A look at Chris Drury’s draft history with New York Rangers
When the New York Rangers sit down at their table for the 2023 NHL Entry Draft, it will be President and General Manager Chris Drury’s third.
So far, Drury and his scouting staff have done an excellent job in selecting talent. That’s due in large part to his first-ever selection of forward Brennan Othmann, who looks like a surefire NHL star.
Let’s take a look at Drury’s draft history with the Rangers and see if we can glean any insight into how he’ll approach this upcoming event in Nashville from June 28-29.
Chris Drury Draft History
The 2021 Draft saw the Rangers make a total of 8 selections, with 6 of them from North America. Of those picks, 3 of them have been signed to their entry-level contracts and 1 traded this offseason.
| PLAYER (2021 DRAFT) | POS | RD | PICK | STATUS |
| Brennan Othmann (OHL) | F | 1 | 16 | ELC |
| Jayden Grubbe (WHL) | C | 3 | 65 | Traded |
| Ryder Korczak (WHL) | C | 3 | 75 | ELC |
| Brody Lamb (USHL) | F | 4 | 104 | Unsigned |
| Kalle Vaisanen (FIN) | F | 4 | 106 | Unsigned |
| Talyn Boyko (WHL) | G | 4 | 112 | ELC |
| Jaroslav Chmelar (FIN) | R | 5 | 144 | Unsigned |
| Hank Kempf (USHL) | D | 7 | 208 | Unsigned |
In 2022, the Rangers only had 6 picks with no first-round selection after acquiring Andrew Copp at the NHL Trade Deadline. Of those choices, 4 were born in North America. Furthermore, 2 have already been signed to their entry-level contracts.
| PLAYER (2022 DRAFT) | POS | RD | PICK | STATUS |
| Adam Sykora (SVK) | F | 2 | 63 | ELC |
| Bryce McConnell-Barker (OHL) | C | 3 | 97 | ELC |
| Noah Laba (USHL) | F | 4 | 111 | Unsigned |
| Vittorio Mancini (NCAA) | D | 5 | 159 | Unsigned |
| Maxim Barbashev (QMJHL) | F | 5 | 161 | Unsigned |
| Zakary Karpa (NCAA) | C | 6 | 191 | Unsigned |
So what can we ascertain and project for the 2023 NHL Draft based off of Drury’s limited history at the helm?
The Rangers have the 23rd pick of the draft and will likely take the best player available before addressing needs. Of his 14 selections, 4 were centers which is an area of weakness in their prospect pool and I’d expect at least 1 more center added in this draft.
Areas of strength in the organization are defense and goaltending, which is highlighted by the fact Drury only selected 2 blue-liners and 1 goalie in those 14 picks. With the Rangers having just 5 picks in this upcoming draft, I would expect them to at least take 1 defenseman.
Another thing that appears clear is Drury and his scouting staff will lean towards North American prospects over Europeans. That’s evident by choosing a player from one of the North American colleges or junior leagues 71% of the time.
Finally, size matters for Drury and his staff. Of those 14 selections, 11 players were listed at 6′ or taller with 8 of them towering at 6-2 or better. The smallest player drafted by Drury was Adam Sykora at 5-10′ and 179 pounds. However, he’s probably the grittiest of all the picks as he plays an agitating style similar to Brad Marchand of the Boston Bruins.
Related: Who should the Rangers draft in 2023
Note: HockeyDB was used as a reference for this article.
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