Ranking every NHL team prospect pool, from 1-32

Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

We’re a few months removed from a loaded 2023 NHL Draft with some potentially franchise-changing decisions being made by various teams.

Now, with NHL rookie tournaments coming up, we’re finally close to catching the future up close. Fans will get a chance to see some players in their NHL uniforms for the first time, while others are on the verge of starting their own journeys as professional athletes for the first time. Yeah, watching Connor McDavid and Auston Matthews is fun and all, but watching prospects can be just as fun.

Throughout the summer, I’ve spent time detailing the strengths and weaknesses of every team’s pipeline, looking at the names you need to know across the league. And today, we’re ranking each team’s prospect pool.

Each team is tiered by a letter ranking between A+ and D-. Each team in a specific tier is close, with the criteria being a mix of quality and quantity. Chicago, for example, has the best prospect in the game by a longshot, but it also has depth at every position. Boston, meanwhile, has very few players of note, with no real big threats.

While others might categorize prospects differently, we kept it simple for this exercise. To qualify, players had to have competed in 50 or fewer NHL games or at least spent more time outside of the NHL than in it last year. Most players were 23 and under, but some older players were included based on different circumstances, such as for goaltenders, late-bloomers or players that have dealt with significant injuries.

So with that in mind, here’s a look at how all 32 teams stack up:

1. Chicago Blackhawks (A+)

Key prospects: Connor Bedard, Kevin Korchinski, Oliver Moore

Nearly two decades after snagging Jonathan Toews and Patrick Kane early in the draft and making them the stars of the franchise, the Blackhawks won the Connor Bedard sweepstakes for 2023. Given that they already had one of the best prospect pools in the NHL, adding the best in the game only made them much stronger. Toss in a top-end defensive prospect in Kevin Korchinski, two potential starters in Drew Commesso and Adam Gajan, and other notables like Lukas Reichel, Oliver Moore and Frank Nazar, this group is deep. Very, very deep.

2. Buffalo Sabres (A+)

Key prospects: Zach Benson, Matthew Savoie, Jiri Kulich

What a group. Zach Benson was a steal of a pick, and Matthew Savoie and Jiri Kulich should give the team some excellent scoring options. Noah Östlund would be a top-two prospect on so many other teams. This makes me think they’ll flip a few to get veteran assets for a long playoff run over the next couple years. If not, they’ll have scoring depth throughout the lineup for years to come. Benson and Savoie look like top-six stars, while Jiri Kulich had a season to remember in the AHL – and he’s just getting started. That type of flexibility has to get fans excited for better days. And we got this deep without mentioning Devon Levi, whom the Sabres’ fanbase is thrilled about.

3. Anaheim Ducks (A+)

Key prospects: Leo Carlsson, Pavel Mintyukov, Olen Zellweger

The Ducks lost out on the NHL Draft lottery, and thus missed snagging Connor Bedard. Instead, they took Leo Carlsson, who, before long, should challenge for No. 1 center duties after a tremendous season back in Sweden. Anaheim already has a nice young core, led by Trevor Zegras, Mason McTavish, Troy Terry and Jamie Drysdale. Pavel Mintyukov, Olen Zellweger and Tristan Luneau gives the team some excellent defensive options, and Lukas Dostal could become something in net.

4. Columbus Blue Jackets (A+)

Key prospects: Adam Fantilli, David Jiricek, Denton Mateychuk

Out go Kent Johnson and Kirill Marchenko; in come Adam Fantilli and Gavin Brindley. Seriously, this group rocks. The team has some excellent center depth with Fantilli, Brindley and Luca Del Bel Belluz, but it’s their blueline – David Jiricek, Denton Mateychuk and Stanislav Svozil – that stands out the most. And we can’t forget about Jordan Dumais, the only prospect in the scoring ballpark of Connor Bedard last year. Are the Blue Jackets finally going to be a competitive team in the near future? It seems like it.

