Parade of forwards leads draft

CHICAGO -- Cody Glass played in a youth hockey tournament in Las Vegas when he was 10. His Junior Steelers team finished a disappointing second.

He is looking forward to many more games in Sin City.

Glass was selected by the expansion Vegas Golden Knights with their first-ever pick Friday night, going No. 6 overall as part of a parade of forwards at the top of the NHL draft. The 18-year-old Canadian center had 32 goals and 62 assists in 69 games last season for the Portland Winterhawks of the Western Hockey League.

"I didn't really see that as a hockey place when I went there, but now, with the new team and the fans and season tickets sold out, I think hockey will be unbelievable," Glass said. "Just being there and walking down the Strip, it's something that's really nice. You don't see too much of that in Winnipeg."

The first NHL draft in Chicago began with another 18-year-old forward, with Swiss center Nico Hischier going No. 1 overall to the New Jersey Devils. The Philadelphia Flyers then grabbed Nolan Patrick at No. 2.

Ten of the top 13 picks were listed as centers. Defensemen Miro Heiskanen (No. 3 overall to Dallas) and Cale Makar (No. 4 to Colorado) and right wing Owen Tippett (No. 10 to Florida) were the lone exceptions. Vegas also opted for another forward prospect with its second of three picks in the first round, taking Nick Suzuki at No. 12 before selecting Swedish defenseman Erik Brannstrom with the 15th pick.

Hischier, 18, is the highest drafted Swiss player in NHL history. He had 38 goals and 86 points in 57 games with the Halifax Mooseheads of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League this past season. He spent the previous two seasons in the Swiss pro league, where he was coached by current Ottawa Senators Coach Guy Boucher.

Hischier fits in nicely with General Manager Ray Shero's desire to put a faster team on the ice. New Jersey is coming off its worst season in nearly three decades, finishing with a 28-40-14 record.

But Hischier is just over 6 feet tall and listed at 179 pounds, and will need to put on more muscle to succeed in the NHL.

"I love hockey," he said. "It's my biggest goal to play in the NHL. I'm so happy."

Patrick, 18, a Winnipeg, Manitoba, native whose father Steve and uncle James played in the NHL, held the top spot in the NHL Central Scouting Department's final rankings in April. He sustained a sport hernia last summer that hampered him during his season with Brandon of the Western Hockey League, but he finished with 20 goals and 46 points in 33 games.

"Once we gathered all the information we felt comfortable that if he was there for us we were going to take him," General Manager Ron Hextall said.

The New York Rangers and Tampa Bay Lightning also opted for players with family ties to the NHL. New York got the No. 7 pick in a trade with Arizona and selected center Lias Andersson, whose father Niklas played in the league. Callan Foote, who went to Tampa Bay at No. 14, is the son of two-time Stanley Cup champion Adam Foote.

"It's nice to have someone like him on my side," Callan Foote said.

Friday's trades

1) Arizona acquired C Derek Stepan and G Antti Raanta from the New York Rangers for D Anthony DeAngelo and its first-round (No. 7) draft pick. New York selected Lias Andersson, c, HV 71-Sweden (No. 7).

2) Chicago acquired F Brandon Saad, G Anton Forsberg and a 2018 fifth-round draft pick from Columbus for Fs Artemi Panarin, Tyler Motte and its sixth-round (No. 170) draft pick. Columbus selected (No. 170).

3) Chicago traded its first-round (No. 26) pick to Dallas for the Stars' first- (No. 29) and third-round (No. 70) picks. Dallas selected Jake Oettinger, g, Boston U. (Hockey East). Chicago selected Henri Jokiharju, d, Portland (WHL) and (No. 70).

4) St. Louis traded its first-round (No. 27) pick, C Jori Lehtera and a conditional 2018 first-round draft pick to Philadelphia for C Brayden Schenn. Philadelphia selected Morgan Frost, c, Sault Ste. Marie (OHL).

5) Pittsburgh its first-round (No. 31) pick and C Oskar Sundqvist to St. Louis for RW Ryan Reaves and the Blues' second-round (No. 51) pick. St. Louis selected Klim Kostin, rw, Dynamo Moscow (Russia). Pittsburgh selected (No. 52).

First-round NHL draft selections

1. New Jersey, Nico Hischier, c, Halifax (QMJHL).
2. Philadelphia, Nolan Patrick, c, Brandon (WHL).
3. Dallas, Miro Heiskanen, d, HIFK (Finland).
4. Colorado, Cale Makar, d, Brooks (AJHL).
5. Vancouver, Elias Pettersson, c, Timra (Sweden-2).
6. Las Vegas, Cody Glass, c, Portland (WHL).
7. N.Y. Rangers (from Arizona), Lias Andersson, c, HV 71 (Sweden).
8. Buffalo, Casey Middlestadt, c, Eden Prairie (Minn.) HS.
9. Detroit, Michael Rasmussen, c, Tri-City (WHL).
10. Florida, Owen Tippett, rw, Mississauga (OHL).
11. Los Angeles, Gabriel Vilardi, c, Windsor (OHL).
12. Carolina, Martin Necas, c, Brno (Czech Republic).
13. Las Vegas (from Winnipeg), Nick Suzuki, c, Owen Sound (OHL).
14. Tampa Bay, Cal Foote, d, Kelowna (WHL).
15. Las Vegas (from N.Y. Islanders), Erik Brannstrom, d, HV 71 (Sweden).
16. Calgary, Juuso Valimaki, d, Tri-City (WHL).
17. Toronto, Timothy Liljegren, d, Rogle (Sweden).
18. Boston, Urho Vaakanainen, d, JYP (Finland).
19. San Jose, Josh Norris, c, USA Under-18 (USHL).
20. St. Louis, Robert Thomas, c, London (OHL).
21. N.Y. Rangers, Filip Chytil, c, Zlin (Czech Republic).
22. Edmonton, Kailer Yamamoto, rw, Spokane (WHL).
23. Arizona (from Minnesota), Pierre-Olivier Joseph, d, Charlottetown (QMJHL).
24. Winnipeg (from Columbus through Las Vegas), Kristian Vesalainen, lw-rw, Frolunda (Sweden).
25. Montreal, Ryan Poehling, c, St. Cloud State (NCHC).
26. Dallas (from Chicago), Jake Oettinger, g, Boston U. (Hockey East).
27. Philadelphia (from Washington through St. Louis), Morgan Frost, c, Sault Ste. Marie (OHL).
28. Ottawa, Shane Bowers, c, Waterloo (USHL).
29. Chicago (from Anaheim through Dallas), Henri Jokiharju, d, Portland (WHL).
30. Nashville, Eeli Tolvanen, rw, Sioux City (USHL).
31. St. Louis (from Pittsburgh), Klim Kostin, rw, Dynamo Moscow (Russia).

Sports on 06/24/2017