31. New York Islanders – Toni Rajala – LW
CS: #:11E —– THN: # 49 —– McK: 45
ISS: # 31 (Martin St. Louis) —– RLR: # 34(Martin Straka)
TSN: # 56 (Sami Kapanen)
Rajala’s goal scoring exploits do not come from a Bobby Hull-like shot. Rather, he it comes from his excellent puck skills, hockey sense and shooting accuracy. He broke Alexander Ovechkin’s scoring record with 19 points in the U-18 tournament.

32. Tampa Bay Lightning – Kyle Palmieri – C
CS: # 20NA —– THN: # 26 —– McK: 42
ISS: # 23 (Brian Gionta) —– RLR: # 26 (Tuomo Ruutu)
TSN: # 25 (Chris Drury)
Palmieri is a team player who plays much bigger than his size (5-10/191). He plays a gritty style of hockey and is not afraid to play in traffic and is a strong two-way center.

33. Colorado Avalanche – Calvin de Haan – D
CS: # 25NA —– THN: # 22 —– McK: 28
ISS: # 36 (Brian Campbell) —– RLR: # 20 (Tomas Kaberle)
TSN: # 23 (Tomas Kaberle)
Calvin is a solid puck-moving defenseman who plays an intelligent game and showed this season that he can thrive when given extra ice time. Once he adds some muscle to his wiry frame (6-0/170), de Haan has the chance to become a solid all-around d-man.

34. Atlanta Thrashers – Chris Brown – LW
CS: # 30NA —– THN: # 61 —– McK: # 40
ISS: # 34 (Taylor Pyatt) —– RLR: # 101 (Anthony Stewart)
TSN: # 39 (Jamie Langenbrunner)
Brown’s combination of size (6-2/191) and very good skating ability sets him up to be a power forward in the NHL – which will be an excellent addition to Ilya Kovalchuk and Evander Kane. Brown is also very responsible in his own as well, doing the little things to help defend.

35. Los Angeles Kings – Zach Budish – RW/C
CS: # 22NA —– THN: # 44 —– McK: 50
ISS: # 51 (Keith Tkachuk) —– RLR: # 29(Ryan Getzlaf)
TSN: # 42 (David Backes)
The Kings could look to add to their defense corps, but it is worth their while to reach a bit on Budish. He is former first round projection who suffered an ACL injury while playing football in high school. The injury hurt his draft position, but he is expected to be ready to play at the University of Minnesota. His size (6-4/230), heavy shot and all-around game could make Budish one of the steals of the draft – if he lasts into the second round.

36. Phoenix Coyotes – Tim Erixon – D
CS: # 5E —– THN: # 32 —– McK: 30
ISS: # 55 (Kenny Jonsson) —– RLR: # 23 (Ron Hainsey)
TSN: # 28 (Mattias Ohlund)
The solid two-way defenseman is the son of former Ranger Jan Erixon. While there isn’t any one part of his game that stands out, he is solid in all aspects of the game – as seen by his playing in the Swedish Elite League at the age of 18.

37. New York Islanders – Robin Lehner – G
CS: # 1E Goalie—– THN: # 52 —– McK: 57
ISS: # 6 Goalie (Not Available) —– RLR: # 69 (Mathieu Garon)
TSN: 47 (Henrik Lundqvist)
With Rick DiPietro a perennial injury waiting to happen, GM Garth Snow needs to address his goaltending situation. Lehner draws comparisons to fellow Swedish netminder Henrik Lundqvist. However at 6-3/220, Lehner is bigger than The King and is more willing to cut down the angles and challenges shooters with his butterfly style.

38. Dallas Stars – Dmitry Orlov – D
CS: # 9E —– THN: # 55 —– McK: 33
ISS: # 29 (Dan Hamhuis) —– RLR: # 61 (Patrice Brisebois)
TSN: # 44 (Trevor Daley)
With Sergei Zubov nearing the end of his career, the Stars look to fellow Russian Orlov as a replacement. Dmitry is an offensive d-man who likes to rush the puck as well as join the rush late. While he still needs to polish up his game in the defensive end, Orlov will contribute immediately on the PP because of his shot and hockey sense.

