6 NHL players who bailed on the team that drafted them like Isaac Howard

A pretty significant trade went down in the NHL on Wednesday, but it flew under the radar for the most part. The Tampa Bay Lightning traded Isaac Howard, their 2022 first-round pick, to theEdmonton Oilers in exchange for 2024 prospect Sam O'Reilly. He signed a three-year entry-level contract with his new team before announcing he would return to Michigan State for his senior season.

Howard was the 2025 Hobey Baker Award winner - basically the Heisman Trophy for college hockey - as a 52-point (26 goals, 26 assists) standout for the Spartans during the 2024-25 season. He was selected 31st overall by the Lightning ahead of his NCAA career.

Due to Howard deciding to remain in college for the last three years since his selection, he had not signed a professional contract with Tampa Bay. It's not clear why the team decided to trade him but it is possible that he either simply did not want to play for the Lightning or perhaps he didn't fit the front office's plans going forward.

6 NHL players Isaac Howard joins after ditching team that drafted him

Howard's situation is rarer than most hockey fans might think. Hundreds of NHL draftees, especially those picked in later rounds, do not end up stepping on the ice or even signing an entry-level contract with the team that picked them. But hardly do high-profile prospects get traded before their professional tenure begins. Here are six others that followed a similar path.

Kevin Hayes

Hayes was selected 24th overall by the Chicago Blackhawks at the 2010 NHL Draft but decided to play his full college career at Boston College. He helped the Eagles win the 2012 NCAA National Championship and became one of the highest-rated NHL prospects upon graduating in 2014.

However, Hayes and the Blackhawks could not come to an agreement on a contract by the league's deadline, and the then-22 year old became a free agent. He eventually signed with the New York Rangers and has played 12 seasons with five total teams.

Adam Fox

Fox was selected 66th overall at the 2016 NHL Draft by the Calgary Flames. He played three seasons of college hockey for Harvard before turning pro in 2019. However, the summer before he left college his signing rights were traded to the Carolina Hurricanes in a package that included veterans Dougie Hamilton and Michael Ferlund in exchange for Elias Lindholm and Noah Hanifin.

Calgary general manager at the time, Brad Trevliving, was pessimistic over getting Fox's signature after his college career so he decided to get some value back for him. But that's not where Fox's journey ended. Carolina may have acquired his rights but they never attempted to sign him due to a roster space issue. The then-21 year old was flipped in April of 2019 to the New York Rangers for two future second-round draft picks.

Fox has spent the last six seasons as a star defenseman for the Rangers, racking up 369 points (63 goals, 306 assists) in 431 appearances.

Cutter Gauthier

This was one of the most recent episodes of a top prospect departing for a different team before ever touching the ice for the club that drafted him. Gautier was picked fifth overall by the Philadelphia Flyers at the 2022 NHL Draft before playing two seasons at Boston College. In January of 2024 his rights were traded to the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for defenseman Jamie Drysdale and a 2025 second-round pick.

Shortly after the trade, speculation swirled around reports Gauthier refused to sign for the Flyers. Philadelphia management confirmed that he had informed the team of such a decision in May of 2023. Gauthier's reasons for that choice remain private but he's now played 83 total games for the Ducks and accrued 45 points (20 goals, 24 assists) in that time.

Jimmy Vesey

Vesey was selected 66th overall by the Nashville Predators during the 2012 NHL Draft and subsequently played all four years of his college career at Harvard, winning the Hobey Baker Award in 2016. By remaining in college for the entirety of his NCAA eligibility, Vesey allowed himself the opportunity to become a free agent and choose where he wanted to begin his NHL career.

However, Nashville decided to attempt and get a return for their third-round investment and flipped his rights to the Buffalo Sabres. They were no more successful than the Predators in negotiating with Vesey, who still became a free agent and ultimately signed with the New York Rangers. He would eventually venture back to Buffalo after three years in the Big Apple as part of his ongoing nine-year career spanning six different teams — including a return trip to the Rangers from 2022-25.

Rutger McGroarty

McGroarty was the latest in this recent pattern of prospects refusing to sign with their drafting teams. He was picked 14th overall by the Winnipeg Jets at the 2022 NHL Draft and played two seasons for the University of Michigan immediately after.

In August of 2024, he was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for prospect Brayden Yager. McGroarty and his agent had been stonewalling the Jets in contract negotiations which spurred the trade. He spent most of the 2024-25 season with Pittsburgh's AHL affiliate, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, but he did see eight games of NHL ice time.

Blake Wheeler

Upon exiting college, Wheeler could not come to a contract agreement with the Coyotes and became a free agent. Ultimately, he signed with Boston Bruins and played three seasons there before being traded to the Atlanta Thrashers (now the Winnipeg Jets). Wheeler spent the next 13 seasons in the Thrashers/Jets organization before being traded yet again, this time to the New York Rangers in 2023. He was a free agent for the 2024-25 season and remains such today.

Now considered a vintage tale in this particular context, Wheeler's situation essentially set the stage for the modern prospect. He was picked fifth overall by the Phoenix Coyotes (now the Utah Mammoth) in the 2004 NHL Draft. Wheeler played one season in the USHL before attending college at the University of Minnesota for three years.