Backdraft 2005: Ranking the forwards, defensemen & goalies from the 2005 NHL draft
Take a look back at the 2005 NHL draft: We've ranked the top 10 forwards and top 10 defensemen by career NHL points and goalies by career NHL wins.
FORWARDS: Here are the top 10 highest-scoring forwards selected in the 2005 NHL draft, with draft position and NHL games played:
FORWARDS | Draft position | NHL GP | NHL Points |
Sidney Crosby | 1st overall | 707 | 938 |
Anze Kopitar | 11th overall | 764 | 684 |
Paul Stastny | 44th overall | 676 | 553 |
Bobby Ryan | 2nd overall | 607 | 447 |
James Neal | 33rd overall | 562 | 410 |
T.J. Oshie | 24th overall | 523 | 361 |
Patric Hornqvist | 230th overall | 509 | 318 |
Andrew Cogliano | 25th overall | 704 | 298 |
Martin Hanzal | 17th overall | 557 | 287 |
Mason Raymond | 51st overall | 542 | 251 |
NOTES:
--Sidney Crosby, first overall: In hindsight, the Pittsburgh Penguins chose wisely.
--Anze Kopitar, the first Slovenian player to appear in the NHL, has clearly emerged as the second-best forward from the 2005 NHL draft. And, in all likelihood, the best Slovenian forward for a long, long time.
--Patric Hornqvist was Mr. Irrelevant in 2005, the last overall pick in the draft at No. 230 by the Nashville Predators. Also notable: Hornqvist was later traded to the Penguins for James Neal, the 33rd overall pick in 2005.
DEFENSEMEN: Here are the top 10 highest-scoring defensemen selected in the 2005 NHL draft, with draft position and NHL games played:
DEFENSEMEN | Draft position | NHL GP | NHL Points |
Keith Yandle | 105th overall | 661 | 369 |
Kris Letang | 62nd overall | 562 | 352 |
Jack Johnson | 3rd overall | 629 | 244 |
Matt Niskanen | 28th overall | 655 | 230 |
Marc-Edouard Vlasic | 35th overall | 737 | 226 |
Cody Franson | 79th overall | 459 | 186 |
Anton Stralman | 216th overall | 549 | 185 |
Kris Russell | 67th overall | 573 | 177 |
Marc Staal | 12th overall | 617 | 146 |
Niklas Hjalmarsson | 108th overall | 550 | 125 |
NOTES:
--Kris Letang, 62nd overall: In hindsight, the Pittsburgh Penguins chose wisely.
--A total of 11 defensemen were selected in the first round, but only three turned into NHL regulars: Jack Johnson (third overall pick, 629 NHL games), Marc Staal (12th overall, 617 NHL games) and Matt Niskanen (28th overall, 655 games).
--Keith Yandle, the 39th defensemen picked and the 105th overall selection by the Phoenix Coyotes, leads all 2005-drafted blueliners with 369 points in 661 games. Marc-Edouard Vlasic, the 13th defensemen picked and the 35th overall selection by the San Jose Sharks, leads all 2005-drafted blueliners with 737 NHL games played.
GOALIES: A total of 11 goalies selected in the 2005 NHL draft have appeared in at least one NHL game. Here they are ranked by NHL wins, with draft position and NHL games played:
GOALIES | Draft position | NHL GP | NHL Wins |
Jonathan Quick | 72nd overall | 475 | 252 |
Carey Price | 5th overall | 447 | 233 |
Tuukka Rask | 21st overall | 330 | 167 |
Ondrej Pavelec | 41st overall | 371 | 148 |
Ben Bishop | 85th overall | 231 | 130 |
Alex Stalock | 112th overall | 62 | 24 |
Tomas Popperle | 131st overall | 2 | 0 |
Jeff Frazee | 38th overall | 1 | 0 |
Jeremy Duchesne | 119th overall | 1 | 0 |
Matt Keetley | 158th overall | 1 | 0 |
Brian Foster | 161st overall | 1 | 0 |
NOTES:
--Carey Price, the fifth overall pick by the Montreal Canadiens, appears to be the best goalie from the 2005 NHL draft (and the best goalie in the world, period). But it's Jonathan Quick, a third-round grab by the Los Angeles Kings at 72nd overall, who has won the most NHL games among 2005-drafted netminders.
--Tuukka Rask, taken 21st overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs (who later traded him to the Boston Bruins for Andrew Raycroft), is the only other goalie who was drafted in the first round in 2005. Four goalies were picked in the second round, with only Ondrej Pavelec (41st overall) establishing himself as a big-leaguer.
--Among the best in the business: Ben Bishop was a runner-up for the Vezina Trophy this past season, Price won it in 2015, Rask won it in 2014 and Quick was a runner-up in 2012.
More in the 'Backdraft' series:
Backdraft 2004: Ovechkin, Streit and Rinne lead the pack
Backdraft 2003: Staal, Weber and Fleury rank No. 1 by position
Backdraft 2002: Nash, Keith and Lehtonen at head of class
Backdraft 2001: Kovalchuk, Zidlicky and Anderson on top
Backdraft 2000: Heatley, Visnovsky and Lundqvist lead the rankings
MORE NHL COVERAGE ON YAHOO SPORTS: