McDavid, Draisaitl each crack top three in TSN Hockey Fantasy Draft

Just 98 days after the Tampa Bay Lightning captured their second straight Stanley Cup, we’re on the eve of the 2021-22 National Hockey League season.

And that means another season for our annual TSN Hockey Fantasy Draft, with Marty Biron, Carlo Colaiacovo, Jeff O’Neill and (three-time!) defending champion Dave Poulin making their selections in a snake-style four-team draft (six forwards, three defencemen and two goalies).

With the first pick, Team O'Neill selected Edmonton Oilers centre Connor McDavid.

McDavid was the NHL's leading scorer by a country mile last season, scoring 33 goals and 105 points in a 56-game season, averaging an incredible 1.88 points per game - way ahead of runner-up and teammate Leon Draisaitl (1.50). After a Hart Trophy-winning campaign, taking McDavid is a slam dunk.

With the second pick, Team Colaiacovo took Toronto Maple Leafs centre Auston Matthews - who scored 41 goals last season to capture the Rocket Richard Trophy. With an 82-game schedule and a quick return to the lineup after recovering from wrist surgery, he is poised for this first career 50-goal season. 

For the second season in a row, Team Poulin has the No. 3 pick and once again, Dave selects Leon Draisaitl in that spot. The 25-year-old has finished in the top two in scoring in each of the past two seasons and was fourth in NHL scoring three seasons ago.

At No. 4, Team Biron took Colorado Avalanche centre Nathan MacKinnon, who scored 20 goals and tallied 65 points in 48 games last season. He ranked fourth in the NHL in points per game (1.35) and should push for a 100-point season for an Avalanche team with Stanley Cup aspirations.

The top defenceman taken in the draft is also from the Avalanche, with Team O'Neill taking Cale Makar. After taking Andrei Vasilevskiy 11th overall last season, Team Poulin took Winnipeg's Connor Hellebuyck as the first goalie off the board for 2021-22. Cole Caufield enjoyed a dream campaign through Wisconsin, the WJC gold medal-winning U.S. team, Laval and Montreal and the Canadiens sniper qualifies as a Calder-favourite rookie this season, going 16th overall to Team O'Neill.

Here is the rest of the 2021-22 Fantasy Hockey Draft, as well as each panelist’s roster: