Why wern't they drafted?

[Kimi]

There have be quite a few guys that weren't drafted and had really good careers in the NHL. Anyone know why some of these guys didn't get picked?

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[WhiskeyYerTheDevils]

size, look at john madden and brian rafalski, bound to have good careers (already they have good careers in NJ), but werent drafted cuz they was so small

 

[Hasbro]

Adam Oates got called by his college coach a heavyfooted no-shooting center.

 

[arrbez]

It's usually a size thing I guess. I know Martin St. Louis and Steve Thomas weren't drafted

 

[MAF]

Ed Belfour and Curtis Joseph weren't drafted either (I think).

 

[MS]

Dino Ciccarelli broke his leg in his draft year, and at the time it was thought his career might be over. As a result he wasn't drafted and Minnesota ended up signing him as a free agent.

 

[Kimi]

Ed Belfour and Curtis Joseph weren't drafted either (I think).

There th kind of guys I mean. They've been really good keepers, so it seems strange to me that they wern't drafted. Injuries make sense, but I don't know who was injured in their draft years. We're they cases of later bloomers?

 

[KariyaIsGod*]

Wayne Gretzky was a bum so nobody drafted him...

 

[MiamiScreamingEagles]

Three former players who signed as free agents with Philadelphia were Tim Kerr, Ilkka Sinisalo and Dave Poulin.

Kerr had the reputation as a slow skater who stayed in the slot and picked up cheap goals in his junior days.

Poulin attended Notre Dame. In his last year, he got spinal meningitis which was probably the main reason he did not get drafted. He then went to play in Sweden (after being offered a job at Procter & Gamble) under Ted Sator who was also a Flyers' scout at the time. After a season in Sweden, he joined the Flyers and eventually became their captain.

Sinisalo -- I am not sure of any reason why he wasn't drafted.

 

[12# Peter Bondra]

Some players are too small or considered not good enough.

 

[Poochie_D]

Adam Oates got called by his college coach a heavyfooted no-shooting center.

both are true, but hey.... hes a god when it comes to passing so it worked out hehe.

 

[David Puddy]

size, look at john madden and brian rafalski, bound to have good careers (already they have good careers in NJ), but werent drafted cuz they was so small

The New Jersey Devils were considering drafting John Madden while he was at the University of Michigan. He caught their attention while they were keeping an eye on his teammate Brendan Morrison, who was drafted by the New Jersey in 1993. The Devils brain trust felt safe that they could just sign Madden as an undrafted free-agent after his collegian career, which they did.

Madden, an Ontario native, played only as high as Junior-B before going to college. He also came from a broken-home, and he didn't have the financial means that many other young hockey players had.

One last unusual thing about John Madden, his birth year used to be listed as 1975, but it was corrected to 1973 some time around 2003. This may very well have been done to gain acceptance into Michigan.

Brian Rafalski was probably not drafted because of his size, sometimes listed as 5'9". He was an First-Team West All-American at Wisconsin in 1995. He played one season in Sweden and then three in Finland, where he was named Best Defender in his final two years in the Finish Elite League.

Rafalski is the classic case "too small for the NHL" player, much like Martin St. Louis. Guys like these eventually got their chance and proved their worthiness as NHL players.