The Register Citizen (Torrington, CT)
Devils are on the clock with No. 1 pick in draft
Vegas stocked its roster in the expansion draft Wednesday night, and now the New Jersey Devils are on the clock with the No. 1 pick of the amateur draft beginning Friday night in Chicago.
The NHL stage belongs to Ray Shero and the New Jersey Devils. Then it goes right back to George McPhee and the Vegas Golden Knights.
Vegas stocked its roster in the expansion draft Wednesday night, and now New Jersey is on the clock with the No. 1 pick of the amateur draft beginning Friday night at the United Center. The only other time the franchise had the first pick was in 1979, when the then-Colorado Rockies selected Rob Ramage.
“I think it’s been exciting for our franchise, exciting time for our scouts,” said Shero, who was hired as New Jersey’s general manager in May 2015. “In addition obviously to the first overall pick we’ve got the nine other picks, which are going to be very important on Day 2.
“But this is, I think, once the dust has settled now with expansion in terms of Vegas making all the selections or trades, whatever they’ve done, it really puts into focus again OK, the draft itself, which is important for every team.”
After New Jersey makes its pick — Shero said the Devils know who they are going to take, but he was keeping that to himself for now — Philadelphia, Dallas, Colorado and Vancouver round out the top five. Then Vegas makes the first pick in franchise history.
The Golden Knights announced two more trades Thursday, running their total to 13 picks for this year’s draft. Vegas sent defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk and a 2018 seventh-round draft pick to Carolina for a second-round selection on Saturday. It also shipped defenseman David Schlemko to Montreal for a fifthround pick in 2019.
Vegas, which selected 30 players in its expansion draft Wednesday night, now has three picks in each of the first two rounds. It also has two selections in the fifth and sixth.
Islanders trade
The Edmonton Oilers traded forward Jordan Eberle to the New York Islanders on Thursday for forward Ryan Strome.
Eberle has scored at least 20 goals in each of the past four seasons, and had a career-high 34 in 2011-12. But he had just two assists in 13 playoff games this spring and was criticized for his lackluster play.
Eberle, 27, is entering the fifth year of a six-year contract worth $36 million and had been a frequent subject of trade rumors.
“It’s something I’ve never gone through before, it’s a different experience,” Eberle said. “But it’s something I definitely knew would eventually come. For me right now, I’m definitely excited to be a New York Islander.”
The Oilers selected Eberle with the No. 22 pick in the 2008 draft. He has 165 goals and 217 assists over 507 career NHL games, all with Edmonton.
“We’re excited to add a proven offensive weapon like Jordan to our lineup,” Islanders general manager Garth Snow said in a statement. “He brings speed and a knack for scoring not only consistently, but scoring big goals, in big games.
“Jordan brings leadership and experience into our room, qualities that will continue to help us build towards our goals of being a consistent playoff contender and winning the Stanley Cup.”
The move frees cap space for the Oilers, who have some big-money signings coming up. Leon Draisaitl is due for a huge raise when his entry-level contract finishes July 1. League MVP Connor McDavid is entering the final year of his entry-level deal.