NHL Draft: Which teams have been striking gold with depth picks

So, you're hearing your favorite team found the next Milan Lucic in the third round or snagged the steal of the draft with an offensive spark plug in the sixth.

So, you're hearing your favorite team found the next Milan Lucic in the third round or snagged the steal of the draft with an offensive spark plug in the sixth. It's just a matter of time now before these fortuitous picks are part of a team that brings Stanley Cup glory to your town.

Not so fast, Bub.

Sure, there are gems to be found in rounds 3-7 and it's likely that more than a couple were stockpiled for the future this past weekend in Philadelphia. But unless you're a fan of Columbus or Nashville or Los Angeles, you might want to refrain from planning the parade route just yet.

There's a reason why players slip down to the late rounds. Maybe they're not big enough or there's problem with their skating or they don't have the hockey sense to match their talent. Separating the ones that catch your eye from the ones that might eventually put it all together is as much about luck as scouting skill, but some franchises seem to have an edge over others in identifying that latent talent.

Who are those teams?

To find out who has been doing the best job of mining NHL talent in the deep cuts, we looked at the past nine drafts, dating back to the post-lockout class of 2005. We tabulated the total selections that each team made (from a low of 37 for the Coyotes to a high of 55 by the Blackhawks), the number of players who appeared in at least one NHL game (the Yotes had just four, the Maple Leafs dressed 16), how many appeared in at least 100 games (the Blue Jackets had eight; several teams had zero), and most importantly, the total games played for each organization by late picks (from a woeful 71 for the Canucks up to 2,152 for the Jackets).

We also looked at the scoring production each team got from its late-round selections, even if there's not a clear apples-to-apples comparison to be made. It's worth noting which teams were able to find offensive punch like Jamie Benn (129th overall by the Stars, 2007) while others fired blanks, although that's not the only measure of a successful pick. Getting 300-plus games of energetic fourth line work is tremendous value from a seventh-rounder like Derek Dorsett (189th overall by the Jackets, 2007), even if he has potted just 31 goals during his career. Defensemen like two-time Cup winner Niklas Hjalmarsson (108th by the Blackhawks, 2005) can be valuable and consistent contributors without putting up big numbers.

We also included goalies in the counts because you can't ignore the acumen/luck that went into scouting them even they don't do much for the scoring totals. Jonathan Quick (72nd overall by the Kings, 2005) has produced just eight assists during his career, but his two Stanley Cup rings suggest he was a nice pickup. Ben Bishop (85th by the Blues, 2005), a 2014 Vezina Trophy finalist, was a nice call, too, although he reached elite status with the Lightning after a stop in Ottawa.

What does all this reveal? Well, Vancouver's scouting, by any standards, has been an "Ender's Game"-scale disaster. Of course, that's not news to the team's fans, who have long believed that anyone could have done a better job than former director of amateur scouting Ron Delorme. Looking at these results, they're probably right.

Edmonton, Florida, Winnipeg and Calgary haven't done themselves any favors, either. The inability to identify deep talent has kept them buried near the bottom of the standings for years.

On the other end of the scale are teams like the Jackets and the Predators. While their drafting prowess hasn't translated into playoff success yet, it has allowed them to stay competitive despite lower payrolls.

And the Kings? They don't win those two Cups without late-round support pieces Alec Martinez (95th, 2007) and Dwight King (109th, 2007) and, of course, Quick.

The draft may be a crapshoot, but it's clear that some teams have better aim than others after the first two rounds, where the low-hanging fruit is found.