39. Ottawa Senators – Richard Panik – RW
CS: # 13E —– THN: # 31 —– McK: 54
ISS: # 35 (Marian Hossa or P. Stefan) —– RLR: # 60 (M. Hossa or L. Kasper)
TSN: # 38 (Marian Hossa)
As you can see, both ISS and RLR believe Panik can be a boom or bust type player. While his play is inconsistent, he does have the offensive package (scoring touch, puck handling and speed) and size (6-2/202) to be an impact player. He has all the tools, now he needs to find a box to put them in.

40. Edmonton Oilers – Charles-Oliver Roussel – D
CS: # 36NA —– THN: # 35 —– McK: 53
ISS: # 42 (Wade Redden) —– RLR: # 14 (Brad Stuart)
TSN: # 37 (Kris Letang)
Roussel is a solid two-way blueliner who kicked his game up a notch during the post-season. He plays a well-rounded game, and while he doesn’t have one calling card aspect to his game, he does not have any major weaknesses either.

41. Nashville Predators – Ethan Werek – C
CS: # 32NA —– THN: # 34 —– McK: 38
ISS: # 26 (Gary Roberts) —– RLR: # 46 (Nik Antropov)
TSN: # 41 (Alexi Ponikarovsky)
Werek originally wanted to go the NCAA route, but decided to play in the OHL with Kingston. He is the hard-nosed type of player every team wants. He will do the dirty work needed in front of the net to score. Werek made Canada’s 2008 World Junior A Challenge team and their 2009 U-18 team.

42. Nashville Predators – Stefan Elliott – D
CS: # 17NA —– THN: # 27 —– McK: 39
ISS: # 38 (Sergei Gonchar) —– RLR: # 41 (Paul Martin)
TSN: # 35 (Tom Gilbert)
With the back end of their back-to-back picks, Nashville drafts Elliott with an eye towards his offensive contributions. His puck-handling and passing skills make him a valuable weapon on the PP. Elliott likes to join the rush and will work deep in the offensive zone. He is still a work in progress in the defensive zone and he needs to be more physical.

43. San Jose Sharks – Ryan O’Reilly – C
CS: # 39NA —– THN: # 39 —– McK: 26
ISS: # 50 (Shawn Horcoff) —– RLR: # 39 (Sammy Pahlsson)
TSN: # 27 (Maxime Talbot)
The Sharks continue to misfire in the playoffs as the team is just missing that something extra. This is where O’Reilly can fit in. He has excellent hockey sense and is a team leader who very well may be a captain in the NHL. He is solid in his own end, and is one of the best penalty killers and faceoff men in the OHL. His offensive game in the NHL will be more as a playmaker than goal scorer.

44. Florida Panthers – Josh Birkholz – RW/C
CS: # 43NA —– THN: # 57 —– McK: 67
ISS: # 37 (Matt Cullen) —– RLR: # 97 (Torrey Mitchell)
TSN: # 52 (Dan Hinote)
The soon-to-be University of Minnesota freshman is a strong two-way forward who has good quickness and speed. Josh will use his speed to beat defenders wide as he cuts to the net. Birkholz has good size (6-1/182), but he needs to use it more as part of an overall need to be consistently more consistent.

45. Atlanta Thrashers – Brayden McNabb – D
CS: # 51 NA —– THN: # 54 —– McK: 60
ISS: # 43 (Hal Gill) —– RLR: # 66 (Matt Walker)
TSN: # 54 (Sean O’Donnell)
GM Donnie Waddell has the chance to make up for his mistake for trading Brayden Coburn for Alexei Zhitnik. The 6-4/200 McNab is a stay-at-home defenseman who does have the ability to move the puck and see the ice. McNabb plays a physical game, but doesn’t run around to throw hits. He does need to work on defensive positioning because speedy forwards can beat him wide.

