As expected, at the 2019 NHL Draft on Friday and Saturday, TPS Turku’s Kaapo Kakko was drafted 2nd overall to the New York Rangers. Kakko, who is set to be a star on Broadway in the NHL, topped the list of a host of CHL talent to be selected by NHL teams.
Kakko, who scored 2 goals in 5 CHL games in 2018/19, was tipped by scouts to be the second overall selection, behind American forward Jack Hughes. Following closely on Kakko’s heels was Adler Mannheim defenceman Moritz Seider, whom the Detroit Red Wings selected with the 6th overall pick. Seider didn’t play in the CHL for Mannheim last season but became a permanent fixture on the team’s roster by the end of the season.
Other notable players drafted include Kometa Brno’s Karel Plášek, who went in the 6th round to the Vancouver Canucks, the team who was hosting the 2019 NHL Draft. Plášek was one of the stand-out young stars of the CHL in 2018/19, scoring 4 points in 9 games as Kometa had their best CHL season to date.
Defending CHL champions, Frölunda Indians, demonstrated the strength of their junior hockey program by having five players selected, including CHL Final star Samuel Fagemo, drafted 50th overall to the Los Angeles Kings. Karl Henriksson and Erik Portillo joined Fagemo in the Top 75 picks of this year’s draft.
With many of these exciting prospects set to remain with their CHL clubs for 2019/20, it will be exciting to see who can repeat the feats of draftees such as Kärpät Oulu's Rasmus Kupari, who scored 7 points in 10 CHL games last season, after being drafted by the Los Angeles Kings in 2018.
Congratulations to all the draftees!