In the 1997 NHL Draft, Joe Thornton went #1, living up to his billing as a premier playmaker. Patrick Marleau followed at #2, setting the stage for two decades of San Jose dominance. Roberto Luongo (#4), Marian Hossa (#12), and Olli Jokinen (#3) made the top of this draft legendary. Brenden Morrow (#25) and Scott Hannan (#23) added grit to the late first round. Later, Henrik Tallinder (48th) and Brian Campbell (156th) were found. Overall, the 1997 draft was elite for top-tier talent. It produced three clear Hall of Famers in the top twelve picks and shaped the core of several contenders.
Career earnings of players picked in the first round of the 1997 NHL entry draft.
| Player | Pos. | Pick # | Drafted by | Career Earnings |
Rank | Career Earnings In today's $ |
Rank |
| Joe Thornton | C | 1 | Boston Bruins | $109,478,561 | 6 | $130,638,254 | 8 |
| Patrick Marleau | C | 2 | San Jose Sharks | $98,667,358 | 17 | $115,206,369 | 17 |
| Olli Jokinen | C | 3 | Los Angeles Kings | $46,219,646 | 188 | $57,480,228 | 174 |
| Roberto Luongo | G | 4 | New York Islanders | $94,055,646 | 21 | $110,555,621 | 26 |
| Eric Brewer | D | 5 | New York Islanders | $42,537,963 | 230 | $52,548,833 | 215 |
| Daniel Tkaczuk | C | 6 | Calgary Flames | $925,000 | 3100 | $1,389,434 | 3108 |
| Paul Mara | D | 7 | Tampa Bay Lightning | $16,437,500 | 747 | $21,497,094 | 728 |
| Sergei Samsonov | LW | 8 | Boston Bruins | $29,395,000 | 412 | $39,335,817 | 345 |
| Brad Ference | D | 10 | Vancouver Canucks | $3,820,000 | 1760 | $5,403,932 | 1713 |
| Jason Ward | RW | 11 | Montreal Canadiens | $2,675,000 | 2091 | $3,527,257 | 2082 |
| Marian Hossa | RW | 12 | Ottawa Senators | $94,874,390 | 20 | $113,482,952 | 22 |
| Daniel Cleary | RW | 13 | Chicago Blackhawks | $22,806,098 | 572 | $28,484,116 | 555 |
| Michel Riesen | LW | 14 | Edmonton Oilers | ||||
| Matt Zultek | C | 15 | Los Angeles Kings | ||||
| Ty Jones | RW | 16 | Chicago Blackhawks | $925,000 | 3100 | $1,467,766 | 3015 |
| Robert Dome | LW | 17 | Pittsburgh Penguins | $850,000 | 3245 | $1,369,680 | 3128 |
| Michael Holmqvist | C | 18 | Anaheim Ducks | $1,075,000 | 2976 | $1,397,958 | 3100 |
| Stefan Cherneski | RW | 19 | New York Rangers | ||||
| Mika Noronen | G | 21 | Buffalo Sabres | $1,665,000 | 2562 | $2,301,205 | 2531 |
| Nikos Tselios | D | 22 | Carolina Hurricanes | ||||
| Scott Hannan | D | 23 | San Jose Sharks | $29,992,366 | 403 | $37,453,669 | 366 |
| Jean-Francois Damphousse | G | 24 | New Jersey Devils | ||||
| Brenden Morrow | LW | 25 | Dallas Stars | $32,950,500 | 350 | $40,605,084 | 329 |
| Kevin Grimes | D | 26 | Colorado Avalanche |