NHL intra-league draft explained

The NHL intra-league was an annual draft held by the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1952 to 1975. The intra-league draft was created to help address the league’s competitive balance issues during the Original Six era, as the Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens, and Toronto Maple Leafs were the only teams to win the Stanley Cup in the ten years preceding the draft’s inception.^[1] It had an inauspicious start as the first two drafts featured no players being selected, and after the third saw only one player selected, the fourth draft wasn’t even held due to unanimous agreement among the six NHL teams that none of the available players was worth drafting.^[1] Eventually more players started being selected in the intra-league draft and, with the exception of 1967 when the NHL expanded in size from six to twelve teams, it was held every year through 1975. It was not held in 1976 and was replaced by the NHL waiver draft in 1977.^[2]

Rules

From 1956 until 1975, the intra-league draft was held in June during the NHL’s summer meetings. A few days prior to the intra-league draft each NHL club would be required to turn in a list of players to protect from selection. Players under a certain number of professional hockey seasons played and below a minimum number of NHL games played were exempt, as were amateur players NHL clubs owned the rights to.^[1]

The order of the intra-league draft was the reverse of the previous season’s standings, the non-playoff teams picking twice before playoff teams. Once a team claimed an unprotected player from another team, that team would be required to drop a player from their protection list. The team losing the player would receive a cash payment set by the league before the draft. In the first draft in 1952 this cash payment was set at $10,000 and by the final intra-league draft it increased to $40,000.^[1]

Drafts

1952

The 1952 NHL intra-league draft was held on October 5, 1952. No selections were made.^[1]

1953

The 1953 NHL intra-league draft was held on September 10, 1953. No selections were made.^[1]

1954

The 1954 NHL intra-league draft was held on September 15, 1954. One selection was made.^[3]

1955

The 1955 NHL intra-league draft was to have taken place on September 7, 1955, however no meeting was held due to a lack of desirable players to select. Protection lists were submitted on September 1. The Intra-League draft was permanently moved to the NHL’s summer meetings in June the following year.^[4]

1956

The 1956 NHL intra-league draft was held on June 6, 1956. Two selections were made.^[5]

Round	Pick	Player	Claimed by	Claimed from
1	1			Toronto Maple Leafs
	2			New York Rangers

1957

The 1957 NHL intra-league draft was held on June 5, 1957. Five selections were made.^{[6] [7]}

Round	Pick	Player	Claimed by	Claimed from
1	1			Detroit Red Wings
	2		Chicago Black Hawks	Detroit Red Wings
	3			Montreal Canadiens
	4			New York Rangers
2	5		Boston Bruins	Montreal Canadiens

1958

The 1958 NHL intra-league draft was held on June 4, 1958. Ten selections were made.^{[8] [9]}

Round	Pick	Player	Claimed by	Claimed from
1	1			Montreal Canadiens
	2			New York Rangers
	3		Toronto Maple Leafs	Montreal Canadiens
	4		Chicago Black Hawks	Detroit Red Wings
	5			New York Rangers
	6		Montreal Canadiens	New York Rangers
2	7		Chicago Black Hawks	Toronto Maple Leafs
	8		Boston Bruins	New York Rangers
	9		Montreal Canadiens	New York Rangers
3	10		Boston Bruins	Chicago Black Hawks

1959

The 1959 NHL intra-league draft was held on June 10, 1959. Eight selections were made.^{[10] [11] [12]}

Round	Pick	Player	Claimed by	Claimed from
1	1			Toronto Maple Leafs
	2			Montreal Canadiens
	3		Detroit Red Wings	Chicago Black Hawks
	4		New York Rangers	Chicago Black Hawks
	5			New York Rangers
2	6		New York Rangers	Toronto Maple Leafs
	7		Boston Bruins	Chicago Black Hawks
3	8		Boston Bruins	Detroit Red Wings

1960

The 1960 NHL intra-league draft was held on June 8, 1960. Nine selections were made.^[13]

Round	Pick	Player	Claimed by	Claimed from
1	1			Detroit Red Wings
	2			Montreal Canadiens
	3		New York Rangers	Toronto Maple Leafs
	4		Boston Bruins	New York Rangers
	5		Detroit Red Wings	New York Rangers
	6		Toronto Maple Leafs	Boston Bruins
2	7		New York Rangers	Chicago Black Hawks
	8		Boston Bruins	Montreal Canadiens
	9		Toronto Maple Leafs	Montreal Canadiens

