The run of defensemen picked in a row late in the 2002 draft lottery in the first round ends with the Capitals selecting longtime Kings and Oilers center Jarret Stoll 13th overall for the forward lines. Stoll , who was originally picked early in the second round (36th overall) by the Oilers in the 2002 draft, moves up into the top 15 to be selected by the Capitals and help their forward lines at the center position.
Stoll played over 800 career regular season games in the league and had two 20-goal seasons with the Kings and Oilers in the 2000s and 2010s.
The Canadiens had originally picked left wing Chris Higgins 14th overall in the 2002 draft lottery. Higgins played over a decade in the NHL, including five seasons with the Canadiens in the mid-to-late 2000s decade.
Instead of picking Higgins 14th overall in the 2002 draft lottery in the first round, the Habs select defenseman James Wisniewski just inside the top 15 in this reimagining of the 2002 draft class from over two decades ago. Wisniewski ironically played one season with the Canadiens in 2011, helping Montreal make the playoffs in the East with a second-place finish in the Northeast Division and 96 points in the regular season.
The Maple Leafs got great value out of picking center Matt Stajan 57th overall in the second round of the 2002 draft. Stajan slides up over 30 picks to be selected in the top 15 in the 2002 draft lottery in this hypothetical reimagining by the Edmonton Oilers in the first round.
Stajan was one just three centers who played over 1,000 career games and scored over 400 total points in the regular season from the 2002 draft class.
The Oilers originally picked Finnish center Jesse Niinimaki 15th overall in the first round of the 2002 draft lottery. Niinimaki was the only forward selected in the 2002 draft lottery who didn't play a single game in the NHL in his career in pro hockey.