The 1981 NHL Entry Draft was held at the Montreal Forum in Montreal, Quebec, Canada on June 10, 1981.
Dale Hawerchuk was the draft's first selection; he was selected by the Winnipeg Jets.
Selections
Round One
| Pick # | Player | Position | Nationality | NHL team | College/junior/club team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dale Hawerchuk | Centre |  Canada |
Winnipeg Jets | Cornwall Royals (QMJHL) |
| 2 | Doug Smith | Centre | Canada |
Los Angeles Kings (from Detroit) | Ottawa 67's (OMJHL) |
| 3 | Bobby Carpenter | Centre |  United States |
Washington Capitals (from Colorado) | St. John's School (USHS-MA) |
| 4 | Ron Francis | Centre | Canada |
Hartford Whalers | Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OMJHL) |
| 5 | Joe Cirella | Defence | Canada |
Colorado Rockies (from Washington) | Oshawa Generals (OMJHL) |
| 6 | Jim Benning | Defence | Canada |
Toronto Maple Leafs | Portland Winter Hawks (WHL) |
| 7 | Mark Hunter | Right Wing | Canada |
Montreal Canadiens (from Pittsburgh) | Brantford Alexanders (OMJHL) |
| 8 | Grant Fuhr | Goaltender | Canada |
Edmonton Oilers | Victoria Cougars (WHL) |
| 9 | James Patrick | Defence | Canada |
New York Rangers | Prince Albert Raiders (SJHL) |
| 10 | Garth Butcher | Defence | Canada |
Vancouver Canucks | Regina Pats (WHL) |
| 11 | Randy Moller | Defence | Canada |
Quebec Nordiques | Lethbridge Broncos (WHL) |
| 12 | Tony Tanti | Right Wing | Canada |
Chicago Black Hawks | Oshawa Generals (OMJHL) |
| 13 | Ron Meighan | Defence | Canada |
Minnesota North Stars | Niagara Falls Flyers (OMJHL) |
| 14 | Normand Leveille | Left Wing | Canada |
Boston Bruins | Chicoutimi Saguenéens (QMJHL) |
| 15 | Al MacInnis | Defence | Canada |
Calgary Flames | Kitchener Rangers (OMJHL) |
| 16 | Steve Smith | Defence | Canada |
Philadelphia Flyers | Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OMJHL) |
| 17 | Jiri Dudacek | Right Wing |  Czechoslovakia |
Buffalo Sabres | HC Kladno (Czechoslovakia) |
| 18 | Gilbert Delorme | Defence | Canada |
Montreal Canadiens (from Los Angeles) | Chicoutimi Saguenéens (QMJHL) |
| 19 | Jan Ingman | Left Wing |  Sweden |
Montreal Canadiens | Färjestad BK (Sweden) |
| 20 | Marty Ruff | Defence | Canada |
St. Louis Blues | Lethbridge Broncos (WHL) |
| 21 | Paul Boutilier | Defence | Canada |
New York Islanders | Sherbrooke Castors (QMJHL) |
Round Two
| Pick # | Player | Position | Nationality | NHL team | College/junior/club team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22 | Scott Arniel | Centre | Canada |
Winnipeg Jets | Cornwall Royals (QMJHL) |
| 23 | Claude Loiselle | Centre | Canada |
Detroit Red Wings | Windsor Spitfires (OMJHL) |
| 24 | Gary Yaremchuk | Centre | Canada |
Toronto Maple Leafs (from Colorado) | Portland Winter Hawks (WHL) |
| 25 | Kevin Griffin | Left Wing | Canada |
Chicago Black Hawks (from Hartford) | Portland Winter Hawks (WHL) |
| 26 | Rich Chernomaz | Right Wing | Canada |
Colorado Rockies (from Washington) | Victoria Cougars (WHL) |
| 27 | Dave Donnelly | Centre | Canada |
Minnesota North Stars (from Toronto) | St. Albert Saints (AJHL) |
| 28 | Steve Gatzos | Right Wing | Canada |
Pittsburgh Penguins | Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OMJHL) |
| 29 | Todd Strueby | Left Wing | Canada |
Edmonton Oilers | Regina Pats (WHL) |
| 30 | Jan Erixon | Left Wing | Sweden |
New York Rangers | Skellefteå AIK (Sweden) |
| 31 | Mike Sands | Goaltender | Canada |
Minnesota North Stars (from Vancouver) | Sudbury Wolves (OMJHL) |
| 32 | Lars Eriksson | Goaltender | Sweden |
Montreal Canadiens (from Quebec) | Brynäs IF (Sweden) |
| 33 | Tom Hirsch | Defence | United States |
Minnesota North Stars (from Chicago) | Patrick Henry High School (USHS-MN) |
| 34 | Dave Preuss | Right Wing | United States |
Minnesota North Stars | St. Thomas Academy (USHS-MN) |
| 35 | Luc Dufour | Left Wing | Canada |
Boston Bruins | Chicoutimi Saguenéens (QMJHL) |
| 36 | Hakan Nordin | Defence | Sweden |
St. Louis Blues (from Calgary) | Färjestad BK (Sweden) |
| 37 | Rich Costello | Centre | United States |
Philadelphia Flyers | Nantick High School (USHS-MA) |
| 38 | Hannu Virta | Defence |  Finland |
Buffalo Sabres | TPS (Finland) |
| 39 | Dean Kennedy | Defence | Canada |
Los Angeles Kings | Brandon Wheat Kings (WHL) |
| 40 | Chris Chelios | Defence | United States |
Montreal Canadiens | Moose Jaw Canucks (SJHL) |
| 41 | Jali Wahlsten | Centre | Finland |
Minnesota North Stars (from St. Louis) | TPS (Finland) |
| 42 | Gord Dineen | Defence | Canada |
