The 2025 NHL Draft is right around the corner. This season, the event will be held June 27 and 28 at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles. This is the time when teams look to the future and draft young stars that will help mold their franchise.
Seven teams have multiple first-round draft picks so the question is do any of these teams trade up and draft for NHL roster players? Do the New York Islanders keep the top pick or trade it away?
Teams with multiple first-round picks
The NHL Draft is where teams come together to talk trades and make picks to best fit their organization. We could see plenty of movement at the two-day event as many teams have pieces to use in a deal.
The San Jose Sharks (picks 2 and 32), Chicago Blackhawks (3, 25), Nashville Predators (5, 28), Philadelphia Flyers (6, 22, 30), Columbus Blue Jackets (14, 20), Montreal Canadians (16, 17) and Calgary Flames (18, 31) have decisions to make. Do they keep these picks and build for the future? Do they trade those picks to rebuild on the fly and take a player who is already established?
The Flyers could be active as they have three first-round picks and are looking to get back into the playoff mix. Most of these teams may hold onto their first-round picks but trade later picks as the top picks have more value. We have seen strange stuff happen before at the previous drafts.
Islanders, Darche trading top pick?
New Islanders general manager Mathieu Darche holds the responsibility to take a "for sure" player at the top pick or make a splash. He could deal the top pick in hopes off getting a kings ransom for a team that needs to make changes. Trading the top pick is not ideal as it has happened only three times in 30 years but the return could be substantial.
This is a forward-heavy draft and the Islanders need to change up their roster. Trading the top pick could result in a prospect, an NHL rostered player, and multiple picks in return, something the Islanders need. New York needs help at all positions and a trade like this could instantly help them going forward.
Whether the Islanders and Darche trade the pick or not, this has the potential to be one of the more interesting drafts in terms of moves being made. Some teams may deal potential free agents for draft picks in order to open up cap space to spend money on other available players.
Last season, teams were active on the trade front at the draft and this season could be the same thing. Look for teams to be active ahead of the draft also in preparation to perhaps use draft picks in return at the draft. This could be a wild few weeks ahead.