LOS ANGELES, Calif – The National Hockey League Entry Draft at the Staples Center featured many talented hockey players being drafted by professional hockey teams from the United States and Canada. All 30 teams had a chance to pick up very talented players whose families and coaches were there supporting them.
The number one pick in the draft was by the Edmonton Oilers who had a very tough decision. The Oilers decided to choose Taylor Hall. Hall of Alberta, Canada is a left winger who played for the Windsor Spitfires in the Ontario Hockey League. TSN had made a mock draft which predicted Hall to be the number one pick in the draft. TSN’s Mock Draft was right on target.
The LA Kings traded to get the St. Louis Blues 15th pick and the LA Kings gave the Blues the 19th and 59th pick in the draft. The Kings chose Derek Forbort, who was born in Minnesota and plays for the USA National Hockey Team Development Program. At 6 ft. 5 inches tall, Forbort is a defenseman who is a threat out on the ice.
Ten of the 30 picks in the first round were born in the United States which ties a record set in 2006 and 2007. All of the fans were cheering when the teams announced which player they wanted to draft. After one of the players got selected, he would hug his parents and family and then go up to shake hands with the team management who were waiting on the stage for him. The player would put on the jersey and cap of the team and have his photo taken.
Especially exciting was when the fans sang Happy Birthday to Jaden Schwartz, who was the St. Lous Blues 14th round draft pick. As he walked on stage, someone noticed that his birthday was that day, so spontaneously the audience sang him birthday greetings.
During the two day draft, Phoenix Coyotes General Manager Don Maloney, and Assistant General Manager Brad Treliving were very busy choosing the great players they did. On Day 1 of the draft, the Coyotes chose Brandon Gormley of Prince Edward Island, Canada as the 13th pick and Mark Visentin of Ontario, Canada as the 27th pick in the draft.
On Day 2, the Coyotes chose Philip Lane of Rochester, New York as the 52nd pick in the draft. The Coyotes also chose Oscar Lindberg of Sweden as the 57nd pick in the draft, and Louis Domingue of Quebec was 138th pick. Treliving, a former professional hockey player, joined the Coyotes 3 years ago. He brought with him several years of experience as president of the Central Hockey League. He was instrumental in helping advise the Coyotes on their player selection at the Staples Center.
Both days were very crowded at the Staples Center. On Saturday, Dustin Brown, captain of the LA Kings, was signing autographs at the Upper Deck booth. Many fans were happy to get Dustin Brown’s autograph and to take their photo with Dustin. He was very polite to all of the fans and said thank you for coming to the Draft.
The fans packed the Staples Center to attend the NHL Draft. Is this the start of a tradition to have the Draft in Los Angeles? There are a lot of hockey fans in Southern California and Los Angeles is the home to one of the greatest hockey players in history, Wayne Gretzky. In the years to come, hopefully Los Angeles will host another NHL Draft, again at the Staples Center!
Contact the author at Comment@prohockeynews.com
Editor’s Note: The author is a young fan of ice hockey and attended the NHL Entry Draft in Los Angeles. James Handal writes for a newspaper in Santa Monica.
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