Ethan Samson of the Prince George Cougars is ready to take his game to new heights after being selected in the NHL Draft.
The 17-year-old blueliner was taken in the 6th round, 174th overall by the Philadelphia Flyers.
Samson told MyPGNow.com it was a joyous occasion with his family back home in Delta.
“It was pretty crazy. I was watching with my family and we all kind of jumped up and down with excitement because it caught off pretty off-guard as I never talked to Philadelphia. I didn’t think it was a place I was going to go to.”
The Cougar defenceman noted he had no shortage of interest from teams before getting picked.
“I talked to a couple of other teams. Philly was not one of them so when I saw my name called by the Flyers it was a big surprise to me.”
Samson recorded 12 points in 22 games with the Cats during the Kamloops/Kelowna Hub season and is ready to take on a leadership role at both ends of the ice with the upcoming WHL season slated to start in October.
“I want to have the coaches rely on me to play a shutdown role against some of the other team’s top players and I know when I get my chance on the power play I can produce from there.”
“I realize that the work really starts now and I have to work that much harder to get to that next level. I skate two to three times a week and I work out four times a week. I need to be ready for camp this year in PG and have a good season.”