Redrafting 1984 NHL Draft

The 1984 NHL Draft was loaded with Talent; it featured Mario Lemieux as the Grand Prize and a few other Hall of Famers
including Patrick Roy, Brett Hull, Luc Robitaille and Gary Suter.

The surprising thing about the 1984 draft is that Roy wasn't drafted until the 3rd round, Hull wasn't taken until the 6th round,
and Luc Robitaille wasn't taken until the 9th round.

If the 1984 Draft was redrafted, it would most definately change the course of NHL history;
this is how i would redraft the 1984 NHL draft.

1. Pittsburgh Penguins-(C) Mario Lemieux
Mario Lemieux was the consensus number 1 pick in the 1984 draft and was considered to be a generational talent, this pick doesn't change.
Mario Lemieux in his prime was arguably the best player in the league, so there isn't a player in the draft you could take over him.

2. New Jersey Devils-(G) Patrick Roy
Originial pick: Kirk Muller

Patrick Roy was the second greatest player in the 1984 draft behind Mario Lemieux, he is considered to be by many to be the greatest goalie of all time.
Roy held most regular season records for goaltenders until Martin Brodeur broke them and is still the winningest postseason goalie.
With Patrick Roy as their Goalie, the New Jersey Devils just made the rebuild a lot quicker, as by his second season in the league, Roy was already a Star goalie.

3. Chicago Blackhawks-(RW) Brett Hull
Original pick: Eddie Olczyk

Brett Hull was one of the Premier snipers in the NHL in his prime, and was the third best player in the 1984 draft.
Brett Hull follows his fathers footsteeps and dawns the Blackhawks colors as a member of the Chicago Blackhawks.
Brett Hull would be a perfect fit on the line with Denis Savard and Steve Larmar.

4. Toronto Maple Leafs-(LW) Luc Robitaille
Original pick: Al Aifrate

Luc Robitaille rounds out the Fantastic four in the 1984 draft that went on to hall of fame.
While the Maple Leafs have a dire need of a defenseman, it would be stupid to pass up on Luc Robitaille.
Robitaille would be a great fit on the line with Rick Vaive.

5. Montreal Canadiens-(D) Gary Suter
Original pick: Petr Svoboda

Gary Suter was the best defenseman available in the draft and is a major upgrade over Petr Svoboda.
Suter won the Calder trophy in 1986, was a 4x all star and played an integral part of Calgary's Stanley cup team in 1989.
Gary Suter and Larry Robinson would form a great first pair for the Montreal Canadiens moving forward.

6. Los Angeles Kings-(LW) Gary Roberts
Original Pick: Craig Redmond

Now that the Kings don't have Luc Robitaille, they need to get a LW, they next best available LW is Gary Roberts.
Gary Roberts is no Luc Robitaille, but he played for 21 years in the NHL and put up over 900 points.
Gary Roberts would eventually replace Charlie Simmer on the top line for the LA Kings.

7. Detroit Red Wings-(C) Kirk Muller
Original Pick: Shawn Burr

Kirk Muller was the 2nd best center in the 1984 draft behind Mario Lemieux.
Muller was a better player than Gary Roberts in term of production, but Roberts was a better fit for the Kings.
It works out better for the Red Wings anyways because they walk away with a dominant 1-2 punch down the middle with Steve Yzerman and Kirk Muller.

8. Montreal Canadiens-(RW) Scott Mellanby
Original pick: Shayne Corson

Since the Canadiens already drafted a defenseman, Gary Suter with the 5th pick, it makes sense to draft Mellanby with this pick.
There is nothing flashy about Mellanby's game or his production but he was able to play in 1,431 games while scoring 840 points.
Mellanby would eventually be a good fit on the line with Guy Carboneau and Mats Naslund.

9. Pittsburgh Penguins-(D) Kevin Hatcher
Original pick: Doug Bodger

Doug Bodger actually was not a bad selection, but there are better options available like Kevin Hatcher.
Kevin Hatcher was a really productive defenseman when he played for the Washington Capitals from the mid 80s the early 90s.
Hatcher would be that true number 1 defenseman the Penguins were looking for in the 80s but never got.

10. Vancouver Canucks-(G) Kirk McLean
Original pick: JJ Daigneault

Kirk McLean was originally drafted in the 6th round by the New Jersey Devils then traded to the Canucks in 1987;
he went on to have 10 and half amazing seasons in Vancouver and even was a finalist for the Vezina in 1989 and 1992.
The Vancouver Canucks really did need a goalie and Kirk McLean is the best goalie in the draft after Patrick Roy.

11. Hartford Whalers-(RW) Stephane Richer
Original pick: Sylvain Cote

The Hartford Whalers really needed a defenseman, but they also have a need for a Top 6 RW and Stephane Richer fits the bill.
Richer is really underrated because he played on some stacked teams but was a great player when he played for the Montreal Canadiens.
Stephane Richer would be a great fit on a line with Ron Francis.

12. Calgary Flames-(LW) Eddie Olzyck
Original Pick: Gary Roberts

Eddie Olzyck was a pretty good player early on in his career with the Chicago Black Hawks and Toronto Maple Leafs.
Because Olzyck was such a great player early on in his career, this ends up being a better pick than Gary Roberts.
Roberts was a late bloomer and didn't make significant contribution til the 87-88 season;
Olzyck would be an immediate fit with Dan Quinn and Hakan Loob.

13. Minnesota North Stars-(D) Al Aifrate
Original Pick: David Quinn

Al Aifrate's career was hampered due to injuries but when healthy he had one of the most lethal shots in the game.
For the North Stars, adding a defenseman with that type of weapon is a huge boost to their Powerplay.

