With the 2019 NHL Draft now in the rearview mirror, attention among those in the scouting community shifts towards 2020 NHL Draft prospects.
Many amateur scouts from the 32 NHL organizations will converge on the Northtown Center in Amherst, N.Y., later this week for the 2019 USA Hockey Select 17 Player Development Camp. The crop of American, 2002-born players, sans those competing for USA Hockey’s NTDP, will compete for a coveted spot on the American team for the 2019 Ivan Hlinka Memorial Tournament.
Of those ‘02s in Amherst, players born before September 15, 2002 will be eligible for the 2020 NHL Draft. In addition, late ‘01s will be in the first year of draft eligibility. All players born in 2000 and 2001 are eligible to be selected in the 2020 NHL Draft.
Three of the region’s best ‘02s are all born after September 15, meaning they won’t be eligible until the 2021 NHL Draft. Forwards Matt Beniers (Hingham, Mass./NTDP U18), Mackie Samoskevich (Newtown, Conn./Shattuck St. Mary’s), and Sasha Teleguine (Attleboro, Mass./Thayer) all will have to wait until 2021 to have the opportunity to hear their name called at the draft.