46. Ottawa Senators – Edward Pasquale – G
CS: # 3NA Goalie —– THN: # 40 —– McK: 80
ISS: # 1 Goalie (Not Available) —– RLR: # 98 (Dany Sabourin)
TSN: Honorable Mention (Not Available)
Despite the acquisition of Pascal Leclaire and the development Brian Elliott, the Sens still need to address the position. Pasquale has good size (6-3/218) and athletic ability. When he is on his game, he will let the puck come to him rather than trying fight off shots. He is still needs to work on his consistency and stickhandling.

47. New York Rangers – Alex Chiasson – RW
CS: # 34NA —– THN: # 76 —– McK: 47
ISS: # 85 (Not Available) —– RLR: # 67 (Jochen Hecht)
TSN: 46 (Colby Armstrong)
At 6-3/187, Chiasson has the size to be your prototypical power forward. While he needs to work on his skating, Chiasson is a hard worker who goes to the net and does all of the little things you want from a physical forward – including being a strong forechecker. Chiasson will jump from the USHL to Boston University. McK scout Kevin Wey said he has “the most upside of any USHL prospect in the 2009 Draft.”

48. St. Louis Blues – Tomas Vincour – RW
CS: # 42NA —– THN: # 63 —– McK: 98
ISS: # 49 (Nik Antropov) —– RLR: # 83 (Tomas Kopecky)
TSN: # Not Rated (Not Available)
Vincour is still a work in progress, but he is a strong mix of skill and size (6-2/203) and is a hard worker. The Czech native has spent the last two seasons playing in the WHL and is ahead of most European born players when it comes to adapting to North American hockey. He is at his best on offense when he uses his hands and his hockey sense below the faceoff dots.

49. Colorado Avalanche – Olivier Roy – G
CS: # 2NA Goalie —– THN: # 38 —– McK: 68
ISS: # 2 Goalie (Not Available) —– RLR: # 56 (Manny Legace)
TSN: # Honorable mention (Marc-Andre Fleury)
New GM Greg Sherman will look to another Roy (no relation to former Colorado goalie Patrick Roy) to solidify their goaltending position. Roy is looking to follow fellow Cape Breton netminders Marc-Andre Fleury and Ondrej Pavelec. Roy is a butterfly goalie who plays up at the top of the crease.

50. Toronto Maple Leafs – Cody Eakin – C
CS: # 29NA —– THN: # 64 —– McK: 46
ISS: # 46 (Darcy Tucker) —– RLR: # 49 (Mike Comrie)
TSN: # 53 (Darren Helm)
Eakin’s history of injuries probably cost him a shot at the first round (including two concussions). With that said, he is big-time goal scorer whose offense is fed by his speed, quickness and good hockey sense. At 5-11/176, he can’t afford to be overly physical, but he is aggressive and is an effective forechecker.

51. Carolina Hurricanes – Mac Bennett – D
CS: # 40NA —– THN: # N/R in Top 100 —– McK: 52
ISS: # 64 (Not Available) —– RLR: # 73 (Tobias Enstrom)
TSN: # 56 (petr Svoboda)
Bennett is a bit of project because he made a verbal commitment to the University of Michigan for 2010-11. An injury cost him some time this season (as well as scouting exposure), but he is a solid two-way d-man who is a tremendous skater – so much so that ISS says it is reminds them of Paul Coffey.

52. Tampa Bay Lightning – Matthew Hackett – G
CS: # 1NA Goalie —– THN: # Not Rated in Top 100 —– McK: 55
ISS: # 3 Goalie (Not Available) —– RLR: # 174 (Not Available)
TSN: # 43 (Mike Smith)
The Lightning’s goaltending situation is still up in the air so it would be worth it for Brian Lawton to draft the nephew of former NHLer Jeff Hackett. There a lot of GMs who regret passing on the 6-2/170 goalie in last year’s Draft. Hackett’s play during the season forced Plymouth (OHL) to trade Jeremy Smith – a former second round draft pick of the Nashville Predators. Hackett plays his angles well, which allows him to use his size to his advantage.