*Jesper Wallstedt (Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports)*

5. Minnesota Wild (A)

Key prospects: Jesper Wallstedt, Marco Rossi, Brock Faber

The sheer depth of this group is staggering. Jesper Wallstedt is the goalie most scouts seem to pinpoint as the best prospect at his position on the planet. Then there’s Marco Rossi, who, after some trials along the way, should finally cement himself as a full-time NHLer. Add in Brock Faber on defense, and those are three high-end prospects alone. But it goes much further than that. They’ve got tremendous young scorers, such as Liam Ohgren and Danila Yurov. They’ve also got some significant size in Charlie Stramel. The team looks to be in good shape with a core that already includes Matt Boldy, Kaprizov, Joel Eriksson Ek and Filip Gustavsson.

6. New Jersey Devils (A)

Key prospects: Luke Hughes, Simon Nemec, Alexander Holtz

Things are starting to look up for the franchise, taking big steps forward after living toward the bottom of the standings the previous few years. Jack Hughes is a certified star, Nico Hischier is thriving, Timo Meier is a Devil and so much of the core is still quite young and heating up. And then there’s the team’s prospect pipeline. They’ve managed to build one of the most top-heavy futures around. The talent starts to drop off in the latter stages of the top 10, but the fact they have at least two potential top-pairing defenders in Luke Hughes and Simon Nemec ready to go is massive.

7. Detroit Red Wings (A)

Key prospects: Simon Edvinsson, Marco Kasper, Axel Sandin Pellikka

Things were ugly for a few years after it became clear the contention window was closed, but that’s changing rather quickly. With Simon Edvinsson, Axel Sandin Pellikka and William Wallinder leading the way, the Red Wings have one of the better blueline crops on the way – and that doesn’t include Moritz Seider and Jake Walman. They also have two excellent goalie prospects in Sebastian Cossa and Trey Augustine – perhaps the best 1-2 duo of any pipeline. Marco Kasper is the only high-impact forward right now, but Carter Mazur could also be an excellent middle-six threat.

8. Philadelphia Flyers (A-)

Key prospects: Matvei Michkov, Cutter Gauthier, Tyson Foerster

I really, REALLY like the high-end forward prospects here. Matvei Michkov and Cutter Gauthier are both excellent, first-line caliber players, while Tyson Foerster has one of the best shots of any prospect. The team lacks a top-three defenseman, but keep an eye on Oliver Bonk. With Alexei Kolosov, Samuel Ersson and Carson Bjarnasson in the goalie pipeline – one headed by Carter Hart – the team has as much talent in the crease as we’ve ever seen from them. Finally, it might actually be a strength!

9. Montreal Canadiens (A-)

Key prospects: David Reinbacher, Lane Hutson, Sean Farrell

While the team lacks an incoming forward in the same vein as Cole Caufield, David Reinbacher and Lane Hutson gives the team two excellent defensive prospects with solid potential. With the prospect pool they have now, plus at least another year or two of drafting near the top, that’s going to change sooner rather than later. And, hey: there’s still Nick Suzuki, Cole Caufield and a healthy Juraj Slafkovsky to get excited about.

*Sean Farrell (David Kirouac-USA TODAY Sports)*

10. San Jose Sharks (A-)

Keey prospects: Will Smith, William Eklund, Filip Bystedt

A year ago, this pipeline was lacking. William Eklund was a good piece, but it was an otherwise “mid” group. But a solid season by Filip Bystedt, plus selecting Will Smith with the fourth pick in 2023, helped spice the pipeline’s top end. Quentin Musty was another great selection, and adding Shakir Mikhamadullin and Henry Thrun through the trade route significantly helped the team’s blueline. It’s not a perfect prospect crop, but this group has a lot to like.

