1981 NHL Entry Draft

Location:	Montreal Forum (Montreal, QC)	Dates:	June 10, 1981
First Overall Pick:	Dale Hawerchuk (Winnipeg Jets)	Players with NHL Experience:	114

The 1981 NHL entry draft was the 19th NHL entry draft. It was held at the Montreal Forum in Montreal, Quebec. The National Hockey League (NHL) teams selected 211 players eligible for entry into professional ranks, in the reverse order of the 1980–81 NHL season and playoff standings. This is the list of those players selected.

The last active player in the NHL from this draft class was Chris Chelios, who retired after the 2009–10 season.

Biggest Steals of the 1981 NHL Draft

• Dave Hannan (Pittsburgh Penguins – 196th Overall)
  • 305 points in 841 career games
  • 2-time Stanley Cup winner
• Gaetan Duchesne (Washington Capitals – 152nd Overall)
  • 433 points in 1,028 career games
• Tom Kurvers (Montreal Canadiens – 145th Overall)
  • 421 points in 659 career games

Biggest Busts of the 1981 NHL Draft

• Steve Smith (Philadelphia Flyers – 16th Overall)
  • 1 point in 18 career games
• Jan Ingman (Montreal Canadiens – 19th Overall)
  • 0 career games
• Marty Ruff (St. Louis Blues – 20th Overall)
  • 0 career games

1981 NHL Draft Selections by Round

Round 1

Pick	Team	Pos.	Player	Junior Team
1		C	Dale Hawerchuk	Cornwall Royals (QMJHL)
2		C	Doug Smith	Ottawa 67’s (OHL)
3		C	Bob Carpenter	St. John’s Prep (High-MA)
4		C	Ron Francis	Soo Greyhounds (OHL)
5		D	Joe Cirella	Oshawa Generals (OHL)
6		D	Jim Benning	Portland Winter Hawks (WHL)
7		RW	Mark Hunter	Brantford Alexanders (OHL)
8		G	Grant Fuhr	Victoria Cougars (WHL)
9		D	James Patrick	Prince Albert (SJHL)
10		D	Garth Butcher	Regina Pats (WHL)
11		D	Randy Moller	Lethbridge Broncos (WHL)
12		RW	Tony Tanti	Oshawa Generals (OHL)
13		D	Ron Meighan	Niagara Falls Flyers (OHL)
14		LW	Normand Leveille	Chicoutimi Sagueneens (QMJHL)
15		D	Al MacInnis	Kitchener Rangers (OHL)
16		D	Steve Smith	Soo Greyhounds (OHL)
17		RW	Jiri Dudacek	TJ Kladno (Czechoslovakia)
18		D	Gilbert Delorme	Chicoutimi Sagueneens (QMJHL)
19		LW	Jan Ingman	Farjestad BK (Sweden)
20		D	Marty Ruff	Lethbridge Broncos (WHL)
21		D	Paul Boutilier	Sherbrooke Castors (QMJHL)

Round 2

Pick	Team	Pos.	Player	Junior Team
22		LW	Scott Arniel	Cornwall Royals (QMJHL)
23		C	Claude Loiselle	Windsor Spitfires (OHL)
24		C	Gary Yaremchuk	Portland Winter Hawks (WHL)
25		LW	Kevin Griffin	Portland Winter Hawks (WHL)
26		RW	Rich Chernomaz	Victoria Cougars (WHL)
27		C	Dave Donnelly	St. Albert (AJHL)
28		RW	Steve Gatzos	Soo Greyhounds (OHL)
29		LW	Todd Strueby	Regina Pats (WHL)
30		LW	Jan Erixon	Skelleftea AIK (Sweden)
31		G	Mike Sands	Sudbury Wolves (OHL)
32		G	Lars Eriksson	Brynas IF (Sweden)
33		D	Tom Hirsch	Patrick Henry HS (High-MN)
34		RW	Dave Preuss	St. Thomas Academy (High-MN)
35		LW	Luc Dufour	Chicoutimi Sagueneens (QMJHL)
36		D	Hakan Nordin	Farjestad BK (Sweden)
37		C	Rich Costello	Natick HS (High-MA)
38		D	Hannu Virta	TPS Jr. (Finland Jr.)
39		D	Dean Kennedy	Brandon Wheat Kings (WHL)
40		D	Chris Chelios	Moose Jaw (SJHL)
41		C	Jali Wahlsten	TPS Jr. (Finland Jr.)
42		D	Gord Dineen	Soo Greyhounds (OHL)