53. Vancouver Canucks – Tomas Tatar – C
CS: # 14E —– THN: # 51 —– McK: 35
ISS: # 41 (Ales Hemsky) —– RLR: # 35 (Jiri Hudler)
TSN: # 49 (Sergei Samsonov)
Replacing the Sedins continues in to the second round as Vancouver drafts Tatar. The 5-11/176 center is a potential top six forward based on scoring ability, skating and strong puck-handling skills. Tatar saved his best for big games as his 7 goals helped led Slovakia to the semi-finals in the World Juniors and he scored 5 goals in 13 games in Slovak Extraleague play.

54. New Jersey Devils – Jean-Francois Berube – G
CS: # 10NA Goalie —– THN: # 43 —– McK: 109
ISS: # 11 Goalie (Not Available) —– RLR: # 45 (Martin Biron)
TSN: # Honorable Mention (Not Available)
Martin Brodeur’s injury showed that the Devils need to start thinking about life after Brodeur. New Jersey has not had much luck in drafting a successor (see Ari Ahonen). Berube is a bit of a wildcard because he has been stuck behind Jake Allen in Montreal (QMJHL). Berube will be the main benefactor of Steve Mason’s super rookie season because Mason only played 6 games in his draft year. When he is on his game, Berube’s positioning is solid and het lets the puck come to him rather than fighting the puck.

55. Washington Capitals – Eric Gelinas – D
CS: # 38 NA —– THN: # 46 —– McK: 36
ISS: # 82 (Not Available) —– RLR: # 25 (Cam Barker)
TSN: # Honorable mention (Not Available)
Gelinas is an attractive prospect because of his size (6-3/185) and strong skating skills. He is more of an offensive defenseman at this point in his career and is valuable player on the PP. He is still a work in progress in his own end, but he does use his long reach well. One concern is that he only had 2 goals and 4 assists in his final 23 games last season.

56. New York Islanders – Kenny Ryan – RW
CS: # 56NA —– THN: # 66 —– McK: 29
ISS: # 59 (Brooks Laich) —– RLR: # 47 (Andrew Ladd)
TSN: # Honorable Mention (Not Available)
The Isles continue stocking up their organization with the selection of the solid two-way RW. Ryan, who will be attending Boston College, is a very good skater who has speed to beat defenders wide. He uses those assets to be a solid forechecker who has the ability to get back and help out in the defensive zone.

57. San Jose Sharks – Anton Lander – LW
CS: # 19E —– THN: # 50 —– McK: 75
ISS: # 47 (Mikko Koivu) —– RLR: # 64 (Niklas Sundstrom)
TSN: # Honorable Mention (Not Available)
Muck like Ryan O’Reilly, Anton Lander is a hard worker who features very good leadership abilities who plays hard until the final whistle. He has some scoring ability, but he is more of a passer than scorer. His skating and hockey sense make him an effective forechecker and solid contributor on defense.

58. Toronto Maple Leafs – Scott Stajcer – G
CS: # 5NA Goalie —– THN: # N/R in Top 100 —– McK: 34
ISS: # 4 Goalie (Not Available) —– RLR: # 115 (Not Available)
TSN: # Scott Stajcer (Not Available)
While Swedish free agent goalie Jonas Gustavsson is on the Leafs radar, Brian Burke should look to give new goalie coach Francois Allaire another toy to play with. Stajcer has good size (6-2/180) and switches between a stand-up and butterfly style of play. He is a solid athlete who has to pay attention to letting the puck come to him rather than doing too much to fight off the puck.

59. Chicago Blackhawks – Alex Hutchings – RW
CS: # 44NA —– THN: # 48 —– McK: 74
ISS: # 61 (Not Available) —– RLR: # 43 (Chris Kunitz)
TSN: # 58 (Chuck Kobasew)
His speed, skill and hockey sense make up for his lack of size (5-10/173). Despite his slight stature, Hutchings will go into the corners and play in traffic thanks to his skating skills. He has the ability to play in all situations, including both special teams.