11. Nashville Predators (A-)

Key prospects: Yaroslav Askarov, Matthew Wood, Joakim Kemell

With a top-flight goalie prospect in Yaroslav Askarov, an impact winger in Joakim Kemell and top 2023 picks Matthew Wood and Tanner Molendyk, the Predators are flying high right now. New GM Barry Trotz made some excellent picks in June, and I wouldn’t be surprised if seven of their top 10 prospects were full-time NHLers in the next 3-4 years. There’s quality and quantity here, and with the team in a weird spot right now, playoff-contention-wise, there’s something to look forward to, at least.

12. Arizona Coyotes (A-)

Key prospects: Logan Cooley, Dylan Guenther, Dmitri Simashev

For all the off-ice shenanigans surrounding the Arizona Coyotes, their work on the draft floor has been quite impressive. It all starts with Logan Cooley, one of the best prospects in the game today. But it runs much deeper than that. Dylan Guenther is ready for the big time, Dmitri Simashev is an excellent defensive prospect and Conor Geekie, Daniil But and Maveric Lamoureux could all be impact NHLers. They also have easily the tallest prospect pool, too.

13. Seattle Kraken (A-)

Key prospects: Shane Wright, Ryker Evans, Eduard Sale

The Kraken have been quiet over the summer but believe in their group. And throughout the entire time, they’ve been building up a solid prospect pool, giving them some high-quality talent coming up in the pipeline. Shane Wright is Seattle’s biggest fish in the sea, but defenseman Ryker Evans is coming off a tremendous campaign with the Coachella Valley Firebirds. Speaking of them, qualifying for the Calder Cup as a first-year club was incredible on its own. With a handful of young players looking to make the big club this year, the Kraken are in good hands.

14. Carolina Hurricanes (A-)

Key prospects: Scott Morrow, Alexander Nikishin, Bradly Nadeau

Most teams with loaded prospect pools sit at the bottom of the standings. Yet, the Carolina Hurricanes are deep at every position and are a favorite to win the Stanley Cup. Few teams have managed to snag as much talent in the latter rounds as the Hurricanes in recent years. Add in some recent high picks like Bradly Nadeau and Scott Morrow, and the emergence of Alexander Nikishin – one of the best defensemen outside of the NHL – and there are some excellent pieces to build around. And much of the team’s current core is still young, led by Sebastian Aho (25), Andrei Svechnikov (23), Martin Necas (24) and Seth Jarvis (21). They’re in win-now mode, but it’s easy to like their pipeline.

*Mavrik Bourque (Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports)*

15. Dallas Stars (B)

Key prospects: Logan Stankoven, Mavrik Bourque, Lian Bichsel

The Stars have drafted as well as anyone, with a potential 10 players developed by the organization set to make the opening night roster. But the well is starting to dry up. With such a strong success rate at promoting talent to the big club, Dallas’ prospect pool is a little depleted. Logan Stankoven is one of the best prospects in the game today, while Mavrik Bourque and Lian Bichsel aren’t far away from being full-time NHLers. After that? It starts getting a little thin. And that’s fine.

16. St. Louis Blues (B)

Key prospects: Dalibor Dvorsky, Jimmy Snuggerud, Zachary Bolduc

The Blues began selling off key pieces last year, moving on from Vladimir Tarasenko, Ryan O’Reilly and Ivan Barbashev while bringing in some futures. That helped the Blues in a big way, landing three of their top 10 prospects at the 2023 NHL Draft. The group is highlighted by Dalibor Dvorsky, who has top-line center potential. And he’s not alone: Jimmy Snuggerud looks like a prospect who should have no difficulty recording 50-plus points a season. The team’s top six prospects are solid, but it falls off a bit after that. The Blues have a midpack pool that, luckily, got significantly better at the draft in June. But there’s still a ton of work to be done for this club to reach competitive status again.

17. Calgary Flames (B-)

Key prospects: Dustin Wolf, Matthew Coronato, Samuel Honzek

While the team’s current lineup is… interesting, to say the least, they’ve got some promising prospects in the pipeline. There are a few expected to join the team this year, such as Dustin Wolf and Matthew Coronato, but there’s a fair share of “bubble” guys who may or may not turn into something notable here. That includes Jakob Pelletier, Connor Zary and Jeremie Poirier, three prospects you’d hope will take big steps this year into becoming legitimate long-term options.

