The Way-Too-Early Best Landing Spots for Projected 2027 No. 1 Pick Landon DuPont
We know the NHL Draft just got done a month ago, but looking ahead to next year's draft when there's an elite talent awaiting whoever gets the No. 1 pick is a time-honored tradition as well and defenseman Landon DuPont has everyone's head turning already.
DuPont, son of former NHLer Micki DuPont, had a monster season with WHL Everett in helping lead the Silvertips to win the Memorial Cup. With 73 points in 63 games including 18 goals with another 2-4--6 in four games of the Memorial Cup, he's a guy who is already showing scouts he can be the next great defenseman.
There'll be no shortage of suitors come draft time but only one team will have the No. 1 pick. With signings and trades more or less done, we're getting a good idea which teams are setting up to be the front runners for DuPont.
Calgary Flames
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Landon DuPont was born in Calgary and it would be a real sweetheart story if he was drafted by the Flames considering that's where his father, Micki, played for a short time in the NHL. Looking at how the Flames roster is setting up this season, there's a strong chance that might happen.
Calgary's offseason has been relatively quiet and for a team with a lot of issues to address, that's not a great setup. Goalie Dustin Wolf will need to have a big rebound season for the Flames to get into the mix in the Pacific Division and guys like Connor Zary and Matthew Coronato will need to step up sizably to help push the offense. If newcomer Simon Nemec can take a step forward on defense, that would be a huge help while Zayne Parekh continues to develop.
Vancouver Canucks
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The Canucks didn't have lottery luck on their side in 2026 as they had the league's worst record and still wound up picking third. Getting to take Caleb Malhotra was fun and with his dad, Manny, now the head coach they've got a potentially great story to come there.
But their chances of landing the No. 1 pick in 2027 look to be pretty good based on how the roster is set up right now. They have stars with Elias Pettersson, Brock Boeser, Filip Hronek and Thatcher Demko, but good health and consistency have been problems for a couple years. The Canucks lack depth to cover for any players lost to injury and as we saw last season, if things start to tailspin, it can get really ugly, really fast.
Fortunately for Vancouver, if Logan DuPont winds up there, he'll be a natural fit on their blue line to carry them forward and won't have too much competition for big minutes with Hronek and Zeev Buium leading the way there.
Seattle Kraken
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We're not just picking on the Pacific Division, but the teams there make it easy to think they'll be in the running for Logan DuPont all the same. The Kraken are trying to build up but there's no doubt that the former Silvertips defenseman/soon-to-be Michigan Wolverine would allow them to grow up in a hurry.
Seattle's blue line with Vince Dunn and Brandon Montour leading the way would glow up in a big way with DuPont. Up front, Jared McCann is in the final year of his contract while Matty Beniers, Berkly Catton and newcomer Mackie Samoskevich make up a young group who could lead them moving ahead.
Still, the Kraken's lack of offensive punch last season and overall lack of depth hurt them last season and doesn't leave us feeling great about their prospects this season. If Shane Wright isn't moved, perhaps a breakout season from him could help save them from being in the running for the top pick, but it's hard to feel like playoffs could be within their grasps all the same.
Toronto Maple Leafs
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After landing Gavin McKenna with the No. 1 pick this year, things are feeling good for the Maple Leafs. He'll get to join Auston Matthews and William Nylander to spark Toronto's offense, but the rest of the moves they've made this summer don't exactly scream "playoffs" which puts them right in the discussion for Logan DuPont.
Given all the Leafs needs, especially on the blue line, landing a talent like DuPont would've arguably been better for them moving ahead than the luck they had in landing McKenna. For all the positive things McKenna will provide Toronto, the Atlantic Division is going to be a brutally competitive division, and they'll need all of their star veterans including the newly added Sergei Bobrovsky to be at the top of their games to be in playoff contention.
The Leafs will be fascinating to watch because of McKenna and their array of stars, but if things go south again for them, all eyes will be on the ping pong balls to see if they can luck out one more time.
Chicago Blackhawks
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There are a lot of reasons to be excited about hockey in Chicago again even with Connor Bedard's shoulder injury keeping him out of action until potentially November.
Bringing back Patrick Kane on a two-year deal has everyone back in their feelings and adding Bowen Byram to the blue line makes them a better team at that position. At some point things will turn in Chicago with their rebuild...right? If it doesn't, seeing them in the running for the No. 1 pick again could lead to more uncomfortable talk for GM Kyle Davidson, but if they can pull the top pick and take Logan DuPont? That's reason enough to be even more bullish about their future.
Fans in Chicago don't want to think about top picks anymore, they want the playoffs back, but a potential blue line difference maker like DuPont joining Byram and Artyom Levshunov would have them set for years to come.
Winnipeg Jets
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We're throwing the Jets into the conversation for Logan DuPont mostly because we're still not sure how long they'll have Connor Hellebuyck in goal to help make them more of a contender.
Winnipeg has star power with Mark Scheifele, Kyle Connor and Josh Morrissey, but it's Hellebuyck that ties it all together with his play in goal. As long as he's there and winning Vezinas and MVPs, things are great and the Jets are contenders. But if he's traded elsewhere (Buffalo? New Jersey?), the conversation with the Jets changes dramatically and suddenly the thought of adding DuPont to a young group featuring 2026 first-round pick Viggo Björck sounds really intriguing.
Putting DuPont on a blue line with Morrissey would make the Jets an infinitely more dangerous team offensively with the way they'd be able to move the puck up the ice and create chances. With how tough the Central Division is, it doesn't take much to get punished in the standings as the Jets found out last season.
Detroit Red Wings
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The Red Wings are having the offseason of nightmares and now that they're without a general manager, it's not getting any better. Dylan Larkin, as of now, still wants out, Alex DeBrincat and John Gibson are entering contract seasons and they're in arguably the hardest division in hockey while trying to end a now 10-year playoff drought. Yikes.
If that mountain of issues proves to be insurmountable and the Red Wings again land in the draft lottery, the thought of adding Logan DuPont to the blue line to play alongside Moritz Seider should be enough to make whoever the next GM is feel better. Detroit's younger players are good with Lucas Raymond and Simon Edvinsson to go with Seider and even younger guys like Marco Kasper show promise as well.
Still, if Detroit falls on hard times, it would be fitting for them to finally run into some lottery luck after all these years after trying so hard the past few seasons to get out of the non-playoff muck.
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