Round 3

Pick	Team	Pos.	Player	Junior Team
43		D	Jyrki Seppa	Ilves (Finland)
44		G	Corrado Micalef	Sherbrooke Castors (QMJHL)
45		D	Eric Calder	Cornwall Royals (QMJHL)
46		LW	Dieter Hegen	ESV Kaufbeuren (Germany)
47		LW	Barry Tabobondung	Oshawa Generals (OHL)
48		D	Uli Hiemer	EV Fussen (Germany)
49		D	Tom Thornbury	Niagara Falls Flyers (OHL)
50		LW	Peter Sundstrom	IF Bjorkloven (Sweden)
51		C	Mark Morrison	Victoria Cougars (WHL)
52		RW	Jean-Marc Lanthier	Sorel Eperviers (QMJHL)
53		RW	Jean-Marc Gaulin	Sorel Eperviers (QMJHL)
54		D	Darrel Anholt	Calgary Wranglers (WHL)
55		C	Ernie Godden	Windsor Spitfires (OHL)
56		G	Mike Vernon	Calgary Wranglers (WHL)
57		LW	Ron Handy	Soo Greyhounds (OHL)
58		LW	Ken Strong	Peterborough Petes (OHL)
59		LW	Jim Aldred	Kingston Canadians (OHL)
60		D	Colin Chisholm	Calgary Wranglers (WHL)
61		RW	Paul MacDermid	Windsor Spitfires (OHL)
62		D	Gord Donnelly	Sherbrooke Castors (QMJHL)
63		RW	Neal Coulter	Toronto Marlboros (OHL)

Round 4

Pick	Team	Pos.	Player	Junior Team
64		C	Kirk McCaskill	Vermont (ECAC)
65		LW	Dave Michayluk	Regina Pats (WHL)
66		C	Gus Greco	Windsor Spitfires (OHL)
67		LW	Mike Hoffman	Brantford Alexanders (OHL)
68		D	Tony Kellin	Grand Rapids HS (High-MN)
69		C	Terry Tait	Soo Greyhounds (OHL)
70		D	Norm Schmidt	Oshawa Generals (OHL)
71		RW	Paul Houck	Kelowna (BCJHL)
72		G	John Vanbiesbrouck	Soo Greyhounds (OHL)
73		G	Wendell Young	Kitchener Rangers (OHL)
74		G	Clint Malarchuk	Portland Winter Hawks (WHL)
75		RW	Perry Pelensky	Portland Winter Hawks (WHL)
76		C	Jim Malwitz	Grand Rapids HS (High-MN)
77		RW	Scott McLellan	Niagara Falls Flyers (OHL)
78		C	Peter Madach	HV71 (Sweden-2)
79		RW	Ken Latta	Soo Greyhounds (OHL)
80		RW	Jeff Eatough	Cornwall Royals (QMJHL)
81		C	Marty Dallman	RPI (ECAC)
82		RW	Kjell Dahlin	Timra IK (Sweden-2)
83		LW	Anders Wikberg	Timra IK (Sweden-2)
84		G	Todd Lumbard	Brandon Wheat Kings (WHL)

Round 5

Pick	Team	Pos.	Player	Junior Team
85		G	Marc Behrend	Wisconsin (WCHA)
86		D	Larry Trader	London Knights (OHL)
87		D	Doug Speck	Peterborough Petes (OHL)
88		LW	Steve Rooney	Canton HS (High-MA)
89		RW	Mike Siltala	Kingston Canadians (OHL)
90		LW	Normand Lefrancois	Trois-Rivieres Draveurs (QMJHL)
91		G	Peter Sidorkiewicz	Oshawa Generals (OHL)
92		LW	Phil Drouillard	Niagara Falls Flyers (OHL)
93		D	Bill Maguire	Niagara Falls Flyers (OHL)
94		C	Jacques Sylvestre	Sorel Eperviers (QMJHL)
95		RW	Edward Lee	Princeton (ECAC)
96		G	Doug Chessell	London Knights (OHL)
97		D	Kelly Hubbard	Portland Winter Hawks (WHL)
98		G	Joe Mantione	Cornwall Royals (QMJHL)
99		RW	Mario Simioni	Toronto Marlboros (OHL)
100		C	Justin Hanley	Kingston Canadians (OHL)
101		C	Mauri Eivola	TPS (Finland)
102		C	Barry Brigley	Calgary Wranglers (WHL)
103		LW	Dan Bourbonnais	Calgary Wranglers (WHL)
104		C	Mike Hickey	Sudbury Wolves (OHL)
105		LW	Moe Lemay	Ottawa 67’s (OHL)

Round 6

Pick	Team	Pos.	Player	Junior Team
106		G	Bob O’Connor	Boston College (ECAC)
107		LW	Gerard Gallant	Sherbrooke Castors (QMJHL)
108		D	Bruce Driver	Wisconsin (WCHA)
109		D	Paul Edwards	Oshawa Generals (OHL)
110		C	Jim McGeough	Billings Bighorns (WHL)
111		D	Steve Smith	London Knights (OHL)
112		D	Rod Buskas	Medicine Hat Tigers (WHL)
113		RW/C	Marc Habscheid	Saskatoon Blades (WHL)
114		C	Eric Magnuson	RPI (ECAC)
115		RW	Stu Kulak	Victoria Cougars (WHL)
116		C/LW	Mike Eagles	Kitchener Rangers (OHL)
117		D	Bill Schafhauser	Northern Michigan (CCHA)
118		RW	Paul Guay	Mount St. Charles Academy (High-RI)
119		D	Bruce Milton	Boston University (ECAC)
120		RW	Todd Hooey	Windsor Spitfires (OHL)
121		D	Andre Villeneuve	Chicoutimi Sagueneens (QMJHL)
122		D/LW	Ali Butorac	Ottawa 67’s (OHL)
123		D	Brad Thompson	London Knights (OHL)
124		RW	Tom Anastos	Paddock Pool (GLJHL)
125		G	Peter Aslin	AIK (Sweden)
126		C	Chuck Brimmer	Kingston Canadians (OHL)

