September is the most optimistic time of year for\u00a0NHL\u00a0fans.<\/p>\n
Fan bases will throw out generous projections for how many points their team could get and where they\u2019ll finish in the standings. It\u2019s also the time to daydream about which promising young player on your team may finally put it together and reach their potential. Which blue-chip young talents are facing that pressure to step up in 2025-26? Today, we\u2019ll be focusing on first-round-selected players still under 23 who need to prove themselves in the NHL this year. The older a player in this bracket is (meaning there\u2019s less runway left for development) and the higher their draft day expectations were, the more likely they are to end up on this list.<\/p>\n
This is not meant to be a list of \u201cdisappointments\u201d \u2014 and I wouldn\u2019t even go as far as to say that they\u2019re facing make-or-break seasons \u2014 but there are real expectations that need to be met. These situations are all different and individual \u2014 some players have significantly higher ceilings than others on the list, or some are younger with more development time left.<\/p>\n
Owen Power, LD, Buffalo Sabres<\/p>\n
Drafted No. 1 in 2021
2024-25 stats (NHL): 79 GP, 7G-33A-40P<\/p>\n
The Sabres need Owen Power to take the step from \u201cpromising young defenseman with upside\u201d to a legitimate, high-end No. 2 behind Rasmus Dahlin. Power\u2019s first three years in the NHL haven\u2019t been bad by any means \u2014 he\u2019s averaged more than 22 minutes per game and scored 111 points in 242 career games \u2014 but he has a lot more to give.<\/p>\n
With the puck, Power already has an advanced, impressive skill set. He is a smooth skater, a poised puckhandler and has terrific IQ and vision as a passer. He ranked 17th among all NHL defensemen for five-on-five points last season.<\/p>\n
Where Power has disappointed to some extent is with his lackadaisical, mistake-prone defensive play. He has poor microstats when it comes to defending the rush, his compete level in physical battles is a frustrating weakness, and he isn\u2019t always positionally sound.<\/p>\n
Those are all valid question marks, but Power deserves the benefit of the doubt. People were quick to overreact and label Dahlin and Victor Hedman \u201cbusts\u201d during the first 2-3 seasons of their respective careers. Highs and lows should be expected for young defensemen adjusting to the NHL, especially when you\u2019ve been saddled with inferior partners like Power has. Henri Jokiharju and Mattias Samuelsson are Power\u2019s most common defense partners over the last two seasons, which simply isn\u2019t enough help.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m not overly worried about Power\u2019s up-and-down play considering that context, but he must take a significant step forward this season. Michael Kesselring, the centerpiece of the JJ Peterka haul, is projected to play with Power on the second pair. Kesselring doesn\u2019t have a ton of top-four experience, but he\u2019s far more talented than Power\u2019s past partners.<\/p>\n
Power turns 23 in November and is entering the second year of an $8.35 million AAV contract. In other words, he\u2019s at the age\/experience level where a No. 1 pick should break out, and his lucrative contract only adds to the lofty expectations.<\/p>\n
Matt Savoie, RW, Edmonton Oilers<\/p>\n
Drafted No. 9 in 2022
2024-25 stats (AHL): 66 GP, 19G-35A-54P<\/p>\n
Between Corey Perry, Evander Kane and Connor Brown, the Oilers lost three key top-nine wingers from last year\u2019s playoff run, with Andrew Mangiapane the only established free-agent replacement. You could argue Edmonton only has two proper top-six caliber wingers (Zach Hyman and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins) on its roster right now, and that number drops to one if RNH plays third-line center rather than the wing. All of that is to say that the Oilers desperately need more secondary top-nine scoring help on the wing to emerge, and that\u2019s where at least one, if not both, of Matt Savoie and Ike Howard need to break out this season.<\/p>\n
Savoie, acquired from Buffalo in a swap for Ryan McLeod, was a highly touted top-10 pick in 2022. He excelled in his first pro season last year, producing 0.82 points per game in the AHL and looking comfortable during his five-game NHL cameo. The 21-year-old is a quick skater, has deft playmaking touch and is a tenacious competitor, which helps him win battles and make up for his undersized 5-foot-9 frame. He\u2019ll have a clear opportunity to crack the Oilers\u2019 top nine this season and will likely get an early look with one of Leon Draisaitl or Connor McDavid.<\/p>\n
