How important is it to find difference-making NHL talent in the later rounds of the draft? Just ask the Tampa Bay Lightning.
They found Brayden Point, Alex Killorn and Anthony Cirelli in the third round, while Ondrej Palat was grabbed in the seventh round and Tyler Johnson was never drafted at all. All of these players were instrumental in helping the Lightning win the 2020 Stanley Cup.
The Dallas Stars offer further evidence of this point. Jamie Benn and John Klingberg were famously picked in the fifth round, while Anton Khudobin and Joe Pavelski were seventh-round selections of the Minnesota Wild and San Jose Sharks, respectively.