Scott Wheeler's preseason top 32 prospects for the 2023 NHL Draft
The Athletic's Scott Wheeler gives us his preseason ranking of the 32 best draft-eligible prospects for the 2023 NHL Entry Draft.
theathletic.com
It's early, but 2023 marks my 10th draft doing this coverage and this is the most talented group at forward at this stage in the process that I've maybe ever scouted (or certainly since 2015). My preseason ranking is made up of 27 forwards and just five defensemen. Though the strength of the forward crop does likely hide some defencemen, the 2023 class does also still look thin on the back end, with two clear top prospects who warrant top-10 consideration but none that are likely to climb into my top five.
On the whole, though, this 2005 age group looks special, led by a trio so impressive at the top that they're going to reduce parity in the league and widen the gap between the contenders and the bottom feeders. I cannot overstate this, either: This draft isn't just about the big three. I'm confident (or at least as confident as I can be at this point) that it's going to produce a sterling top 10, high-end prospects well into the teens and maybe even the 20s, and a first round to remember.
Please Jets just tank you're going to be shit and miss the playoffs just bottom out come on.