The Vancouver Canucks selected defenseman Olli Juolevi with the fifth overall pick in the 2016 NHL Draft on Friday.

Olli Juolevi

Position: Defense
Height: 6-2
Weight: 183 pounds
Age: 18
Club: London (OHL)
Nationality: Finnish

GP	G	A	P	ES GPG	ES PPG	ES GF%
57	9	32	41	0.088	0.298	72.414

(Even-strength stats courtesy: prospect-stats.com)

Juolevi was fantastic in his first season in North America, recording nine goals and 32 assists and leading all rookies with a plus-38 rating after transferring from Jokerit's under-20 team in Finland to the OHL's London Knights.

But the young Finn really made his mark at the World Junior Championship, where he and fellow 2016 draft prospects Patrik Laine and Jesse Puljujarvi led their country to a gold medal in Helsinki. He finished the tournament with nine assists in seven games.

Juolevi is a great two-way defenseman who can play in any situation. With "elite-level vision and hockey sense," according to Elite Prospects, the 18-year-old is comparable to fellow Finnish blue-liner Olli Maatta, who also possesses great skating ability and skill.

The first defenseman off the board, Juolevi is also the third-highest Finnish blue-liner ever selected at the NHL Draft.

With the addition of Erik Gudbranson, Vancouver has six defenders under contract for next year. So despite Juolevi being as NHL-ready as any blue-liner on the board, it's a long shot he'll contribute next season.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The Edmonton Oilers selected forward Jesse Puljujarvi with the fourth overall pick in the 2016 NHL Draft on Friday.

Jesse Puljujarvi

Position: RW
Height: 6-3
Weight: 210 lbs
Age: 18
Club: Kärpät (Liiga)
Nationality: Finnish

GP	G	A	P
50	13	15	28

Puljujarvi entered the draft as the third-ranked European skater, bumped down a peg in light of American-born Auston Matthews' decision to play in Switzerland this past season, and ultimately listed behind countryman Patrik Laine, with whom he battled for the second spot for quite some time.

The 18-year-old is described as a big winger who combines size, skating, and skill; a smart player at both ends of the ice who compares well to Jamie Benn of the Dallas Stars, according to Elite Prospects.

Puljujarvi carries 71 games of Finnish Elite League experience with him, recording 17 goals and 39 assists (0.55 point per game) as a teenage pro. He also led the 2016 World Junior Championships in scoring with five goals and 12 assists for the dominant and gold medal winning Finnish side.

The Oilers get another promising winger to add to their stable of talented forwards. Edmonton is loaded with trade assets up front and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins is reportedly on the block, so it makes sense to add a blue-chip, cost-effective forward to the organization.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The Columbus Blue Jackets selected forward Pierre-Luc Dubois with the third overall pick in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft on Friday.

Pierre-Luc Dubois

Position: Left Wing
Height: 6-3
Weight: 202 pounds
Age: 17
Club: Cape Breton (QMJHL)
Nationality: Canadian

GP	G	A	P	ES GPG	ES PPG	ES GF%
62	42	57	99	0.468	1.048	66.667

(Even-strength stats courtesy: prospect-stats.com)

Dubois was NHL Central Scouting's top-ranked North American skater ahead of the draft, having shot up to No. 1 after a midterm ranking of seventh. After scoring only 10 goals in 54 games in his first season with Cape Breton, Dubois exploded in 2015-16, finishing with 42 goals, 99 points, and 112 penalty minutes in 65 games. He had seven goals and 12 points in 12 playoff games.

A "dynamic two-way winger," according to Elite Prospects, Dubois plays in all situations and possesses above-average hockey IQ. He's been compared to NHLers like James Neal and Patrick Marleau.

Dubois isn't as physical a player as many would hope considering his size, and his skating is thought to be his biggest downside.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

BUFFALO, N.Y. - The Washington Capitals have acquired forward Lars Eller from the Montreal Canadiens for two second-round picks. The Capitals traded second-round picks in 2017 and 2018 to the Canadiens for the 27-year-old Eller, who had 13 go...

BUFFALO, N.Y. - The Montreal Canadiens acquired forward Andrew Shaw from the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday for a pair of second round draft picks at the NHL draft. Montreal also traded forward Lars Eller to the Washington Capitals for second r...

What's old is new again.

The Toronto Maple Leafs officially revealed their new uniforms upon selecting Auston Matthews with the first overall pick in the draft Friday night.

Better look at #leafs new/old sweaters for 2016-17. pic.twitter.com/vYEwY3lsXe

— Chris Johnston (@reporterchris) June 24, 2016

James Mirtle of The Globe & Mail passed along a closer look at the inscription on the collar.

The jerseys were leaked Thursday night when the Leafs accidentally uploaded a video featuring the new look to their mobile app.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The Auston Matthews era is officially underway in Toronto, as the Maple Leafs locked down the consensus No. 1-ranked prospect in the 2016 Draft on Friday.

