The top 25 late-round NHL draft steals of the past 25 years

What does it mean to “steal” a player in the NHL Draft?

The term is subjective, no doubt. We could argue any player who greatly outperforms his draft-day expectations is a steal. David Pastrnak was the 25^th pick of the first round in 2014, for instance, and only one player from that class has more career goals. Nikita Kucherov at 58^th overall in 2011 qualifies as legitimate larceny.

But those players still carried noteworthy pedigree and scouting buzz in their draft years. When I think of true steals, I think of players who were almost off the radar or even borderline unknowns when selected. That’s why, in crafting a list of the 25 biggest late-round draft steals of the past 25 years, I’m using the beginning of Round 5 as my demarcation point. Round 1 and 2 are the early rounds and Round 3 and 4 are the middle rounds, so we’ll define “late-round picks” as those occurring in Round 5 or later.

With that, here are my choices for the best steals of the past quarter century.

1. Pavel Datsyuk, 1998

Detroit Red Wings, 171^st overall

‘The Magic Man’ was a classic example of the overlooked prospect who caught a scout’s eye when the scout was on hand to watch someone else. Hakan Andersson was supposed to be watching Dmitri Kalinin but couldn’t take his eyes off Datsyuk, who simply owned the puck in all situations. His wizardry delivered jaw-dropping goals, replayed on highlight loops, but he also had one of the best defensive sticks of all-time, helping him win Three Selke Trophies. He’s finally retiring from pro hockey this summer and will be a first-ballot Hall of Famer once eligible.

2. Henrik Lundqvist, 2000

New York Rangers, 205^th overall

One of the best goalies of the century couldn’t even crack the top 200 in his draft year. ‘The King’ found his way to the Ranger net by 2005-06 and embarked on an incredible run of consistency, including a 2011-12 Vezina Trophy, a 2006 Olympic gold medal, one of the best Game-7 track records ever and 459 wins, the sixth-most all-time. He was arguably the sport’s greatest fashion icon off the ice, and he made it fashionable to play deep in his crease on the ice.

3. Henrik Zetterberg, 1999

Detroit Red Wings, 210^th overall

Yep, the Red Wings got their two best forwards of a generation in back to back years with late-round picks, helping Andersson cement his legacy as a gem-mining scout. Zetterberg wasn’t as flashy as Datsyuk but brought a similarly brainy approach as one of the game’s elite two-way forwards. Zetterberg racked up 960 points and took home the 2007-08 Conn Smythe Trophy after leading Detroit to a Stanley Cup victory.

4. Joe Pavelski, 2003

San Jose Sharks, 205^th overall

Especially in 2003, Pavelski didn’t pop. He was relatively undersized in an era where size was everything. He was drafted out of the USHL, which didn’t have nearly the cachet it does today. Coming from the college route, he didn’t reach the NHL until he was 22. And all he’s done is seemingly get better and better, emerging as one of the best leaders and puck deflectors in the sport, slowly building a career that might get him some Hall of Fame momentum some day. His 421 goals rank ninth all-time among American players.

5. Pekka Rinne, 2004

Nashville Predators, 258^th overall

Teams don’t even pick 258 times in the draft anymore. Rinne was an eighth-round selection, a towering athlete who slowly began turning heads thanks to a peerless glove hand, which he honed playing pesapallo, a Finnish equivalent to baseball, growing up. He’s easily the most accomplished goaltender in Predators history, owning all the major franchise records and taking home the 2017-18 Vezina Trophy.

6. Ryan Miller, 1999

Buffalo Sabres, 138^th overall

The wiry, cerebral Miller established himself as a steal quicker than most goalies, becoming one of the best college puck-stoppers ever, taking home the Hobey Baker Award in 2001. He was the backbone during one of the most successful runs in Buffalo Sabres history – and the last successful run in their history. He won the 2009-10 Vezina Trophy and his 391 victories place him 14^th all-time.

7. Jamie Benn, 2007

Dallas Stars, 129^th overall

Maybe teams slept on Benn because he was a multi-sport athlete who spent a lot of his childhood focused on baseball. That helped him fall into Dallas’ lap so late. He became one of the best true power forwards of his era, a thick, mean customer with a deft scoring touch. He’s arguably the most forgotten scoring champion this century, leading the NHL with 87 points in the 2014-15 season.

8. Mark Stone, 2010

Ottawa Senators, 178^th overall

The knock on Stone: he couldn’t skate. Not by NHL standards, at least. That masked the fact he had perhaps the best hockey brain in his draft class. Once he worked on his skating to elevate it to an acceptable level, his other skills shone. He’s one of the best two or three defensive forwards of his generation, a master of intercepting pucks, and also functions as a front-line scorer. What will his resume look like by the time his career ends? It might depend on how – and if – he recovers from a debilitating back injury that required surgery this offseason.

9. Andrei Markov, 1998

Montreal Canadiens, 162^nd overall

The Habs are the sport’s most legendary franchise, so anyone who places high on their leaderboards deserves recognition for a stellar career. Among defensemen, only Larry Robinson has played more games in a Bleu, Blanc et Rouge uniform than Markov, and only Robinson and Guy Lapointe have more points on ‘D.’ Markov was one of the most underrated puck-moving blueliners of his era.

