Rangers Select Six Players in 2010 NHL Draft

New York Rangers President and General Manager Glen Sather, along with Director of Player Personnel, Gordie Clark, oversaw the club’s activity in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft on Friday, June 25 and Saturday, June 26 at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. The club, which held six picks in the draft, selected five forwards and one defenseman.

The Rangers began the draft Friday by selecting defenseman Dylan McIlrath with the 10th overall pick. The 6-4, 212-pounder skated in 65 games with the Moose Jaw Warriors of the Western Hockey League (WHL) this season, registering seven goals and 17 assists for 24 points, along with 169 penalty minutes. He received Moose Jaw’s Most Improved Player Award for the second consecutive season, establishing career-highs in games played, goals, assists, points, penalty minutes, plus/minus rating (plus-20) and game-winning goals (two). McIlrath was selected to participate in the 2010 Canadian Hockey League (CHL) Top Prospects Game on January 20 as a member of Team Orr, and he finished second in the Hardest Shot event at the Skills Competition with a 91.8 mph shot. The Winnipeg, Manitoba native entered the 2010 NHL Entry Draft as the sixth-highest ranked defenseman and 17th overall among North American skaters in the final Central Scouting Rankings. The selection marked the fourth time in the last six years the Rangers have chosen a defenseman in the first round.

The second day of the draft saw New York choose five forwards, beginning with the selection of Oshawa (OHL) right winger Christian Thomas, son of former NHL player Steve Thomas, in the second round with the 40th overall selection. Thomas led Oshawa with career-highs in goals (41), points (66), power play goals (16) and shorthanded goals (four), and ranked fifth on the team with a career-high 25 assists. He ranked among the league leaders in several goal-scoring categories, ranking seventh in the OHL in goals, and tying for second in the league in shorthanded goals and sixth in power play goals. His 41 goals were also the third-most among all players drafted in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, behind seventh overall pick Jeff Skinner and second overall pick Tyler Seguin. Thomas began his 2009-10 season registering four consecutive multi-point performances, tallying nine points (three goals and six assists) from September 18 at Sarnia to September 27 vs. Sudbury. He recorded a career-high, 17 multi-point efforts on the season, including his first career hat trick on February 5 at Kitchener. Thomas finished the season riding a six-game point streak from March 5 at Kingston to March 13 at Peterborough (six goals and three assists), which included a career-high, five-game goal streak that ended with a two-goal performance on March 12 at Ottawa.

In the fourth round at the 100th position, the Rangers tabbed Florida native Andrew Yogan from the OHL’s Erie Otters. Yogan, who became the first player born and raised in Florida to be drafted by an NHL team, established career-highs in games played (63), goals (25), assists (30), points (55) and penalty minutes (97) this season. The Blueshirts then selected forward Jason Wilson of Owen Sound (OHL) with the 130th overall pick in the fifth round. Wilson registered a career-high 17 goals and 18 assists for 35 points in 46 games this season. He ranked second on Owen Sound with six power play goals and 101 penalty minutes.

With the sixth round pick acquired from Carolina earlier in the day, the Rangers selected forward Jesper Fasth of HV 71 Jr. in the Swedish Jr. league with the 157th overall pick. Fasth tied for first on the team in goals (23), second in points (49) and third in assists (26). He also made two appearances for HV 71 of the Swedish Elite League. The trade, which sent defenseman Bobby Sanguinetti to the Hurricanes, also includes Washington’s second round pick in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft. New York closed out their 2010 NHL Entry Draft by selecting forward Randy McNaught from Saskatoon of the WHL with the 190th overall pick in the seventh round. McNaught registered 12 points (six goals and six assists) and 163 penalty minutes for Chilliwack and Saskatoon (WHL) this season.

Overall, the Rangers selected five forwards and one defenseman, five from Canadian junior hockey leagues and one from European hockey leagues, and four Canadians, one American and one European. The average weight of the Rangers draft picks was 195 pounds, while the average height of the 2010 New York draft class was 6’2”.

New York Rangers 2010 NHL Entry Draft Selections
Name Round Overall 2009-10 Team Pos. Ht. Wt. Born Birthplace
Dylan McIlrath 1 10 Moose Jaw (WHL) D 6’4” 212 4/20/92 Winnipeg, MB
Christian Thomas 2 40 Oshawa (OHL) RW 5’9” 162 5/26/92 Toronto, ON
Andrew Yogan 4 100 Erie (OHL) C/LW 6’3” 205 12/4/91 Coconut Creek, FL
Jason Wilson 5 130 Owen Sound (OHL) LW 6’2” 205 4/15/90 Richmond Hill, ON
Jesper Fasth 6 157 HV 71 Jr. (SWE-Jr.) RW 5’11” 165 12/2/91 Nassjo, Sweden
Randy McNaught 7 190 Saskatoon (WHL) RW 6’4” 222 8/5/90 Nanaimo, BC