May 26, 2024 by Greysen Goudy

After watching more than 120 prospects from consensus top-10 selections to late-round upside swings to overage players, I have put together a comprehensive overview of the class for the 2024 NHL Draft. Overall, this class is a strong one, top-heavy with elite offensive talent and deep throughout with defensemen who will eat up the big minutes in the NHL for years to come. I think the easiest way to go about breaking down this draft class is to organize it into tiers, starting with, in my mind, the undisputed first-overall selection, Macklin Celebrini.

Tier 1: Macklin Celebrini

This tier is self-explanatory. Celebrini, the projected first-overall pick, is in a league of his own. The Boston University forward, who won’t turn 18 until mid-June, tore up the NCAA, posting one of the most productive freshman seasons of all time with 32 goals and 32 assists in 37 games. It’s a common cliche, but Celebrini truly has the complete package. He is fast and light on his feet carrying the puck. He has a bomb of a shot coupled with a lightning-quick release. The 6-foot, 190-pound centre exudes confidence, in possession, he pulls off ridiculously creative moves to beat defenders, and out of possession, he punishes opposition puck carriers for letting him get too close. Celebrini is the third Tkachuk brother on steroids and whoever ends up drafting him is in for a real treat.

Tier 2: Elite Forwards

Some scouts will tell you Ivan Demidov is in the same tier as Celebrini and could overtake him for the number one spot. While I don’t believe that to be the case, Demidov’s ceiling could very well be just as high as Celebrini’s. His blend of smooth skating, edgework, and creative puck-handling make him one of the most electrifying and entertaining prospects we’ve seen in recent years. The Russian winger spent the first few games of the season in the KHL before spending the rest of the year scoring at will with SKA-1946 St. Petersburg in the MHL, Russia’s Junior league.

Berkly Catton tore up the WHL this season with Spokane, scoring 54 goals and 116 points in 68 games, an unbelievable DY season. Catton isn’t ever going to be the most physically dominating forward on his line, but his intelligence and vision for the offensive game are debatably second to none in this draft class. Coupled with an underrated shot and quick feet, Catton is an all-around offensive threat and caps off a top-three of franchise-altering forwards in the 2024 NHL Draft.

Tier 3: Top 5 Candidates

Tier three kicks off the long list of great defensemen out of this year’s class. Zeev Buium launched to the top-five of many draft rankings, including my own, during the latter stages of the NCAA playoffs. Buium dominated the game at both ends of the ice, showcasing hard-hitting defensive hockey and elite skill and skating ability. There is a clear ceiling for Buium as one of the best defensemen in the world.

Sam Dickinson and Artyom Levshunov are similar defensemen, both big bodies with professional habits and a strong defensive game. Both could step into the NHL very soon. Dickinson is a pre-ordered reliable two-way minute muncher for whomever ends up drafting him whereas Levshunov has a bit more offensive upside.

Konsta Helenius is a really intelligent two-way centerman, he doesn’t quite have the creativity and game-changing skill to have the same offensive upside as someone like Catton but his overall 200-foot awareness and production in the Liiga make him a really intriguing option. Cayden Lindstrom is a huge body with immense skill and creativity. He spent a large portion of the year injured so we couldn’t see the extent of his point production but his physical and technical toolset leave the impression of massive offensive upside.

Tier 4: Top 10 Candidates

This tier contains more great defensemen and several skilled forwards with incredibly high ceilings. Tij Iginla, son of NHL legend Jarome Iginla, is looking to carve out his own legacy in the NHL’s history books, and he certainly has the potential to do it. Iginla is pure entertainment, flowing with creativity and flair, and one of the most dynamic offensive toolkits in this draft class. Trevor Connelly was wrapped up in some off-ice controversy earlier this season but continues to impress scouts, finishing second in USHL scoring with 78 points in 52 games. The American left-winger is endlessly skilled and intelligent in the offensive zone.

Anton Silayev is one of the most polarizing prospects in the entire draft. At 6-foot-7, 207-pounds, and possessing an already mature defensive game, the potential for a reliable shutdown defenseman to headman an NHL blueline for many years is all too hard to resist. Some scouts, leaning into the potential of the Russian defender have Silayev ranked as high as second overall Michael Brandsegg-Nygard is one of the stronger additions to a bit of a golden age in Norwegian hockey. Highly competitive, hard-hitting, with a nose for the net, Brandsegg-Nygard wrapped up a productive season in the Allsvenskan, Sweden’s second tier, scoring four goals and adding six assists in 12 games in the Allsvenskan playoffs.

