The National Hockey League draft has come and gone for another year and once again the Ontario Hockey League was well represented.
In total, 45 OHL players had their names called by NHL teams, including five members of the Windsor Spitfires and Guelph Storm while four members of the Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors were drafted as well.
Among the players selected was Soo Greyhounds forward Jordan Nolan. The Los Angeles Kings selected the veteran early in the seventh round. It marked the second straight year the Kings selected a Greyhound player not ranked by NHL Central Scouting. Last summer Los Angeles selected Greyhounds defenceman Andrew Campbell in the third round.
There were a few surprises relating to the OHL as the draft wore one.
One big surprise was the Toronto Maple Leafs using the 68th pick to select Plymouth Whalers forward Jamie Devane. Devane scored just five goals and 17 points in 64 games with the Whalers. The young forward brings a physical presence to every game, which is an asset Leafs GM Brian Burke is leaning towards as he rebuilds the team.
What surprised me about the Devane selection is how high he was picked. A player of Devane’s level likely would have been available in the later rounds of the draft. Credit to Burke for drafting a player with the credentials he is looking for in prospects but should he really let that cloud his better judgement? Selecting for need is one thing. Selecting for need when a player would easily have been available three rounds later is a completely different story.
Speaking of surprises, I don’t think I was the only one expecting Saginaw Spirit goaltender Ed Pasquale to be selected higher than 117th overall by Atlanta.
Pasquale saw the most minutes (3536) of any starter in the OHL and led the league in saves with 1821. His numbers were no different than those of Plymouth netminder Matt Hackett, who was selected 77th overall.
