In the 2012 NHL Draft, Nail Yakupov was #1 but struggled to adapt to the NHL. The round was instead defined by defenders like Morgan Rielly (#5), Hampus Lindholm (#6), and Matt Dumba (#7). Filip Forsberg (#11) became an elite scorer, while Andrei Vasilevskiy (#19) became the world's best goalie. Connor Hellebuyck (130th) and Jaccob Slavin (120th) were late-round miracles. Overall, 2012 is often remembered for the failure of the top pick, but it was actually a foundational year for goaltending and defensive play, producing multiple Vezina winners and top-tier puck-moving blue-liners.
Career earnings of players picked in the first round of the 2012 NHL entry draft.
| Player | Pos. | Pick # | Drafted by | Career Earnings |
Rank | Career Earnings In today's $ |
Rank |
| Nail Yakupov | RW | 1 | Edmonton Oilers | $12,423,990 | 1195 | $16,285,315 | 1293 |
| Ryan Murray | D | 2 | Columbus Blue Jackets | $23,107,500 | 778 | $29,535,659 | 850 |
| Alex Galchenyuk | C | 3 | Montreal Canadiens | $25,241,463 | 713 | $32,796,200 | 769 |
| Griffin Reinhart | D | 4 | New York Islanders | $1,682,500 | 3201 | $2,223,010 | 3497 |
| Morgan Rielly | D | 5 | Toronto Maple Leafs | $68,682,500 | 135 | $79,514,603 | 206 |
| Hampus Lindholm | D | 6 | Anaheim Ducks | $65,973,963 | 156 | $76,993,521 | 225 |
| Matt Dumba | D | 7 | Minnesota Wild | $48,798,963 | 302 | $58,165,481 | 372 |
| Derrick Pouliot | D | 8 | Pittsburgh Penguins | $3,923,165 | 2219 | $4,843,092 | 2492 |
| Jacob Trouba | D | 9 | Winnipeg Jets | $70,723,963 | 122 | $83,778,899 | 184 |
| Slater Koekkoek | D | 10 | Tampa Bay Lightning | $5,290,000 | 1919 | $6,490,004 | 2159 |
| Filip Forsberg | C | 11 | Washington Capitals | $78,298,963 | 95 | $90,833,780 | 153 |
| Mikhail Grigorenko | C | 12 | Buffalo Sabres | $6,327,282 | 1745 | $8,164,094 | 1919 |
| Radek Faksa | C | 13 | Dallas Stars | $26,765,000 | 670 | $31,121,234 | 813 |
| Zemgus Girgensons | C | 14 | Buffalo Sabres | $19,507,500 | 874 | $23,586,515 | 1013 |
| Cody Ceci | D | 15 | Ottawa Senators | $36,373,963 | 486 | $43,144,006 | 588 |
| Tom Wilson | RW | 16 | Washington Capitals | $54,723,963 | 240 | $63,316,375 | 324 |
| Tomas Hertl | C | 17 | San Jose Sharks | $69,775,000 | 127 | $79,994,101 | 202 |
| Teuvo Teravainen | LW | 18 | Chicago Blackhawks | $46,177,500 | 335 | $53,280,796 | 431 |
| Andrei Vasilevskiy | G | 19 | Tampa Bay Lightning | $74,930,000 | 105 | $86,120,727 | 174 |
| Scott Laughton | C | 20 | Philadelphia Flyers | $22,898,963 | 781 | $26,181,407 | 938 |
| Mark Jankowski | C | 21 | Calgary Flames | $8,100,000 | 1535 | $9,614,618 | 1762 |
| Olli Maatta | D | 22 | Pittsburgh Penguins | $38,932,500 | 442 | $47,086,699 | 513 |
| Mike Matheson | D | 23 | Florida Panthers | $40,850,000 | 414 | $46,126,380 | 526 |
| Malcolm Subban | G | 24 | Boston Bruins | $3,850,000 | 2232 | $4,824,355 | 2498 |
| Jordan Schmaltz | D | 25 | St. Louis Blues | $1,971,429 | 2999 | $2,543,354 | 3334 |
| Brendan Gaunce | C | 26 | Vancouver Canucks | $5,686,950 | 1840 | $6,863,575 | 2093 |
| Brady Skjei | D | 28 | New York Rangers | $51,850,000 | 268 | $58,666,800 | 363 |
| Stefan Matteau | C | 29 | New Jersey Devils | $3,425,000 | 2358 | $4,324,619 | 2619 |
| Tanner Pearson | LW | 30 | Los Angeles Kings | $31,241,220 | 580 | $38,119,333 | 677 |