman-Larsson, D (Phx, 6th)
12. Anders Lee, LW (NYI, 152nd)
13. Darcy Kuemper, G (Min, 161st)
14. Reilly Smith, RW (Dal, 69th)
15. Tyson Barrie, D (Col, 64th)
16. Tomas Tatar, LW (Det, 60th)
17. Dmitry Orlov, D (Wsh, 55th)
18. Kyle Palmieri, RW (Ana, 26th)
19. Mike Hoffman, LW (Ott, 130th)
20. Nick Leddy, D (Min, 16th)
21. Robin Lehner, G (Ott, 46th)
22. Marcus Johansson, LW (Wsh, 24th)
23. Craig Smith, RW (Nsh, 98th)
24. Brayden McNabb, D (Buf, 66th)
25. Casey Cizikas, C (NYI, 92nd)
26. Marcus Foligno, LW (Buf, 104th
27. Dmitry Kulikov, D (Fla, 14th)
28. Jakob Silfverberg, RW (Ott, 39th)
29. Erik Haula, C (Min, 182nd)
30. Nick Jensen, D (Det, 150th)

Dropped out

Scott Glennie, D (Dal, 8^th )
Jared Cowen, D (Ott, 9^th)
Magnus Paajarvi, LW (Edm, 10^th)
Calvin de Haan, D (NYI, 12^th)
Zack Kassian, RW (Buf, 13^th)
Peter Holland, C (Ana, 15^th)
David Rundblad, D (Stl, 17^th)
Louis Leblanc, RW (Mtl, 18^th)
Jacob Josefson, C (NJ, 20^th)
John Moore, D (CBJ, 21^st)
Jordan Schroeder, LW (Van, 22^nd)
Tim Erixon, D (Cgy, 23^rd)
Jordan Caron, RW (Bos, 25^th)
Philippe Paradis LW (Car, 27^th)
Dylan Olsen, D (Chi, 28^th)
Carter Ashton, RW (TB, 29^th)
Simon Despres, D (Pit, 30^th)