old before December 31 of the draft year are eligible for selection for that year's NHL Entry Draft. In addition, non-North American players aged 21 are eligible. List of NHL Entry Drafts Notes Originally scheduled to be hosted at Corel Centre; venue location changed due to scheduling conflict related to the league's CBA negotiations that ended the 2004–05 lockout. Originally scheduled to be hosted at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, from June 26–27 before the season was suspended after March 11, 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic; draft was held via conference call as a result. The 2021 draft was also held via conference call due to the pandemic. The Arizona Coyotes forfeited their 2020 second-round pick as the result of a penalty due to violations of the NHL Combine Testing Policy during the 2019–20 NHL season. They also forfeited their 2021 first-round pick. Broadcasting SportsChannel America began covering the NHL Draft in the United States with the 1989 NHL Entry Draft being the first NHL draft ever televised. See also KHL Junior Draft List of first overall NHL draft picks List of undrafted NHL players with 100 games played Taro Tsujimoto References General Specific External links Recurring sporting events established in 1963 Annual sporting events in Canada Annual sporting events in the United States