NHL tournaments have been a talking point this season as the league works to put together its first best-on-best event in years.

And we at B/R also looked at the possibility of an in-season tournament modeled on the NBA version that made its debut this season.

Taking those ideas, and combining them with the basic concept of an NHL redraft, we decided to put a different twist on both and put together a hypothetical best-on-best event involving recent draft classes.

The concept is simple: Instead of building tournament teams around countries, use eight different draft classes between 2012 and 2019 to put together All-Star teams by class.

There are 12 forwards, six defensemen and three goalies per team.

Since this is all hypothetical, we are allowing some positional flexibility with the forwards and not necessarily keeping people at center/wings and simply taking the 12 best forwards.

Players also have to be active on NHL rosters this season to be considered eligible, and we made our cut-off 2019 class to ensure each group has had time to fully develop.

Here are some of the teams we built and which class we think would end up being the best of them all in head-to-head games.

2012 Draft Class

Forwards: Filip Forsberg, Tomas Hertl, Teuvo Teravainen, Tom Wilson, Chandler Stephenson, Alexander Kerfoot, Zemgus Girgensons, Radek Faksa, Scott Laughton, Tanner Pearson, Andreas Athanasiou, Josh Anderson

Defense: Morgan Rielly, Jacob Trouba, Hampus Lindholm, Jaccob Slavin, Brady Skjei, Mike Matheson

Goalies: Andrei Vasilevskiy, Connor Hellebuyck, Linus Ullmark

Analysis: The top of the 2012 NHL draft is probably one of the weakest we have seen in terms of the top four. None of Nail Yakupov, Ryan Murray, Alex Galchenyuk or Griffin Reinhart had impactful careers and do not make this team.

This roster is thin on impact forwards, but Forsberg, Hertl and Teravainen lead the way. Stephenson has been a nice late bloomer and could provide some help down the middle, but this isn't the most imposing offensive roster.

What it does have, though, is one heck of a defense and a dominant trio of goalies, boasting three Vezina Trophy winners.

This is a team that will need to win games by a 2-1 margin.

It will also be one of the most hated teams given the presence of heavy hitters Wilson and Trouba. Keep your head up against this group.

2013 Draft Class

Forwards: Nathan MacKinnon, Aleksander Barkov, Elias Lindholm, Bo Horvat, Jake Guentzel, Pavel Buchnevich, Carter Verhaeghe, Oliver Bjorkstrand, Anthony Duclair, Ryan Hartman, Artturi Lehkonen, Andrew Copp

Defense: Shea Theodore, Josh Morrissey, Seth Jones, Darnell Nurse, Brett Pesce, Ryan Pulock

Goalies: Juuse Saros, Tristan Jarry, Cal Petersen

Analysis: Now, here's a team that can put some goals on the board in a hurry.

MacKinnon is one of the best offensive players in the world, while Barkov provides a dominant two-way presence who can control the game in all three zones. The top-seven forwards on this roster have the potential to be dominant, which is exactly what this team would need.

While there are some good defensemen here, there really isn't a clear-cut No. 1 player who is going to take over a game and dominate it. Instead of having one big-time player, there are probably four No. 2 defenders. It's a solid, if unspectacular group.

Goaltending depth would also be an issue.

When Saros is on his game, he can be a game-changer. But Jarry and Petersen lack consistency behind him.

2014 Draft Class

Forwards: Leon Draisaitl, David Pastrnak, Brayden Point, Sam Reinhart, William Nylander, Dylan Larkin, Nikolaj Ehlers, Kevin Fiala, Victor Arvidsson, Jared McCann, Alex Tuch, Adrian Kempe

Defense: Aaron Ekblad, Devon Toews, Marcus Pettersson, Brandon Montour, Travis Sanheim, Gustav Forsling

Goalies: Igor Shesterkin, Ilya Sorokin, Thatcher Demko

Analysis: A potentially terrifying team. Of the draft classes included in this exercise, this might be the most dominant and deepest forward group in the bunch.

There isn't a single weak link anywhere in that forward group, with Draisaitl, Pastrnak, Point and Nylander being among the best players in the NHL.

There is a lot to be desired when it comes to the defense, but Toews is one of the best transition defenders in the league and would be a perfect fit playing behind that group of forwards.