1961

The 1961 NHL intra-league draft was held on June 14, 1961. Eight selections were made.^{[14] [15]}

Round	Pick	Player	Claimed by	Claimed from
1	1			Chicago Black Hawks
	2			Montreal Canadiens
	3			Chicago Black Hawks
	4		Chicago Black Hawks	Boston Bruins
	5			Chicago Black Hawks
2	6		Chicago Black Hawks	Boston Bruins
3	7		New York Rangers	Chicago Black Hawks
4	8		Boston Bruins	New York Rangers

1962

The 1962 NHL intra-league draft was held on June 6, 1962. Nine selections were made.^[16]

Round	Pick	Player	Claimed by	Claimed from
1	1			New York Rangers
	2			Toronto Maple Leafs
	3		Boston Bruins	Detroit Red Wings
	4		Detroit Red Wings	Montreal Canadiens
	5		New York Rangers	Toronto Maple Leafs
2	6		Boston Bruins	New York Rangers
	7		Detroit Red Wings	New York Rangers
	8		New York Rangers	Chicago Black Hawks
	9		Toronto Maple Leafs	Chicago Black Hawks

1963

The 1963 NHL intra-league draft was held on June 5, 1963. Six selections were made.^{[17] [18]}

Round	Pick	Player	Claimed by	Claimed from
1	1			New York Rangers
	2		New York Rangers	Detroit Red Wings
	3		Boston Bruins	Detroit Red Wings
	4		Detroit Red Wings	Boston Bruins
2	5		Detroit Red Wings	New York Rangers
3	6		Detroit Red Wings	Chicago Black Hawks

1964

The 1964 NHL intra-league draft was held on June 10, 1964. Seven selections were made.^{[19] [20]}

Round	Pick	Player	Claimed by	Claimed from
1	1			Boston Bruins
	2		Boston Bruins	New York Rangers
	3			Montreal Canadiens
	4			Montreal Canadiens
2	5		Detroit Red Wings	Chicago Black Hawks
3	6		Detroit Red Wings	Boston Bruins
	7		Toronto Maple Leafs	Detroit Red Wings

1965

The 1965 NHL intra-league draft was held on June 9, 1965. Seven selections were made.^{[21] [22]}

Round	Pick	Player	Claimed by	Claimed from
1	1			Toronto Maple Leafs
	2			Montreal Canadiens
	3			Toronto Maple Leafs
	4			Chicago Black Hawks
2	5		Boston Bruins	Chicago Black Hawks
3	6	Norm Schmitz	Boston Bruins	Montreal Canadiens
4	7		Boston Bruins	New York Rangers

1966

The 1966 NHL intra-league draft was held on June 15, 1966. Seven selections were made and twelve players total changed teams.^{[23] [24] [25]}

Round	Pick	Player	Claimed by	Claimed from	Compensation
1	1				claim: John Brenneman
	2			New York Rangers	claim: Max Mestinsek
	3		Toronto Maple Leafs		claim: Wally Boyer
	4	Wally Boyer		Montreal Canadiens	claim: Al MacNeil
2	5	Al MacNeil	New York Rangers	Montreal Canadiens	claim: Mike McMahon Jr.
	6		Detroit Red Wings	Montreal Canadiens	claim: Pat Quinn
3	7		Detroit Red Wings	New York Rangers	claim: Bryan Campbell

1968

The 1968 NHL intra-league draft was held on June 12, 1968. Eleven selections were made and 17 players total changed teams.^{[26] [27] [28]} Protection lists were released prior to the draft.^[26]

Round	Pick	Player	Claimed by	Claimed from	Compensation
1	1				claim: Larry Cahan
	2				claim: Gary Marsh
	3			Oakland Seals	claim: George Konik
	4		Toronto Maple Leafs		claim: Larry Hillman
	5	Larry Hillman		New York Rangers	claim: Bill Plager
	6			New York Rangers	cash
	7				claim: Jean Gauthier
2	8		Minnesota North Stars	Philadelphia Flyers	cash
	9		St. Louis Blues		cash
3	10		Philadelphia Flyers	Minnesota North Stars	claim: Bill Sutherland
4	11	Bill Sutherland	Toronto Maple Leafs	Minnesota North Stars	claim: Duane Rupp

