NHL Mock Draft 2020: Landing Spots for Alexis Lafreniere, Jamie Drysdale, More

The NFL successfully executed its 2020 draft virtually last week, and the NHL took notice.

"I believe we can conduct an effective draft virtually," NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly told the Philadelphia Inquirer's Sam Carchidi via email on Sunday. "Maybe not the same as the NFL, but certainly along the same lines."

Daly added: "We are evaluating the possibility of moving the date of the draft up into June. We have not reached a decision on that yet. Don't have any more details than that."

The NHL draft was originally scheduled to happen in Montreal on June 26-27, but the league announced its postponement on March 25 as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Whenever the draft does take place, Alexis Lafreniere is the consensus No. 1 overall pick. The right wing was ranked as the top North American skater on NHL Central Scouting's final list released April 8.

Below is a full first-round mock draft, including a deeper look into landing spots for Lafreniere, Jamie Drysdale and Jake Sanderson.

2020 First-Round Mock

1. Detroit Red Wings (17-49-5): Alexis Lafreniere, LW, QMJHL

2. Ottawa Senators (25-34-12): Quinton Byfield, C, OHL

3. Ottawa Senators (via 29-36-5 San Jose Sharks): Jamie Drysdale, D, OHL

4. Los Angeles Kings (29-35-6): Tim Stutzle, LW, DEL

5. Anaheim Ducks (29-33-9): Alexander Holtz, RW, SWE

6. New Jersey Devils (28-29-12): Jake Sanderson, D, NTDP

7. Buffalo Sabres (30-31-8): Marco Rossi, C, OHL

8. Montreal Canadiens (31-31-9): Cole Perfetti, C, OHL

9. Chicago Blackhawks (32-30-8): Lucas Raymond, LW, SHL

10. New Jersey Devils (via 33-29-8 Arizona Coyotes): Jack Quinn, RW, OHL

11. Minnesota Wild (35-27-7): Yaroslav Askarov, G, MHL

12. Winnipeg Jets (37-28-6): Braden Schneider, D, WHL

13. New York Rangers (37-28-5): Hendrix Lapierre, C, QMJHL 

14. Florida Panthers (35-26-8): Justin Barron, D, QMJHL

15. Columbus Blue Jackets (33-22-15): Anton Lundell, C, FIN

16. Calgary Flames (36-27-7): Dylan Holloway, C, NCAA

17. New Jersey Devils (via 36-27-6 Vancouver Canucks): Connor Zary, C, WHL

18. Nashville Predators (35-26-8): Kaiden Guhle, D, WHL

19. Carolina Hurricanes (via 36-25-9 Toronto Maple Leafs): Dawson Mercer, C, QMJHL

20. Edmonton Oilers (37-25-9): Jan Mysak, C, OHL

21. Ottawa Senators (via 35-23-10 New York Islanders): Noel Gunler, RW, SWE

22. Dallas Stars (37-24-8): Seth Jarvis, C, WHL

23. New York Rangers (via 38-25-5 Carolina Hurricanes): William Wallinder, D, SWE

24. Minnesota Wild (via 40-23-6 Pittsburgh Penguins): Emil Andrae, D, SWE

25. Philadelphia Flyers (41-21-7): Ridley Greig, C, WHL

26. San Jose Sharks (via 43-21-6 Tampa Bay Lightning): Lukas Cormier, D, QMJHL

27. Colorado Avalanche (42-20-8): Ty Smilanic, C, NTDP

28. Vegas Golden Knights (39-24-8): Jeremie Poirier, D, QMJHL

29. Washington Capitals (41-20-8): Rodion Amirov, LW, RUS

30. St. Louis Blues (42-19-10): Thomas Bordeleau, C, NTPD

31. Anaheim Ducks (via 44-14-12 Boston Bruins): Jacob Perreault, RW, OHL

Order courtesy of Tankathon.com

Alexis Lafreniere, LW, Rimouski (QMJHL)

Lafreniere scored 35 goals and assisted on a career-high 77 scores across 52 games for Rimouski Oceanic in 2019-20. The Quebec native also contributed four goals and six assists in five appearances for the Canadian under-20 squad at the U-20 World Junior Championships.

Those numbers don't do Lafreniere's skill set justice, as NHL.com's Adam Kimelman gave a broader evaluation:

"Lafreniere (6-foot-1, 193 pounds) combines elite puck skills, high-end decision-making and a physical edge. He's used to excelling against older competition, including playing for Canada in the IIHF World Junior Championships at age 17 and 18; he was named tournament MVP this year while helping Canada win the championship. That makes him the top talent in the draft and should allow him to step into a significant NHL role next season."

NHL.com's Mike Morreale added that Lafreniere led all Canadian players across the QMJHL, OHL. and WHL with 2.15 points per game.

The 18-year-old is the first Rimouski player to top the North American skater rankings since Sidney Crosby, who went No. 1 overall to the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 2005 NHL draft. The two-time MVP and three-time Stanley Cup winner offered advice to Lafreniere:

The Penguins have made the Stanley Cup playoffs every year since, except Crosby's rookie season.

The Red Wings, assuming they land the top overall selection as expected, can only hope for the same run of success after adding Lafreniere. Detroit has not made the postseason since 2016.

With a roster as depleted as Red Wings', the only way to go is to take the best overall player. Lafreniere is far and away considered to be that.

Jamie Drysdale, D, Erie Otters (OHL)

The Senators would be wise to take the top-ranked defenseman—between North American and European skaters—because they have the second-worst scoring defense at 3.35 goals allowed per game.

"Ottawa has built up its prospect base with forwards over the past few years," NHL.com's Guillaume Lepage reasoned. "Now the Senators can shore up their depth on defense by selecting the best player at his position in this class."

Drysdale is also an excellent offensive asset. The 18-year-old Toronto-born product notched 47 points (nine goals, 38 assists—both career-highs) across 49 games for Erie in 2019-20.

"Drysdale might only need one more year of junior and then he could contend for a roster spot, where he would be an upper half of the lineup player for a while," The Athletic's Corey Pronman wrote on April 9.

Ottawa used its first-round selection on defenseman Lassi Thomson last year after drafting defensemen Jacob Bernard-Docker and Jonathan Tychonick in the first and second rounds, respectively, in 2018.

The Senators are committed to a total rebuild, though, and that means drafting the best defenseman available until ideally finding their long-term guy at the position.

Jake Sanderson, D, USA-18 (NTDP)

Drysdale and Sanderson are neck and neck in terms of top defensemen in this draft class:

The 17-year-old paired seven goals with 22 assists across 47 games with the U.S. U-18 team in the U.S. National Team Development Program. He is committed to play collegiate hockey at the University of North Dakota.

The Montana native finished fourth among North American skaters, improving upon his No. 11 midterm rank, on NHL Central Scouting's final list. Sanderson falls to sixth overall in this draft based upon team needs.

The New Jersey Devils tied for the third-most goals allowed per game (3.25) in 2019-20. The Devils selected Ty Smith 17th overall in 2018, but he has remained on the Spokane Chiefs in the WHL. Sanderson figures to have a similar trajectory to the Devils' active roster.

Last year, New Jersey used the top overall pick on Jack Hughes out of the same U-18 NTDP pool Sanderson would come from, and the center has produced 21 points across 61 games as a rookie.