Number 20-20 Vision

The Kraken's impressive and thrilling run in the Stanley Cup Playoffs begets a deeper spot in the NHL Draft order than the franchise's first two drafts. When teams gather at 32 tables for the first round of the 2023 NHL Draft June 28 in Nashville, Seattle will pick No. 20 overall. That's compared to second in 2021 and fourth last year, bearing centers Matty Beniers and Shane Wright, of course.

Yet, no worries, Kraken fans, the No. 20 selection is a prime opportunity to identify and acquire a future NHLer. The proof is in the history of that slot in past drafts, from way back to recent summers.

Let's start with the way back. In 1971, the legendary Montreal Canadiens picked defenseman Larry Robinson, a mobile and big-sized defenseman (6-foot-4, 225 pounds) who won six Stanley Cups as a player and team leader on and off the ice. He then won three more as an NHL head coach or assistant coach and one more as a scout. He makes every expert's top 10 NHL all-time players list.

Another eye-popping No. 20 pick: Goaltender Martin Brodeur, who sparked the New Jersey Devils to three Stanley Cups, outdueling any number of now fellow Hall of Fame goalies in the process. Picked 20th overall in 1990, Brodeur played 1,266 regular season games and another 205 in the postseason. He is arguably the NHL's best-ever goaltender and certainly has to rank top three no matter how the position is measured.

In 2003, the 6-foot-5, 230-pound defenseman Brent Burns, known for his offensive prowess and prodigious beard, was selected 20th overall by Minnesota, playing there for seven seasons, then San Jose for 11 years before manning the blue line and pushing into the offensive attack this season with Carolina. At 38, Burns notched 18 goals and 43 assists for the Hurricanes this year.

Another fun fact: Kraken assistant general manager Jason Botterill was drafted 20th overall by the Dallas Stars in the 1994 NHL Draft after starring at NCAA Division I Michigan (where Matty Beniers chased some of Botterill's scoring records). Botterill appeared in 88 games for Dallas, Atlanta (now Winnipeg), Calgary and Buffalo. After his playing career, Botterill worked as a scout for Dallas and the NHL Central before taking a position with Pittsburgh that lasted a decade and rose to the Penguins' associate general manager role before being named Buffalo general manager in 2017. He joined the Kraken in early 2021.

OK, three stars but that's all reaching pretty far back. In recent years, there have been a number of productive picks for teams choosing from the No. 20 spot. While not all are household names among hockey, St. Louis forward Robert Thomas a No. 20 pick in 2017 stands out. Just two years later, he was a contributing member of the Blues 2019 Cup-winning team (along with now Kraken players Jaden Schwartz and Vince Dunn). The 23-year-old signed a long-term contract with STL.

Los Angeles center Rasmus Kupari was tabbed No. 20 in 2018 and has already played 130 NHL games playing a solid two-way game before turning 24. Finnish defenseman Ville Heinola is a smooth-skating top prospect for Winnipeg, having played 27 NHL games over his age 18-, 19-, and 20-year-old seasons along with playing big minutes in the American Hockey League. At 22, he appears likely to stick with the Jets coming out of training camp next season.

One way that NHL draft analysts evaluate success of team picks, especially those in the first round, is not by whether the player appeared in one or a slim number of NHL games but instead whether the draft choice plays, say, three seasons or more.

On that measurement, the No. 20 pick fared quite favorably from 2008 to 2015. The eight players picked 20th in those drafts all played 200 regular season games or more:

Over the last three drafts, the results are pending but scouts project good things for all three selections. The No. 20 has twice gone to promising Russian-born players, D-man Shakir Mukhamadullin (New Jersey, 2020) and winger Ivan Miroshnichenko (Washington, 2022). The hockey jury is still out on both prospects, who earned high marks from scouts but some teams nonetheless passed over both players with concerns when those prospects would be free to sign NHL contracts.

Both would do well to deliver on the promise of logging a career similar to Alexander Frolov, picked 20th by Los Angeles in 2000. He played a decade for the Kings and one season with the Rangers, appearing in 571 games amassing 397 points (175 goals, 222 assists).

The No. 20 pick in 2021, goalie Jesper Wallstedt, was a rare high pick for his position. But to date, he has lived up to expectations to become a future No. 1 goaltender for the Minnesota Wild. He was named to the AHL's Top Prospect Team, an honor announced earlier this month. He posted an 18-15-5 in the AHL this season with the Iowa Wild with a 2.68 goals-against-average and a .908 save percentage. He played for Team Sweden in the IIHF World Championships this spring, winning three games with a 0.67 goals-against-average and a .947 save percentage, plus a shutout.

He might not pan out be Martin Brodeur - or Marc-Andre Fleury, the future Hall of Fame goalie picked first overall in 2003 when the draft was last in Nashville, but Wallstedt has good company for future NHL prosperity. The Kraken will be aspiring for more of the same later this month.