Los Angeles is home to Hollywood, and the 2025 NHL Draft was anything but short on celebrity talent in the first round on Friday.
From Adam Sandler’s entrance as his Happy Gilmore character to make the Boston Bruins selection, to the recently crowned NBA champion Lu Dort announcing the trade, the celebrities brought a new edge to the first-ever decentralized NHL Draft.
Here are all the celebrities who made a pick, along with the players they announced for their respective teams.
Pick: Matthew Schaefer
The New York Islanders did not go with a special celebrity on their first overall selection of Matthew Schaefer from the Erie Otters.
Michael Misa's heading to Shark territory!
— NHL (@NHL) June 27, 2025
: 2025 Upper Deck #NHLDraft on @espn, @ESPNPlus, @Sportsnet and @TVASports pic.twitter.com/tfwMmxbehG
Pick: Michael Misa, (No. 30) Joshua Ravensbergen
The San Jose Sharks brought out Bayley from the WWE to announce their selection of Michael Misa and she later returned to announce Joshua Ravensbergen.
Pick: Anton Frondell
The Chicago Blackhawks stayed on the ice with their celebrity selection, bringing out Hockey Hall of Famer Jeremy Roenick to announce their selection of Anton Frondell.
Welcome to the @utahmammoth, Caleb Desnoyers!
— NHL (@NHL) June 27, 2025
: 2025 Upper Deck #NHLDraft on @espn, @ESPNPlus, @Sportsnet and @TVASports pic.twitter.com/pPIHg5hfxd
Pick: Caleb Desnoyers
The Utah Mammoth kept things local with PGA golfer Tony Finau, who emphatically announced the selection of Caleb Desnoyers over a video call.
Picks: Brady Martin, (No. 21) Cameron Reid, (No. 26) Ryker Lee
Longtime Nashville Predators blueliner Shea Weber took a break from his golf game to call in and pick Brady Martin at fifth overall. However, Martin couldn’t attend the Draft, due to his duties on his farm in Elmira, Ont.
Later on, the Predators acquired the No. 21 pick from the Ottawa Senators and turned to NFL tight end George Kittle to make the pick to claim Cameron Reid, before wrapping up their night with the 26th overall selection of Ryker Lee, as announced by country music star Jordan Davis.
A legendary moment.
— Philadelphia Flyers (@NHLFlyers) June 28, 2025
Charles Barkley welcomes Porter Martone to the City of Brotherly Love. #NHLDraft pic.twitter.com/5EBBvTJQh1
Picks: Porter Martone, (No. 12) Jack Nesbitt
The Philadelphia Flyers brought out some big hitters for their two selections, with legendary NBA player and broadcaster Charles Barkley announcing the selection of Porter Martone and two-time NFL Super Bowl Champion and legendary Philadelphia Eagle Brandon Graham announcing Jack Nesbitt.
Oh, Happy day.
— Boston Bruins (@NHLBruins) June 28, 2025
Who we picking, Mr. Gilmore?#NHLDraft pic.twitter.com/2K62fWGruA
Pick: James Hagens
Few hockey-loving movie stars are as well endeared as Happy Gilmore, and Adam Sandler selected James Hagens in complete movie golfer form, having to be cut off from the broadcast after dancing around with his golf club.
Pick: Jake O’Brien
Fresh off producing the new F1 movie, filmmaker Jerry Bruckheimer announces the Seattle Kraken‘s selection of Jake O’Brien.
Pick: Radim Mrtka
Famed rock band, the Goo Goo Dolls, stepped onto the stage live in Los Angeles to announce Radim Mrtka as the latest addition to the Buffalo Sabres‘ prospect pool.
Pick: Roger McQueen
Joshua Jackson and Marguerite Moreau from the film “The Mighty Ducks” flew in perfect tandem formation to announce the selection of Roger McQueen, who had visited Disneyland just days before the NHL Draft.
Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang and his son Alex made the pick for Benjamin Kindel and came back at the No. 22 and No. 24 pick to grab Bill Zonnon and William Horcoff.
Thanks for the assist, @DaveCoulier! pic.twitter.com/VkvqPmsO15
— Detroit Red Wings (@DetroitRedWings) June 28, 2025
Pick: Carter Bear
Dave Coulier made his Detroit Red Wings jersey famous on the sitcom “Full House,” and brought it to the big stage, announcing the pick of Carter Bear virtually from Little Caesars Arena.
A standing ovation for Meredith Gaudreau as she announces Jackson Smith to the Columbus Blue Jackets pic.twitter.com/gIeL6mRQJu
— ESPN (@espn) June 28, 2025
Pick: Jackson Smith, (No. 20) Pyotr Andreyanov
The widow of Johnny Gaudreau, Meredith Gaudreau, announced the selection of Jackson Smith in one of the more emotional moments of the first round of the NHL Draft.
Pick: Braeden Cootes
Former Vancouver Canucks defenseman Mikael Samuelsson made the first Canadian pick of the NHL Draft, announcing the selection of Braeden Cootes.
Picks: Victor Eklund, (No. 17) Kashawn Aitcheson
The New York Islanders had back-to-back picks in the first round at No. 16 and No. 17, and used actor Kevin Connolly to select Victor Eklund and Kashawn Aitcheson. Midway through, NBA champion and famed Montreal native Lu Dort also made a cameo appearance to help announce the Noah Dobson trade.
Pick: Cole Reschny, (No. 32) Cullen Potter
One of the most famous former Calgary Flames, Lanny McDonald might be known for making the calls for new inductees into the Hockey Hall of Fame, but he turned to the other side of a player’s career at the NHL Draft, announcing Cole Reschny at 18th overall, before returning to announce Cullen Potter with the final pick of the first round.
Comedian Nikki Glaser announced the 19th pick in the NHL draft for the St. Louis Blues pic.twitter.com/f2Exgxezly
— espnW (@espnW) June 28, 2025
Pick: Justin Carbonneau
Actor and comedian Nikki Glaser cracked a few jokes as she announced the first-round pick for the St. Louis Blues, unveiling Justin Carbonneau as the newest Blues youngster.
Pick: Logan Hensler
Canadian comedian and actor Tom Green brought his dog on screen to announce the Ottawa Senators’ selection of Logan Hensler at No. 23 overall in Friday’s NHL Draft.
Pick: Sascha Boumedienne
The Winnipeg Jets brought out backup goaltender Eric Comry to make the 28th overall pick, grabbing Sascha Boumedienne.
Pick: Henry Brzustewicz
It took the LA Kings until the 31st pick to make their first selection, and they turned to former football player, turned actor, Isaiah Mustafa to read the name of Henry Brzustewicz.
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