team	picks	played in nhl	total games	points	best pick
Ducks	41	8 (19.5 percent) 2 played 100 or more games	556	65-92-157	Matt Belesky, #112 (2006): Finished season on team's top line.
Coyotes	37	4 (10.8 percent) 2 played 100 or more games	742	92-237-329	Keith Yandle, #105 (2005): Top two defenseman
Bruins	40	11 (27.5 percent) 2 played 100 or more games	722	130-185-315	Brad Marchand, #71 (2006): Three-time 20-goal scorer
Sabres	50	9 (18 percent) 3 played 100 or more games	1,049	93-210-303	Chris Butler, #96 (2005): Closing in on 400 games as depth defender
Flames	46	10 (21.7 percent) 3 played 100 or more games	516	21-81-102	T.J. Brodie, #114 (2008): Averaged 24:03 TOI last season, second on team
Hurricanes	42	7 (16.7 percent) 0 played 100 or more games	305	18-29-47	Drayson Bowman, #72 (2007): Yo-yo player may have run out of chances with 'Canes
Blackhawks	55	7 (12.7 percent) 3 played 100 or more games	875	94-165-259	Niklas Hjalmarsson , #108 (2005): Steady top four d-man nearing 400 games
Avalanche	41	11 (26.8 percent) 3 played 100 or more games	608	58-120-178	Tyson Barrie, #64 (2009): Prototypical puck-mover shows real promise
Blue Jackets	48	14 (29.1 percent) 8 played 100 or more games	2,152	175-281-456	Matt Calvert, #127 (2008): Heart and soul of new Jackets
Stars	40	12 (30 percent) 5 played 100 or more games	1,166	192-268-460	Jamie Benn, #129 (2007): NHL 1st team All-Star at LW for 2013-14
Red Wings	46	10 (21.7 percent) 2 played 100 or more games	603	94-109-203	Gustav Nyquist, #121 (2008): First-year forward showed off first-line potential
Oilers	40	8 (20 percent) 1 played 100 or more games	400	22-52-74	Theo Peckham, #75 (2006): Hard-nosed defender enjoyed one year as NHL regular
Panthers	49	9 (18.4 percent) 0 played 100 or more games	197	17-33-50	Vince Trocheck, #64 (2011): His 2013-14 debut hinted at possible top-six role
Kings	51	9 (17.6 percent) 5 played 100 or more games	1,042	79-112-191	Jonathan Quick, # 72 (2005): Two Cup rings and a Conn Smythe. Boom.
Wild	39	8 (20.5 percent) 2 played 100 or more games	689	85-83-168	Cal Clutterbuck, # 72 (2006): More than 400 games as a premier agitator
Canadiens	43	7 (16.3 percent) 5 played 100 or more games	1,1223	170-244-414	Brendan Gallagher, #147 (2005): Spark plug for their offense.
Predators	53	15 (28.3 percent) 5 played 100 or more games	1,388	222-355-577	Patric Hornqvist, #230 (2005): Four seasons of at least 20 goals
Devils	45	10 (22.2 percent) 4 played 100 or more games	1,077	120-171-291	Adam Henrique, #82 (2008): Top-six forward, playoff hero
Islanders	54	15 (27.7 percent) 4 played 100 or more games	1,191	89-218-307	Andrew MacDonald, #160 (2006): Top-pair defender dealt to Philly at deadline
Rangers	41	9 (21.9 percent) 3 played 100 or more games	809	91-120-211	Carl Hagelin, #168 (2007). Top-six forward entering prime years
Senators	49	13 (26.5 percent) 3 played 100 or more games	1,119	122-165-287	Colin Greening, #204 (2005). Useful depth forward
Flyers	46	13 (28.3 percent) 1 played 100 or more games	495	42-55-97	Zac Rinaldo, #178 (2008): Presented without comment
Penguins	42	12 (28.6 percent) 4 played 100 or more games	1,093	104-279-383	Kris Letang, #62, (2005). One of the game's premier offensive d-men
Sharks	47	11 (23.4 percent) 6 played 100 or more games	1,195	93-224-317	Jason Demers, #186 (2008). Top-four defender
Blues	44	8 (18.2 percent) 2 played in 100 or more games	418	14-22-36	Ben Bishop, #85 (2005). Vezina finalist in 2013-14
Lightning	49	10 (20.4 percent) 3 played in 100 or more games	668	71-125-196	Ondrej Palat, #208 (2011). Calder finalist could become top-line winger
Maple Leafs	47	16 (34 percent) 5 played in 100 or more games	1,403	121-258-379	Anton Stralman, #216 (2005). Top-four defenseman nearing 400th career game
Canucks	40	5 (12.5 percent) 0 played in 100 or more games	71	4-7-11	Frankie Corrado, #150 (2011). Blueliner is just potential at this point, but the best of a bad lot
Capitals	45	9 (20 percent) 4 played in 100 or more games	726	94-139-233	Cody Eakin, #85 (2009). Developing into aggressive third center in Dallas
Jets	50	9 (18 percent) 0 played in 100 or more games	135	11-23-34	Paul Postma, #205 (2007). Hard to believe this team struggles to make playoffs