Beckett Sennecke went into the OHL postseason as a relatively unexciting late first-rounder. But with a hot previous couple of months including 22 points in his last 12 regular season games and 15 points in his first 10 playoff games, his draft stock is climbing rapidly. Sennecke is a powerful skater, with elite puck-handling skills, and a playmaker’s mind, set on becoming one of the steals of this year’s draft.

Tier 5: Late-First Round Hopefuls

Michael Hage is that stereotypical, skilled late first-round forward who dominates Junior, and seemingly has the complete package offensively but just can’t find a way to nudge his way into the upper echelon of players in their class. Look it up, there’s one of these guys every year. Hage has a deep arsenal of skills and good size, he’s a decent bet to be a second line NHL forward someday. Nikita Artamonov is a nearly guaranteed NHLer to a lot of scouts, including myself. He’s already strong and filled out his 5-foot-8 frame. He’s defensively mature and composed with the puck all over the ice and is one of the fastest skaters on the ice at all times. The offensive upside isn’t massive with Artamonov but his physical and mental maturity combined with the fact he’s already got a full successful season of KHL hockey under his belt, there’s very likely an effective NHL bottom-sixer here.

Dominik Badinka is one of my favourite prospects in the late first round. He’s a fantastic skater and already has the habits of a pro who’s been playing with grown men for a long time. Badinka is a strong skater and possesses a pretty fleshed-out defensive game. He played most of the season with Malmö in the SHL, even securing top-four minutes at times throughout the season. His offensive game holds him back from being a slam dunk top-10 pick, but he’s intelligent with the puck and his J20-Nationell numbers suggest more offensive potential than he gets credit for. Alfons Freij is an incredibly interesting and polarizing prospect. On one hand, his technical tools, mainly his skating ability are elite, having some scouts place him as high as eighth. Others point out his defensive deficiencies and ask questions about his overall awareness and IQ, having him as low as 77th. Regardless, an intriguing prospect with a lot of potential.

Lucas Pettersson looks like another really good bet to be an NHLer. He possesses a well-rounded offensive game, mainly built around his strong playmaking ability and vision. His shot is also plenty quick and accurate to be a threat. The cherry on top for Pettersson is his mature 200-foot game, making him an easy selection in the mid-to-late first round.

Tier 6: Potential First-Rounders

Daniil Ustinkov holds a special place in my heart being the first player I wrote a deep dive article on for FCHockey. The Russian-Swiss defender is a fantastic frontward skater and a possession monster. Infinitely reliable in possession and on the breakout, Ustinkov has the makings of a top-four defender. I have some concerns about his backward skating and creative offensive upside but I think there’s a good chance of an NHL player here. Tanner Howe was one of my least favourite forwards of the top group of prospects coming into this year, I felt he was incredibly talented but lacked the game-changing creativity to drive play on his own. I was wrong. While he isn’t an elite skater and I still have some of those concerns, his puck-handling and shooting ability is undeniable.

If you only watch one game of Emil Hemming, you could be walking away thinking he is a top-20 talent, or you could be adding him to your “Do Not Draft” list. He can be frustratingly inconsistent on a game-to-game basis. The Finnish power forward is great in transition, a skilled puck handler, and strong physically making him easy to project anywhere in an NHL lineup. Terik Parascak is an offensive dynamo. Endlessly skilled and creative with some of the strongest offensive awareness and decision-making in this class. With elite puck-handling capped off with a great playmaking game, Parascak has the potential to be a top point producer in the NHL. There are certainly questions to be raised about his physicality and skating ability, as well as an asterisk beside his point production this season as he played within the top-six in the best offence in the WHL.

EJ Emery possesses an NHL-ready defensive game and the physicality to boot. He lacks much offensive upside but with such a mature and intelligent defensive game it will be interesting to see how he improves next season with North Dakota in the NCAA. If all goes well in his developmental path he’ll have a job in any NHL defensive core as a reliable shutdown guy.

Tier 7: Second-Rounders

Kieron Walton is a consensus third or fourth rounder for most scouts but he’s one of the most underrated forwards in this draft class in my opinion. The monstrous winger has a great quantity of skills in his locker including a quick and powerful wrist shot and elite puckhandling ability. Walton’s a decent skater, it’s not necessarily a strength of his but he can move pretty well and the combination of towering size and speed is hard to find and all too enticing to ignore. Aron Kiviharju is a tough one because he was a consensus top-10 pick going into this year and two years ago he was the consensus first overall. He’s been out all season with an injury and when he played in the Liiga in September he wasn’t very impressive. But respect for the hype of Kiviharju feels necessary and so I refuse to drop him too low on my list. He just recently made some appearances at the IIHF U18 World Championships so we will have to see if his performance there affects his draft stock.