18. Winnipeg Jets (B-)

Key prospects: Colby Barlow, Rutger McGroarty, Chaz Lucius

Goal-scoring won’t be an issue if a few of the bigger names here can crack the NHL. Colby Barlow, the team’s first pick in 2023, nearly hit the 50 mark this year. Chaz Lucius, Brad Lambert and Dmitri Rashevsky are more than capable of putting pucks in the net, too. Inconsistency is a theme with this crop, and the blueline is a bit of a mess, but there are some intriguing pieces, nonetheless.

19. Los Angeles Kings (B-)

Key prospects: Brandt Clarke, Jordan Spence, Alex Turcotte

While the high-end options start to trail off after Brandt Clarke, the team has some solid depth. They’ve got players with decent potential at every position, which has been the organization’s strength for the past five seasons or so. The Kings were previously viewed as having one of the best pipelines in the league, but a few blue chippers never managed to break through, and others are still trying to carve their way up.

*Brandt Clarke (Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports)*

20. New York Rangers (B-)

Key prospects: Gabriel Perreault, Brennan Othmann, Will Cuylle

At one point, there was Alexis Lafreniere, Kaapo Kakko, Lias Andersson and Vitali Kravtsov in the waiting, with Adam Fox and K’Andre Miller getting their reps in on the blueline and Igor Shesterkin waiting for his chance to be the No. 1. The latter three have been great, but the forward crop fell short of expectations. Beyond Gabe Perreault and Brennan Othmann, I’m not sure that’s going to change any time soon, but there are a few decent trade chips if they need them.

21. Washington Capitals (C+)

Key prospects: Ryan Leonard, Andrew Cristall, Ivan Miroshnichenko

The high end is excellent: Ryan Leonard, Andrew Cristall and Ivan Miroshnichenko all look like valuable commodities. After that? The gap starts to widen. The future blueline options are lacking, and I don’t have much faith in any of the team’s goaltending options. Cristall and Miroshnichenko were both taken lower than they probably should have, which could make them both some excellent value pickups.

22. Vancouver Canucks (C-)

Key prospects: Tom Willander, Aatu Raty, Jonathan Lekkerimaki

With Elias Pettersson, Quinn Hughes and Thatcher Demko being the core of this group, the Canucks have a decent base to build around. With the right coaching, this team has what it takes to challenge for the playoffs. But does the pipeline have enough to make this team a realistic contender for the next decade? I don’t think so. The majority of the team’s top prospects are likely more complementary players, and not difference-makers.

23. Colorado Avalanche (C-)

Key prospects: Calum Ritchie, Mikhail Gulyayev, Nikolai Kovalenko

The Avalanche had one of the absolute worst prospect pools in the NHL, which only improved thanks to two solid late picks in the first round of the 2023 NHL Draft. Prior to selecting Calum Ritchie and Mikhail Gulyayev, the Avalanche found themselves potentially without a real potential top-six forward, and maybe just one potential top-four defenseman in Sean Behrens. But that’s the price you pay for success, and after churning out some high-quality talent in recent years, nobody in the organization is going to complain.

24. Toronto Maple Leafs (C-)

Key prospects: Matthew Knies, Joseph Woll, Topi Niemela

The Leafs haven’t had much to work with regarding actual draft capital over the past three years. After selecting 12 players in 2020, they’ve only taken 11 over the past three years – and it could be argued that they stretched to land their first picks over the past two years in Fraser Minten and Easton Cowan. But one thing the Leafs have that many other contenders don’t is a player with top-six potential. That’s Matthew Knies, and the fanbase has high hopes for him. Beyond him, Joseph Woll and Topi Niemela, they’re looking at mostly replacement-level players. Let’s be clear: Knies is doing a lot of the heavy lifting here.

