Draft picks are a strange form of currency in the hockey world.
On the surface, trading a proven NHL star for a pick that will be spent on a young player who may or may not turn into a capable NHL player seems ludicrous. Yet it typically happens at least once in a given season.
The team receiving the pick is typically either in the midst of a rebuild and has one or two stars that they are willing to give up or is trying to get rid of an aging player or one that is nearing the end of his contract.