Carter Yakemchuk Drafted By Ottawa Senators At No. 7 | NHL Draft Analysis
Carter Yakemchuk Drafted By Ottawa Senators At No. 7 | NHL Draft Analysis
Carter Yakemchuk was taken No. 7 by the Ottawa Senators in the 2024 NHL Draft. Here's why.
An easy offensive game with puck skills to go with a 6-foot-3 frame makes Carter Yakemchuk an attractive prospect. Add in that he’s a right-shot defenseman and the stock only grows a little more.
There are some legitimate hockey sense concerns, particularly on the defensive side of the game. You can live with the miscues when he produces like he does, but some of the decisions are where I see the risk in his overall projection. Yakemchuk he certainly would not be the first offensive-minded defenseman to overcome those kinds of concerns.
- Subscribe Today To Watch Elite Junior Hockey All Season On FloHockey
- NHL Mock Draft 2024: Final First Round Predictions From Chris Peters
- Which Prospects Have The Biggest Boom-Bust Potential
- NHL Player Comparables For 2024 NHL Draft Top Prospects
He has a fun mix of hand skills and the ability to use his feet to navigate the ice that puts him in position to make a lot of plays. He also has a legitimate goal-scoring touch from the back end that is fairly rare in a defenseman. The dynamic elements of his game, especially in a player of his size make him a little bit of a rarer commodity and with a bit more development, I think the rest of his game smooths out enough for him to challenge for a top-four role.
Why The Ottawa Senators Drafted Carter Yakemchuk At No. 7
The Sens are building their D corps around Jake Sanderson and now they get a really interesting offensive defenseman with a ton of upside. This is not the defenseman I expected Ottawa to select, but now that they've made the pick, you can easily understand the appeal.
A 6-foot-3 defenseman with 30 goals under his belt and a legit comparisons to Evan Bouchard, it would have been hard to not watch the Stanley Cup Playoffs and not come away thinking the Sens blue line could use a Bouchard-esque player. Yakemchuk needs to get stronger and more athletic to maximize his game at the NHL level, but he has a great foundation of skill.
Yakemchuk was the No. 10 prospect on my list.
What Time Does The NHL Draft Start?
The first round is at 7 p.m. Friday, June 28. The rest of the draft resumes at 11:30 a.m. on June 29.
How To Watch NHL Draft 2024
The NHL Draft is airing and streaming on ESPN and ESPN+.
Live pick analysis and video breakdowns will be available on FloHockey.
NHL Draft Order
Here is the first round order:
- San Jose Sharks
- Chicago Blackhawks
- Anaheim Ducks
- Columbus Blue Jackets
- Montreal Canadiens
- Utah Hockey Club
- Ottawa Senators
- Seattle Kraken
- Calgary Flames
- New Jersey Devils
- San Jose Sharks
- Philadelphia Flyers
- Minnesota Wild
- Buffalo Sabres
- Detroit Red Wings
- St. Louis Blues
- Washington Capitals
- Chicago Blackhawks
- Las Vegas Golden Knights
- New York Islanders
- Montreal Canadiens
- Nashville Predators
- Toronto Maple Leafs
- Colorado Avalanche
- Boston Bruins
- Los Angeles Kings
- Carolina Hurricanes
- Calgary Flames
- Dallas Stars
- New York Rangers
- Anaheim Ducks
- Philadelphia Flyers
Top NHL Draft Prospects
Here is FloHockey analysts Chris Peters' top prospects:
First Published June 3, 2024
FULL TOP 100 SCOUTING REPORTS HERE
- Macklin Celebrini, C, Boston University
- Artyom Levshunov, D, Michigan State University
- Ivan Demidov, RW, SKA St. Petersburg
- Anton Silayev, D, Torpedo
- Berkly Catton, C, Spokane Chiefs
- Zeev Buium, D, University of Denver
- Cayden Lindstrom, C, Medicine Hat Tigers
- Zayne Parekh, D, Saginaw Spirit
- Sam Dickinson, D, London Knights
- Carter Yakemchuk, D, Calgary Hitmen
- Beckett Sennecke, RW, Oshawa Generals
- Tij Iginla, C/W, Kelowna Rockets
- Konsta Helenius, C, Jukurit
- Cole Eiserman, LW, U.S. National Under-18 Team
- Michael Brandsegg-Nygard, RW, Mora
- Adam Jiricek, D, HC Plzen
- Michael Hage, C, Chicago Steel
- Jett Luchanko, C, Guelph Storm
- Igor Chernyshov, LW, Dynamo Moscow
- Trevor Connelly, LW, Tri-City Storm
- Nikita Artamonov, LW, Torpedo
- Sacha Boisvert, C, Muskegon Lumberjacks
- E.J. Emery, D, U.S. National Under-18 Team
- Charlie Elick, D, Brandon Wheat Kings
- Stian Solberg, D, Valerenga
- Yegor Surin, C/W, Loko Yaroslavl
