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| 1982 Entry Draft | | Of the 12 players drafted in 1982, only 1st rounder Murray Craven ever played a game for the wings, and he was traded to Philadelphia 46 games into a 1000+ game NHL career. 4 players signed with other NHL clubs and made it to the big leagues with varying degrees of success.
The 1982 draft was held on June 9th, and Mike Iliitch bought the team on June 22nd. When the new Detroit management, Jimmy Devellano and his staff, came on board, the 1982 draft picks were basically given up on, as most were given a brief look at training camp that September and then cast off.
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| 1st Rnd, 17th Overall NHL Totals 1071-2666-493-759-524 | | Center Murray Craven |  | A tall rangy center in Junior, Craven had an impressive camp in 1982, and despite opening the season in Medicine Hat, found himself in the wings lineup by the end of December. A knee injury slowed him down, but he showed enough to earn a job out of camp the next year. After a slow start, Murray finished the year in Junior, and was dealt in October of 1984 to the Philadelphia Flyers for over the hill center Darryl Sittler. Craven went on to be a consistent 20 goal scorer and a durable two-way winger for his 18 season NHL career. |
| 2nd Rnd, 23rd overall NHL Totals 22-2-5-7-4 | | Right Wing Yves Courteau |  | Courteau, one of 2 players drafted from Laval by Detroit in 1982, was a highly rated Quebec league sniper. Yves was not property of the organization for very long, as 6 months after he was drafted, he was traded to Calgary for minor league center Bobby Francis. A chronic stomach muscle condition ended Courteau's career in 1987. |
| 3rd Rnd, 44th overall NHL Totals 0-0-0-0-0 | | Center Carmine Vani |  | A rugged two-way winger, Vani was one of the few picks from this draft to sign a contract with Detroit. Carmine signed a 3-year deal in 1983, and after 1 year in Adirondack was released in 1985. Vani went on to have long career in Italy. |
| 4th Rnd, 66th overall NHL Totals 235-14-31-45-713 | | Center Craig Coxe |  | A punishing fighter, the 6'4" Coxe also showed a scoring touch at the tier II level, and while this scoring touch never translated to the pro level, he spent parts of 8 seasons in the NHL as an enforcer. Detroit never showed an interest in Coxe, and when his rights expired in 1984, he signed with the Vancouver organization. |
| 5th Rnd, 86th overall NHL Totals 377-22-137-159-208 | | Defenseman Brad Shaw |  | A mobile, puck-moving offensive defenseman, Shaw averaged over a point per game in jr's, and was a highly regarded prospect. Brad was named the OHL's outstanding defenseman for the 1983-84 season, and tried to use that and a strong camp in 1983 as leverage to get a big pro contract from Detroit. When the wings saw that they were not going to be able to sign him, they traded his rights to Hartford the day before the signing deadline. Shaw went on to play parts of 11 seasons in the NHL. |
| 6th Rnd, 107th overall; NHL Totals: 89-21-32-53-78 | | Center Claude Vilgrain |  | This QMJHL all-star put up some incredible numbers in Laval, and was the number one Quebec League prospect heading into the draft. For some reason, however, he lasted until the 6th round where the Wings took a chance on him. After another stellar Jr Campaign, and no interest from Detroit, Vilgrain enrolled at the University of Moncton where he split the next 5 seasons between the college, and the Canadian National team. Claude finally signed with an NHL club in 1987 when Vancouver offered him a contract. |
| 7th Rnd, 128th overall; NHL Totals: 0-0-0-0-0 | | Defenseman Greg Hudas |  | This hulking 6'5 defensive defenseman played a year of college hockey at Notre Dame before transferring to the University of Michigan for two more. He He turned pro with the Flint generals (IHL) after his Junior season at U of M and only lasted 23 games before being released. |
| 8th Rnd, 149th overall; NHL Totals: 0-0-0-0-0 | | Center Pat Lahey |  | This defensive pivot was invited to training camp in 1982, but did not turn pro after his overage season at Sault Ste Marie (OHA). |
| 9th Rnd, 170th overall; NHL Totals: 0-0-0-0-0 | | Center Gary Cullen |  | This 6'2" 215 pound center was one of Cornell's top scorers each of his 4 seasons at the university. With a business degree upon graduation however, pro hockey was not in his plans. |
| 10th Rnd, 191st overall; NHL Totals: 0-0-0-0-0 | | Defenseman Brent Meckling |  | This offensive defenseman averaged nearly a point per game in the WHL after being drafted. Meckling entered the University of Calgary in 1984 and continued on through the university of British Columbia, earning a law degree in 1991. He attended camp in 1982 and 1983, but wasn't signed and never played a pro game. |
| 11th Rnd, 212th overall; NHL Totals: 0-0-0-0-0 | | Left Wing Mike Stern |  | A physical winger with a knack for scoring clutch goals, Stern used his size (6'4", 210 lbs), and a strong overage season in the OHL to secure a 3 year contract with the wings. After attending camp in 1983, Mike joined Adirondack for the 1984 playoffs, and began the 1984-85 season in the AHL. In January of 1985 Stern suffered a career ending back injury, and was forced to retire. |
| 12th Rnd, 233rd overall; NHL Totals: 0-0-0-0-0 | | Right Wing Shaun Reagan | | Never progressed at OHL level, he got a brief look at camp the year he was drafted, never turned pro. |
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