NHL Draft: Canadian teams' history with top picks

The first round of the NHL draft will be held Friday night in Sunrise, Fla., where the dreams of 30 teenagers from North America and Europe will be realized.

While being selected is a major accomplishment, it's far from the end of a long journey. It's one thing to be chosen but quite another to make good on a team's commitment by reaching the NHL and staying there.

Below, we list the recent first-round selections of the seven Canadian teams and how those players have progressed in their pro careers.

CALGARY

2014: Sam Bennett, C — After requiring much of the regular season to recover from shoulder surgery, he left his junior team in Kingston, Ont., to play in the Flames' regular-season finale. Bennett then impressed in the playoffs, scoring three goals and four points in 11 contests.

2013: Sean Monahan, C — Thrived on a line with Jiri Hudler and rookie Johnny Gaudreau, raising his point total from 34 in his rookie 2013-14 campaign to 62 this past season.

Emile Poirier, LW — The 20-year-old picked up an assist in six games with the Flames but spent the bulk of the season with their AHL affiliate, collecting 19 goals and 42 points in 55 games.

Morgan Klimchuk, LW — Spent season in WHL split between Regina and Brandon, combining for 34 goals and 80 points in 60 outings.

2012: Mark Jankowski, C — In his third year at Providence College in Rhode Island, the St. Catharines, Ont., native has had point totals of 18, 25 and 27.

2011: Sven Baertschi, LW — The Swiss winger quickly fell out of favour with management, never appearing in more than 26 games in four seasons before Calgary traded him to Vancouver prior the March 1 deadline.

EDMONTON

2014: Leon Draisaitl, C — Had nine points and a minus-17 rating before the Oilers sent him to Prince Albert of the Western Hockey League on Jan. 1. The Raiders then traded the big German to Kelowna, where Draisaitl scored 19 goals and 53 points in 32 games, leading the Rockets to the Memorial Cup, where he was named tourney MVP.

2013: Darnell Nurse, D — The No. 7 overall pick continued his development in the Ontario Hockey League, recording 33 points in 36 points with a plus-18 rating for the Greyhounds and zero points in two games with Edmonton.

2012: Nail Yakupov, RW — It was a disappointing season for the 21-year-old Russian, who had 14 goals and 33 points in his third full NHL season before it was revealed Yakupov would miss the world championship in May because of a hip injury.

2011: Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, C — The 22-year-old is fresh off matching his career-best NHL point total of 56, tying team scoring leader Jordan Eberle for the club lead in goals with 24 and finishing second to him in points.

Oscar Klefbom, D — The 21-year-old Swede earned an NHL promotion in November and finished second among Oilers defencemen in points (20) and ice time per game (21 minutes 59 seconds) in just 60 games.

2010: Taylor Hall, LW — Injuries limited Hall to 53 games and his production dipped significantly as the 23-year-old mustered only 38 points in 53 games after reaching 80 points in 75 contests the previous season.

MONTREAL

2014: Nikita Scherbak, RW — The 19-year-old Russian tallied 27 goals and 82 points in 65 games with the Everett Silvertips of the Western Hockey League.

2013: Michael McCarron, RW —  On Jan. 1, the London Knights dealt McCarron to the Oshawa Generals, with whom he collected 27 points in 31 regular-season games before amassing nine goals and 18 points in 21 playoff contests to help lead the Gens to an OHL title and later a Memorial Cup championship.

2012: Alex Galchenyuk, C — The skilled 21-year-old reached the 20-goal mark for the first time in three NHL seasons, playing a second-line role and posting 46 points and a plus-8 rating following 31 and minus-12 totals the previous year.

2011: Nathan Beaulieu, D — The third-year blue-liner only played two games after fracturing his sternum in Game 3 of a first-round series against Ottawa, finishing with one assist in five games following a nine-point regular season.

2010: Jarred Tinordi, D — Demoted to Hamilton of the AHL at the end of February after 13 NHL games, the 23-year-old didn't suit up again for the Canadiens in the regular season or playoffs.

OTTAWA

2013: Curtis Lazar, C — In his first season with the Senators, Canada's world junior star managed 15 points and a plus-1 rating in 67 games while averaging 12 minutes 53 seconds of ice time.

