MacKinnon first pick in NHL draft, Drouin goes third

The Colorado Avalanche took Halifax Mooseheads centre Nathan MacKinnon with the first pick of the 2013 NHL draft.

The Avs, who won the draft lottery over the Florida Panthers, were true to their word Sunday at the Prudential Center. They had said they would pick MacKinnon over defenceman Seth Jones of the Portland Winterhawks.

“I’m a pretty competitive guy,” said MacKinnon. “It’s always be my dream as a kid to go No. 1, I’d be lying if I told you anything different. Obviously going up a guy like Seth Jones is very motivating, but my main goal was to win, I’m so happy I did that, this is crazy right now.”

MacKinnon was the consensus top player available after scoring 32 goals and 75 points in 44 games for the Mooseheads.

“It’s amazing how things have worked out in my hockey career,” adds MacKinnon. “It’s so exciting, and hopefully it’s just getting started. This is unbelievable, being apart of the Colorado Avalanche. I can’t wait to get to training camp.”

Jones, ranked No. 1 among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting, surprised many by slipping down and going fourth to the Nashville Predators.

The Florida Panthers opted to take Finnish centre Aleksander Barkov second and the Tampa Bay Lightning selected Halifax winger Jonathan Drouin third.

The Avs said they liked Jones, who took up hockey as a kid in Colorado while his father, Popeye Jones, was playing for the NBA’s Denver Nuggets, but wanted to draft a forward.

The six-foot, 182-pound MacKinnon, who does not turn 18 until Sept. 1, led the Mooseheads to the Memorial Cup.

He topped the tournament in scoring with 13 points (seven goals and six assists), including a hat trick in the championship game, and was chosen tournament MVP.

The native of Cole Harbour, N.S., scored 32 goals and added 43 assists in 44 regular season games.

“What makes Nathan stand out is that he has a real quickness with his read and react: his hockey sense, how he sees the ice and his vision,” said Dan Marr, director of NHL Central Scouting. “That is something special in a player. He is continuing to physically mature, but already he’s got a lot of grit in his game and he is a competitive player.”

Goaltender Zachary Fucale was also drafted from the Mooseheads, selected 36th overall by the Montreal Canadiens.

Halifax defenseman Mackenzie Weegar was chosen in the seventh round by the Florida Panthers, squeaking into the draft pick with just six selections left.

Twenty-two of first 30 picks taken from Canadian teams

The Carolina Hurricanes took Swedish centre Elias Lindholm with the fifth pick. The Calgary Flames, with three picks in the first round, chose Ottawa 67’s centre Sean Monahan at No. 6, Gatineau Olympiques left-winger Emile Poirier at No. 22 and Regina Pats left-winger Morgan Klimchuk at No. 28.

Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds defenceman Darnell Nurse was chosen seventh by the Edmonton Oilers. Finnish defenceman Rasmus Ristolainen went eighth to the Buffalo Sabres, who had two first-round selections and also took London Knights defenceman Nikita Zadorov at No. 16.

London centre Bo Horvat was selected ninth by the Vancouver Canucks, who traded goalie Cory Schneider to the New Jersey Devils in exchange for the pick.

The Dallas Stars took Russian right-winger Valeri Nichushkin at No. 10. The Philadelphia Flyers chose Rimouski Oceanic defenceman Samuel Morin with the 11th pick. The Phoenix Coyotes took London forward Max Domi at No. 12.

Prince Albert Raiders defenceman Josh Morrissey went to the Winnipeg Jets at No. 13. Swedish centre Alexander Wennberg was chosen 14th by the Columbus Blue Jackets, who also had three first-round picks and took Windsor Spitfires left-winger Kerby Rychel at No. 19 and Slovakian centre Marko Dano at No. 27.

The New York Islanders took Brandon Wheat Kings defenceman Ryan Pulock at No. 15. The Ottawa Senators picked Edmonton Oil Kings forward Curtis Lazar at No. 17.

The San Jose Sharks took Everett Silvertips defenceman Mirco Mueller with the 18th pick after swapping with the Detroit Red Wings, who dropped to 20 and chose Val-d’Or Foreurs right-winger Anthony Mantha. Detroit also wound up with the No. 58 choice in the same trade.

Rimouski centre Frederik Gauthier was picked 21st by the Toronto Maple Leafs. Swedish left-winger Andre Burakovsky went 23rd to the Washington Capitals. Medicine Hat Tigers forward Hunter Shinkaruk was chosen 24th by the Vancouver Canucks.

The Montreal Canadiens picked USA Hockey right-winger Michael McCarron at No. 25. The Anaheim Ducks took Seattle Thunderbirds defenceman Shea Theodore at No. 26.

Guelph Storm forward Jason Dickinson was chosen 29th by the Dallas Stars. The first round of the draft ended with Plymouth Whalers forward Ryan Hartman being taken by the Stanley Cup-champion Chicago Blackhawks.