Ekblad can also bring a lot of scoring punch from the back end.

However, it's the goalies who could set this team apart.

Shesterkin and Sorokin are both already used to playing behind teams with suspect defensive play and needing to mask flaws. The only change here, though, is that both would get the type of offensive support they can only dream of with their current NHL rosters.

Elite offense and elite goaltending can mask a lot of flaws and carry a team a long way. This team would have both in excess.

2015 Draft Class

Forwards: Connor McDavid, Jack Eichel, Mitch Marner, Mikko Rantanen, Sebastian Aho, Kyle Connor, Kirill Kaprizov, Mathew Barzal, Timo Meier, Roope Hintz, Brock Boeser, Travis Konecny

Defense: Thomas Chabot, Zach Werenski, Vince Dunn, John Marino, Brandon Carlo, Noah Hanifin

Goalies: Adin Hill, Ilya Samsonov, Karel Vejmelka

Analysis: Another potentially dominant offensive group. The 2014 and 2015 draft classes happening in back-to-back years brought in an absurd wave of offensive talent, and it would come down to personal preference when it comes to which group you might want.

They are both loaded with superstars, and it would be tremendous to see McDavid go head-to-head against Draisaitl after the two have been so dominant together in Edmonton.

Also like the 2014 class, this team would be very thin on defense, at least when it comes to potential game-changers. Chabot and Werenski are both capable of putting up huge offensive numbers, but they have their flaws and shortcomings when it comes to shutting down opposing stars. John Marino and Brandon Carlo would provide a solid defensive presence, while Vince Dunn has been one of the most underrated defensemen in the NHL for a few years now.

What is going to hurt this team is that it doesn't have the goaltending to cover up any flaws that might exist defensively. That is one of the thinnest goaltending groups in this.

Hill made a name for himself in the 2023 Stanley Cup playoffs when he took over for Vegas and backstopped it to a championship, and he has followed that up with a great start this season, but that is still a small resume.

2016 Draft Class

Forwards: Auston Matthews, Matthew Tkachuk, Alex DeBrincat, Clayton Keller, Jesper Bratt, Pierre-Luc Dubois, Tage Thompson, Jordan Kyrou, Patrik Laine, Brandon Hagel, Ross Colton, Michael McLeod

Defense: Adam Fox, Charlie McAvoy, Jakob Chychrun, Mikhail Sergachev, Sam Girard, Filip Hronek

Goalies: Carter Hart, Filip Gustavsson, Connor Ingram

Analysis: Matthews and Tkachuk will steal the show at forward, but let's take a minute and look at that defense.

Fox and McAvoy on the same blue line? That has the potential for pure dominance. Especially when you go further down that defensive depth chart and see offensive stars such as Chychrun and Sergachev, and an emerging talent in Hronek.

The goaltending here would be a complete wild card because Hart and Gustavsson have both shown the potential to be top-tier netminders at various times in their respective careers. We just have not always seen it very consistently.

This might be a case of a team having so many impact forwards and defensemen that it only needs competent goaltending to win. With Matthews, Tkachuk, DeBrincat, Dubois and Thompson up front, and the potential to have at least one of Fox and McAvoy on the ice for 80 percent of the game, you are not going to need your goalie to steal you many games. Just don't lose it.

2017 Draft Class

Forwards: Jason Robertson, Nico Hischier, Elias Pettersson, Robert Thomas, Nick Suzuki, , Casey Mittelstadt, Owen Tippett, Filip Chytil, Josh Norris, Drake Batherson, Eeli Tolvanen, Martin Necas

Defense: Cale Makar, Miro Heiskanen, Henri Jokiharju, Nicolas Hague, Juuso Valimaki, Michael Anderson

Goalies: Jake Oettinger, Jeremy Swayman, Stuart Skinner

Analysis: Speaking of great defensemen, here's another class with two elite players at the top of the lineup. Makar and Heiskanen will clearly run the show here, but there is a pretty steep drop-off after those two on the blue line.

Fortunately, there are two All-Star-caliber goalies in Oettinger and Swayman to help cover for that.

It is also a strong forward group with two of the most creative and exciting players in the league (Robertson and Pettersson) as well as a sneaky underrated playmaker in Thomas.

