Road to the 2016 NHL Draft: 55th Overall

By Alex Hobson

Welcome back to my "Road to the Draft" series. Yesterday, we took a look at the last ten 56th overall picks, highlighted by Johan Larsson and Lucas Lessio. There are now 55 days until the 2016 NHL Entry Draft, so today we'll look at the last ten 55th overall picks.

2006 - Denis Bodrov, D (Philadelphia Flyers)

Bodrov's only stint in North America came in 2009-10, where he played for the Adriondack Phantoms, recording four points in 17 games.

2007 - T.J. Galiardi, LW (Colorado Avalanche)

Galiardi enjoyed a decent NHL career as a bottom six forward for the Avalanche, San Jose Sharks, Calgary Flames, and Winnipeg Jets. He signed with the Malmo Redhawks of the SHL for the 2015-16 season after failing to sign with an NHL team that offseason.

2008 - Marco Scandella, D (Minnesota Wild)

Scandella has enjoyed a solid NHL career as a reliable defenseman for the Minnesota Wild, totaling 76 points in 302 games along the way.

2009 - Dmitri Orlov, D (Washington Capitals)

Orlov has developed into a steady defenseman for the Caps and is now a lock on their core. He acheived his career high in points this season with 29 points in 82 games.

2010- Petr Straka, RW (Columbus Blue Jackets)

Straka didn't make it in the Jackets organization, but now sits comfortably in the Flyers' farm system playing with the Lehigh Valley Phantoms. This season, he recorded 37 points in 64 games.

2011 - Ryan Sproul, D (Detroit Red Wings)

Sproul was drafted as a solid, big two way defenseman from the Sault St. Marie Greyhounds of the OHL and has since become a mainstay on the Wings' AHL team for a few years now. He's acheived a total of 91 points in 215 AHL games.

2012 - Chris Tierney, C (San Jose Sharks)

Tierney has been a reliable bottom six forward for the Sharks who has the potential to grow into a utility forward. He's recorded a total of 41 points in 122 games in his NHL career.

2013 - Artturi Lehkonen, LW (Montreal Canadiens)

The Montreal Canadiens need scoring, and now they potentiall have some, assuming Lehkonen makes the transition to North America. Playing in both the SM-Liiga and the SHL, he's put up great totals for his age. He's recorded 54 points in 96 games in the Liiga and 49 points in 96 games in the SHL.

2014 - Brandon Montour, D (Anaheim Ducks)

Montour came out of nowhere and became one of the best defensive prospects for the Ducks next to Shea Theodore. He's already recorded 67 points in 82 AHL games as a defenseman, so he's making a strong case to make the Ducks full time next season.

2015 - Yakov Trenin, C (Nashville Predators)

Trenin recently completed his second QMJHL season with the Gatineau Olympiques where he recorded 61 points in 57 games. He's so far totaled 128 points in 115 QMJHL games.

BEST PLAYER DRAFTED 55th: Marco Scandella

This list was easily one of the better ones I've done since we started at 60th overall, for both potential steals and current NHLers. Scandella is a regular top four defenseman on the Wild and has solid defensive skills and decent offensive ability to go with it.

RUNNER UPS: Dmitry Orlov, Chris Tierney

POTENTIAL STEALS: Artturi Lehkonen, Brandon Montour