Despite the Stanley Cup still having been awarded yet, the NHL draft is now less than a week away and is quickly approaching.
The Carolina Hurricanes once again have a late first round pick as the team holds the 27th overall selection in this year’s draft.
Here’s how that position has done historically.
The Canes have actually selected at 27th before.
Just one other time in 2009, but you probably don’t even remember his name.
That year, the Canes selected Quebecois forward Philippe Paradis.
And the reason you may not have even remembered him?
Less than three months after his selection, the Canes traded Paradis’ rights to the Toronto Maple Leafs for Czech forward Jiri Tlusty.
Paradis would never make it to the NHL and played just 249 games in the AHL.
At least Tlusty had a good run alongside Eric Staal and Alex Semin.
Fear not though because number 27 has actually done fairly well historically.
While obviously not every player hits, only four players selected 27th overall have failed to play in at least one NHL game.
In fact, 34 of those 53 players suited up for at least 100 games and 16 of those played over 500.
And there’s been some pretty good names selected at 27 too.
Let’s take a look at all of the 27’s that played in over 1,000 NHL games in their careers:
Tie Domi
Toronto Maple Leafs – 1988
104G, 245Pts, 1,020GP (3,515 PIM)
Arguably one of the feistiest pugilists in NHL history, what Domi lacked for in size and reach he more than made up for with tenacity.
Domi holds the NHL record for fighting majors with 333 over his 16-year career.
Joe Nieuwendyk
Calgary Flames – 1985
564G, 1,126Pts, 1,257GP
One of the NHL’s 100 Greatest Players of All-Time, Nieuwendyk is the type of player you dream of drafting outside of the top of the draft.
A three-time Stanley Cup champion (all coming with different teams), Niewendyk also won the Calder in his rookie season and took home the Conn Smythe in 1999.
Just a player who was consistently good for a long time.
Scott Mellanby
Philadelphia Flyers – 1984
364G, 840Pts, 1,431GP (2,479 PIM)
Another one of those consistently good players, Mellanby was never by any means the best guy around, but he was a solid player for many years.
Mellanby is also the father of the Florida Panthers’ rat craze as he was said to have killed a rat with his hockey stick in the team’s locker room.
Scott Gomez
New Jersey Devils – 1998
181G, 756Pts, 1,079GP
Gomez was never the biggest scorer, breaking the 20-goal barrier just once in his career, but he had over 500 assists in his 1,000+ game career.
Add onto that a resume with two Stanley Cups and a Calder trophy and you have a very valuable player.
John Carlson
Washington Capitals – 2008
151G, 674Pts, 1,009GP
The only active player on this list, Carlson has been one of the most consistent offensive defensemen in the league for years now.
The Washington Capitals’ number one blueliner helped the team capture the Stanley Cup in 2018 and is a two-time All-Star.
Steve Staios
St. Louis Blues – 1991
56G, 220Pts, 1,001GP
Before Staios was the general manager and president of hockey operations of the Ottawa Senators, he was defending the blueline for six different NHL teams.
Not a major player by any means, but to play in over a 1,000 NHL games, you have to have done something right.