60. Detroit Red Wings – Philippe Paradis – LW/C
CS: # 26NA —– THN: # 60 —– McK: 48
ISS: # 88 (Not Available) —– RLR: # 40 (Matt Stajan)
TSN: # 40 (Max Pacioretty)
Paradis uses his size (6-1/196) to be a grinding player who is developing a solid all-around game – after starting in Shawinigan as an offensive player. Paradis has developed into a forward who plays in all situations – including PP and PK. RLR says he is “capable of being a ‘Gordie Howe hat trick’ guy”.

61. Pittsburgh Penguins – Taylor Beck – LW
CS: # 67NA —– THN: # 48 —– McK: 66
ISS: # 53 (Scott Hartnell) —– RLR: # 130 (Not Available)
TSN: # Honorable Mention (Not Available)
Beck is a perfect complimentary player for a team that has the offensive talent the Penguins have. The 6-1/205 Beck isn’t fleet of foot, but he makes up for it with very good puck-handling ability. A McK scout compares Beck’s style to that of Milan Lucic and they believe he will be a better NHL player than junior player.

In a game that was all but decided after 15 minutes, a half dozen different Rangers scored in the team’s first six goal performance of the season. Scott Gomez led all scorers with three points (one goal, two assists), Nikolai Zherdev, Markus Naslund and Chris Drury had a goal and an assist each. Lauri Korpikoski added two assists for the Rangers, who got just their second regulation time victory in the month of February.

“This was big for a lot of reasons,” Brandon Dubinsky said of the victory, the team’s first in five games and second in nine. “The main reason is just because of the losses that preceded this. We felt we deserved to win those. Hopefully this is a sign of things to come.”

Scott Gomez said John Tortorella had been pushing the team to score a second goal after taking an early lead. Failure to do so resulted in losses in each of the new coach’s first two games in charge, at Toronto on Wednesday and against Florida Thursday. “Torts has definitely been preaching that, just get that second one and watch what will happen,” said Gomez.”I’m not saying we’re going to do that all the time but it was sort of ‘wow we can score two goals, here we go’.”

To put the offensive fireworks in perspective, it was the first time in 2009 that the team scored even five goals, a feat it has accomplished just three times all season. The six goals were equal to the team’s offensive output its last four games combined.

Despite these lackluster performances, or perhaps because of them, Tortorella has been quick to defend way the team has played his first two games in charge. “When you see your team compete, play well defensively and create scoring chances, you need to feel good about the team,” he said. “It’s very important as a coach to understand how your team is playing. It’s not always about the end result.”

Still, going into the game “I was worried,” he admitted. “Let’s say we’re down 1-0 and all this stuff that has been going on around this hockey team, I was just worried about their mental attitude.”

Tortorella did not need to worry long. The game had barely started when the Rangers got their first chance and first goal. Dubinsky fed Ryan Callahan who had no problem putting the puck in the net after only 28 seconds. The Garden faithful were still celebrating when Zherdev doubled the Rangers lead. New York ended up scoring four times in the first period-the first time that has happened since the third period of the Dec. 29 victory over the New York Islanders. The only other time the Rangers scored four times in a period this season was in the “Sarah Palin game” at Philadelphia on Oct. 11.(the Alaska governor dropped the celebratory first puck at the Wachovia Center).

Action of a different sort consumed the closing minutes of the game. Three different players were given game misconduct penalties by the officiating crew after several fights. Rangers players shrugged off the events. “Boys being boys,” said Dubinsky. “They wanted to leave with some pride [...] It got a little chippy but that is just part of the game.” Tortorella was glad to see his players stick up for one another. “That’s part of an identity you want to have,” he said. “You want to be a hard team to play against.”

In Thursday night’s game against the Colorado Avalanche, the New Jersey net minder gave his answer.

Brodeur stopped all 24 shots he faced in his return, a 4-0 win at the Prudential Center, for his 99th career regular season shut out.

The reigning Vezina Trophy winner led the Devils out of the locker room to a thunderous applause, and received another ovation the first time he handled the puck 36 seconds into the game.