1969

The 1969 NHL intra-league draft was held on June 11, 1969. 16 selections were made and 22 players total changed teams.^{[29] [30] [31]} Protection lists were released prior to the draft.^[29]

Round	Pick	Player	Claimed by	Claimed from	Compensation
1	1				cash
	2			Montreal Canadiens	claim: Jack Norris
	3				claim: Bill Speer
	4			Chicago Black Hawks	cash
	5			Montreal Canadiens	claim: Jean-Guy Gendron
	6			Chicago Black Hawks	cash
	7			Pittsburgh Penguins	claim: Al Smith
	8		Montreal Canadiens	Toronto Maple Leafs	cash
2	9		Minnesota North Stars	Boston Bruins	cash
	10		Chicago Black Hawks	St. Louis Blues	claim: Bobby Schmautz
	11		Pittsburgh Penguins	Detroit Red Wings	cash
	12		St. Louis Blues		cash
3	13		Minnesota North Stars	Pittsburgh Penguins	cash
	14		Pittsburgh Penguins		claim: Forbes Kennedy
	15		St. Louis Blues	Chicago Black Hawks	cash
4	16		Chicago Black Hawks	Los Angeles Kings	cash

1970

The 1970 NHL intra-league draft was held on June 9, 1970. 13 selections were made and 17 players total changed teams.^{[32] [33] [34]}

Round	Pick	Player	Claimed by	Claimed from	Compensation
1	1				claim: Bill Inglis
	2				cash
	3				claim: Dick Cherry
	4		Montreal Canadiens		claim: Ted Harris
	5				cash
	6		Minnesota North Stars	Rochester Americans (AHL)	cash
	7			Los Angeles Kings	claim: Craig Cameron
	8			Hershey Bears (AHL)	cash
	9	Gerry Lemire	New York Rangers	St. Louis Blues	cash
	10		Detroit Red Wings	Phoenix Roadrunners (WHL)	cash
2	11		Oakland Seals	Vancouver Canucks (WHL)	cash
	12		Minnesota North Stars	Pittsburgh Penguins	cash
	13		St. Louis Blues	Phoenix Roadrunnners (WHL)	cash

1971

The 1971 NHL intra-league draft was held on June 8, 1971. 23 selections were made and 25 players total changed teams.^{[35] [36] [37]} The draft lasted a record 13 rounds due to a loophole exploited by Buffalo Sabres general manager Punch Imlach, who noticed there was no rule preventing a team from reclaiming a player it had dropped from its protection list for a previous selection. Buffalo was involved in every selection from the fourth-round through the end of the draft.

Round	Pick	Player	Claimed by	Claimed from	Compensation
1	1				cash
	2				claim: Jim Rutherford
	3				cash
	4		Pittsburgh Penguins	Chicago Black Hawks	cash
	5			Chicago Black Hawks	cash
	6			Buffalo Sabres	cash
	7				cash
	8			Buffalo Sabres	cash
	9			New York Rangers	cash
2	10		California Golden Seals	Toronto Maple Leafs	cash
	11		Vancouver Canucks	Detroit Red Wings	cash
	12		Pittsburgh Penguins	New York Rangers	cash
	13		Buffalo Sabres	Toronto Maple Leafs	cash
	14		Philadelphia Flyers	Boston Bruins	claim: Garry Peters
3	15		California Golden Seals	Boston Bruins	cash
	16		Vancouver Canucks		cash
	17		Buffalo Sabres	Montreal Canadiens	cash
	18			Montreal Canadiens	claim: Bob Murdoch
4			Buffalo Sabres	Buffalo Sabres	cash
	19	Rene Robert	Pittsburgh Penguins	Buffalo Sabres	cash
5			Buffalo Sabres	Buffalo Sabres	cash
6	20		Buffalo Sabres	Minnesota North Stars	cash
7		Reg Fleming	Buffalo Sabres	Buffalo Sabres	cash
8	21		Buffalo Sabres	Pittsburgh Penguins	cash
9		Reg Fleming	Buffalo Sabres	Buffalo Sabres	cash
10	22		Buffalo Sabres	Detroit Red Wings	cash
11		Reg Fleming	Buffalo Sabres	Buffalo Sabres	cash
12	23		Buffalo Sabres	Toronto Maple Leafs	cash
13		Reg Fleming	Buffalo Sabres	Buffalo Sabres	cash

