*This article was originally written in June 2023
Hindsight is 20/20 and can be a bitter pill to swallow or a reason for joy. This is especially true of the NHL Entry Draft when there is always a chance that a player slips through the cracks and becomes another team’s gem. When looking back on past drafts, many general managers (GM) could either be grinning from ear to ear or shaking their fists in disgust.
Related: Meet the Winnipeg Jets’ 2019 Draft Class
There is no perfect formula for scouting and evaluating prospects at 18 years old. One player might seem like an absolute steal only to be surpassed by the player drafted after him. If it were simpler, scouting staff might not hold such instrumental importance. Unfortunately for the Jets, they are no exception and have missed out on a few great players.
Whether your team has missed with their selections, like the Bruins in the 2015 Draft, or select a player like Kyle Connor, who will ultimately impact the roster’s production for the next decade-plus. The art of drafting is like a game of chess, each GM is your opponent and trying to gain the upper hand.
Here are the players that the Jets missed out on, which were selected with the next pick dating back to the 2016 NHL Draft.
Pierre-Luc Dubois
In the 2016 Draft, the Jets drafted Finnish sniper Patrik Laine with the second-overall selection, while the Columbus Blue Jackets selected big Canadian centre Pierre-Luc Dubois third overall.
It turned out that the Blue Jackets were seeking a sniper and the Jets wanted a do-it-all centre, so they opted to swap the two top-three selections.
Dubois has played six-plus seasons in the NHL, split between the Blue Jackets, Jets, and Los Angeles Kings, with 144 goals and 333 points. Laine split his time between the Jets and Blue Jackets through his 480 career games with 204 goals and 388 points. However, Dubois’ impact outweighs Laine’s as he is effective in all three zones, while Laine is more of an offensive weapon, due to his shot and poise on the power play.
Ryan Poehling
It’s tricky to compare a winger to a centre, so comparing the Jets’ 2017 selection, Kristian Vesalainen to Ryan Poehling is a little difficult. However, in terms of production, be it on the stats sheet or at both ends of the ice, both players have been underwhelming.
Poehling played most of his career with the Canadiens before being shipped over to the Pittsburgh Penguins, along with Jeff Petry in a trade that saw Mike Matheson and a 2023 third-round pick going back the other way. He then signed as a free agent with the Philadelphia Flyers in 2023.
Both Poehling and Vesalainen have been overwhelming given their draft stock, but Poehling has spent the most time at the NHL level and has been more productive than Vesalainen. The latter spent the 2022-23 season split between the Swedish Hockey League (SHL) and Finnish Liiga, and while he did put up almost point-per-game statistics with HIFK, the former is playing against stiffer competition in the NHL with a sustained role.
Samuel Poulin
Ville Heinola was the Jets’ 2019 first-round draft selection. He is a fluid skater, and his edge work allows him to make shifty moves to evade defenders. Should he hit his ceiling, the Jets will have a nice one-two punch with Josh Morrissey in terms of puck movers.
The Pittsburgh Penguins nabbed Samuel Poulin with the 21st-overall selection, and statistically, he has stood above Heinola. Heinola’s game is predicated on pushing the pace and supporting his forwards in transition. Poulin is a big-bodied power forward with a nose for the net and a knack for stickhandling through defenders before slipping a nifty pass to a teammate or using his quick release to challenge the goaltender.
He transitioned from the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) to the professional level with the American Hockey League’s (AHL) Wilkes-Barre Scranton Penguins in 2021-22. In his debut AHL season, he played 72 games, putting up 16 goals and 37 points. He made his NHL debut in 2022-23, recording one point through three games, before taking a personal leave of absence.
Yaroslav Askarov
The Nashville Predators selected Russian goaltender Yaroslav Askarov with the 11th-overall selection in the 2020 Draft, one selection after the Jets chose Cole Perfetti. He was the top-ranked goaltender and with good reason. His play heading into the draft cemented his ranking, and the Predators were hoping he would be one of the next great Russian puck-stoppers. He posted a 2.00 goals-against average (GAA) and a .920 save percentage (SV%) in one game with the Kontinental Hockey League’s (KHL) SKA St. Petersburg and went on to the Supreme Hockey League’s (VHL) SKA-Neva St. Petersburg and finished with a 2.45 GAA and .920 SV%, to go along with a 12-3-3 record.
Askarov made his transition from the KHL to North America for the 2022-23 season, playing one game with the Predators, then he was sent down to their AHL affiliate, the Milwaukee Admirals, posting a 26-16-5 record before going 6-6-0 in the AHL playoffs. While skill forwards who drive the play are very important; much like Perfetti, a number-one goaltender is the most important piece for a successful Stanley Cup contender. While both players’ careers are still early on, Askarov, for the time being, stands ahead.
A Method to Their Madness
Although there will never be a perfect draft, each GM remains game for the challenge. That drive to try and yank an elite talent away from a division rival, and reign supreme in the quest for Lord Stanley keeps the competitive juices flowing. The 2023 Draft will be no exception, as the upcoming one could potentially alter the trajectory of a franchise. So, the internal planning for the next draft steal is well underway and the goal remains the same, get the next NHL star and prevent the next team from selecting the superior talent.
