2017 NHL Draft Picks Most Likely to Have an Immediate Impact

In the NHL, the draft works differently from most other major sports. When a player is selected, his development path will usually take another year or two—or more—before he finally gets a chance to earn a roster spot at hockey's top level.

According to a chart at Quanthockey.com, most players make their NHL debuts at age 20—and that hasn't changed much during the league's 100-year history.

Two factors in today's game offer enticements for teams to bring players along a bit more quickly. The speed and skill element is better suited to high-energy youngsters, as long as the coach can endure some mistakes along the way. Also, salary-cap constraints make young players attractive to general managers—their entry-level contracts are easy to fit into the budget.

Last season, we saw four draft picks appear in more than 60 NHL games. Auston Matthews, Patrik Laine, Matthew Tkachuk and Jakob Chychrun all played important roles with their teams, while several others got shorter auditions over the course of the year.

This year's draft doesn't feature any players on par with Matthews or Laine, but here's a look at the first-rounders who will have a chance to crack their teams' lineups in 2017-18.

1. Nico Hischier, New Jersey Devils

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His Vital Stats: 18 years old; born January 4, 1999, Naters, Switzerland; 6'1", 179 lbs

2016-17 Hockey Stats: Center; Halifax Mooseheads, QMJHL; 57 GP, 38-48-86 

How He'd Fit In: The New Jersey Devils finished 28th in scoring during the 2016-17 season. Kyle Palmieri and Taylor Hall led the way with 53 points each—tied for 72nd place in the NHL points race. 

Even after acquiring Hall last summer, the Devils need to do more to shake off their decades-long scoring slumber. Nico Hischier should help to address that.

"He was on a bit of a weaker team that probably wasn't expected to do much, and he was a big reason why they were able to make the playoffs," Devils director of amateur scouting Paul Castron told Chris Ryan of NJ Advance Media in May. "He's another player who really does compete on both sides of the puck. He's maybe a little more dynamic in the way he scores and sets up plays."

In addition to finishing in the top 10 in points in his rookie season in the high-scoring QMJHL, Hischier earned 15 games of experience in the top Swiss men's league with Bern SC in 2015-16. His coach at the time was Guy Boucher, now the bench boss with the Ottawa Senators.

Hischier has the maturity and the talent to step straight into the NHL this fall, and the Devils can definitely use what he'll bring to the ice. 

Odds He'll Play in the NHL: 90 percent

2. Nolan Patrick, Philadelphia Flyers

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His Vital Stats: 18 years old; born September 19, 1988, Winnipeg, Canada; 6'2", 199 lbs 

2016-17 Hockey Stats: Center; Brandon Wheat Kings, WHL; 33 GP, 20-26-46 

How He'd Fit In: Within hours of choosing Nolan Patrick with the second overall pick, Philadelphia Flyers general manager Ron Hextall made a little room down the middle for his new acquisition. Hextall traded center Brayden Schenn, who finished third on the team in scoring, to the St. Louis Blues in a package that saw more checking-oriented center Jori Lehtera come back in return.

The Flyers are led down the middle by Claude Giroux. Their group also includes excellent two-way center Sean Couturier and versatile Valtteri Filppula, who can be deployed at left wing.

If Patrick is impressive in training camp, the Flyers will be able to fit him into the lineup, but Hextall cautions against making assumptions. Hextall told Adam Kimelman of NHL.com:

"He needs to have a big summer. To go from the junior level to the NHL level is a huge jump for any player. ...

"He has a very well-rounded game. He's a big, strong guy, got a heavy stick. Plays the game the right way. He's going to see a higher pace, he's going to see bigger bodies. He's going to see it's harder to get to the net. All the little things you have to do as an NHL player. He's going to have to make that adjustment. It's not easy. He's got work to do."

Despite an injury-riddled draft year, Patrick didn't sound any alarms during his medical testing with the Flyers. If he comes into training camp in good health, he'll get every opportunity to make the team—and make an impact.

Odds He'll Play in the NHL: 90 percent

6. Cody Glass, Vegas Golden Knights

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His Vital Stats: 18 years old; born April 1, 1999, Winnipeg, Canada; 6'1", 178 lbs 

2016-17 Hockey Stats: Center; Portland Winterhawks, WHL; 69 GP, 32-62-94 

How He'd Fit In: Cody Glass had a breakout season with the Portland Winterhawks in his draft year, going from 27 to 94 points.

In the midst of a week where he was widely lauded for his strategic thinking at both the expansion draft and the entry draft, George McPhee had his radar set on Glass as the first-ever draft pick for the new Vegas Golden Knights.

"He's a smart, smart player. An elite centre with exceptional hockey sense," McPhee told Gary Lawless of the Golden Knights website. "Getting to draft a top-end centre like Cody—it's a great fit for us."

