Rangers select Lafreniere with No. 1 pick in draft
Alexis Lafreniere wanted to take the stage at Montreal’s Bell Centre near his home and hear his name announced at the NHL draft.
The playmaking forward had to settle for being selected first overall by the New York Rangers on Tuesday night.
“Obviously, it’s different, and we didn’t expect that a couple of months ago,” Lafreniere said. “Growing up, you’re dreaming of being drafted. And for me today, it’s amazing to go first. I’m really honored.”
Lafreniere was the NHL Central Scouting Bureau’s top-ranked North American skater. The 6-foot-1 left wing becomes the first Canadian to go No. 1 since Connor McDavid by Edmonton in 2015. From suburban Montreal, he was the first to earn both Canadian Hockey League and Quebec Major Junior Hockey League MVP honors in consecutive seasons since Pittsburgh captain Sidney Crosby in 2004 and ‘05.
In a sign of the unusual nature of this year’s remote draft amid the coronavirus pandemic, Lafreniere spoke by video call from a bedroom in his home. Rather than walking up on stage and having a team official provide his new jersey, Lafreniere stood up from a living room chair when his name was announced, handed his sport jacket to his sister and pulled on a Rangers hat and No. 20 Rangers jersey, handed to him by his father.
“Today, I woke up and I was really excited and I just got ready for the pick,” he said. “I’m just a little speechless.”
The Kings then selected Ontario Hockey League center Quinton Byfield with the second pick. The 6-foot-4 Byfield, whose father moved to Canada from Jamaica, became the highest drafted Black player.
“My dad and mom didn’t play hockey,” Byfield said. “It just shows that there’s a lot of opportunity for everyone in the world.”
The Ottawa Senators were next and chose top-ranked international forward Tim Stuetzle, who played professionally in his native Germany last year, with their first of three first-round selections.
Detroit, which was bumped to the fourth spot despite finishing with the league’s worst record, drafted Swedish forward Lucas Raymond. A little over an hour before the draft, the Red Wings announced general manager Steve
Alexis Lafreniere shoots during Canada’s practice at the World Junior Hockey Championships in Ostrava, Czech Republic.
Yzerman had to self-isolate in overseeing the draft separate from his staff after coming into contact with a person who tested positive for COVID-19.
It was an NHL draft like no other, the first one held in October, with teams selecting remotely from their home cities. “Jeopardy” gameshow host Alex Trebek announced Ottawa’s first pick in the form of a question. “And the answer is, Tim
Stuetzle,” Trebek said.
Commissioner Gary Bettman was busy putting on and pulling off his protective mask in introducing the next team’s selection from the NHL Network studios in New Jersey.
North Dakota freshman defenseman Jake Sanderson, selected No. 5 by Ottawa, was joined by his family in watching the draft from a suite at the school’s Ralph Engelstad Arena.