“I kind of  moved the puck a couple of times before I got that first long (shot) from between the red and the blue, but it was still pretty nice to stop the first one,” said Brodeur.

Brodeur did not see much action in the beginning of the first period as the Devils kept offensive pressure on Colorado’s goalie, Andrew Raycroft.

A Johnny Oduya shot from the left wing hit the crossbar and shot out two minutes in, but New Jersey was not going to take rejection and at 4:38 the Devils’ offense gave Brodeur a lead to work with.

Travis Zajac brought the puck up the ice on the right wing and made a drop pass right onto the stick of Jamie Langenbrunner. Langenbrunner let a shot fly from the right circle and the puck zinged through the legs of Raycroft for the captain’s 19th goal of the season.

Zach Parise pushed the puck up to Zajac and was credited with the secondary assist, one of two on the night.

With Ryan Smyth banging in front of the net, Brodeur was tested as the first period went on. At 17:20, he stopped the Avs’ Milan Hejduk from point blank on the left side of the net.

The second period opened up with more of Colorado’s offensive pressure, but Brodeur was able to handle everything thrown at him.

With 5:40 gone in the second session, Wojtek Wolski moved the puck all the way around the crease and put the puck on goal from the left post, but the puck hit the crossbar and Parise was able to clear it out of harm’s way.

“He made a great play and came across and the guy was coming in and there were a lot of people. He hit his shot, and I got a little lucky,” explained Brodeur.

The Devils played strong defense in front of Brodeur, which pleased Coach Brent Sutter.

“We don’t want to make things hard on our goaltender. We take pride in that. When there were scoring chances, Marty made the saves and was under control. He was very poised. He didn’t get a lot of work, but when it was there he made the save,” explained Sutter.

The lack of action for Brodeur turned into quite a lot of work for Raycroft, who faced 32 shots on goal, eight more than Brodeur.

One shot that did not make the stat sheet actually became a great assist for the Devils.

Moments into a power play after Ruslan Salei was called for hooking, Paul Martin fired a shot from between the circles at the blue line. The puck caromed off the back boards to the left of Raycroft. Zajac looked like he was going to play the puck, and Raycroft turned to stop him, but the puck slid past to Patrick Elias, who was able to back hand the puck into the net behind Raycroft.

Later in the second period, after facing some sustained traffic in front of him, Brodeur made his first glove save, testing the repaired arm on a shot from the left wing by T.J. Hensick.

The crowd roared with approval and chanted “Marty! Marty! Marty!” in support of the net minder.

“I heard it, it was fun. The fans were great, and I expected that too. I’ve always had a great relationship with the fans and for them to show up, there were a lot of people out there and they were all into my comeback, and it was nice,” said an appreciative Brodeur.

The crowd received another chance to chant eight minutes into the third period, but this time the call was “MVP.”

Parise took control of the puck at the center line with Colorado’s Brett Clark hanging all over him. Parise out-skated and out-muscled Clark while taking the puck all the way up the right wing. He skated in front of Raycroft and roofed the puck over the goalie and in for the team’s third goal of the night.

The same line of Zajac-Parise-Langenbrunner also hammered the final nail into the Avs’ coffin at 16:47.

Martin fired a shot from the right point and Raycroft made the save, but Zajac was there to gather the rebound and put the puck in the net from the left side.

Martin, who was returning from being sidelined four games with an injury, had two assists, and was on ice for all four Devils goals.

Zajac and Langenbrunner each finished with a goal and an assist, while Parise had a goal and two assists. Oduya was also credited with an assist on Zajac’s goal.

With the win securely in place, focus turned to keeping Brodeur’s shutout bid alive.

Coming into the game, he was only five blankings away from trying Terry Sawchuk’s

all-time record of 103.

When asked after the game when he started thinking shutout, Brodeur replied, “Last night when I was dreaming.”

He added, “When you play games, you don’t really necessarily want a shut out but you go out there and you play. Sometimes it happens. I don’t ever really think about it, I don’t want to jinx myself. I just want to go out and win the game.”

And for the first time since October 22, 2008, that’s just what he did.