14. New York Rangers-(D) Jeff Brown
Original Pick: Terry Carkner

Jeff Brown was a very solid point producing defenseman in the NHL for 8 years.
From 1987-1994, Brown put up ove 50 points 6x times and scored at least 10 goals in 7 of them.
Jeff Brown would be a good top 4 defenseman for the New York Rangers.

15. Quebec Nordiques-(C/LW) Cliff Ronning
Original Pick: Trevor Steinburg

Cliff Ronning was a great NHL pro, he played in the NHL for 18 years for 7 different NHL teams.
In 1,137 regular season games, Ronning totaled 869 points and he also put up 86 points in 126 playoff games.
Cliff Ronning was also a versitaile forward, capable of playing center and wing.
Ronning would be a great fit on the line as either the pivot for the Anton and Marian Statsny or on the Wing alongside Dale Hunter.

16. Pittsburgh Penguins-(LW/RW) Shayne Corson
Original pick: Roger Belanger

Shayne Corson is the perfect fit to play on the wing alongside Mario Lemieux.
If players such as Rob Brown and Kevin Stevens have put up monster numbers playing alongside Lemieux, Corson would could definately thrive in that role.
Corson isn't much a scorer as he only had 273 career goals but he brings some toughness and grit as he had 2,357 career PIM.
Not only does Corson have toughness and grit, but he great instincs on both sides of the puck, which is important when playing with Lemieux.

17. Washington Capitals-(D) Sylvain Cote
Original Pick: Kevin Hatcher

This is not the flashy of the sexy pick but Sylvain Cote was a very solid defenseman in the NHL for 19 seasons.
He originally was drafted by the Hartford Whalers before being traded to the Washington Capitals, where he had is most productive years.
After losing Kevin Stevens, the Capitals need to get a defenseman that is reliable and can log tons of minutes, Cote fits that bill.

18. Buffalo Sabres-(D) Doug Bodger
Original pick: Mikael Andersson

Doug Bodger was actually a really solid defenseman for over a decade, he played in over 1,000 NHL games in the career, majority with Buffalo and Pittsburgh.
While the Buffalo Sabres already have Phil Housley and Mike Ramsey, you can never have too many good defenseman.
Bodger woud be a great fit on the Buffalo blueline along with Phil Housley and Mike Ramsey.

19. Boston Bruins-(D) Don Sweeney
Original pick: Dave Pasin

Don Sweeney wasn't drafted until the 8th round by the Boston Bruins but because this draft actually doesn't have many great defenseman, Sweeney gets taken here.
The Bruins really need Sweeney because ranks top 10 in many Bruins team statistics, including fourth overall in total games played.
By no means is this a sexy or standout pick but Sweeney will a reliable defenseman in Boston for 15 seasons.

20. New York Islanders-Michal Pivonka
Original Pick: Duncan MacPherson

Michal Pivonka played his entire NHL career with the Washington Capitals, totaling 599 points in 825 games.
He has the third most assists in Capitals history with 418, trailing only Nicklas Backstrom and Alexander Ovechkin.
Drafting Michal Pivonka would allow the Islanders to trade Butch Boring for a Top 4 defenseman they need.

21. Edmonton Oilers-Petr Svoboda
Original pick: Selmar Odelein

The Edmonton Oilers were stacked on offense and didn't really any forwards so they draft the best available defenseman, Petr Svoboda.
This is a good pick early on because Svoboda could could form a solid 2nd pair defenseman alongside Charlie Huddy.
Svoboda wouldn't have to rushed like he did with the Canadiens, which could have helped him in his development.

Winners:

Pittsburgh Penguins-The Penguins add Mario Lemieux, Kevin Hatcher and Shayne Corson in the 1984 draft, walking away as the biggest winners in this draft.
Kevin Hatcher and Shayne Corson are a massive upgrade over Doug Bodger and Roger Belanger.

Montreal Canadiens-The Montreal Candiens added Gary Suter and Scott Mellanby in the 1984, improving their team drastically from the previous season.
Gary Suter is a huge upgrade over Petr Svoboda and Scott Mellanby is an upgrade over Shayne Corson.

Detroit Red Wings-The biggest upgrade in the draft is the Detroit Red Wings drafting Kirk Muller over Shawn Burr.
Yzerman and Muller would form a great 1-2 punch down the middle for the Red Wings.

Vancouver Canucks-Kirk McLean is a huge upgrade over JJ Daigneault.
Kirk McLean was a top notch goalie in the league for a decade whereas Daigneault was a bottom pair defenseman.

New Jersey Devils-Kirk Muller was a great pick for the Devils but he is not Patrick Roy.
With Patrick Roy in the Net, the New Jersey Devils would immediately improve drastically in the 1986 season

Losers:

Washington Capitals-The Washington Capitals are the biggest losers;
they lost Kevin Hatcher, an all star defenseman and replaced him with Sylvain Cote, a defenseman who never cracked the all star team.

Los Angeles Kings-Gary Roberts was a great NHL pro but he isn't Luc Robitaille.
Without Luc Robitaille on the Team. the Kings lose a ton of goal scoring.

Calgary Flames-Even though Eddie Olcyzk was a great player in the league in the 80s, his best yearss were with the Maple Leafs after getting traded.
Gary Roberts played a huge role in the 1989 Stanley cup team, so they might not win that years' championship anymore.

Boston Bruins-The Boston Bruins got Don Sweeney who was a pretty solid defenseman, but compared to the Red Wings and Canadiens, who are both in their Division,
they got didn't get much better.

Minnesota North Stars-Minnesota North Stars get Al Aifrate, the defenseman with a big shot
but better defenseman were taken after him like Jeff Brown and Doug Bodger.