Shane Wright

2022 - 7 - 7

Why did Shane Wright drop from being the No. 1 pick in the NHL ... (The Athletic)

The first pick of the 2022 NHL Entry Draft came and went, and Kingston center Shane Wright remained on the board, a thought that would have startled many ...

In the leadup to the draft, out of curiosity, I asked several NHL scouts if they could single out even one game they saw this season where Wright looked like a true No. 1 pick, so I could go back and watch it. And thus, the reality of Wright outweighed the public perception of him when July 2022 rolled around and it was time to make the picks. And the safe argument usually centered on how Wright projects as a two-way center such as a Ryan O’Reilly or Patrice Bergeron, ignoring that they were both second round picks — and second round picks for a reason due to a lack of a toolkit that screamed at you. And for the first time this season there was a stretch of time where you watched a draft-eligible prospect and got excited about their long-term potential as a potential NHL star. We saw that this season, and in picking apart the player’s strengths and weaknesses, from a pure pro projection he didn’t look like anything special. When you walk up to the podium to call the No. 1 pick you want to be excited about that player. The first thing his detractors will point to are his club numbers, which are good for a second round pick but way below first overall pick standards. And after doing so, for many evaluators the thought wasn’t about how elite he was, but how there weren’t often games where you were blown away by the player. But at No. 1 overall you want something unique — you want a player who gets you truly excited. The scouts who were watching him came away repeatedly thinking “he was very good, but nothing special.” Yes, he’s a strong skater, he’s very skilled, smart, can shoot it, and kills penalties, but there’s nothing elite about his game. Especially in a draft year where it felt like no top prospect clearly ran away with the mantle to be the No. 1 pick. How could the exceptional status wunderkind who scored 39 goals in 58 OHL games as a 15-year-old and captained Canada’s U18 team as a U17 player not be the first pick?

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Image courtesy of "Sportsnet.ca"

Shane Wright falls to fourth: 'I'm definitely gonna have a chip on my ... (Sportsnet.ca)

He wanted to go first. He wanted to learn French. He wanted to be a Montreal Canadien. But Shane Wright went fourth to the Seattle Kraken: “I'm definitely ...

I'm still learning a lot about myself and learning a lot about my game and how to be the best player I can be. “I haven't reached even close to my potential, and I think that I got a lot of work to do. “I made a lot of mistakes this year, had some failures and faced a lot of adversity in myself and my game. “I was drafted by a team with a lot of potential, into great city with a great fan base, and obviously you want to go first… I believe that I can be a lot better,” Wright said, determined. I achieved that dream of being drafted and to an amazing team in Seattle,” Wright said.

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Image courtesy of "Sporting News"

How Shane Wright fell to the Seattle Kraken at No. 4 in 2022 NHL ... (Sporting News)

Shane Wright to Montreal seemed like the perfect storyline. He's Canadian-born, the Canadiens were drafting first overall at the Bell Centre, ...

Cooley, who has a strong case for the top American prospect in this draft, was drafted by the Coyotes, leaving Wright to the Kraken at No. 4. It will be interesting to see how the Kraken look once Wright and Beniers get to Seattle. A 6-feet-3-inches left winger who weights in 218 pounds, Slafkovsky was apparently deemed to be a better fit than Wright, despite the Canadiens having a need at both center and wing. Slafkovsky was first overall by the Canadiens to add some size to their front line. Ultimately, however, Wright went fourth to the Seattle Kraken after Juraj Slafkovsky, Simon Nemac, and Logan Cooley were already off the board. Shane Wright to Montreal seemed like the perfect storyline.

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Image courtesy of "The Seattle Times"

With Shane Wright, did the Kraken get a No. 1 pick at a discount? (The Seattle Times)

Strange circumstances and the nature of the beast took some of the shine off Shane Wright's prospects Thursday night at the NHL entry draft in Montreal.

Wright didn’t end the streak of exceptional-status players going No. 1. “But I couldn’t be happier being in Seattle. Couldn’t be happier with being a Kraken. I’m really excited about the future ahead in Seattle.” Wright stayed and trained, waiting for the announcement to come. Burlington, Ontario, native Wright was granted exceptional-player status and was drafted into the Ontario Hockey League a year early at 15. “It’s definitely going to give me a little more fire.” With fellow center Matty Beniers — the No. 2 overall pick in 2021 — the 6-foot, 198-pound Wright is someone to build around.

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Image courtesy of "USA TODAY"

Shane Wright will have 'chip on my shoulder' after falling to fourth in ... (USA TODAY)

Shane Wright was mentioned all season as a potential No. 1 overall pick in the 2022 NHL draft. Instead, he dropped to fourth place.

... Defenseman Kris Letang signed a six-year, $36.6 million contract and announced the Pittsburgh Penguins' pick of defenseman Owen Pickering. ... New San Jose Sharks GM Mike Grier had a touching tribute to Bryan Marchment, the former NHL defenseman and Sharks scout who died this week at 53 in Montreal. The Coyotes acquired Zach Kassian from Edmonton, which could give the Oilers the flexibility they need in negotiations with Evander Kane. Arizona moved up in the first round as part of the deal. His 2.67 goals-against average and .908 save percentage were better than any of the seven goalies that the Devils used this past season. The Blackhawks, who had no first-round pick, ended up with three. They also took goalie Petr Mrazek off the Toronto Maple Leafs' hands for another first-rounder. "Definitely going to have a little chip on my shoulder from this, for sure," he told reporters.

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