On Thursday, Carolina Hurricanes general manager Don Waddell stated that the team will most likely be selecting the 18-year-old Russian winger Andrei Svechnikov with the 2nd overall pick at the 2018 National Hockey League Entry Draft.
Waddell says it’s safe to assume Canes will take Svechnikov if Carolina makes No. 2 pick and Dahlin as expected goes No. 1.
— Chip Alexander (@ice_chip) June 7, 2018
Carolina Hurricanes Expected to Draft Andrei Svechnikov with 2nd Overall Pick
This past Tuesday, Hurricanes owner Thomas Dundon had dinner with Svechnikov at a sushi restaurant in Raleigh. It is safe to say that the dinner and all that was discussed went well, considering Dundon went on to say, “If we pick second, it’s not even close.” (Via News Observer)
The six-foot-two, 188 pounder from Barnaul, Russia seems pretty confident himself that Carolina will be his new home. “I can never be 100 percent, but I’m pretty sure I will play there,” Svechnikov said in an interview on Wednesday. This past season, Svechnikov played for the Barrie Colts of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). He skated in only 44 games (he missed nearly two months with a hand injury). However, in those 44 games, he scored 40 goals and tallied 32 assists for a grand total of 72 points. In international play this year, Svechnikov played for the Russian U20 Team where he tallied eight points (4 G, 4 A) in four games, the Russian World Junior Team (5 GP, 0 G, 5 A), and the Russian U18 Team (7 GP, 2 G, 5 A).
During the 2017-18 season, Svechnikov was honored as the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) Top Draft Prospect Award, the OHL First All-Rookie Team, the OHL Most Goals Scored by a Rookie (40), and the OHL Most Points Scored by a Rookie (72).
Swedish defenseman Rasmus Dahlin is the consensus number one pick, going to the Buffalo Sabres, and it now seems that Svechnikov to Carolina is a lock. Unless any big time trades are made, expect this to remain so.
The 2018 NHL Entry Draft is set for June 22 in Dallas, Texas. The Hurricanes obtained the second overall pick in the draft lottery. The Canes finished the 2017-18 campaign in sixth place in the Metropolitan Division with a total of 83 points. The club finished 21st of 31 teams in the entire NHL.
Main Photo: MISSISSAUGA, ON – JANUARY 19: Andrei Svechnikov #14 of the Barrie Colts skates up ice against the Mississauga Steelheads during game action on January 19, 2018 at Hershey Centre in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Graig Abel/Getty Images)
