In light of the Montreal Canadiens acquiring Patrik Laine from the Columbus Blue Jackets and joining his third team going on nine seasons. As well as Pierre-Luc Dubois being traded for the third time in his eight-year career to the Washington Capitals. With only Matthews and Utah HC’s forward Clayton Keller, the only two out of the top 10 in the 2016 NHL draft yet to be traded. It is a good time to review the top three’s career paths in the 2016 NHL draft.
Pick #1: Auston Matthews
The first overall pick in the 2016 NHL draft by the Toronto Maple Leafs, Auston Matthews, has been nothing short of exceptional since being drafted. When he first broke into the league, he scored four goals in his first game. Making him the other NHL player to ever accomplish that. He also has been the driving force alongside William Nylander and Mitch Marner to get the Maple Leafs to the playoffs every season since he started his career.
In the last eight seasons, Matthews has been dominant on a nightly basis. In 562 games, he has scored 368 goals and 281 assists for 649 points. He has had some stand out seasons as well, including his 60 goal and 106 point season in 2021-22 and last season when he had 69 goals and a career-high 107 points.
Related: Matthews and Laine: Comparing Careers as Rivalry Resurfaces
This offseason, the Maple Leafs made a captaincy change and took the “C” away from John Tavares and gave the “C” to Matthews, who has quickly become one of the faces of the league.
Pick #2 Patrik Laine
Laine has had an interesting career thus far. Over the last eight seasons, he has showed flashes of dominance. However, at times he has shown the complete opposite and isn’t noticeable on the ice at all. Laine, started his career with the Winnipeg Jets when he was selected with the second overall pick. Since then, he has now been a part of three organizations and hopes to find a stable home in the NHL with the Canadiens.
Laine has been dealing with some personal struggles, which had kept him out of the Blue Jackets lineup for quite some time. He was cleared to return to the NHL as of July 26, 2014, which was the reason behind him being traded. In 480 games, he has 204 goals and 184 assists for 388 total points. His career-high came in 2017-18, when he had 44 goals and 26 assists for 70 points.
Pick #3 Pierre-Luc Dubois
Lastly, the third over pick in the 2016 NHL draft, Dubois. Originally drafted by the Columbus Blue Jackets, Dubois had a rough start to his career. It seemed like from the jump, he was labelled as a player with a bad attitude, and he just never seemed happy with anything. After four seasons with the Blue Jackets, he wanted out, and that is what he got. He was traded to the Winnipeg Jets for a package that included the second overall pick, Laine.
During his time in Winnipeg, he seemed to on the right track and the team was doing well. He scored a career-high in points with 63 points in 73 games in 2021-22. However, behind closed doors, things looked to be the opposite and after three seasons he was trade in a very one-sided trade to the Los Angeles Kings. This was the third team in six seasons, which didn’t help his reputation. After signing a massive contract worth $68 million over eight seasons, he was traded this offseason to the Washington Capitals, which once he plays a game for them will be his fourth team in eight seasons.
Often times, NHL fans have their opinions on certain players in drafts, as fans look back on drafts. When looking back at the 2016 draft, it is clear that Matthews headlines the class by a lot. He has been dominant since the beginning and has shown that he is a generational talent compared to his counterparts.