As things stand after the expansion draft, the center position in Vegas looks like it's filled by Russian import Vadim Shipachyov as well as two-way pivot Cody Eakin, undersized Jonathan Marchessault and still-unproven William Karlsson and Oscar Lindberg. 

Because of the structure of the expansion draft, there's a big gap between 18-year-old Glass and Vegas' next youngest forward—the 24-year-old Karlsson.

There's nothing that would pump up the virgin fanbase more than to see the team's first-ever draft pick stick with the team out of training camp and become an instant difference-maker.

If Glass is ready, the sales and marketing departments would be ecstatic. If he isn't, he could be returned to Portland before the end of his nine-game NHL trial for another year of junior hockey seasoning. 

Odds He'll Play in the NHL: 60 percent

7. Lias Anderson, New York Rangers

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His Vital Stats: 18 years old; born October 13, 1998, Smogen, Sweden; 5'11", 201 lbs

2016-17 Hockey Stats: Center; HV71-Jonkoping, Swedish Hockey League; 42 GP, 10-9-19

How He'd Fit In: The New York Rangers acquired the seventh overall pick from the Arizona Coyotes on Friday morning, just hours before the draft started. It was a surprise—the Rangers hadn't drafted in the first round since selecting Brady Skjei with the 28th pick back in 2012. Suddenly, they had two picks in the top 21.

The Rangers would like nothing better than to make a splash with Swedish center Lias Andersson, whom they selected with that seventh pick. A Swedish Hockey League champion in 2016-17 with HV71, Andersson also has a silver medal from Sweden's 2016 U18 World Championship team and was impressive in his draft year at the 2017 World Junior Championship, where he scored three goals.

"This guy—his work ethic, his ability—you're going to love him," Rangers director of player personnel Gordie Clark told Brett Cyrgalis of the New York Post on draft weekend. "The fans will love him. He's got the combination of the grit and ability we've been looking for."

It took Skjei, a defenseman, four years before he could stick with the Rangers as a full-time NHLer. Now, the team is now eagerly looking for fresh blood—especially if it's inexpensive. Andersson has good size, and with Derek Stepan no longer part of the team, he'll get a chance to show that he can play at the NHL level this season.

Odds He'll Play in the NHL: 70 percent

11. Gabriel Vilardi, Los Angeles Kings

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His Vital Stats: 17 years old; born August 16, 1999, Kingston, Canada; 6'3", 201 lbs

2016-17 Hockey Stats: Center; Windsor Spitfires, OHL; 49 GP, 29-32-61 

How He'd Fit In: Anze Kopitar and Jeff Carter have the center position locked down with the Los Angeles Kings for a long time. Gabriel Vilardi is the first face of the new regime under president Luc Robitaille, general manager Rob Blake and new coach John Stevens. 

Vilardi was one of the youngest players selected in this year's draft—he doesn't turn 18 until August. Fans who saw him using his big body to protect the puck down low on the way to winning the Memorial Cup with the Windsor Spitfires in late May saw a player whose style should fit in perfectly with the way the powerful Kings play the game.

Always dealing with salary-cap pressure, the Kings would like nothing more than to insert Vilardi straight into their lineup. On an inexpensive entry-level contract, he could help generate offense on a team that finished 25th in scoring last season.

Odds He'll Play in the NHL: 55 percent

31. Klim Kostin, St. Louis Blues

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His Vital Stats: 18 years old; born May 5, 1999, Penza, Russia; 6'2", 207 lbs

2016-17 Hockey Stats: Right Wing; Dynamo Moscow, KHL; 8 GP, 0-0-0

How He'd Fit In: The St. Louis Blues may have pulled off the heist of the draft when they scooped up big Russian winger Klim Kostin after acquiring the last pick of the first round in a trade with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Kostin had been the top-ranked European skater on the NHL Central Scouting list, but he was a question mark for a lot of teams because a shoulder injury limited him to just eight games with Moscow Dynamo of the KHL in the 2016-17 season.

"He's a big man that plays a power forward game," Blues director of amateur scouting Bill Armstrong told Jeremy Rutherford of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch after the draft. "Almost similar to like a David Backes game. He's got the ability to score and he plays a North American style of game."

Kostin has also drawn comparisons to Valeri Nichushkin, who bulldozed his way to a job with the Dallas Stars as an 18-year-old after he was selected 10th overall in 2013.

Despite the shoulder surgery, Kostin is determined to follow a similar path. "I worked extremely hard to get back into shape," he told Ryan Kennedy of the Hockey News through a translator. "I'm at 100 percent now and ready to play in the NHL next season."

Odds He'll Play in the NHL: 75 percent

Statistics and player info from NHL.com, HockeyDB and Elite Prospects unless otherwise noted.