2014 NHL Draft: Draft Order and TV Schedule

The 2014 NHL Entry Draft kicks off tonight at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. Barring any trades, the Tampa Bay Lightning hold eight picks in the draft.

From the team:

TAMPA BAY - The Tampa Bay Lightning hold a total of eight picks, including two in the first round, at the 2014 NHL Entry Draft, which gets underway with picks 1-30 on Friday at 7 p.m. (NBCSN) at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. Rounds 2-7 will be held on Saturday, June 28 beginning at 10 a.m. (NHL Network).

The Lightning own a pair of selections in the first round (19th and 28th overall). In addition, they have picks in the second (50th overall), third (80th overall), fifth (140th and 142nd overall), sixth (170th overall) and seventh (200th overall) rounds. Tampa Bay's fourth-round selection was traded to St. Louis along with a fourth-round pick in 2013 in exchange for forward B.J. Crombeen and a fifth-round pick in 2014 on July 10, 2012.

The Bolts have made multiple first-round picks two times in franchise history, in 2012 (Slater Koekkoek, Andrei Vasilevskiy) and 2009 (Victor Hedman, Carter Ashton). They have made the 19th overall selection once (Vasilevskiy) and have never made the 28th overall selection.

The 2014 NHL Entry Draft is being held in Philadelphia for the first time. Most recently, the Philadelphia Flyers organization has hosted major successful NHL events, including the 2010 Stanley Cup Final and the 2012 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic.

Pick Summary:
Round - Overall
1 19th
1 28th
2 50th (traded to Vancouver)
3 80th
5 140th
5 142nd
6 170th
7 200th

*Tampa Bay's 4th-round pick, 110th overall, was previously traded to St. Louis

You can see the full draft order for all seven rounds here, though only the 1st round will be completed today. Rounds 2-7 will start tomorrow morning and run throughout the day.

As the day goes on, expect Tampa Bay to continue to be linked to defensemen in trade scenarios. With two first round picks and some big holes on the blue line depth chart, those rumors aren't going away, though intimations from Director of Scouting Al Murray suggest he's (for now) operating under the assumption that the Bolts will be using both of the picks to restock the cupboard.

For some more thoughts on the draft from the Raw Charge staff and around the Boltosphere, check out the Lightning Bloggers Roundtable.