Round 7

Pick	Team	Pos.	Player	Junior Team
127		C	Peter Nilsson	Hammarby IF (Sweden-2)
128		G	Greg Stefan	Oshawa Generals (OHL)
129		LW	Jeff Larmer	Kitchener Rangers (OHL)
130		D	John Mokosak	Victoria Cougars (WHL)
131		C	Risto Jalo	Ilves (Finland)
132		D	Andrew Wright	Peterborough Petes (OHL)
133		RW	Geoff Wilson	Winnipeg Warriors (WHL)
134		D	Craig Hurley	Saskatoon Blades (WHL)
135		D	Mike Guentzel	Greenway HS (High-MN)
136		D	Bruce Holloway	Regina Pats (WHL)
137		RW	Vladimir Svitek	HC Kosice (Czechoslovakia)
138		C/RW	Marc Centrone	Lethbridge Broncos (WHL)
139		RW	Jim Archibald	Moose Jaw (SJHL)
140		D	Mats Thelin	AIK (Sweden)
141		D	Rick Heppner	Mounds View HS (High-MN)
142		G	Gil Hudon	Prince Albert (SJHL)
143		D	Heikki Leime	TPS (Finland)
144		D	Peter Sawkins	St. Paul Academy (High-MN)
145		D	Tom Kurvers	Minnesota-Duluth (WCHA)
146		C	Erik Holmberg	Sodertalje SK Jr. (Sweden Jr.)
147		RW	Teppo Virta	TPS (Finland)

Round 8

Pick	Team	Pos.	Player	Junior Team
148		D	Dan McFall	Buffalo (NYPJHL)
149		D	Rick Zombo	Austin Mavericks (USHL)
150		LW	Tony Arima	Jokerit (Finland)
151		RW	Denis Dore	Chicoutimi Sagueneens (QMJHL)
152		LW	Gaetan Duchesne	Quebec Remparts (QMJHL)
153		D	Richard Turmel	Shawinigan Cataractes (QMJHL)
154		C	Mitch Lamoureux	Oshawa Generals (OHL)
155		D	Mike Sturgeon	Kelowna (BCJHL)
156		RW	Ari Lahtenmaki	HIFK (Finland)
157		RW	Petri Skriko	SaiPa (Finland)
158		RW	Andre Cote	Quebec Remparts (QMJHL)
159		LW	Johan Mellstrom	Falu IF (Sweden-2)
160		C	Kari Kanervo	TPS (Finland)
161		D	Armel Parisee	Chicoutimi Sagueneens (QMJHL)
162		D	Dale DeGray	Oshawa Generals (OHL)
163		LW	Steve Taylor	Providence (ECAC)
164		C	Gates Orlando	Providence (ECAC)
165		LW	Dan Brennan	North Dakota (WCHA)
166		RW	Paul Gess	Bloomington Jefferson HS (High-MN)
167		D	Alain Vigneault	Trois-Rivieres Draveurs (QMJHL)
168		D	Bill Dowd	Ottawa 67’s (OHL)

Round 9

Pick	Team	Pos.	Player	Junior Team
169		G	Greg Dick	St. Mary’s (MIAC)
170		LW	Don Leblanc	Toronto Marlboros (OHL)
171		C	Tim Army	East Providence HS (High-RI)
172		G	Jeff Poeschl	Northern Michigan (CCHA)
173		LW	George White	New Hampshire (ECAC)
174		D	Greg Barber	Victoria Cougars (WHL)
175		LW	Dean Defazio	Brantford Alexanders (OHL)
176		D	Miloslav Horava	TJ Kladno (Czechoslovakia)
177		C	Paul Reifenberger	Anoka HS (High-MN)
178		G	Frank Caprice	London Knights (OHL)
179		RW	Marc Brisebois	Sorel Eperviers (QMJHL)
180		LW	John Benns	Billings Bighorns (WHL)
181		RW	Scott Bjugstad	Minnesota (WCHA)
182		G	Don Sylvestri	Clarkson (ECAC)
183		D	George Boudreau	Matignon HS (High-MA)
184		C	Len Hachborn	Brantford Alexanders (OHL)
185		D	Venci Sebek	Niagara Falls Flyers (OHL)
186		D	Allan Tuer	Regina Pats (WHL)
187		D	Scott Ferguson	Edina West HS (High-MN)
188		RW	Dan Wood	Kingston Canadians (OHL)
189		RW	Scott MacLellan	Niagara Falls Flyers (OHL)

Round 10

Round 11

Pick	Team	Pos.	Player	Junior Team
211		D	Dave Kirwin	Irondale HS (High-MN)