2017 NHL Mock Draft: 1st-Round Order and Final Landing Spots for Top Prospects

The serious business of building a winning team is an ongoing process. The first step toward doing so for 2017-18 takes place Friday night, when the NHL holds its annual draft at the United Center in Chicago.

This year, there is no Connor McDavid or Auston Matthews at the top of the draft who can become a star right away. At least that's the perception. 

However, there are a number of individuals who should be impact players in the NHL in the next two to three years, and their lives will change when their names are called Friday night.

There are a couple of stars in Nico Hischier and Nolan Patrick, who are likely to go Nos. 1 and 2 (or 2-1) in the first round.

Here's our look at how the first round will play out. 

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2017 NHL Mock Draft, 1st Round

1. New Jersey Devils: Nico Hischier, C, Halifax

2. Philadelphia Flyers: Nolan Patrick, C, Brandon

3. Dallas Stars: Miro Heiskanen, D, HIFK

4. Colorado Avalanche: Cody Glass, C, Portland

5. Vancouver Canucks: Martin Necas, C, Brno

6. Vegas Golden Knights: Gabriel Vilardi, C, Windsor

7. Arizona Coyotes: Casey Mittelstadt, C, Eden Prairie

8. Buffalo Sabres: Cale Makar, D, Brooks

9. Detroit Red Wings: Klim Kostin, LW/C, Dynamo Moscow

10. Florida Panthers: Owen Tippett, RW, Mississauga

11. Los Angeles Kings: Eeli Tolvanen, RW, Sioux City

12. Carolina Hurricanes: Timothy Liljegren, D, Rogle (Sweden)

13. Vegas Golden Knights (from Winnipeg Jets): Lias Andersson, C, HV 71d

14. Tampa Bay Lightning: Nicolas Hague, D, Mississauga

15. Vegas Golden Knights (from New York Islanders): Elias Pettersson, C, Timra

16. Calgary Flames: Callan Foote, D, Kelowna

17. Toronto Maple Leafs: Nick Suzuki, C, Owen Soun

18. Boston Bruins: Juuso Valimaki, D, Tri-City

19. San Jose Sharks: Kristian Vesalainen, LW/RW, Frolunda

20. St. Louis Blues: Ryan Poehling, C, St. Cloud State

21. New York Rangers: Kailer Yamamoto, RW, Spokane

22. Edmonton Oilers: Shane Bowers, C, Waterloo

23. Arizona Coyotes (from Minnesota): Maxime Comtois, LW, Victoriaville

24. Winnipeg Jets (from Columbus via Vegas): Conor Timmins, Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds

25. Montreal Canadiens: Michael Rasmussen, C, Tri-City

26. Chicago Blackhawks: Josh Norris, C, USNTDP

27. St. Louis Blues (from Washington): Urho Vaakanainen, D, JYP

28. Ottawa Senators: Nikita Popugaev, LW, Prince George

29. Dallas Stars (from Anaheim): Jake Oettinger, G, Boston University

30. Nashville Predators: Jason Robertson, LW, Kingston

31. Pittsburgh Penguins: Jesper Boqvist, LW, Brynas

C Nico Hischier, Halifax

Hischier appears to be the right player for the New Jersey Devils because he is a talented and skilled offensive threat, and that's the kind of player the offensively challenged Devils badly need.

New Jersey is hoping to get back to the playoffs for the first time since reaching the Stanley Cup Final in 2012, and Hischier is a player who knows what he is doing in the offensive zone. He scored 38 goals and 48 assists for Halifax in 57 regular-season games, as well as seven points in six playoff games, in 2016-17.

Hischier has also performed extremely well in international competition while playing for the under-18 Switzerland team. The 18-year-old is a fine two-way player who has decent size at 6'0" and 179 pounds, and he has plenty of room to get stronger. He has excellent hockey sense in that he can draw the defense to him when he has the puck and then deliver a perfect pass to an open teammate. 

TSN director of scouting Craig Button gave Hischier the slight edge over Nolan Patrick. 

"Just because he has a bit of an edge in dynamic ability," Button said, per Mike G. Morreale of NHL.com. "The comparison I've used for Hischier is Henrik Zetterberg (Detroit Red Wings) and the comparison for Patrick is Eric Staal (Minnesota Wild). They've both won the Stanley Cup, were each captains of their teams and won international gold medals, so that shows you how close they are."

D Cale Makar, Brooks

Cale Makar is going to be an impact player on the blue line. It may take him a while to get there, but he can dance with the puck, make opponents miss and then create plays for his teammates.

The 18-year-old scored 24 goals and 51 assists last year while playing for Brooks, and he was named the Canadian Junior Hockey League Defenseman of the Year. Makar will be playing for the University of Massachusetts next season.

He will be highly coveted because the 5'11", 187-pounder moves so well and has such good hockey instincts.

Eeli Tolvanen, RW, Sioux City

Eeli Tolvanen has made a big impact since coming to North America in 2015. This Finn is not a big man at 5'10" and 189 pounds, but he is solid enough that he can absorb a hit and keep on moving forward with the puck.

He scored 30 goals and 24 assists for Sioux City last year, and he has both the speed and instincts that scouts look for in today's game. Tolvanen is not the kind of player who will be overwhelmed by stepping up. He transitioned nicely after leaving Finland as a 16-year-old, and he has made steady progress.