1972

The 1972 NHL intra-league draft was held on June 5, 1972. Six selections were made and eight players total changed teams.^{[38] [39] [40]}

Round	Pick	Player	Claimed by	Claimed from	Compensation
1	1				cash
	2				claim: Bill Orban
	3				cash
	4				claim: Brad Selwood
2	5		Vancouver Canucks	Toronto Maple Leafs	cash
	6		Los Angeles Kings		cash

1973

The 1973 NHL intra-league draft was held on June 12, 1973. Six selections were made and seven players total changed teams.^{[41] [42]}

Round	Pick	Player	Claimed by	Claimed from	Compensation
1	1				cash
	2				cash
	3				claim: Bill Plager
	4				cash
	5				cash
	6		Buffalo Sabres	St. Louis Blues	cash

1974

The 1974 NHL intra-league draft was held on June 10, 1974. Five selections were made and six players total changed teams.^{[43] [44] [45]}

Round	Pick	Player	Claimed by	Claimed from	Compensation
1	1				claim: Walt McKechnie
	2				cash
	3				cash
	4				cash
	5				cash

1975

The 1975 NHL intra-league draft was held on June 17, 1975. Two selections were made.^{[46] [47]} The Pittsburgh Penguins were not permitted to participate due to bankruptcy.

Round	Pick	Player	Claimed by	Claimed from	Compensation
1	1				cash
	2			New York Rangers	cash

