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Carolina Hurricanes What Could Have Been: Elite Players Selected Directly After a Canes Pick

By Austin Isham

DENVER, COLORADO - JANUARY 16: Erik Karlsson #65 of the San Jose Sharks fires a shot on goal against the Colorado Avalanche in the first period at the Pepsi Center on January 16, 2020 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)
DENVER, COLORADO - JANUARY 16: Erik Karlsson #65 of the San Jose Sharks fires a shot on goal against the Colorado Avalanche in the first period at the Pepsi Center on January 16, 2020 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images) /
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Erik Karlsson

The Carolina Hurricanes will forever regret this draft

At a time where almost every single Hurricanes draft pick ended up being nothing more than a career AHLer who appeared in a handful of games in the top six for the Canes because of the lack of depth, Carolina could have had a superstar. Selecting Zach Boychuk 14th overall in 2014 he was seen as a solution to the franchise’s offensive woes.

Never able to translate his goal-scoring ability to the NHL level, Boychuk was a main-stay in the Charlotte Checkers lineup for years. After spending nearly 7 years with the organization it became clear that he was a draft bust.

While having a first-rounder fail to pan out stings in its own right, to see two time Norris Trophy Winner and six-time All-Star defenseman Erik Karlsson drafted directly after just makes it worse.

Not the same player he was after suffering a series of injuries a few years back, there was a time where the former Ottawa Senators captain was in the conversation with Sydney Crosby as the best player in the league.

Now a member of the Sharks, it is clear that he’s been one of the better offensive blueliners to ever play the game. With 603 points in 736 regular-season games, his production is almost equivalent to some of the games’ top-scoring forwards.

Had the Canes’ brass selected him, history would have been a lot different. Until recently Carolina had one of them, if not the, weakest defense cores in the entire league for the longest time. Having a player of his caliber on the backend would not have only changed the entire dynamic of the blue line, but it would have attracted some better players to the franchise in free agency.

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