Five North American draft prospects Capitals fans should know at No. 8

Five North American draft prospects Caps fans should know at No. 8 originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington

With the Capitals landing the eighth pick of the 2023 NHL Draft, NBC Sports Washington’s Matt Weyrich and Ethan Cadeaux are examining five prospects from each of the two major continents who could be available when the Capitals are on the clock. Up next: North America.

Anticipation was high for all NHL organizations entering last week's draft lottery, largely due to the prize that comes with this year's top pick: Canadian sensation Connor Bedard. The 17-year-old is considered the best prospect since Connor McDavid in 2015 and is the consensus top player in a loaded 2023 class.

Luck didn't fall in the Capitals' favor, however. Washington stayed at No. 8 in the draft order; Chicago jumped both Anaheim and Columbus to win the top selection and the right to draft Bedard. The Ducks were rewarded the second overall pick, which will likely be used on current Michigan center Adam Fantilli, a player that easily could've been the top choice in other years.

Although Bedard and Fantilli will almost certainly be gone by Washington's pick, there are still several North American prospects that figure to come off the board around the Capitals' pick. Of course, there are also several Europeans the Capitals could choose from, too, which my colleague Matt Weyrich detailed here.

During his end-of-season press conference, Capitals general manager Brian MacLellan emphasized his desire to improve the team's top-six forwards this offseason.

"To me, our main work will be in our top-six forwards," MacLellan said. "Then based on that we’ll see what we can do on the backend. ... We need to be better in our top six so we’ll examine all of it."

Luckily for MacLellan, the 2023 class is very forward-heavy -- almost all of the top North American prospects are centers or wings. If the Capitals' general manager wants to improve that area of his roster through the draft, he'll have plenty of options to choose from at pick No. 8.

Outside of Bedard and Fantilli, the top Canadian prospect is winger Zach Benson, who's spent the past two seasons playing for Winnipeg's WHL team. Benson is considered one of the more creative offensive players in this class and has the numbers (36 goals, 62 assists) to back it up. The one area Benson lacks is his size, as he's just 5-foot-9 and 163 pounds. There's a chance Benson will be taken before the Capitals pick at No. 8 overall, but it's also quite realistic that he's still available when it's Washington's turn.

From the United States, the top prospect is center William Smith, who spent the last year as one of the top players in the USA Hockey National Team Development Program. Smith, who just turned 18 in March, is currently committed to play college hockey at Boston College.

Smith is considered to be one of the most-rounded players in this class. His puck skills are considered to be well-advanced for his age and many draft experts believe there is little weakness in his game, if any. In fact, there's a decent chance he's off the board by the time the Capitals pick, as some experts believe he can go as early as fifth overall. But if Smith is still available when it's Washington's turn to draft, he'd be an excellent choice.

Smith isn't the only player from the under-18 USA development team to keep an eye on, either. His teammate, center Oliver Moore, is also considered one of the top American prospects in the 2023 class. Moore's best skill is his skating, which allows him to play a versatile brand of hockey -- he played both on the power play and penalty kill this past season. He's currently committed to play college hockey at Minnesota.

Sticking with forwards from the USDP, right wing Ryan Leonard is another name for Capitals fans to keep an eye on. Leonard scored 51 goals for the USDP team this past season in just 57 games and averaged 1.57 points per game. Leonard played on the same line as Smith for the USDP and is committed to play at Boston College next season, too.

Back north of the border, Canadian center Nate Danielson is one prospect that's elevated his game into being a potential top-10 selection in June's draft. Danielson has spent the past two and a half seasons playing for WHL side Brandon Wheat Knights and is coming off an impressive 33-45--78 season. At 6-foot-1 and 185 pounds, Danielson has the ideal size for an NHL center.

Two other names to keep an eye on are UConn forward Matthew Wood and Boston College commit right winger Gabe Perreault. Both players are expected to be available at No. 8, but are considered by draft experts a tier or two below the players mentioned earlier.

The Capitals will weigh all options, both European and North American, with their No. 8 selection. But if MacLellan is adamant about drafting a forward, it could very well be one of the five players listed.