Patrick Williamstheahl.com writer
The latest NHL first-round draft picks start to appear in this week's AHL training camp.
Last season, several players in the 2023 NHL Draft have gained some experience at the AHL level. Now they have to do it on the basis of this work. After going to NHL training camp, some people were assigned to the AHL. When the NHL regular season begins next Tuesday, others keep the roster.
Let's look at some of these first-round picks.
Calgary Wrangler
forward Sam Honzek Calgary Flames returned with the Wrangler after assigning him to their AHL member Tuesday. Flames selected him 16th in the 2023 NHL Draft.
He was still 20 months away from starting the game with the Wrangler last season, and he entered the professional game and ended up playing 52 regular season games with 21 points (8 goals, 13 assists). The Flames can also offer him five NHL games. He then had the opportunity to represent Slovakia in the IIHF World Championship, entering six games and scoring goals and assists.
Chicago Wolf
Carolina hurricanes are coming forward and the wolf gets a major boost this week Bradly Nadeau To their AHL branch.
Nadeau is a 19-year-old in 2024-25 with only one NCAA experience in the Wolves, and his rookie has performed well. His 58 points in 64 regular season games put him second among the AHL rookies, with his 32 goals leading all first-year players. This effort earned him the position of the AHL All-Rookie team as well as the AHL's top prospects team. Carolina chose him No. 30 in the 2023 NHL Draft.
Admiral Milwaukee
forward David Edstrom Nashville Predators were with Milwaukee after he was allocated Monday.
Edstrom, who was selected as No. 32 by Vegas Golden Knights in 2023, has already led to Milwaukee. Golden Knights send him to San Jose Sharks in NHL Trade Deadline Trading Tomas Hertl March 2024. Just five months later, he went to Nashville, a key part of the highest goalkeeper Yaroslav Askarov.
The 20-year-old will play his first full season in North America, of the much-respected Fronda Project in the Swedish Hockey League. He scored 19 points (7 goals, 12 assists) in 39 regular season games last season in 39 games against Frölunda. His season eventually brought him to Milwaukee, playing four games in the Calder Cup playoffs.
Still in the NHL
The 2023 first-round picks are still in NHL training camp and are trying to lock in the roster.
forward Dvorsky Springfield Thunderbirds performed well. His 21 goals put him fifth in the AHL rookie, and he scored 45 points in 61 games in the regular season at the age of 19. St. Louis Blues has a 10th outlook in 2023, and his campaign is busy. He competed in the IIHF World Youth Championship, scored nine points (five goals and four assists) in five games in Slovakia, represented the Thunderbirds in the AHL All-Star Classic, and then the IIHF World Championship, where he competed in six games. To end his season, he has a place in the AHL’s top prospects team and has conducted a strong training camp with the Blues. Another blues prospect, Otto StenbergSpringfield also stayed in NHL training camp after one season, with 17 points (5 goals, 12 assists) in 38 games. St. Louis brought him to No. 25 in the 2023 NHL Draft.
Detroit Red Wings Blue Line Foreground Axel Sandin-PellikkaThe NHL bid is also continuing. Detroit brought him to his overall 17 two years ago and stationed in the SHL with Skellefteå last season. He scored 29 points (12 goals, 17 assists) in 46 regular season games, and then scored seven goals and seven assists in 11 playoff games. But when his SHL season ended further work, he came to Grand Rapids Griffins. He played a pair of regular seasons and then played three games in the Calder Cup playoffs.
Defensive players David Reinbacher The Montreal Canadaens have been running after a strong end with Laval Rocket in the 2024-25 season. Reinbacher, who ranked fifth in 2023, missed most of the regular season after suffering a knee injury at training camp last year. He played with the Rockets later in the regular season, playing 10 games before recording 13 games in the Calder Cup playoffs as the Rockets entered the Eastern Conference Finals. However, Reinbacher will last four weeks of a metacarpal fracture in his preseason against the Toronto Maple Leafs last week.
Utah's Mammoth Defensive Players also include DMITRI SIMASHEVthis is the sixth pick in the 2023 draft class. The 20-year-old has already gained advanced experience after playing 137 games in the Kontinental Hockey League over the past three seasons. He scored goals and five assists against Lokomotiv Yaroslavl in 56 regular season games before playing 21 games when the team won the Gagarin Cup. Utah signed the 6-foot-5 Simashev on May 28 for a three-year entry-level contract. If Utah management determines that AHL seasoning will help Simashev’s long-term prospects, he will be eligible to join Tucson passers-by.
During the fifty years in the American Hockey League, Theahl.com writer Patrick Williams currently covers NHL.com and Flosports leagues and is a regular contributor to Siriusxm NHL New Network Radio. He won the AHL’s James H. Ellery Memorial Award for his outstanding league coverage in 2016.