2012: Cody Ceci, D — The second-year rearguard finished second to Erik Karlsson among Senators defencemen in points with 21, a 12-point improvement from the 2013-14 season.

2011: Mika Zibanejad, C — The six-foot-two, 211-pound Swede saw his point total increase by 13 for a second straight season to 46 in 80 games.

Stefan Noesen, RW — A 21st overall draft pick, the Texan was part of the trade with Anaheim in the summer of 2013 that brought Bobby Ryan to Ottawa and made his NHL debut on April 3, Noesen's lone start of the season.

Matt Puempel, LW — A native of Windsor, Ont., he played 51 games for AHL Binghamton before being recalled in late February and registering three points in 13 regular-season contests.

TORONTO

2014: William Nylander, C — Chosen eighth overall, the son of former NHLer Michael Nylander showed well in his first season in North America, notching 14 goals and 32 points in 37 games for the Maple Leafs' AHL affiliate.

2013: Frederik Gauthier, C — He played the fewest games (37) in his three seasons with the Rimouski Oceanic but maintained similar point production (32).

2012: Morgan Rielly, D — Rielly is as close to untouchable as any Maple Leaf after turning in another strong season (29 points in 81 games) as a 21-year-old.

2011: Tyler Biggs, RW — While Rielly has been a great draft pick, things have yet to pan out with the six-foot-two, 205-pound Biggs, who split this past season with the AHL Toronto Marlies (five points in 47 games) and Orlando Solar Bears of the ECHL (six points in eight contests).

Stuart Percy, D — Strong defensively for the Maple Leafs early this season, Percy was sent to the minors before the 10-game mark that would have signalled the start of his entry-level contract. He suited up nine times for the Leafs and for 43 games with the AHL Marlies.

VANCOUVER

2014: Jake Virtanen, RW — Joined Canucks' AHL affiliate in Utica, N.Y., after a point-per-game season with the WHL's Calgary Hitmen and worked his way on to the second line, forming a formidable duo with ex-Calgary Flames prospect Sven Baertschi.

Jared McCann, C — The London, Ont., native busted out in his third OHL season, posting career bests in goals (34), assists (47) and points (81) with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyounds.

2013: Bo Horvat, C — A ninth overall pick, the six-foot, 206-pound pivot had a strong rookie NHL season, scoring 13 goals and 25 points in 65 games while averaging 12 minutes 15 seconds of ice time.

Hunter Shinkaruk, LW — The 20-year-old started the season with Utica of the AHL rather than returning to his junior team in Medicine Hat, Alta., for an overage season and showed steady progress, finishing with 16 goals and 31 points in 74 regular-season games.

2012: Brendan Gaunce, C — Former OHL standout exceeded expectations in his first AHL campaign playing on different lines and given more responsibility on special teams while posting 29 points in 74 regular-season games.

2011: Nicklas Jensen, LW — The Danish forward has had a taste of life in the NHL over parts of three seasons, though he has yet to stick full-time with the Canucks, collecting 28 points in 59 games in his second season with Utica.

WINNIPEG

2014: Nikolaj Ehlers, LW — Perhaps the most dynamic player in the Jets organization, the 19-year-old Dane is fresh off his second consecutive 100-point season in the QMJHL that led to the five-foot-11, 176-pound prolific scorer with a NHL-calibre shot being named a first-team all-star.

2013: Josh Morrissey, D — The six-foot, 190-pounder shed six pounds this season and is intending to break camp with the Jets in the fall after helping Kelowna reach the Memorial Cup following a mid-season trade from Prince Albert and posting 38 points in 47 games overall.

2012: Jacob Trouba, D — Fresh off his second full NHL season, Trouba displayed his toughness in the playoffs by staying in the Jets lineup despite breaking his hand early in a first-round series against Anaheim and later having surgery.

2011: Mark Scheifele, C — The 22-year-old played a No. 1 centre's role at times with Winnipeg this past season and raised his point total by 15 to 49 in his second full NHL campaign.

2010: Alex Burmistrov, C — Burmistrov, who played 120 NHL games before leaving the Jets for the 2013-14 season, could be returning in September after scoring 20 goals and 63 points in 107 games in Russia's Kontinental Hockey League the past two seasons.