New York Islanders | Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OMJHL) |
Round Three
| Pick # | Player | Position | Nationality | NHL team | College/junior/club team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 43 | Jyrki Seppa | Defence | Finland |
Winnipeg Jets | Ilves (Finland) |
| 44 | Corrado Micalef | Goaltender | Canada |
Detroit Red Wings | Sherbrooke Castors (QMJHL) |
| 45 | Eric Calder | Defence | Canada |
Washington Capitals (from Colorado) | Cornwall Royals (QMJHL) |
| 46 | Dieter Hegen | Centre |  West Germany |
Montreal Canadiens (from Hartford) | EVS Kaufbeuren (West Germany) |
| 47 | Barry Tabobondung | Left Wing | Canada |
Philadelphia Flyers (from Washington) | Oshawa Generals (OMJHL) |
| 48 | Uli Hiemer | Defence | West Germany |
Colorado Rockies (from Toronto) | EV Fussen (West Germany) |
| 49 | Tom Thornbury | Defence | Canada |
Pittsburgh Penguins | Niagara Falls Flyers (OMJHL) |
| 50 | Peter Sundstrom | Left Wing | Sweden |
New York Rangers (from Edmonton) | IF Björklöven (Sweden) |
| 51 | Mark Morrison | Centre | Canada |
New York Rangers | Victoria Cougars (WHL) |
| 52 | Jean-Marc Lanthier | Right Wing | Canada |
Vancouver Canucks | Sorel Eperviers (QMJHL) |
| 53 | Jean-Marc Gaulin | Right Wing | Canada |
Quebec Nordiques | Sorel Eperviers (QMJHL) |
| 54 | Darrell Anholt | Defence | Canada |
Chicago Black Hawks | Calgary Wranglers (WHL) |
| 55 | Ernie Godden | Centre | Canada |
Toronto Maple Leafs (from Minnesota) | Windsor Spitfires (OMJHL) |
| 56 | Mike Vernon | Goaltender | Canada |
Calgary Flames (from Boston) | Calgary Wranglers (WHL) |
| 57 | Ron Handy | Left Wing | Canada |
New York Islanders (from Calgary) | Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OMJHL) |
| 58 | Ken Strong | Left Wing | Canada |
Philadelphia Flyers | Peterborough Petes (OMJHL) |
| 59 | Jim Aldred | Defence | Canada |
Buffalo Sabres | Kingston Canadiens (OMJHL) |
| 60 | Colin Chisholm | Defence | Canada |
Buffalo Sabres (from Los Angeles) | Calgary Wranglers (WHL) |
| 61 | Paul MacDermid | Right Wing | Canada |
Hartford Whalers (from Montreal) | Windsor Spitfires (OMJHL) |
| 62 | Gord Donnelly | Defence | Canada |
St. Louis Blues | Sherbrooke Castors (QMJHL) |
| 63 | Neal Coulter | Right Wing | Canada |
New York Islanders | Toronto Marlboros (OMJHL) |
Round Four
| Pick # | Player | Position | Nationality | NHL team | College/junior/club team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 64 | Kirk McCaskill | Centre | Canada |
Winnipeg Jets | University of Vermont (ECAC) |
| 65 | Dave Michayluk | Right Wing | Canada |
Philadelphia Flyers (from Detroit) | Regina Pats (WHL) |
| 66 | Gus Greco | Centre | Canada |
Colorado Rockies | Windsor Spitfires (OMJHL) |
| 67 | Mike Hoffman | Left Wing | Canada |
Hartford Whalers | Brantford Alexanders (OMJHL) |
| 68 | Tony Kellin | Defence | United States |
Washington Capitals | Grand Rapids High School (USHS-MN) |
| 69 | Terry Tait | Left Wing | Canada |
Minnesota North Stars (from Toronto) | Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OMJHL) |
| 70 | Norm Schmidt | Defence | Canada |
Pittsburgh Penguins | Oshawa Generals (OMJHL) |
| 71 | Paul Houck | Right Wing | Canada |
Edmonton Oilers | Kelowna Buckaroos (BCHL) |
| 72 | John Vanbiesbrouck | Goaltender | United States |
New York Rangers | Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OMJHL) |
| 73 | Wendell Young | Goaltender | Canada |
Vancouver Canucks | Kitchener Rangers (OMJHL) |
| 74 | Clint Malarchuk | Goaltender | Canada |
Quebec Nordiques | Portland Winter Hawks (WHL) |
| 75 | Perry Pelensky | Right Wing | Canada |
Chicago Black Hawks | Portland Winter Hawks (WHL) |
| 76 | Jim Malwitz | Centre | United States |
Minnesota North Stars | Grand Rapids High School (USHS-MN) |
| 77 | Scott McLellan | Right Wing | Canada |
Boston Bruins | Niagara Falls Flyers (OMJHL) |
| 78 | Peter Madach | Centre | Sweden |
Calgary Flames | HV71 (Sweden) |
| 79 | Ken Latta | Right Wing | Canada |
Philadelphia Flyers | Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OMJHL) |
| 80 | Jeff Eatough | Right Wing | Canada |
Buffalo Sabres | Cornwall Royals (QMJHL) |
| 81 | Marty Dallman | Centre | Canada |
Los Angeles Kings | Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (ECAC) |
| 82 | Kjell Dahlin | Right Wing | Sweden |
Montreal Canadiens | Timrå IK (Sweden) |
| 83 | Anders Wikberg | Left Wing | Sweden |
Buffalo Sabres (from St. Louis) | Timra IK (Sweden) |
| 84 | Todd Lumbard | Goaltender | Canada |
New York Islanders | Brandon Wheat Kings (WHL) |