Twelfth.
That's where the Jackets will select in the 2022 NHL Draft, following the league's draft lottery. This is the team's pick, not Chicago's pick, which Columbus acquired in the Seth Jones trade last summer. The first round of the draft will take place on Thursday, July 7 in Montreal, and will be broadcast live in the United States on ESPN or ESPN2.
This is the second time the Jackets will select 12th overall in team history, with the first being last year's selection of Cole Sillinger. They will be making multiple first-round picks in their second consecutive draft, as they own the sixth pick they acquired from Chicago. Last year, they selected forwards Kent Johnson and Sillinger fifth and 12th overall, and defenseman Corson Ceulemans 25th overall.
In nine NHL games this season, Johnson posted three assists. Before arriving in Columbus this season, he played 32 games at The University of Michigan, where he scored eight goals and 29 assists for 37 points.
Sillinger, the youngest player in the NHL this season, scored 16 goals and 15 assists for 31 points in 79 games.
Ceulemans did not play in the Blue Jackets organization this season. However, he played 34 games at The University of Wisconsin, where he scored seven goals and 15 assists for 22 points.