External links

• Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia

Notes and References

1. Web site: Parsons . Mark . The Genesis of the NHL Intra-League Draft . Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia . March 31, 2023 . April 6, 2013.
2. Web site: Parsons . Mark . The NHL Waiver Draft — Origins and The Rules . Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia . March 31, 2023 . November 8, 2013.
3. Web site: Parsons . Mark . 1954 NHL Intra-League Draft . Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia . March 31, 2023 . April 6, 2013.
4. Web site: Parsons . Mark . 1955 NHL Intra-League Draft . Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia . March 31, 2023 . April 6, 2013.
5. Web site: Parsons . Mark . 1956 NHL Intra-League Draft . Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia . March 31, 2023 . April 6, 2013.
6. Web site: Parsons . Mark . 1957 NHL Intra-League Draft . Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia . March 31, 2023 . April 6, 2013.
7. Web site: 1957 NHL Intraleague Draft Picks at hockeydb.com . www.hockeydb.com . . March 31, 2023.
8. Web site: Parsons . Mark . 1958 NHL Intra-League Draft . Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia . March 31, 2023 . April 6, 2013.
9. Web site: 1958 NHL Intraleague Draft Picks at hockeydb.com . www.hockeydb.com . March 31, 2023.
10. Web site: Parsons . Mark . 1959 NHL Intra-League Draft . Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia . March 31, 2023 . April 12, 2013.
11. Web site: 1959 NHL Intraleague Draft Picks at hockeydb.com . www.hockeydb.com . March 31, 2023.
12. Web site: Nanaimo Daily News from Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada on June 9, 1959 · 12 . Newspapers.com . April 2, 2023 . June 9, 1959.
13. Web site: Parsons . Mark . 1960 NHL Intra-League Draft . Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia . March 31, 2023 . April 12, 2013.
14. Web site: Parsons . Mark . 1961 NHL Intra-League Draft . Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia . March 31, 2023 . April 14, 2013.
15. Web site: 1961 NHL Intraleague Draft Picks at hockeydb.com . www.hockeydb.com . March 31, 2023.
16. Web site: Parsons . Mark . 1962 NHL Intra-League Draft . Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia . March 31, 2023 . April 14, 2013.
17. Web site: Parsons . Mark . 1963 NHL Intra-League Draft . Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia . March 31, 2023 . April 14, 2013.
18. Web site: Logansport Pharos-Tribune from Logansport, Indiana on June 6, 1963 · Page 17 . Newspapers.com . April 2, 2023 . en . June 6, 1963.
19. Web site: Parsons . Mark . 1964 NHL Intra-League Draft . Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia . March 31, 2023 . October 27, 2012.
20. Web site: The Tennessean from Nashville, Tennessee on June 11, 1964 · Page 34 . Newspapers.com . April 2, 2023 . June 11, 1964.
21. Web site: Parsons . Mark . 1965 NHL Intra-League Draft . Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia . March 31, 2023 . October 21, 2012.
22. Web site: The Tennessean from Nashville, Tennessee on June 10, 1965 · Page 43 . Newspapers.com . April 2, 2023 . June 10, 1965.
23. Web site: Parsons . Mark . 1966 NHL Intra-League Draft . Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia . March 30, 2023 . November 18, 2012.
24. Web site: 1966 NHL Intraleague Draft Picks at hockeydb.com . www.hockeydb.com . March 30, 2023.
25. Web site: The Burlington Free Press from Burlington, Vermont on June 16, 1966 · Page 6 . Newspapers.com . April 2, 2023 . June 16, 1966.
26. Web site: Parsons . Mark . 1968 NHL Intra-League Draft . Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia . March 30, 2023 . October 26, 2012.
27. Web site: 1968 NHL Intraleague Draft Picks at hockeydb.com . www.hockeydb.com . March 30, 2023.
28. Web site: Playground Daily News from Fort Walton Beach, Florida on June 13, 1968 · Page 8 . Newspapers.com . March 30, 2023 . June 13, 1968.
29. Web site: Parsons . Mark . 1969 NHL Intra-League Draft . Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia . March 30, 2023 . October 21, 2012.
30. Web site: 1969 NHL Intraleague Draft Picks at hockeydb.com . www.hockeydb.com . March 30, 2023.
31. Web site: Panama City News-Herald from Panama City, Florida on June 12, 1969 · Page 14 . Newspapers.com . March 30, 2023 . June 12, 1969.
32. Web site: Parsons . Mark . 1970 NHL Intra-League Draft . Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia . March 29, 2023 . August 5, 2012.
33. Web site: 1970 NHL Intraleague Draft Picks at hockeydb.com . www.hockeydb.com . March 29, 2023.
34. Web site: The Mercury from Pottstown, Pennsylvania on June 10, 1970 · Page 20 . Newspapers.com . March 29, 2023 . June 10, 1970.
35. Web site: Parsons . Mark . 1971 NHL Intra-League Draft . Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia . March 29, 2023 . August 6, 2012.
36. Web site: 1971 NHL Intraleague Draft Picks at hockeydb.com . www.hockeydb.com . March 29, 2023.
37. Web site: Independent from Long Beach, California on June 9, 1971 · Page 38 . Newspapers.com . March 29, 2023 . June 9, 1971.
38. Web site: Parsons . Mark . 1972 NHL Intra-League Draft . Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia . March 28, 2023 . June 3, 2012.
39. Web site: 1972 NHL Intraleague Draft Picks at hockeydb.com . www.hockeydb.com . March 28, 2023.
40. Web site: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on June 6, 1972 · Page 19 . Newspapers.com . March 28, 2023 . June 6, 1972.
41. Web site: Parsons . Mark . 1973 NHL Intra-League Draft . Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia . March 28, 2023 . November 24, 2012.
42. Web site: 1973 NHL Intraleague Draft Picks at hockeydb.com . www.hockeydb.com . March 28, 2023.
43. Web site: Parsons . Mark . 1974 NHL Intra-League Draft . Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia . March 28, 2023 . November 24, 2012.
44. Web site: 1974 NHL Intraleague Draft Picks at hockeydb.com . www.hockeydb.com . March 28, 2023.
45. Web site: The Sedalia Democrat from Sedalia, Missouri on June 11, 1974 · Page 6 . Newspapers.com . March 28, 2023 . June 11, 1974.
46. Web site: Parsons . Mark . 1975 NHL Intra-League Draft . Historical Hockey Stats & Trivia . March 28, 2023 . November 24, 2012.
47. Web site: 1975 NHL Intraleague Draft Picks at hockeydb.com . www.hockeydb.com . March 28, 2023.