Brian Robert Lawton (born June 29, 1965) is an American former professional ice hockey player, agent and general manager, who played 483 regular season games in the National Hockey League (NHL) between the 1983–84 and 1992–93 seasons. Drafted first overall by the Minnesota North Stars in the 1983 NHL Entry Draft, Lawton played for the North Stars, New York Rangers, Hartford Whalers, Quebec Nordiques, Boston Bruins and San Jose Sharks, and was the Tampa Bay Lightning general manager. He was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey and raised in Cumberland, Rhode Island. Playing career After playing for the U.S. Junior Hockey Team at the World Junior Ice Hockey Championships in 1983, and leading his high school, Mount Saint Charles Academy in Woonsocket, Rhode Island, to consecutive championships, Lawton was the first overall draft pick by the North Stars in the 1983 NHL Entry Draft. Lawton is noted for being the first US-born hockey player drafted first overall in the NHL draft. He was also the first and, as of 2022, the only US high school hockey player to be drafted first overall. Lawton was ranked by the NHL Central Scouting Bureau as the top prospect for the 1983 Entry Draft. His NHL career included 266 career points in 483 games. Lawton played his first couple of years in Minnesota, and split his second season between the North Stars and their American Hockey League affiliate, the Springfield Indians. In 1983, Lawton was training with the U.S. National Hockey Team, but unlike other North Stars prospects, Lawton was encouraged to turn professional ahead of the 1984 Winter Olympics, and though he did later play in the 1984 Canada Cup, missed the extra experience playing in Sarajevo would have afforded him. Lawton also later played for the United States team at the 1987 Championships. Prior to Jesse Puljujärvi and Mikhail Sergachev, Lawton was the only NHL player to ever wear the number 98, which he chose during his rookie season but changed to number 8 after two seasons owing to unwelcome comparisons to Wayne Gretzky's number 99. Lawton set a mark for the North Stars franchise for fastest two goals scored by a rookie, at 19 seconds, in 1983. After five seasons with Minnesota, Lawton had not scored more than 44 points in any season, and the North Stars apparently washed their hands of him, attempting to assign him to their affiliate in