Five of The Biggest Draft Busts in The NHL
NHL organizations dedicated substantial amounts of time, money and efforts into drafting the best possible player, regardless of where that respective player is drafted, it's been planned out.
Every now and then a player is selected at the top of the NHL Draft, and for what ever reason, they don't pan out. While this isn't a huge issue, it is a very frustrating proposition for NHL clubs to deal with. Here are five players selected, and believed to be potential stars, whose NHL dreams never panned out quite right.
Angelo Esposito - The Pittsburgh Penguins selected Esposito with the 20th overall selection in the 2007 NHL Draft. Esposito's NHL career, or lack there of it, never happened, he never cracked the Penguins lineup, bouncing around the minors, before heading over-seas to continue playing professionally, he retired from hockey after the 2016-17 season with the HC Motor Ceske Budejovice in the Czechia2.
Nail Yakupov - The Russian winger was selected with the first overall selection in the 2012 NHL Draft by the Edmonton Oilers. Yakupov's NHL career spanned 350 games over six seasons, where he scored 62 goals, 74 assists for 136 points, split between the Oilers, Blues and Avalanche, before heading over-seas to play for SKA St. Petersburg in the KHL.
Cam Barker - The Minnesota Wild drafted the big defenceman with the third overall selection in the 2004 NHL Draft. Barker played 310 NHL games, over eight seasons, scoring 21 goals, 75 assists for 96 points - before bringing his talents to the KHL for Barys Astana, after the 2012-13 NHL season.
Nolan Patrick - The Philadelphia Flyers drafted the young Canadian born center from the WHL's Brandon Wheat Kings, with the second overall pick in the 2017 NHL Draft. Patrick has since played 222 games, split between the Flyers and Golden Knights, putting up 32 goals, 45 assists for 77 points.
Louis Leblanc - The Montreal Canadiens drafted Leblanc with the 18th overall selection in the 2009 NHL Draft, from the USHL's Omaha Lancers, touting him as the next French Canadian NHL star. Unfortunately Leblanc's development never worked out the way Habs management expected, as the center play just 50 NHL games, posting five goals, five assists for 10 career NHL points, he left to play in the KHL with HC Slovan Bratislava, after the 2014-15 AHL regular season with the Norfolk Admirals.
Unfortunately they don't all pan out, thank god for competent NHL scouting staffs, though.
| POLL | ||
AOUT 28 | 192 ANSWERS Five of The Biggest Draft Busts in The NHL Who's the biggest draft bust out of this list? | ||
| Nail Yakapov | 113 | 58.9 % |
| Nolan Patrick | 27 | 14.1 % |
| Cam Barker | 24 | 12.5 % |
| Other | 28 | 14.6 % |
| List of polls | ||
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