The Oilers need Savoie to pan out long-term. Hyman and Nugent-Hopkins are well into their 30s, and besides Howard, their pipeline lacks forward prospects who are close to NHL-ready with top-nine potential.<\/p>\n
David Jiricek, RD, Minnesota Wild<\/p>\n
Drafted No. 6 in 2022
2024-25 stats (AHL): 31 GP, 2G-8A-10P<\/p>\n
The Wild gave up a hefty package that included four draft picks (a first-, second-, third- and fourth-round selection) to win the David Jiricek sweepstakes, after the defender had a falling out in Columbus. Jiricek, a toolsy 6-foot-4 right-shot with exciting offensive tools and a robust physical game, was only OK during the 2023-24 season, which he split between the NHL and AHL, and is coming off a down year last season where he only produced 10 points in 31 AHL games.<\/p>\n
Jiricek has played professional hockey in North America so long that it\u2019s easy to forget that he\u2019s still only 21 (22 in late November). There\u2019s no pressure for him to immediately become a top-four defenseman, especially with Brock Faber and Jared Spurgeon logging huge minutes on the right side blue line ahead of him, but Jiricek at least needs to show that he\u2019s on an upward development trajectory to justify the haul that Minnesota surrendered to acquire him.<\/p>\n
If Jiricek can stay healthy and play steady third-pair NHL minutes (while proving that his skating isn\u2019t an insurmountable hurdle), that would go a long way in giving the Wild confidence that he\u2019s trending in the right direction.<\/p>\n
Simon Nemec, RD, New Jersey Devils<\/p>\n
Drafted No. 2 in 2022
2024-25 stats (NHL): 27 GP, 2G-2A-4P<\/p>\n
Simon Nemec burst onto the scene as a 19-year-old rookie in 2023-24 and immediately profiled as a future blue-line cornerstone. He was remarkably smooth on breakouts, both with his puck carrying and sharp outlet passes. He handled the puck in all three zones with a precocious level of poise and calmness, making heads-up decisions and passes as if he were a 10-year veteran. Nemec\u2019s game wasn\u2019t very flashy, but he was so polished, mature and efficient with his two-way play, and he did it in a significant role, averaging just shy of 20 minutes per game.<\/p>\n
Simon Nemec i see you pic.twitter.com\/mwuH0JEjsm<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Dimitri Filipovic (@DimFilipovic) February 13, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n Unfortunately, last year represented a major step back.<\/p>\n Nemec lasted just nine games with the big club at the start of the season before being demoted to the minors. He had almost zero trust all year from Sheldon Keefe, who heavily sheltered him with just 14:59 of average ice-time per game and very soft matchups. Nemec looked tentative at both ends of the rink and was regularly exposed defensively. The Devils got crushed during Nemec\u2019s five-on-five shifts, controlling just 38 percent of expected goals and being outscored 17-8.<\/p>\n Fortunately, he was able to end the year on a high note. Nemec was thrust into playing big minutes against the Hurricanes in the playoffs because of the club\u2019s blue-line injuries, and rose to the occasion with rock-solid performances. It was also revealed that he had been playing through a shoulder injury he sustained at an Olympic qualifier game<\/a>\u00a0for the entire season, which at least partially explains his sophomore slump.<\/p>\n The Devils have a fascinating logjam on the right side of their defense with Dougie Hamilton, Brett Pesce and Johnathan Kovacevic all under contract for at least the next three years. It\u2019s critical that Nemec bounces back this year and proves that he deserves to be part of the long-term solution. And he has a prime opportunity to do it right out of the gate because Kovacevic had knee surgery in May and may not be ready to start the season.<\/p>\n I\u2019m a believer in Nemec\u2019s talent (I don\u2019t think you can accomplish what he did as a 19-year-old rookie without being a special player), but it\u2019ll be incumbent on him to re-establish himself as a quality, full-time NHL defenseman this season.<\/p>\n Jesper Wallstedt, G, Minnesota Wild<\/p>\n Drafted No. 20 in 2021 Jesper Wallstedt is on a mission to prove that last year\u2019s disappointing campaign was just a fluke.<\/p>\n For years, the 22-year-old Swede was up there with Yaroslav Askarov as arguably the best goaltending prospect on the planet. It was for good reason, too \u2014 Wallstedt thrived in the SHL in his draft-plus-one season and performed admirably despite being one of the AHL\u2019s youngest goaltenders on defensively permissive Iowa Wild teams in 2022-23 and 2023-24.<\/p>\n
2024-25 stats (AHL): 27 GP, 9-14-4, .879 sv%<\/p>\n