They will score some goals and the goalies will do their part to keep them in games, but Makar and Heiskanen are going to have to play huge minutes to cover up for the lack of depth on defense.

2018 Draft Class

Forwards: Brady Tkachuk, Andrei Svechnikov, Jesperi Kotkaniemi, Joel Farabee, Kirill Marchenko, Barrett Hayton, Yegor Sharangovich, Philipp Kurashev, Filip Zadina, Oliver Wahlstrom, Paul Cotter, Joe Veleno

Defense: Quinn Hughes, Rasmus Dahlin, Noah Dobson, Evan Bouchard, K'Andre Miller, Sean Durzi

Goalies: Akira Schmid, Joel Hofer, Samuel Ersson

Analysis: This is potentially one of the deepest blue lines among these classes, and possibly the most explosive offensively. Every one of these players is a threat to score and lead the rush from the blue line, and some have the potential to take over a game (Hughes, Dahlin).

They will need to carry the offense because the forwards are a little thin in terms of impact.

Tkachuk is a star and Svechnikov has 35- to 40-goal potential, but the impact playmakers drop off significantly after that.

The goalie situation also leaves a lot to be desired. Schmid had a great playoff showing for the Devils in the 2023 postseason, but he is not somebody you want to count on to be a No. 1 goalie at this point. Same goes for Hofer and Ersson. The defense will have to carry this team.

And it might have the potential to do exactly that.

2019 Draft Class

Forwards: Jack Hughes, Trevor Zegras, Dylan Cozens, Matthew Boldy, Cole Caufield, Kirby Dach, Alex Newhook, Matias Maccelli, Kaapo Kakko, Arthur Kaliyev, Connor McMichael, Nils Hoglander

Defense: Moritz Seider, Bowen Byram, Cam York, Thomas Harley, Jordan Spence, Philip Broberg

Goalies: Pyotr Kochetkov, Dustin Wolf

Analysis: This would be a team based primarily on hope and potential, with the possible exception of Hughes at the top of the lineup. He is the one true superstar in this class.

After him, there are a lot of players who have shown the potential to be stars (Zegras, Boldy, Caufield, Seider, Byram) but just need more of a track record and a couple of more years of consistent production before they get elevated to that level.

It might be the weakest team in our tournament, mainly because not enough players in the class have become regular NHL players or proven stars.

It is also where the goaltending runs out as they only have two goalies reach our tournament requirement.

And this is why we had the 2019 class as our cut-off point. There just hasn't been enough time for players to establish themselves.

Who Would Win?

There are a couple of teams that might get ruled out immediately due to a lack of depth and some major goaltending issues, and that is probably the 2018 and 2019 classes.

Not enough goaltending options. Not enough impact players at forward.

The 2017 class is intriguing because of how top-heavy it is with players like Robertson, Pettersson, Makar and Heiskanen leading the lineup, as well as a great starting goaltending option in Oettinger.

But is there enough depth to match up with the deeper classes? Probably not.

When it comes to the true favorites, there are four classes that stand out among the crop in chronological order: 2012, 2014, 2015 and 2016.

I like the potential of the 2013 class with players like MacKinnon and Barkov, but the lack of a true No. 1 defensemen and lack of goalie depth behind Saros puts them a tier below the other four.

The 2012 class might be the sleeper team here that could cause a lot of problems. As lackluster as the forward group looks at first glance (Forsberg, Hertl, Teravainen), the defense and goaltending (Vasilevskiy, Hellebuyck, Ullmark) could probably throw any of these teams into fits of frustration.

The 2016 team is loaded at forward with Matthews and Matthew Tkachuk, and has two No. 1 defenders in Fox and McAvoy, but there might not be a single goalie there you can trust.

That leaves us with the 2014 and 2015 teams. These are easily the two best forward groups and are a who's who of the NHL's most prolific offensive players.

While the 2015 class might have a slightly better defense, the 2014 class has an obscene one-two goalie punch of Shesterkin and Sorokin. That is what separates them.

The 2015 class might have McDavid, Eichel and Marner up front, but the 2014 class has a top-line player in all 12 forward sports and arguably two of the three best goalies in the world. That would be enough to give the 2014 class the win in our hypothetical draft class best-on-best tournament.