Tyler Madden has been wandering around hockey rinks since he was a tyke. His dad, John, has a lot to do with that, considering he played in the National Hockey League for 13 seasons and won three Stanley Cups — in 2000 and 2003 with the New Jersey Devils and in 2010 with the Chicago Blackhawks — before becoming a scout with the Montreal Canadiens, assistant coach with the Florida Panthers and head coach of the American Hockey League’s Cleveland Monsters.
But at age 18, Tyler, a right-handed-shooting center, accomplished something his father never did — he was drafted by an NHL club, in his case by the Vancouver Canucks in the third round with the 68th overall pick in the 2018 NHL draft, held June 22-23 at American Airlines Center in Dallas.
New York Hockey Journal spoke with Tyler, a native of Albany, N.Y., about the draft experience, starting with the scouting combine held June 1-2 at HarborCenter in Buffalo.
June 1-2: Talks and tests
Madden was full of excitement when he arrived in Buffalo for the fitness tests and the interviews with NHL clubs.