BUFFALO, N.Y. — A group of prospects, some dressed in suits, all wearing a look of apprehension, were bustling down Washington Street on their way into the First Niagara Center, site of the NHL scouting combine.
It is not an easy week for the 120 players who have gathered in Buffalo to be interviewed and physically wrung out by the league’s 30 teams in advance of this month’s entry draft.
They have interviews with team personnel, medical assessments, and a gruelling round of fitness tests to undergo between now and Saturday — although it is unimaginable that anything will sway the future path of Connor McDavid, the Erie Otters centre who is expected to be selected first overall by the Edmonton Oilers.