The Answer is: Chet Pickard And Taylor Beck. What Is The Question?

When Ottawa drafted stepped up to the podium with the 15th overall pick in the 2008 NHL Draft, they had just traded their #18 pick and a 2009 3rd round pick to move up 3 spots and announced the name of  a tiny Swedish defenseman named Erik Karlsson.

February 13, 2013; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Ottawa Senators defenseman Erik Karlsson (65) skates the puck up ice against the Pittsburgh Penguins during the second period at the CONSOL Energy Center. The Pittsburgh Penguins won 4-2. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

We know the Karlsson story, but what ever became of those two picks that Ottawa used to get EK65?

The 18th pick in the 2008 draft was used by Nashville on goalie Chet Pickard from the Tri-City Americans of the WHL.  He never played a game in the NHL, and after 1 seasons in the AHL followed by 1 split between the AHL and ECHL and then 1 more in the ECHL, is playing this year in Sweden with the Djurgårdens IF Hockey club.

Taylor Beck was selected out of the Guelph Storm with the 70th pick in the 2009 draft.  He has spent the last 2 seasons in the AHL with the Milwaukee Admirals, and also has yet to play an NHL game.

I don’t know if Karlsson would have been available at 18, or if one of the 3 teams ahead of them would have picked him, or who Ottawa would have picked at #70 in 2009, but only 12 players selected after him out of  141 have played 20 or more NHL games.

The move paid dividends and will be looked back on as a very shrewd move by Bryan Murray. He got his man, and Sens Army is glad he did.