from Craig Button of TSN,

There are a number of very good players available in the 2017 NHL Draft, but Nolan Patrick of the Brandon Wheat Kings is a franchise centre and superior talent who stands alone at No. 1.

Patrick stepped into the WHL two seasons ago and has shown that he has all the capabilities to be the top centre teams covet. The 6-foot-3, 195-pound pivot was named WHL Rookie of the Year in 2015 after scoring 30 goals and racking up 56 points in 55 games. He was awarded MVP of the 2016 WHL playoffs, following up a 102-point regular season with 30 points in 21 postseason games.

Brandon owner Kelly McCrimmon was named assistant GM with the NHL expansion Las Vegas team in August. And winning the draft lottery could allow Las Vegas to draft and build around Patrick. He could do for the NHL’s newest franchise what Gilbert Perreault did for the Buffalo Sabres when the lottery wheel spun in the Sabres’ favour in 1970. Ironically, Patrick’s father Steve was a first-round pick of the Sabres in 1980 and played with Perreault.

continued with a list of the top 31 players...