The 2024 NHL Draft began as expected on Friday.
The San Jose Sharks used the franchise's first-ever No. 1 overall selection on Boston University center Macklin Celebrini to kick off the two-day draft at The Sphere in Las Vegas.
The 18-year-old Canadian and consensus top overall pick tallied 32 goals and 32 assists in just 38 games as a freshman. He was the youngest player in Division I hockey last season and went on to become the youngest Hobey Baker Award winner. The award is given to the nation's most outstanding player.
Celebrini was the first of two lottery selections by the Sharks, who added OHL defenseman Sam Dickinson at No. 11.
The Chicago Blackhawks, who picked Calder Trophy winner Connor Bedard first overall last year, went with Michigan State defenseman Artyom Levshunov at No. 2. The two-way defenseman is coming off a 35-point freshman campaign.
Levshunov was one of three first-round picks made by the Blackhawks, who grabbed Sacha Boisvert out of the USHL at No. 18 and traded back into the first round to take OHL winger Marek Vanacker at No. 27.
The first surprise of the night came at No. 3, where the Anaheim Ducks drafted center Beckett Sennecke out of the WHL. The selection even seemed to come as a surprise to Sennecke himself.
Get a weekly recap of the latest San Francisco Bay Area housing news. Sign up for NBC Bay Area’s Housing Deconstructed newsletter.
Sennecke, who tallied 27 goals and 68 points over 63 games last season, was ranked as the 13th-best prospect among North American skaters by NHL.com.
The Columbus Blue Jackets and Montreal Canadiens rounded out the top five by taking WHL center Cayden Lindstrom and Russian winger Ivan Demidov, respectively. The Utah Hockey Club then used its first selection since the franchise's move from Arizona on WHL center Tij Iginla, the son of Calgary Flames legend Jarome Iginla.
Utah later traded up to No. 24 to take OHL center Cole Beaudoin.
Zeev Buium was the first American prospect to hear his name called after the Minnesota Wild moved up one spot to select the Denver D-man at No. 12.
Winger Michael Brandsegg-Nygard, meanwhile, became the first Norwegian to ever be picked in Round 1 of the NHL draft, going 15th to the Detroit Red Wings. Stian Solberg then became the second-ever Norwegian first-rounder when the Ducks moved up from No. 31 to No. 23 to take the defenseman.
With the first round in the books, here's a full look back at all the picks and trades from Day 1:
What are the NHL draft picks so far?
First round
1. San Jose Sharks: Macklin Celebrini, C, Boston University
2. Chicago Blackhawks: Artyom Levshunov, D, Michigan State
3. Anaheim Ducks: Beckett Sennecke, RW, Oshawa (OHL)
4. Columbus Blue Jackets: Cayden Lindstrom, C, Medicine Hat (WHL)
5. Montreal Canadiens: Ivan Demidov, RW, SKA St. Petersburg Jr. (Russia-Jr.)
6. Utah Hockey Club: Tij Iginla, C, Kelowna (WHL)
7. Ottawa Senators: Carter Yakemchuk, D, Calgary (WHL)
8. Seattle Kraken: Berkly Catton, C, Spokane (WHL)
9. Calgary Flames: Zayne Parekh, D, Saginaw (OHL)
10. New Jersey Devils: Anton Silayev, D, Nizhny Novgorod (Russia)
11. San Jose Sharks (from Buffalo): Sam Dickinson, D, London (OHL)
12. Minnesota Wild (from Philadelphia): Zeev Buium, D, Denver
13. Philadelphia Flyers (from Minnesota): Jett Luchanko, C, Guelph (OHL)
14. Buffalo Sabres (from Pittsburgh via San Jose): Konsta Helenius, C, Jukurit (Finland)
15. Detroit Red Wings: Michael Brandsegg-Nygard, RW, Mora (Sweden-2)
16. St. Louis Blues: Adam Jiricek, D, Plzen (Czech Republic)
17. Washington Capitals: Terik Parascak, RW, Prince George (WHL)
18. Chicago Blackhawks (from New York Islanders): Sacha Boisvert, C, Muskegon (USHL)
19. Vegas Golden Knights: Trevor Connelly, LW, Tri-City (USHL)
20. New York Islanders (from Tampa Bay via Chicago): Cole Eiserman, LW, USA U-18 (NTDP - USHL)
21. Montreal Canadiens (from Los Angeles): Michael Hage, C, Chicago (USHL)
22. Nashville Predators: Egor Surin, C, Yaroslavl Jr. (Russia-Jr.)
23. Anaheim Ducks (from Toronto): Stian Solberg, D, Valerenga (Norway)
24. Utah Hockey Club (from Colorado): Cole Beaudoin, C, Barrie (OHL)
25. Boston Bruins: Dean Letourneau, C, St. Andrews College (HS-Ontario)
26. Los Angeles Kings (from Winnipeg via Montreal): Liam Greentree, RW, Windsor (OHL)
27. Chicago Blackhawks (from Carolina): Marek Vanacker, LW, Brantford (OHL)
28. Calgary Flames (from Vancouver): Matvei Gridin, RW, Muskegon (USHL)
29. Dallas Stars: Emil Hemming, RW, TPS (Finland)
30. New York Rangers: Eric "EJ" Emery, D, USA U-18 (NTDP - USHL)
31. Toronto Maple Leafs (from Edmonton via Anaheim): Ben Danford, D, Oshawa (OHL)
32. Edmonton Oilers (from Florida via Philadelphia): Sam O'Reilly, RW, London (OHL)
What trades were made in the NHL draft?
- The first trade of draft day came hours before the event got underway. The Canadiens acquired the No. 21 pick from the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for No. 26, No. 57 and No. 198.
- In another pre-draft deal, the Blue Jackets shipped forward Alexandre Texier to the St. Louis Blues in exchange for a 2025 fourth-rounder.
- The Wild moved up one spot from 13th to the Philadelphia Flyers' No. 12 slot in order to select Denver defenseman Zeev Buium. Philadelphia also received a 2025 third-round pick in the deal.
- The Ducks moved up from No. 31 to the Toronto Maple Leafs' No. 23 pick to take Norwegian D-man Stian Solberg. Toronto also received No. 58 in the trade.
- Utah traded back into the first round at the Colorado Avalanche's No. 24 pick to take OHL center Cole Beaudoin. Colorado received No. 38, No. 71 and a 2025 second-round pick (via the New York Rangers) in the deal.
- The Blackhawks traded back into the first round at the Carolina Hurricanes' No. 27 pick to select OHL winger Marek Vanacker. Carolina received No. 34 and No. 50 in the deal.
- The Edmonton Oilers traded into the final draft slot of Round 1, sending a conditional 2025 first-rounder to the Flyers for the No. 32 pick. Edmonton then closed out the first round by taking OHL winger Sam O'Reilly.
When is Day 2 of the NHL draft?
The NHL draft will continue with Rounds 2-7 on Saturday.
What is the NHL draft Day 2 start time?
The draft will get back underway at 11:30 a.m. ET.
How many rounds are in the NHL draft?
There are seven rounds in the NHL draft.
How many picks are in the NHL draft?
There are a total of 225 selections.
Where is the NHL draft being held?
The Sphere in Las Vegas is hosting this year's draft.
Where can I watch the NHL draft?
Rounds 2-7 will air on NHL Network. The draft action will also be available to stream on ESPN+.
