NEW YORK – It might have taken a while but something good finally happened to the New York Islanders. Yesterday the Islanders won the lottery for the right to draft first overall in this coming June’s NHL Entry Draft. This years prizes are two fold: The London Knights John Tavares and Swedish defenseman Victor Hedman. Don’t let the experts fool you, however, Tavares is on the Islanders radar and will not doubt be the Islanders poster child for years to come. Hedman, who stands 6′ 6″ and reminds people of Boston’s Zdeno Chara, will than fall to the Tampa Bay Lighting. The move should pan out well for both teams. The Islanders get a high scoring center, while the Lightning gets a defenseman that can anchor the blueline for years to come.
The 2009 NHL Entry Draft will take place June 26 and 27 at Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec with the first round broadcast live on TSN. The order of selection for the first 14 drafting positions in the first round, only, of the 2009 Entry Draft is as follows: 1. New York Islanders 2. Tampa Bay Lightning 3. Colorado Avalanche 4. Atlanta Thrashers 5. Los Angeles Kings 6. Phoenix Coyotes 7. Toronto Maple Leafs 8. Dallas Stars 9. Ottawa Senators 10. Edmonton Oilers 11. Nashville Predators 12. Minnesota Wild 13. Buffalo Sabres 14. Florida Panthers The remaining drafting positions will be determined at the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. Contact the author at Brian.Jennings@prohockeynews.com
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