With today’s announcement of Troy Mann’s two-year contract extension with the Belleville Senators, there’s no better time to present a brand-new Prospect Award: Best Late-Round Pick, affectionately named the “Mann of the Year” after Ottawa’s Chief Amateur Scout.
Hitting on less valuable draft picks, i.e, after the second round can mean the difference between whether or not a team can maintain long-term success. Look at the Tampa Bay Lightning, for example. Would they have won the Cup last year without selecting Brayden Point in the third round in 2014, or Ondrej Palat in the seventh round in 2011?