Carolina Hurricanes: Catching up with the 2019 draft picks

The Carolina Hurricanes had an impressive draft in 2019, picking up talent with virtually every pick. It’s still a bit early to judge them, but let’s see how they all did in their first pro-draft seasons.

The 2019 NHL Draft is when Carolina Hurricanes majority owner Thomas Dundon truly made his mark on the franchise. He went on the record saying the Canes would look for talent and skill when making their picks and he proved to be a man of his word in his first draft as an owner.

Before Dundon took over as the owner in 2018, the Hurricanes had drafted a defenseman in four of their previous seven first rounds. Now it’s clear the Canes are going to focus on drafting guys who can score. It started with Andrei Svechnikov in 2018, but the 2019 draft is a sign the Hurricanes are going to be a fun team to watch in the future.

After the 2019 draft, I loved the Hurricanes draft class. It’s as if they asked me, “Hey Dave, who should we pick here?” and listened to me! And I wasn’t the only one.

Now, it’s probably not appropriate to grade each pick yet, but let’s see how those draft picks did in their first post-draft seasons.

First Round

I was surprised Ryan Suzuki fell all the way to 28th. Initially, I had him going in the top 20. Suzuki’s a very smart player who is always going to be a bit more of a playmaker than a scorer. That said, if Suzuki trusts his shot more, he could have a few seasons with at least 20 goals.

I’ve been very impressed with Suzuki this year. While his results still aren’t quite what they should be, he’s an excellent skater who has a high hockey IQ. Suzuki fit in quite well with the Saginaw Spirit after being traded there. He had 35 points in 23 games there. That’s probably the best I’ve ever seen him play, especially when I consider he was coming off an eye injury.

Suzuki’s going to be an NHL player. There’s no doubt in my mind. He’ll likely be a top-nine forward. But Suzuki needs to shoot the puck more. He’s so darn good when he does it. If Suzuki gains confidence in his shot, the sky’s the limit for him.