Vancouver Canucks: Redrafting the 2006 NHL Draft

Round 3 – 82nd Overall

Original Pick: D Daniel Rahimi
New Pick: LW Matt Beleskey (112th to ANA)
Honorable Mentions: G James Reimer (99th to TOR), D Andrew MacDonald (160th to NYI), Viktor Stalberg (161th to TOR)

The first round and everything that followed did not work out too well for the Canucks. After that, it only got worse. But looking at who the Canucks could have had, the lack of depth in the 2006 draft becomes more than clear.

Only eight of the 30 players picked in the third round played 100 games in the NHL. Five played more than 200 games, three played more than 300. And Daniel Rahimi is not one of them.

In rounds four and five, only three players broke the 100-game mark — one of them being goaltender Chad Johnson, who has appeared in 101 regular-season NHL games to date. Johnson played the majority of games for the Buffalo Sabres in 2015-16, so things are working out for him now. But as you can see, there weren’t too many players to pick from here.

So, with the 82nd pick in the 2006 NHL Redraft, the Vancouver Canucks are proud to select Matt Beleskey. The Canadian left winger was never a big scorer — he has 85 goals and 166 points in 443 NHL games so far, including playoffs. But, Beleskey is a hard-working bottom-nine player who can move up and down the lineup and help any team. A good pick in the third round.

Next: Round 6