The NHL is gearing up its promotion for the NHL Draft on Friday night and Saturday afternoon by focusing on those rare, beautiful gems that can be found in the later rounds.
Here’s one you might know: Braden Holtby.
Holtby was selected in the fourth round, 93rd overall, by the Washington Capitals in the 2008 NHL Draft.
Let’s go through all the goalies who were picked before Braden. I’m sure there are some real studs here.
| Round | Pick | Player | NHL games |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 18 | Chet Pickard | 0 |
| 1 | 30 | Tom McCollum | 3 |
| 2 | 31 | Jacob Markstrom | 229 |
| 2 | 34 | Jake Allen | 265 |
| 2 | 59 | Tyler Beskorowany | 0 |
| 2 | 61 | Peter Delmas | 0 |
| 3 | 77 | Michael Hutchinson | 111 |
| 3 | 83 | Marco Cousineau | 0 |
| 3 | 84 | Jacob De Serres | 0 |
| 4 | 93 | Braden Holtby | 420 |
Yikes. Out of the 9 goaltenders drafted ahead of Holtby, five of them, including the first goalie taken in the 2008 draft, Chet Pickard, never played a single game in the NHL. Holtby has more wins by himself (257) than the other nine goaltenders combined (224). Jake Allen is the only other goalie from the 2008 draft that has more than 100 wins (136).
Not only was Holtby the best goaltender, but he also ended up being one of the top 3 players of the entire draft. Only Steven Stamkos (led league in goals twice) and Drew Doughty (won Norris Trophy once) have had as successful careers. Capitals defenseman John Carlson was also selected in this draft at number 27.
Other accomplishments Holtby has had after being a fourth-round pick include winning a Stanley Cup, being a Vezina Trophy winner as the NHL’s best goaltender, standing up Donald Trump, and tying Martin Brodeur for most wins in a single season (48 in 2015-16). He also has an amazing neckbeard and supports equality.
Yup, he turned out pretty good. What a steal.
Headline photo: Elizabeth Kong
