The first round of the 2021 National Hockey League draft went down on Friday night with four Western Hockey League players selected. Last year, seven WHLers were picked in the first round.
The Swedish Hockey League saw the most players selected among the 30 chosen, with the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League next with four.
Three NCAA players were chosen, including first overall pick Owen Power to the Buffalo Sabres and second overall pick Matty Beniers to the expansion Seattle Kraken.
Dylan Guenther
Heading into the draft, the top-ranked WHL player was Edmonton Oil Kings right wing Dylan Guenther. The Edmonton, AB product was ranked seventh overall by Elite Prospects, sixth overall by TSN/Bob McKenzie and fifth overall among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting.
Guenther ended up being selected ninth overall by the Arizona Coyotes with the draft pick that originally belonged to the Vancouver Canucks before a blockbuster trade on Friday afternoon.
He put up 24 points in a dozen games with the Oil Kings during the 2020-21 season. The 2003-born forward was the WHL’s rookie of the year in 2020 after posting 26 goals and 59 points in 58 games with Edmonton.
Guenther was also named to the 2020-21 DUBNetwork second all-star team.
Sebastian Cossa
The second WHL player selected on Friday was Guenther’s Oil Kings teammate Sebastian Cossa, who went 15th overall to the Detroit Red Wings.
The 2002-born goalie improved on his outstanding WHL rookie year, finishing the 2020-21 season with a 17-1-1 record. He was named DUBNetwork top goaltender and to the DUBNetwork first all-star team.
Cossa also had a minuscule 1.57 goals-against-average, a .941 save percentage, and four shutouts to push his career total to eight.
He started this past season on an eight-game winning streak and had two separate streaks of four and five wins respectively.
The product of Hamilton, ON went into the draft as the top-ranked North American goaltender by NHL Central Scouting. Cossa was ranked #22 by Elite Prospects, #15 by TSN/Bob McKenzie, and #17 by Sportsnet.
Carson Lambos
The third WHL player chosen was defenseman Carson Lambos of the Winnipeg ICE, who went 26th overall to the Minnesota Wild. He was ranked 11th overall among North American Skaters by NHL Central Scouting.
Lambos started the 2020-21 season on loan to JYP in the top junior league in Finland. In 13 games with JYP, the Winnipegger had two goals and 11 points.
He also played two games with the JYP U18 team and posted three assists. Lambos got into a pair of games with the top JYP team of Finland’s Liiga.
When the WHL season started in March, Lambos returned to the ICE and played two games before it ended prematurely due to an injury.
We've selected defenseman Nolan Allan from the @PARaidersHockey!
Welcome to Chicago ? pic.twitter.com/QdzJg8hzGu
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) July 24, 2021
Nolan Allen
The final WHL player chosen on Friday was the last pick of the first round as Prince Albert Raiders defenseman Nolan Allen went to the Chicago Blackhawks.
The 2003-born blueliner from Davidson, SK had a goal and an assist in 16 games for the Raiders in 2020-21. But scoring isn’t his prowess as he’s been lauded for his defensive game.
He also played five games on loan to the La Ronge Ice Wolves of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League in 2020-21 and put up five points. Allen posted two points in seven games for Canada at the World U18 Championship.
The Blackhawks went a bit off the board as Allen was ranked 40th among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting. Elite Prospects had him ranked at 83rd overall and TSN/Bob McKenzie ranked Allen at 59th overall.
Cole Sillinger
Another player with WHL ties selected in the first round was 2003-born centre Cole Sillinger, who went 12th overall to the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Sillinger, who’s actually from Columbus, OH, joined Sioux Falls of the US Hockey League while the 2020-21 WHL season was delayed due to COVID-19. In 31 games with the Stampede, Sillinger finished with 24 goals and 46 points.
He had 22 goals and 53 points in 48 games with the Medicine Hat Tigers as a rookie in 2019-20. Sillinger was ranked 10th overall among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting, 12th overall by Elite Prospects, and 10th overall by Sportsnet.
