Last October the National Hockey League began the 2021-2022 season with one notable absence: 2021 first overall pick Owen Power.
Power, 19, was the first pick in the 2021 NHL Entry Draft, selected by the Buffalo Sabres. Traditionally, the first overall pick will begin the following season in the NHL. Power instead opted to return to collegiate play, committing to another season with the University of Michigan, becoming the first player since 2006 to be drafted first overall and not immediately sign with an NHL club.
It is common for North American players chosen later in the first round of the NHL draft to return either to college or major junior play before making the jump to the NHL. It’s typically the first overall that is expected to begin professional play immediately. This has brought an extremely interesting question forward: Is it worth valuing the talent a teenager possesses over maturity?
“I think just another year of development,” Power said. “Just continue to get better and develop with another year.”
With Power deciding to develop his play another year outside of the NHL, many have taken a look at the impact jumping straight into professional play had on players’ long-term development.
Jack Hughes, the first overall pick in 2019, started his NHL career at 18 years old. He severely underperformed during his rookie season, only putting up 21 points in 61 games.
The jump into playing professionally can be jarring, not just for development within the game as an athlete, but also within a player’s personal life.
“Like, I was in high school, living at home, driving a car my parents paid for, lucky if I had Chipotle once a week. I’d have to ask my parents, ‘Hey, can I go to Chipotle with my friends?” Hughes said. “The following year, you’re making a million bucks, playing in front of live arenas.”
Hughes’ older brother, Quinn, was drafted seventh overall by the Vancouver Canucks in 2018. Quinn played two seasons with the University of Michigan before heading to the NHL. The youngest Hughes brother, Luke, was drafted fourth overall by New Jersey in 2021 and is also returning to Michigan before beginning his professional career.
When many players have said taking an extra year helped their development, it speaks to the culture of professional sports that potential talent is valued above the maturity and well-being of an 18-year-old straight out of high school.
Other professional sports leagues have different rules for draft eligibility than the NHL. The National Football League requires players must be out of high school for three years and have used their college eligibility before entering the draft, while the NHL entry draft is open to any player who will be 18 by Sept. 15, but not older than 19 by Dec. 31 of their draft year.
The problem of teenagers rushing into the world of professional sports is not limited to hockey. In basketball, a few amateur leagues have emerged as a path to the National Basketball Association, offering an alternative to the National Collegiate Athletic Association that allows young players to collect payment via branding their names, images, and likenesses, something largely contested in collegiate athletics.
Power will likely make his NHL debut in the 2022-2023 season, after completing his two seasons in college and an impressive international play resume including representation of Canada in the 2022 Olympics. Time will tell if we see more players putting their personal development and needs above traditional pathways to professional sports.
