2021 NHL Draft: Sabres take Owen Power, leading 4 Michigan players in top 5
By The Athletic Staff
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The Buffalo Sabres took Michigan defenseman Owen Power with the No. 1 pick in the 2021 NHL Draft on Friday, kicking off a historic evening for the Wolverines. The Seattle Kraken made history one pick later by taking Power s Michigan teammate, center Matty Beniers, with the franchise s inaugural selection.
Power, 18, is the fourth No. 1 pick ever drafted out of college and the first since Erik Johnson was taken by St. Louis out of Minnesota in 2006. It s the second time college players have gone 1-2, after Rick DiPietro (No. 1 out of Boston) and Dany Heatley (No. 2 out of Wisconsin) in 2000.
Sabres pack a punch by picking Power first in NHL draft
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24/07/2021 - 04:20 The Buffalo Sabres used the first pick in the 2021 NHL entry draft to select Canada s Owen Power BRUCE BENNETT GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP 2 min
Los Angeles (AFP)
The Buffalo Sabres selected Canadian defenseman Owen Power with the first overall pick in the National Hockey League entry draft on Friday.
This is the second time in four years the Sabres have had the top pick and both times they used it to draft a big defenseman. In 2018, they selected Rasmus Dahlin.
The 18-year-old Power helped Canada win the gold medal at the 2021 IIHF World Championships in Latvia.
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A year ago, defenseman Owen Power was coping with the abrupt end of another strong Chicago Steel season and scrambling to stay in shape during the height of the pandemic.
‘‘I’ve just been trying to keep busy outside, whether it’s putting on the rollerblades, going for a skate, or playing volleyball or basketball with my siblings,’’ he told the Sun-Times in April 2020. ‘‘Anything, really. Just trying to stay active.’’
He evidently made it through the shutdown without losing his groove.
On Friday, the Sabres chose Power a Toronto-area native who spent two seasons with the Steel before starring at Michigan in 2020-21 with the first overall pick in the 2021 NHL Draft.
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It was the ice hockey equivalent of a virtual debutante party.
The next generation of NHL stars took initial strides onto a global stage Friday night when the league held the first round of its annual selection process from myriad North American sites.
The draft was broadcast live on ESPN2 in Bristol, Connecticut, while NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman appeared from the NHL Network studios in Secaucus, New Jersey.
Bettman pivoted to various team executives and personnel at their respective facilities for the actual picks, which were followed by the requisite reaction shots with the players and their families.
It was the second straight remote draft session for the NHL, though Bettman said the league will return to an in-person draft next year at the Bell Centre in Montreal.
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The Blackhawks finished the first round of the NHL draft Friday by selecting a player many expected to go closer to the end of the second round.
After trading down from 12th to 32nd in the Seth Jones trade, the Hawks picked Canadian defenseman Nolan Allan. Allan was ranked 40th among North American skaters in the Central Scouting Service’s final rankings and 59th among all players in TSN’s final rankings.
But the 18-year-old defenseman does boast a lanky frame (6-2, 195 pounds) and good instincts in his own zone. Scouting reports describe him as a stay-at-home defenseman and penalty-killing specialist who covers opposing forwards well but contributes little offense.