- Cole Beaudoin, C, Barrie Colts
- Terik Parascak, RW, Prince George Cougars
- Emil Hemming, RW, TPS
- Matvei Gridin, RW, Muskegon Lumberjacks
- Liam Greentree, RW, Windsor Spitfires
- Dean Letourneau, C, St. Andrew’s College
- Adam Kleber, D, Lincoln Stars
- Leo Sahlin Wallenius, D, Vaxjo U20
- Cole Hutson, D, U.S. National Under-18 Team
- Henry Mews, D, Ottawa 67s
- Ryder Ritchie, RW, Prince Albert Raiders
- Julius Miettinen, C/W, Everett Silvertips
- John Mustard, C, Waterloo Black Hawks
- Teddy Stiga, C/W, U.S. National Under-18 Team
- Lucas Pettersson, C, MODO
- Jesse Pulkkinen, D, JYP
- Linus Eriksson, C, Djugardens
- Dominik Badinka, D, Malmo
- Adam Jecho, C/W, Edmonton Oil Kings
- Tanner Howe, LW, Regina Pats
- Andrew Basha, LW, Medicine Hat Tigers
- Leon Muggli, D, Zug
- Sam O’Reilly, C/W, London Knights
- Marek Vanacker, LW, Brantford Bulldogs
- Luca Marelli, D, Oshawa Generals
- Aron Kiviharju, D, HIFK
- Carson Wetsch, RW, Calgary Hitmen
- Harrison Brunicke, D, Kamloops Blazers
- Brodie Ziemer, RW, U.S. National Under-18 Team
- Maxim Masse, RW, Chicoutimi Sagueneens
- Ben Danford, D, Oshawa Generals
- Alfons Freij, D, Vaxjo U20
- Will Skahan, D, U.S. National Under-18 Team
- Lukas Fischer, D, Sarnia Sting
- Tomas Galvas, D, Liberec
- Mikhail Yegorov, G, Omaha Lancers
- Owen Allard, C, Soo Greyhounds
- Aatos Koivu, C, TPS
- Veeti Vaisanen, D, KooKoo
- Jacob Battaglia, RW, Kingston Frontenacs
- Luke Misa, C, Mississauga Steelheads
- Ilya Protas, LW, Des Moines Buccaneers
- Kamil Bednarik, C, U.S. National Under-18 Team
- Jack Berglund, C, Farjestad U20
- Christian Humphreys, C, U.S. National Under-18 Team
- Simon Zether, C, Rogle
- Max Plante, RW, U.S. National Under-18 Team
- Eriks Mateiko, LW, Saint John Sea Dogs
- Colton Roberts, D, Vancouver Giants
- Eemil Vinni, G, Jokipojat
- ONdrej Kos, LW, Ilves U20
- Pavel Moysevich, G, SKA St. Petersburg
- Alexander Zetterberg, C, Orebro U20
- Maximillian Curran, C, Tri-City Americans
- Spencer Gill, D, Rimouski Oceanic
- Gabriel Eliasson, D, HV71 U20
- Justin Poirier, RW, Baie-Comeau Drakkar
- Logan Sawyer, C, Brooks Bandits
- Hagen Burrows, RW, Sioux City Musketeers
- Marcus Gidlof, G, Leksands U20
- Petr Sikora, C, Trinec U20
- Ondrej Becher, C, Prince George Cougars
- Sebastian Soini, D, Ilves U20
- Carter George, G, Owen Sound Attack
- Ethan Procyszyn, C, North Bay Battalion
- Tomas Lavoie, D, Cape Breton Eagles
- Timur Kol, D, Omsk
- Ollie Josephson, C, Red Deer Rebels
- Jonathan Morello, C, St. Michael’s Buzzers
- Will Zellers, LW, Shattuck-St. Mary’s
- Heikki Ruohonen, C, Kiekko-Espoo U20
- Colin Ralph, D, Shattuck-St. Mary’s
- Joona Vaisanen, D, Dubuque Fighting Saints
- Mac Swanson, C, Fargo Force
NHL Draft Predictions
Here are Chris Peters' NHL Mock Drafts:
- Post-Lottery Mock Draft (May 8)
- Talking Hockey Sense: If I Were GM Mock Draft With Steven Ellis (May 29)
- Two-Round Mock Draft (June 20)
NHL Draft Scouting Report Videos
- Macklin Celebrini
- Artyom Levshunov
- Zeev Buium
- Cayden Lindstrom
- Berkly Catton
- Tij Iginla
- Trevor Connelly
- Cole Eiserman
- Michael Hage
- Sacha Boisvert
- Cole Hutson
Talking Hockey Sense NHL Draft Episodes
- NHL Draft Preview Special 2024: THS 122
- NHL Draft Rumors And Buzz Report: THS 121
- NHL Draft Prospects On the Rise Post-Combine: THS 120
- NHL Draft Rankings Special: THS 119
More NHL Draft Coverage From FloHockey
- NHL Player Comps For Top 32 Draft Prospects
- NHL Draft Prospects With Biggest Boom-Bust Potential
- NHL Scouting Combine Notebook: What We're Hearing
- NHL Draft Scouting Reports From 2024 World U18s
Macklin Celebrini Through The Years On FloHockey
- Meet Macklin Celebrini, The USHL's 16-Year-Old Superstar
- Macklin Celebrini Reflects On Historic USHL Season
- Celebrini's USHL MVP Season Highlight Reel
- Celebrini Scores First NCAA Goal vs. Bentley on FloHockey
- Macklin Celebrini Is Closer To Connor Bedard Than You Think
Watch ECHL, USHL And More On FloHockey
FloHockey is the streaming home to some of the best hockey leagues in North America, including the ECHL and more. Check out the broadcast schedule to watch more hockey.
Join The Hockey Conversation On FloHockey Social
- Follow us on Twitter @FloHockey
- Follow us on Instagram @flohockey
- Follow us on TikTok @flohockeytv
- Watch us on YouTube
- Like us on Facebook