2024 NHL Mock Draft – Predicting Picks At The 2024 Draft (Part 1)

Now that we know the order in which the first 16 teams will be picking at the 2024 NHL Entry Draft, on June 28, the door is opened for many weeks of speculation, and that means it’s time for mock drafts.

Let’s have some fun, shall we?

In the build-up to the draft festivities, we will publish a series of articles that will build a mock draft for the first 16 players picked at the upcoming Entry Draft.

The first article will include picks one to four but don’t worry, the next article is just around the corner, so you won’t have to wait long to see who the Montreal Canadiens will end up with.

1. San Jose Sharks: Macklin Celebrini, C

Sometimes, when teams have the number one pick, they try not to tip their hand, and keep a touch of mystery on who they’ll select at the upcoming NHL Entry Draft.

That wasn’t the case for Sharks general manager Mike Grier- and rightfully so.

Macklin Celebrini is the clear-cut, best player for grabs and will be the star centrepiece of their rebuild. Having picked Will Smith in last year’s draft, they will have a wicked one-two punch in the middle, for years to come.

🇨🇦Macklin Celebrini with 5 points against Latvia. Kid is buzzing out there. A few thoughts on his impressive start to the tournament. #WorldJuniors
📺… pic.twitter.com/ZeYyraWhZe

— Mike Kelly (@MikeKellyNHL) December 27, 2023

It’s still going to take a long time before San Jose has an exciting team that can win games consistently, but Celebrini is the kind of building block that gets you there faster.

2. Chicago Blackhawks: Ivan Demidov, RW

The Hawks could be tempted to go for a defenceman, but the idea of a Bedard-Demidov duo is simply too good to pass up.

Having a winger who can process the game at elite speed and have the skills to anticipate and finish Connor Bedard’s plays would be lethal. Demidov’s silky mitts, wicked shot, and incredible edges will dazzle Hawks fans for years, and he could be joining the team as early as the 25-26 season.

Ho hum, just a casual, 1st period natural hatty for Ivan Demidov.

He now has 12 goals and 29 points in his last 12 games. pic.twitter.com/fKDuhJBDxs

— Cam Robinson (@Hockey_Robinson) January 24, 2024

Even if Chicago drafted other small-ish forwards in previous drafts (and they’re starting to add up), none of them possess abilities close to Demidov’s and it shouldn’t prevent them from drafting him.

That said, they will have to start building that blue line and add some size at some point down the road. But the rebuild is far from over in Chicago – there’s plenty of time to address that.

3. Anaheim Ducks: Artyom Levshunov, RD

Since the departure of Jamie Drysdale – creating a hole on the right side – GM Pat Verbeek has been vocal about the fact that he is looking to fill positional needs in this NHL Entry Draft by getting a right-shot winger or defenceman.

So, it is with great relief and joy he takes the podium to select a big, mobile, right-handed defenceman to round up his D squad, in Artyom Levshunov – arguably the highest ranked defencemen of this draft.

With left-handed defencemen like Owen Zellewger and Pavel Mintyukov in the system, the Ducks now have a balanced “Big Three” that can generate offence from the backend. Levshunov brings a more physical, two-way game than the other two, providing a stabilizing presence, and should supersede Tristan Luneau on the right side, allowing him to be in the “right chair”.

Top #2024NHLDraft prospect Artyom Levshunov made his NCAA debut on Oct 8th, logging over 23 minutes of ice time in the process.

At 5v5:
• 3 scoring chance contributions
• 2 controlled exits, 6 controlled entries
• 8(!) entries prevented
• 10 advantages created

Highlights: pic.twitter.com/fVM9PKG9OE

— Lassi Alanen (@lassialanen) October 11, 2023

Watch out, Anaheim is starting to look dangerous!

4. Columbus Blue Jackets: Anton Silayev, LD

There’s a new GM in Columbus! What identity or direction will newly appointed big honcho Don Waddell want to give his freshly inherited team?

It appears cleaning up the defence and finding elite scoring talent are on his shopping list.

“Cleaning up your defensive zone is a lot easier to fix than trying to find pure goal scorers, I think that’s where our focus should be off the start…”

Don Waddell shares his approach to #CBJ‘s offseason as their new GM with @JeffMarek.

LIVE ⤵️
📺 https://t.co/SqK7M99Bz7 pic.twitter.com/DQZHei28Cm

— Sportsnet 590 The FAN (@FAN590) May 30, 2024

While he’s still projected as having limited offensive upside, 6’7 behemoth defender Anton Silayev wouldn’t be relied on to provide scoring, as Jiricek, and Mateychuk would be better suited for that. So the fit for him in Columbus could be ideal – a true match.

Akin to Anaheim, Colombus would stabilize their “Big Three”, with a smooth-skating player bringing a complementary skill set.

Bad news for the other 31 teams: a Silayev-Jiricek pair would be monstrous.

17-year-old Anton Silayev says ‘Hi’ 👋 pic.twitter.com/VKNqYBx9GG

— KHL (@khl_eng) December 20, 2023

Join us tomorrow, as we continue with selections five to eight of our 2024 NHL Mock Draft, including the player we picked for the Montreal Canadiens at fifth overall. In the meantime, don’t forget to vote for which player you’d like the Canadiens to draft.

Graphics made by Annik Lemire.