1981 NHL Draft
Hannu Virta in the 1981 NHL Draft
Buffalo Sabres selected Hannu Virta 38th overall in the 1981 NHL Draft, with the 17th pick of round 2.
He was the first of the 12 Finns selected that year. It was the second of the 12 picks Buffalo Sabres made in the draft. Of the 211 players selected in 1981, 114 have played in the NHL regular season. His 245 games put him 43rd in the class.
- Overall pick
- 38
- Round and pick
- Round 2, pick 17
- Drafting team
- BUFBuffalo Sabres
- Date
- Age at the draft
- 18 years
The picks around it
Picks 35–41 in the 1981 draft
- 35Luc DufourL167 GP · 44 PBOSBoston Bruins
- 36Hakan NordinDSTLSt. Louis Blues
- 37Rich CostelloC12 GP · 4 PPHIPhiladelphia Flyers
- 38Hannu VirtaD245 GP · 126 PBUFBuffalo Sabres
- 39Dean KennedyD717 GP · 136 PLAKLos Angeles Kings
- 40Chris CheliosD1651 GP · 948 PMTLMontréal Canadiens
- 41Jali WahlstenCMNSMinnesota North Stars
Games and points are NHL regular season to date.
Place in the draft class
Where he came in the 1981 class
1st
of 12 Finns selected
14th
of 67 defensemen selected
Counted in draft order across the whole draft. The position is the one listed at the draft.
First Finns selected
- 38Hannu VirtaD245 GP · 126 PBUFBuffalo Sabres
- 41Jali WahlstenCMNSMinnesota North Stars
- 43Jyrki SeppaD13 GP · 2 PWINWinnipeg Jets
- 101Mauri EivolaCBUFBuffalo Sabres
- 131Risto JaloC3 GP · 3 PWSHWashington Capitals
- 143Heikki LeimeDBUFBuffalo Sabres
- 147Teppo VirtaCNYINew York Islanders
- 150Tony ArimaRCLRColorado Rockies
- 156Ari LahteenmakiRNYRNew York Rangers
- 157Petri SkrikoL541 GP · 405 PVANVancouver Canucks
+ 2 more
After the draft
The road to the NHL
Hannu Virta made his NHL debut on March 30, 1982, 293 days after the draft.
245
Games
25
Goals
101
Assists
126
Points
NHL regular season to date.
The team's draft
Buffalo Sabres picks in the 1981 draft
- 17Jiri DudacekRBUFBuffalo Sabres
- 38Hannu VirtaD245 GP · 126 PBUFBuffalo Sabres
- 59James AldredLBUFBuffalo Sabres
- 60Colin ChisholmD1 GP · 0 PBUFBuffalo Sabres
- 80Jeff EatoughR1 GP · 0 PBUFBuffalo Sabres
- 83Anders WikbergLBUFBuffalo Sabres
- 101Mauri EivolaCBUFBuffalo Sabres
- 122Ali ButoracDBUFBuffalo Sabres
- 143Heikki LeimeDBUFBuffalo Sabres
- 164Gaetano OrlandoC98 GP · 44 PBUFBuffalo Sabres
- 185Venci SebekDBUFBuffalo Sabres
- 206Warren HarperLBUFBuffalo Sabres