Julius Miettinen is an elite playmaker. Simple as that. He’s a smooth and strong puck handler making him satisfying to watch as he carves through defenders, picking out teammates for glorious chances. Don’t sleep on his shot though, he’s got a wicked wrist shot and one-timer, making him an all-round offensive threat. His lack of WHL superstar production, slightly stinted icetime, and being one of the older players in the class stops me from ranking him too highly but I think Miettinen needs much more respect as a top prospect than he currently gets. Carter Yakemchuk has a very strong “Boom or Bust” element to his game and honestly, it puts me off a lot more than other scouts. He’s slow to react to defensive play, he can be caught cheating offensively, and he isn’t a strong skater especially backward but the offensive defenseman indisputably has an elite set of offensive tools. At his ceiling he could be an Evan Bouchard type, paired with a responsible partner and produce a ridiculous amount of points. Or he could swing and miss out on the NHL entirely. I’ve got him unpopularly low-ranked and yet I can see the appeal as a top-20 prospect.

Adam Jecho is a monster of a man, dangerous all over the offensive zone but namely in front of the net and in shooting opportunities. The 6-foot-5 Czech forward is truly a terrible skater but he possesses a nuclear missile of a shot and the goal-scoring instincts to maybe find a place in the NHL feeding off of a strong playmaker.

Tier 8: Late Second-Rounders And Other Prospects Worth Mentioning

Tier eight is some other interesting prospects in the late second round and beyond that I thought were worth mentioning and have something unique and interesting to showcase. Ollie Josephson is a prospect that is often so disappointing for me. To rank a guy in the third round that is debatably a top-five skater in the class is painful, but in my opinion, his offensive game is quite weak. He isn’t very creative and often looks lost when attacking opposition defenders in scenarios other than beating them wide with speed. He is pretty solid defensively and has some good skill but I just don’t think there’s enough here besides skating ability to warrant a top-64 pick unfortunately.

Justin Poirier scored 51 goals for Baie-Comeau Drakkar in the QMJHL this season, showcasing his impressive shooting ability and range. Poirier has the rare talent of being able to get himself hidden in plain sight, roaming the slot, waiting for opportunities to get open. He picks brilliant moments to shoot the puck and does so intelligently, always with a purpose. The 5-foot-8 winger has some mountains to climb but his goal-scoring IQ is elite and I think he’s going to surprise a lot of people in the next few years. Mac Swanson has the hockey IQ of an elite playmaker. He sees the play so well and makes accurate passes almost no matter the difficulty. He’s perfect to play on the sides of an umbrella power play, just spraying dangerous passes. But Swanson has some serious obstacles to overcome if he wants to play in the NHL — most obviously, his size. He is short and extremely light. To play in the NHL at his size he needs to have some quality to his game that is undeniable, a quality that will shine, no matter the level of hockey. Could his vision and playmaking be that quality? Maybe.

Matthew Van Blaricom played his draft-eligible season in the SJHL. And he’s good. And that’s cool. Van Blaricom is a strong skater who plays a fierce and rough game. He hits people hard and scores goals. A true Saskatchewan-ite. Brayden Edwards is a DY+1 who has taken massive strides since last season. I saw him while watching Miguel Marques and he caught my eye. He is responsible and sound on both sides of the puck, works incredibly hard, and is a pretty strong skater. I think without a doubt Edwards deserves a shot.

Matthew Van Blaricom played his draft-eligible season in the SJHL. And he’s good. And that’s cool. Van Blaricom is a strong skater who plays a fierce and rough game. He hits people hard and scores goals. A true Saskatchewanite. Brayden Edwards is a DY+1 who has taken massive strides since last season. I saw him while watching Miguel Marques and he caught my eye. He is responsible and sound on both sides of the puck, works incredibly hard, and is a pretty strong skater. I think without a doubt Edwards deserves a shot.

Conclusion

The 2024 draft class is a deep one with a ton of great defensemen, skilled forwards, and many intriguing picks beyond the first round that I can already see being steals down the line if all works out in their developmental paths. It has been a fun group of prospects to watch and cover and as I rewatch a bunch of players between now and the draft I’m sure my list will change a bit but this is what I’ve got right now and I think that is the fun of scouting. Seeing in a couple of years time just how stupid or brilliant you are, and honestly, you’re going to be both a lot of times each. To anyone reading this who loves watching hockey and wants to get into scouting and analyzing prospects, just watch the games, have fun, and trust your gut. Here’s to another great year of hockey and I hope everyone enjoys the 2024 NHL Draft.