Top 3 NHL Draft Prospects: Tavares, Duchene, Hedman

The Tampa Bay Lightning have the second pick in the draft, followed by the Colorado Avalanche drafting third, the Atlanta Thrashers picking fourth and the Los Angeles Kings fifth.

It is widely expected that London Knights center John Tavares will be selected first overall by the New York Islanders, followed by Swedish defenseman Victor Hedman to the Tampa Bay Lightning, Duchene to the Colorado Avalanche and Vancouver Giants forward Evander Kane to the Atlanta Thrashers.
But some scouts have Duchene rated as the top player available and the Islanders have kept the identity of the player they plan to select a closely guarded secret, despite the clamor from Long Island fans for Tavares.

 

Tavares broke into the OHL after gaining "exceptional player" status at the age of 14, allowing the Oshawa Generals to select him in the OHL Priority Draft as an underage player in 2005.

Tavares was named the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) Rookie of the Year in 2006 and CHL Player of the Year in 2007, a year in which he broke Wayne Gretzky's OHL record for goals in a season by a 16-year old with 72.

In 2009, he set a new OHL record for career goals as he finished the season with 215, two more than former record holder Peter Lee.

"I've worked very hard to get where I am," said Tavares, who turns 19 on Sept. 20. "I've really changed a lot of things that I needed to to get myself for the next level and it's always been my dream to play in the National Hockey League so (Friday) is one step towards that."

Matt Duchene started playing for the Battalion in 2007 and has accumulated 61 goals and 68 assists over the past two seasons. As a teammate and friend of Vancouver Canucks prospect Cody Hodgson in Brampton, Duchene sought draft advice over the course of the 2008-09 season.[2] Hodgson was selected 10th overall in 2008.

Hedman played for Sweden at the 2008 World Junior Championships, where he helped the team to a silver medal, losing to Team Canada 3–2 in the final, and was selected to the tournament All-Star Team.

He later became one of the youngest players to play for Sweden's national men's team when he made his debut at age seventeen in an exhibition game against Norway.

Hedman would once again play for Sweden's national junior team at the 2009 World Junior Championships in Ottawa, where he met Canada for the second consecutive year in the gold medal game, earning another silver medal in a 5–1 loss.