Ask Dan Question & Answer

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Question #130:
Dear Dan: I have heard of players, such as Adam Oates, who make to the NHL without being drafted. It was my understanding that being drafted gave you the right to try-out for a team. How do you try-out for your first NHL team without being drafted? D.M.

Dan Replies:
D.M.: You are correct that Adam Oates was never drafted. But your understanding of the draft and rights is not exactly correct. When a player is drafted, the only rights are the team's right to sign that player. The player has no rights, not even the right to talk to another team. As a player, after you are drafted and if you are offered a contract, typically it will be a two-way contract. That means you will be paid one salary if you play in the NHL, a much lower salary if they assign you to their affiliate in the AHL or even the East Coast Hockey League.

You have no "right" to a try out, or the way it really works - to be invited to training camp. I was drafted by Winnipeg but they didn't sign me or invite me to training camp. They sent me right to Moncton (AHL) and after Moncton's training camp (where I led the team in scoring in the preseason) they released me. So I went to Greensboro of the ECHL and worked my way up to the NHL.

So if Adam Oates doesn't get drafted, what does he do. His agent tries to get him a tryout with an AHL team (not all their players are under contract with a NHL team). If he doesn't get any interest from an AH team, he tries to find a ECHL team. And he starts playing. If he is good, a AHL team may call him up for a few games to see if he can play at the AHL level. If he does well, they may offer him a 25 game (tryout) contract. If he burns up the league at that level, he then may get offered a contract with a NHL team.

Go to www.hockeydb.com and look up Adam Oates and you'll see that he played for the Adirondack Red Wings after three seasons at R.P.I. Adirondack gave him a contract after college and from there he worked his way into the NHL.

Adam Oates is a great example of why you shouldn't listen to people who say, "You'll never make it." Most of the time people who say that didn't "make it" themselves and don't know what it takes to "make it". On the other hand, the NHL draft is conducted by people who did "make it" and know what it takes to "make it" and they said about Adam Oates - "He'll never make it" and didn't draft him. Boy, where they wrong.

So don't listen to people who say "D.M. will never make it." Only you know if you have the work ethic and the perseverance to "make it".

I hope this helps.

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