*Matthew Knies (Nick Turchiaro-USA TODAY Sports)*

25. Edmonton Oilers (D+)

Key prospects: Xavier Bourgault, Raphael Lavoie, Matvey Petrov

For as long as Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl are in their primes, you have to go all-in. And while the Edmonton Oilers haven’t reached the Stanley Cup Final with them just yet, it feels like they’re not far away after a couple of good playoff showings in recent years. But the cost to remain competitive requires moving prospects and picks to do everything possible to contend as soon as possible. If the Oilers are looking for an impact player, they’re not finding it here. But if they need some extra depth, or a trade chip to bring in someone notable, they have that. The rest is up to GM Ken Holland to figure out.

26. Vegas Golden Knights (D)

Key prospects: David Edstrom, Lukas Cormier, Brendan Brisson

Most players in Vegas’ pipeline have slim chances of becoming regular contributors. Right now, I feel confident about David Edstrom, but there are enough flaws in the rest of the system to worry about the potential. If the Golden Knights are forced to burn things to the ground in 2-3 years, there isn’t a group of players to build around.

27. Ottawa Senators (D)

Key prospects: Ridly Greig, Zack Ostapchuk, Egor Sokolov

A few years ago, they were a team of envy, but great picks turn into quality NHLers, and the Sens have excelled at developing over the past five years. That’s the ultimate goal here, and, hopefully, for the fanbase, it starts to pay off sooner rather than later. Last year, the Ottawa Senators saw Shane Pinto and Jake Sanderson graduate to the NHL and become impactful players. Beyond that, there hasn’t been much to get excited about in terms of quality prospect talent.

28. Pittsburgh Penguins (D)

Key prospects: Brayden Yager, Owen Pickering, Joel Blomqvist

The stark reality is that if the top three don’t become full-timers, there’s a good chance nobody else becomes more than a depth threat. Brayden Yager was a huge get and someone with a bright future. Owen Pickering is good, but not top-pairing good. And there’s Joel Blomqvist, who still has an upward climb to go. Between traded picks and assets not panning out, this prospect pool hasn’t really improved over the past five years, to be honest.

29. Florida Panthers (D)

Key prospects: Mackie Samoskevich, Justin Sourdif, Gracyn Sawchyn

Let me be frank: the Florida Panthers really need things to work out with their current core. Because their prospect pipeline is downright awful. Luckily, they made the Stanley Cup final this year. They came up short, but with Matthew Tkachuk, Aleksander Barkov and other quality players leading the way, the Panthers should remain relevant for a couple of years, at least. But the next wave? It’s not great.

*Hugo Alnefelt (Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports)*

30. Tampa Bay Lightning (D)

Key prospects: Ethan Gauthier, Dylan Duke, Isaac Howard

There might not be a single player that can step into a top-six or top-four role here. Ethan Gauthier is the closest, but his high-end offensive potential likely isn’t good enough to really spice things up in the NHL. Defensively, you’re looking at bottom-pairing players at best. This is all to be expected when you rarely pick above 31st, though.

31. New York Islanders (D-)

Key prospects: William Dufour, Danny Nelson, Samuel Bolduc

For a bubble playoff team, they’ve got very little going for them, prospect-wise. Simply put, the team lacks an impact player. William Dufour had a great year, but can his play translate to the NHL? If he doesn’t, will anyone be a difference-maker? With a lack of high-end picks in recent years, they’re missing a goal-scorer, top-four defensive option or a potential backup goaltender.

32. Boston Bruins (D-)

Key prospects: Fabian Lysell, Mason Lohrei, Matthew Poitras

Not many teams can start and end a decade playing in the Stanley Cup Final, but that’s exactly what the Bruins did in 2011 and 2019. That sustained level of competitive play meant moving draft picks and selecting low when they didn’t. That’s why the Bruins have one of the worst prospect pools. That’ll change once the team starts to drop off, which could happen sooner rather than later after the departures of Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci, among others.

Full prospect breakdowns

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