In the 2017 NHL Draft, Nico Hischier went #1, but Cale Makar (#4) became the draft's defining superstar. The first round also featured Elias Pettersson (#5), Miro Heiskanen (#3), and Robert Thomas (#20). It was a year of incredible skating ability, with Nick Suzuki (#13) and Martin Necas (#12) becoming franchise centers. Jason Robertson was a steal at 39th. Overall, 2017 was the "Mobility Draft." It produced a new generation of defensemen and forwards who play with unprecedented agility, permanently shifting the league's tactical focus toward high-speed creativity and transitional play.
Career earnings of players picked in the first round of the 2017 NHL entry draft.
| Player | Pos. | Pick # | Drafted by | Career Earnings |
Rank | Career Earnings In today's $ |
Rank |
| Nico Hischier | C | 1 | New Jersey Devils | $45,025,000 | 344 | $50,024,750 | 471 |
| Nolan Patrick | C | 2 | Philadelphia Flyers | $5,956,625 | 1800 | $7,290,103 | 2023 |
| Miro Heiskanen | D | 3 | Dallas Stars | $49,182,500 | 297 | $53,075,325 | 434 |
| Cale Makar | D | 4 | Colorado Avalanche | $52,442,500 | 263 | $57,137,405 | 382 |
| Elias Pettersson | C | 5 | Vancouver Canucks | $53,825,000 | 250 | $57,090,870 | 384 |
| Cody Glass | C | 6 | Vegas Golden Knights | $10,871,500 | 1302 | $11,783,431 | 1571 |
| Lias Andersson | C | 7 | New York Rangers | $5,139,125 | 1944 | $6,355,195 | 2180 |
| Casey Mittelstadt | C | 8 | Buffalo Sabres | $22,806,625 | 783 | $24,806,542 | 975 |
| Michael Rasmussen | C | 9 | Detroit Red Wings | $11,637,500 | 1247 | $12,622,626 | 1495 |
| Owen Tippett | RW | 10 | Florida Panthers | $18,165,000 | 929 | $18,918,837 | 1171 |
| Gabriel Vilardi | C | 11 | Los Angeles Kings | $17,290,000 | 952 | $18,262,843 | 1201 |
| Martin Necas | C | 12 | Carolina Hurricanes | $21,590,000 | 819 | $22,812,439 | 1036 |
| Nick Suzuki | C | 13 | Vegas Golden Knights | $42,172,500 | 391 | $44,874,519 | 555 |
| Cal Foote | D | 14 | Tampa Bay Lightning | $1,900,000 | 3040 | $2,149,598 | 3537 |
| Erik Brannstrom | D | 15 | Vegas Golden Knights | $7,130,000 | 1650 | $8,176,081 | 1918 |
| Juuso Valimaki | D | 16 | Calgary Flames | $10,782,500 | 1310 | $12,013,188 | 1546 |
| Timothy Liljegren | D | 17 | Toronto Maple Leafs | $11,390,000 | 1257 | $12,304,284 | 1526 |
| Urho Vaakanainen | D | 18 | Boston Bruins | $6,207,500 | 1757 | $6,790,374 | 2109 |
| Josh Norris | C | 19 | San Jose Sharks | $32,350,000 | 566 | $33,893,591 | 746 |
| Robert Thomas | C | 20 | St. Louis Blues | $38,682,500 | 448 | $40,986,714 | 622 |
| Filip Chytil | C | 21 | New York Rangers | $21,282,500 | 825 | $23,018,363 | 1032 |
| Kailer Yamamoto | RW | 22 | Edmonton Oilers | $9,496,893 | 1403 | $10,606,252 | 1664 |
| Pierre-Olivier Joseph | D | 23 | Arizona Coyotes | $5,040,000 | 1963 | $5,557,900 | 2315 |
| Kristian Vesalainen | LW/RW | 24 | Winnipeg Jets | $2,682,500 | 2623 | $3,329,291 | 2954 |
| Ryan Poehling | C | 25 | Montreal Canadiens | $7,404,140 | 1612 | $7,939,375 | 1946 |
| Jake Oettinger | G | 26 | Dallas Stars | $23,850,000 | 750 | $24,903,615 | 972 |
| Morgan Frost | C | 27 | Philadelphia Flyers | $11,040,000 | 1280 | $11,652,525 | 1578 |
| Shane Bowers | C | 28 | Ottawa Senators | $1,839,130 | 3091 | $2,069,905 | 3569 |
| Henri Jokiharju | D | 29 | Chicago Blackhawks | $16,375,000 | 988 | $18,047,611 | 1212 |
| Eeli Tolvanen | RW | 30 | Nashville Predators | $12,965,000 | 1160 | $14,005,419 | 1414 |
| Klim Kostin | C/LW | 31 | St. Louis Blues | $5,582,500 | 1856 | $5,980,220 | 2255 |