[FlamesAddiction]

Originally Posted by powderjunkie

I completely agree with FW's notion about draft pick quantity. The flip side of this same issue is how absolutely terrible the Flames drafting has been for decades.

Since picking Gary Roberts at #12 in 1984, here is who the Flames organization has selected with their first available pick each year:

Spoiler!

Pick Name NHLgp
17 Biotti 0
16 Pelawa 0
19 Deasley 0
21 Muzzatti 62
24 Kent Manderville 646 (0 with the Flames; included in Gilmour trade)
11 Kidd 387
19 Sundblad 2
6 Stillman 1025
18 Mattsson 0
19 Dingman 385
20 Gauthier 554
13 Morris 1107
6 Tkaczuk 19
6 Fata 230
11 Saprykin 324
9 Krahn 1
14 Kobasew 601
10 Nystrom
9 Phaneuf 1048
24 Chucko 2
26 Pelech 13
26 Irving 13
24 Backlund 690+
25 Nemisz 15
23 Erixon 93
64 Reinhart 23
13 Baertschi 291+
21 Jankowski 208+

6 Monahan
4 Bennett
53 Andersson
6 Tkachuk
16 Valimaki
105 Popisil
26 Pelletier

Regardless of what circumstances lead this being their highest draft pick in a year, I find it hard to believe that any team’s amateur scouting has a worse track record in making their most important decision each year.

28 years between Roberts and Monahan = Stillman, Phaneuf, Backlund, Morris, and 24 varying levels of disappointment.

I am way too lazy to do the foot work, but I imagine this has to be the worst, or pretty close to the worst, record of 1st round draft picks in the NHL. Games played is not a perfect stat for this comparison, but probably the easiest to give you a rough idea.

It does seem like there are fewer 1st round busts all around than there used to be though. I think scouting has become more sophisticated and there is more high end talent available now than there used to be even 15 years ago.