The San Jose Sharks got Day 2 of the 2024 NHL Draft started with their selection of Igor Chernyshov at the top of the second round, then added another six players over the course of their day to cap off a productive draft in Las Vegas on Saturday.
After the Sharks chose center Macklin Celebrini with the first overall pick Friday and followed that up with the addition of Sam Dickinson at No. 11 overall, they were again on center stage to begin things Saturday. The addition of Chernyshov provides a young wing with size and scoring punch who has shown tremendous puck-handling ability.
The 18-year-old from Russia was primarily pinpointed as a first-rounder coming into the draft, and the Sharks pounced on him immediately at the top of Round 2.
“It’s any guy’s dream to get drafted into the league,” Chernyshov said through an interpreter. “I’m a team guy, a leader, and very hungry for the puck.
“I’m very confident that in two to three years I’ll be ready to play in the NHL, and I’ll do everything possible to make that happen for myself.”
Three of the Sharks’ next five picks were on defense, the first of whom was their second pick in the second round, Leo Sahlin Wallenius at No. 53 overall. They followed that up with a pair of defensemen in the fifth round, Colton Roberts and Nate Misskey.
The Sharks also grabbed right wing Carson Wetsch (No. 82) and goalies Christian Kirsch (No. 116) and Yaroslav Korostelyov (No. 194) for a nine-player haul.
The Carolina Hurricanes had the second pick of Day 2 and used it — their first pick of the draft — on defenseman Dominik Badinka out of the Czech Republic by way of the Swedish Hockey League.
The 18-year-old cited Carolina three-time All-Star Brent Burns as one of his favorite players.
Badinka was the first of 10 Day 2 selections for the Hurricanes, who also used early picks on left wing Nikita Artamonov (No. 50) and defenseman Noel Fransen (No. 69).
The next three players to go off the board in the second round were center Lucas Pettersson to the Anaheim Ducks at No. 35, defenseman Charlie Elick to the Columbus Blue Jackets at No. 36, and defenseman Alfons Freij to the Winnipeg Jets at No. 37.
The Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers didn’t select until the 26th pick of the second round (No. 58 overall), where they added center Linus Eriksson out of Sweden. He was one of just six selections – along with defenseman Matvei Shuravin, centers Simon Zether and Stepan Gorbunov, left wing Hunter St. Martin and goalie Denis Gabdrakhmanov — for the Panthers.
Freij was the second of six players drafted out of Sweden in the second round. Pettersson, defenseman Gabrial Eliasson (Ottawa), center Jack Berglund (Philadelphia), Wallenius and Eriksson were the others.
The Colorado Avalanche used the first of their nine choices on Ilya Nabokov of Russia at No. 38 overall, the first goalie selected in this year’s draft. They added left wing William Zellers in the third round and center Jake Fisher in the fourth.
The Edmonton Oilers had seven choices, and the Stanley Cup runners-up used the second of those on goalie Eemil Vinni (No. 64). The rest of their choices – left wing Connor Clattenburg, defensemen Albin Sundin and Bauer Berry and centers Dalyn Wakely and William Nicholl — came in the final three rounds.
The Lightning made headlines by trading a few veterans on Saturday, presumably to clear cap room for future additions or extensions. But they also acquired a pair of picks in those deals, which they used to select defenseman Jan Golicic (No. 118) and right wing Noah Steen (No. 199).
If those players pan out, it should help quiet any grumbling over the exile of the likes of defenseman Mikhail Sergachev and left wing Tanner Jeannot.
–Field Level Media