10. Connor Hellebuyck, 2012

Winnipeg Jets, 130^th overall

Hellebuyck has been the game’s No. 1 workhorse since becoming the Jets’ starter. Dating back to 2016-17, he’s started 25 more games than the closest goaltender, and he took home the Vezina Trophy in 2019-20 after bailing out a Winnipeg team that played suspect defense in front of him.

11. Kirill Kaprizov, 2015

Minnesota Wild, 135th overall

I have to walk the line between projection and acknowledging that Kaprizov only has two NHL seasons to his name so far. But, wow, have they ever been special: Calder Trophy in 2020-21, franchise-record 108 points in 2021-22. If I redo this list in 10 years, he’ll likely be top five. He’s that special.

12. Brian Campbell, 1997

Buffalo Sabres, 156^th overall

Campbell won the Lady Byng Trophy during a time when it was unheard for defensemen to do so. A second-team all-star and, later, a Stanley Cup champ with the Chicago Blackhawks, too.

13. Ondrej Palat, 2011

Tampa Bay Lightning, 208^th overall

One of the best clutch players in the sport, he has 12 game-winning goals in the postseason along with his two Cup rings.

14. Mike Smith, 2001

Dallas Stars, 161^st overall

Right up there with the greatest pure puckhandlers ever to play his position, even if that leads to an overconfidence that gets him into (highly entertaining) trouble.

15. Dustin Byfuglien, 2003

Chicago Blackhawks, 245^th overall

‘Big Buff’ was a hockey unicorn, a behemoth who could devastate with his bodychecking while also driving the play as a premier offensive defenseman. Not bad for a guy who previously played forward on a Stanley Cup winning team.

16. John Klingberg, 2005

Dallas Stars, 131^st overall

Early in Klingberg’s career, he seemed destined to contend for Norris Trophies. He’s settled into a space as “only” the eighth-leading scorer at his position since he debuted in 2014-15. Quite a nice return for the 131^st overall pick.

17. Patric Hornqvist, 2005

Nashville Predators, 230^th overall

The final pick of his draft class! Hornqvist, a tenacious agitator who takes punishment to score, played a major role on two Stanley Cup champion teams in Pittsburgh. Quietly an eight-time 20-goal scorer, too.

18. Kevin Bieksa, 2001

Vancouver Canucks, 151^st overall

Before breaking out as a broadcasting star, Bieksa played more than 800 NHL games, spending many of them as a top-four defenseman who mixed rugged physicality with above-average offense. He logged more than 25 minutes per game in the 2011 playoffs on a Vancouver team that reached Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final.

19. Jared Spurgeon, 2008

New York Islanders, 156^th overall

As a little guy, he had no chance of getting drafted early in 2008, but the game has changed so much since then. Spurgeon has forged a rock-solid career as a play driver who is effective at both ends of the ice.

20. Marek Zidlicky, 2001

New York Rangers, 176^th overall

Spent most of his prime in a then-obscure Nashville market but was 11^th among all blueliners in scoring for the first 10 seasons of his career.

21. Cam Atkinson, 2008

Columbus Blue Jackets, 157^th overall

Seven 20-goal campaigns, including a 35-goal and 41-goal season. How many heads might Atkinson have turned in his draft year if he was 6-foot-3 and not 5-foot-8?

22. Radim Vrbata, 1999

Colorado Avalanche, 212^th overall

More than 600 points, with six 20-goal seasons and two 30-goal seasons. Underrated goal scorer.

23. Martin Erat, 1999

Nashville Predators, 191^st overall

Don’t let the Filip Forsberg trade sully Erat’s name. Before that, he was a consistent playmaking threat for the Preds. He’s still their third-leading scorer in franchise history.

24. Jake Muzzin, 2007

Pittsburgh Penguins, 141^st overall

Big, physical and well-rounded, Muzzin formed a dynamite pair with Drew Doughty on the 2014 Stanley Cup winning Kings.

25. Darcy Kuemper, 2009

Minnesota Wild, 161^st overall

The reigning Stanley Cup champion didn’t dominate by any means during Colorado’s championship run but was mostly excellent during the regular season and has a stellar .918 career save percentage.

Honorable mentions: Jussi Jokinen, Johnny Oduya, Brendan Gallagher, Jaroslav Halak, Frederik Andersen, Anders Lee, Maxime Talbot, Anton Stralman, MacKenzie Weegar, Mike Hoffman, Matt Moulson, Dennis Seidenberg, P-A Parenteau, Toby Enstrom, Michael Ryder, Mark Streit, Ladislav Nagy, Troy Brouwer, Dennis Wideman, Jason Chimera, Matt Cooke, Brooks Laich, Jonathan Ericsson, Lee Stempniak, Andrew Ference, Patrick Maroon, John-Michael Liles, Chris Neil, Carl Hagelin, Jesper Bratt, Andrew Mangiapane

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