When General Managers Fail At Drafts

Making the right choices at NHL Entry Drafts can be a daunting task, and mistakes have been made that will forever haunt the teams that skipped out on players who could have changed their organization’s future.

Circle back to 2005. The Montreal Canadiens select goaltender Carey Price with the 5th overall pick, while the Columbus Blue Jackets decided to skip out on one Anze Kopitar with the 6th choice, reports TVA Sports. They went with Gilbert Brule, who amounted to virtually nothing except for 19 points in three years with Columbus. Brule had apparently been the asking price in exchange for superstar goaltender Cory Schneider- a trade that was refused by then-GM Doug MacLean.

The Blue Jackets went on to appear only twice in the playoffs since 2005.