Originally Posted by Textcritic
In the past five years, here is the total number of defensemen drafted after the top-forty to have played in at least 20 NHL games:
· Marcus Nutivaara (2015), 66 GP with the Columbus Blue Jackets
· Brandon Montour (2014), 27 GP with the Anaheim Ducks
· Nikita Tryamkin (2014), 79 GP with the Vancouver Canucks
· Steven Santini (2013), 39 GP with the NJ Devils
· Brett Pesce (2013), 151 GP with the Carolina Hurricanes
· Jake McCabe (2012), 162 GP with the Buffalo Sabres
· Damon Severson (2012), 203 GP with the NJ Devils
· Adam Pelech (2012), 53 GP with the NY Islanders
· Shayne Gostisbehere (2012), 142 GP with the Philadelphia Flyers
· Colton Parayko (2012), 160 GP with the St Louis Blues
· Erik Gustafsson (2012), drafted by the Edmonton Oilers, but 41 GP with the Chicago Blackhawks
· Brett Kulak (2012), 30 GP with the Calgary Flames
· Jakob Slavin (2012), 145 GP with the Carolina Hurricanes
· Connor Carrick (2012), drafted by the Washington Capitals, but 120 GP with the Toronto Maple Leafs
· Ben Hutton (2012), 146 GP with the Vancouver Canucks
· Colin Miller (2012), drafted by the LA Kings, but 103 GP with the Boston Bruins
· Jake Dotchin (2012), 35 GP with the TB Lightning
· Matthew Benning (2012), drafted by the Boston Bruins, but 62 GP with the Edmonton Oilers
· Petteri Lindbohm (2012), 40 GP with the St Louis Blues
· Paul Ladue (2012), 22 GP with the LA Kings
· Joel Edmundson (2011), 136 GP with the St Louis Blues
· Xavier Ouellet (2011), 96 GP with the Detroit Red Wings
· Scott Harrington (2011), drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins, but 47 GP between the Penguins, Maple Leafs and Blue Jackets
· Ryan Sproul (2011), 27 GP with the Detroit Red Wings
· Tyler Wotherspoon (2011), 30 GP with the Calgary Flames
· Klas Dahlback (2011), drafted by the Chicago Blackhawks, but 137 GP between the Blackhawks, Coyotes, and Hurricanes
· Mike Reilly (2011), drafted by the Columbus Blue Jackets, but 46 GP with the Minnesota Wild
· Fredrick Claesson (2011), 49 GP with the Ottawa Senators
· Nikita Nesterov (2011), drafted by the TB Lightning, but 132 GP between the Lightning and Maple Leafs
· Frankie Corrado (2011), drafted by the Vancouver Canucks, but 75 GP between the Canucks, Maple Leafs, and Penguins
· Josh Manson (2011), 181 GP with the Anaheim Ducks
· Dylan DeMelo (2011), 70 GP with the SJ Sharks
· Jyrki Jokipakka (2011), drafted by the Dallas Stars, but 150 GP between the Stars, Flames and Senators
· Alexey Marchenko (2011), drafted by the Detroit Red Wings, but 121 GP between the Red Wings and Maple Leafs
That is 34 players, and most of them are players that you have never heard of, nor are likely to remember after today. Of those 34 players, the Flames have drafted two, which is one more player than drafted by 21 other NHL teams. From where I sit the Flames have been average to slightly better than average in their attempts to draft defensemen outside of the first round, and it bears repeating:
A major factor in the low number of defensemen to have made an impact with the Flames is that they have drafted NONE in the first round since Tim Erixon in 2009.
The fact of the matter is that players outside of the top 30–40 don't tend to make a big impact in the NHL on a regular basis, and because the Flames have been picking all their defensemen outside of the top end of the draft, their results have reflected this reality. I don't believe this to be an issue with Calgary's development; it is just the way the draft has played out for them the past few years.
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