It's been a long time coming for the Maple Leafs and their fans, and Matthews officially donning blue and white set Twitter ablaze.

Some hopeful Maple Leafs fans here in Buffalo: pic.twitter.com/kHWNWtXYq5

— Seth Rorabaugh (@emptynetters) June 24, 2016

With the first overall selection in the 2016 NHL Draft, the Maple Leafs select Auston Matthews. #TMLtalk #TMLDraft pic.twitter.com/IC3ATySYPm

— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) June 24, 2016

.@MapleLeafs on the clock...Let's see who they select. Any guesses? ¯_(ツ)_/¯ #NHLDraft

— Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) June 24, 2016

Oh, @MapleLeafs take Auston Matthews... #NHLDraft

— Minnesota Wild (@mnwild) June 24, 2016

.@MapleLeafs who are you drafting

— ColumbusBlueJackets (@BlueJacketsNHL) June 24, 2016

Welcome to Toronto @A_Matthews34 Great to have you a part of #Leafnation

— Jake Gardiner (@Jgardiner272) June 24, 2016

Hey, Auston.
Our place.
Thursday, Nov. 3rd.

See you there 👀 pic.twitter.com/DtDrPsYPHY

— Buffalo Sabres (@BuffaloSabres) June 24, 2016

Toronto takes some guy. #NHLDraft

— Mark Lazerus (@MarkLazerus) June 24, 2016

BRB, purchasing Auston Matthews jersey.

— Arun Srinivasan (@Arunthings) June 24, 2016

AUSTON MATTHEWS pic.twitter.com/DmZyB3qtKT

— J.P. Nikota (@JPNikota) June 24, 2016

And the @MapleLeafs select.... pic.twitter.com/sBM8ziMHNp

— Todd Shapiro (@iamToddyTickles) June 24, 2016

Welcome to Toronto Auston Matthews!!!!!

— Patrick McKenzie Jr (@PatrickJames019) June 24, 2016

Auston Matthews is gonna be great #GoLeafsGo

— Matt (@2004sox) June 24, 2016

AUSTON MATTHEWS is a LEAF! I'm happy they didn't screw this up because the jersey was already ordered two weeks ago.

— Kris Noble (@KrisNoble71) June 24, 2016

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The Winnipeg Jets selected Patrik Laine with the second overall pick in the 2016 NHL Draft on Friday.

Patrik Laine

Position: LW/RW
Height: 6-4
Weight: 206 pounds
Age: 18
Club: Tappara Tampere (Liiga)
Nationality: Finnish

GP	G	A	P
46	17	16	33

Laine was can't-miss programming in the latter portion of his inspired, fervid, and impassioned crusade toward the draft floor. This is a prospect that made it his mission, on the ice and on the mic, to unseat Auston Matthews as the No. 1 pick in the NHL Draft.

This is a supremely talented, exceedingly dynamic, NHL-ready scorer with the skill set pundits liken to Alex Ovechkin, and who's as physically prepared to take on the challenge at the next level as any lottery pick. His robust frame, elite shot, and underrated vision and passing capability makes him a terror in the offensize zone. His one flaw, at least in an attacking capacity, would be his average skating ability compared to other top prospects.

He was a national force over the last calendar year for three separate teams. Laine helped Finland win gold at U-18 and U-20 tournaments before being named to the senior team for last month's World Championship. There, he scored seven goals and five assists in 10 games, earning MVP honors in a competition saturated with elite NHL talent.

Laine totalled 33 points in 46 regular-season games at the club level before absolutely exploding in the playoffs. He spliced together a personal highlight tape (see below) with 10 goals and five assists in 18 games, and was named, unsurprisingly, playoff MVP as Tappara Tampere captured the Liiga title.

The decorated sniper immediately becomes the best prospect in Winnipeg's loaded system, and jump to the front of the line, factoring on opening night.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

The Montreal Canadiens have traded Lars Eller to the Washington Capitals for second-round draft selections in 2017 and 2018, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman announced Friday.

Washington stated its intent to shore up the top six after a disappointing end to what was a record-breaking season, and Eller should be able to provide that upgrade.

He's hit double-digit goal totals in four of his six seasons with Montreal, performing predominantly in a bottom-six capacity. But always thought to have more to provide, he failed to live up to expectations in top-six opportunities.

He will earn $9 million over the next two seasons, but will only cost the Capitals $3.5 million against the salary cap.

The trade directly preceded the announcement that Montreal had acquired Andrew Shaw from the Chicago Blackhawks, also for two second-round draft selections.

Copyright © 2016 Score Media Ventures Inc. All rights reserved. Certain content reproduced under license.

BUFFALO, N.Y. - The Air Canada Centre was getting ready to shut down for the night in mid-January when two Toronto Maple Leafs players took the ice sporting an unfamiliar sweater with a logo from the past. It was the work of team president Br...