The 2025 NHL Draft decided to go ‘de-centralized’ after years of having every team making their picks in one location. The results were not as smooth as the league hoped.
In a manner similar to the NFL Draft, the NHL decided to let all the teams make their selections from their own offices rather than travel to one arena to announce the picks.
While that opened up the floor for certain movie producers (Seattle Kraken owner Jerry Bruckheimer), musicians (Buffalo natives The Goo Goo Dolls), and even pro wrestlers (WWE’s Bayley, a fan of the San Jose Sharks) to announce picks rather than NHL commissioner Gary Bettman [all while subtly promoting themselves or their work], it was the ‘Draft House’ concept which generated the most backlash.
In drafts of old, players would be able to greet the general managers and team executives of the hockey club which selected them on-stage and in person. With all the prospects attending the draft in LA and the teams elsewhere, that wasn’t feasible.
Wanting to continue that tradition, the NHL decided to set up video calls between team leaders and their new prospects, After each player was picked, they would walk behind the stage to a giant screen where – hopefully – they’d be able to have a natural, joyful conversation with the people they now represent.
Instead, it led to many, many awkward moments where the technology betrayed the concept, players and executives stumbled over their words, and questions forced conversations that were met with muted reaction and delays.
The NHL’s move for a de-centralized draft in 2025 backfired with awkward concepts, pick announcements, and muted reactions (above: NHL commissioner Gary Bettman)
The most reviled concept was the ‘Draft House’ where players would speak to executives who selected them on a giant screen, replacing the in-person interaction from years past
After Boston selected prospect James Hagens, Hagens stood in front of a screen while team executives Cam Neely (center screen) and Don Sweeney (right screen) didn’t respond
The worst example was when the Boston Bruins had the seventh overall pick. After taking Boston College prospect James Hagens (with the selection being announced by Adam Sandler as ‘Happy Gilmore’ ahead of the character’s movie sequel), the player was escorted to the ‘Draft House’ where he faced a giant screen with team executives Cam Neely and Don Sweeney.
After an ESPN reporter asked a leading question to get either Neely or Sweeney to respond, the two executives did not speak.
A second attempt was made to try and elicit some reaction from the two struggling executives, but nothing happened and the broadcast was forced to make an awkward pivot.
This was just one of many interactions which led to social media blasting the inefficiency of this year’s draft, the poor concept, and what some believed was a failed attempt at making their draft process similar to the NFL’s.
Some meme accounts compared it to a scene from Star Wars: The Force Awakens or the character ‘Zordon’ from Power Rangers – both of which involving figures that dwarf others.
NHL podcaster and writer Pete Blackburn posted, ‘This whole NHL Draft presentation is some of the most bizarre, sloppily thrown together s**t I’ve ever seen in pro sports. Every second is more bizarre than the last.’
One fan said, ‘They tried to make the NHL Draft a spectacle into the NFL Draft. It’s failing miserably.’ Another remarked, ‘I cannot stress enough how terrible this draft format is. Like painfully bad. How the NHL can continue to overthink things every single event is beyond me.’
Former NHL goaltender Andrew Raycroft even joked, ‘Give me the old draft back’.
With the first overall pick, the New York Islanders chose Canadian defenseman Matthew Schaefer.
