Excited, anxious, and nervous are among the many feelings that must be going through the minds of goalies Tyler Brennan and Ty Young, plus defencemen Hudson Thornton, Keaton Dowhaniuk, and Viliam Kmec.
They are the five Prince George Cougars that are listed in the final Central Scouting rankings for the NHL Draft which continues today (Friday) with rounds two to seven at the Bell Centre in Montreal.
Thursday, five Cougars were named to NHL Central Scouting’s Final Rankings ahead of the 2022 #NHLDraft.
📸 James Doyle
— PG Cougars (@PGCougars) May 5, 2022
There were no Cougars selected during the opening round Thursday but that likely is to change today.
Brennan, who is the top-ranked North American goalie by Central Scouting, could hear his name called as early as round two or three.
Having said that, there is no way to know especially with a goalie.
I was as stunned as anyone that Taylor Gauthier in 2020, then with the Cougars in his 18-year-old draft year, was not selected at all even though he was ranked 7th among North American goalies by Central Scouting at the time.
(UPDATE at 9:30 this morning (Friday): Brennan was selected in the 4th round, 102nd overall by the New Jersey Devils)
With the 102nd pick in the #NHLDraft, the @NJDevils select Tyler Brennan from the @PGCougars! pic.twitter.com/a2mgXoNMf7
— The WHL (@TheWHL) July 8, 2022
Young, who is Brennan’s partner, is the 6th ranked North American netminder, a big jump from 21st in the midseason ranking.
(UPDATE at 10:15 this morning (Friday): Young was selected in the 5th round, 144th overall by the Vancouver Canucks)
Make it TWO @PGCougars goaltenders selected in the 2022 #NHLDraft! pic.twitter.com/IktW9H2D82
— The WHL (@TheWHL) July 8, 2022
Thornton is ranked 109th, Dowhaniuk 120th, and Kmec 186th among North American Skaters.
At midterm, Thornton was 211th, Dowhaniuk was 136th and Kmec was 92nd.
Brennan, who was born September 27th, 2003 in Winnipeg, got better as the 2021-22 season progressed and played his best in the playoffs with a sizzling 1.86 goals-against-average and 0.954 save percentage in four games (all losses against Gauthier and the Portland Winterhawks).
Al Jensen of @NHLCentralScout joined the @NHL Draft Class podcast to talk about this year’s crop of goalie prospects. Why is Tyler Brennan from the @PGCougars of the @WHL the top ranked goalie ?
Apple: https://t.co/XAm8rhBfDZ
Spotify: https://t.co/7kZ6RQkO2x pic.twitter.com/KE3MnMnrb1— NHL.com (@NHLdotcom) June 22, 2022
The Cougars, in all likelihood, would not have made the playoffs had it not been for Young, who played the last six games of the season when Brennan was out with an injury.
In those six games, Young was the first star twice and the third star on another occasion.
In the team’s biggest win of the season, 2-1 over Victoria on April 9th that moved them into a playoff spot, he stopped 29 of 30 shots.
(Young was not named a star in that game because the three stars were based on a career and given to the three 20-year-olds on the team who were playing their final regular-season game for Prince George)
Thornton is an offensive threat from the back end, Dowhaniuk loves to play a physical game, and Kmec, from Slovakia, adjusted well in much of his first season in the WHL.
Just about every player will tell you it is an honour to have their name called at the NHL Draft.
On Thursday, the WHL had six players picked in the opening round.
Six WHL players were selected in the first round of the 2022 #NHLDraft.
📰 | https://t.co/Ij51kfh5xG pic.twitter.com/MOv3ScZjj0
— The WHL (@TheWHL) July 8, 2022
Some ranked players will be overlooked but their journey will be far from over.
Players such as Dino Ciccarelli (608 goals), Joe Mullen (502 goals), Adam Oates (1,408 points), Peter Stastny (1,239 points), Martin St. Louis (1,033 points), 12-time All-Star goalie Ed Belfour, and 6-time All-Star goalie Curtis Joseph are among many that made a huge impact in the NHL despite not getting drafted.
The NHL Draft Tracker can be found right here.
Here’s how Round 1 of the 2022 #NHLDraft went.
What was the biggest surprise? pic.twitter.com/4BO632v8tM
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) July 8, 2022
(UPDATE at 12:15 this afternoon (Friday): Brennan and Young were the only Cougars selected in this year’s NHL Draft)
A total of 28 WHL players have been selected at the 2022 #NHLDraft in Montreal.
📝 | https://t.co/Bjqu3fwboU pic.twitter.com/XW12IT885G
— The WHL (@TheWHL) July 8, 2022
FROM THE QUOTE RACK:
Jim Pappin, who scored Toronto’s last Stanley Cup-clinching goal in 1967, has died at age 82. Maple Leafs fans were shocked — to learn they’d actually won a Cup.
*Dwight Perry of the Seattle Times http://www.seattletimes.com/author/dwight-perry/
American Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte plans to auction off the six career medals he won. He added that if one person buys all six, he’ll throw in the Rio gas station towel dispenser that he and his drinking buddies destroyed.
*Contributor Bill Littlejohn of South Lake Tahoe, California
Kevin Durant is turning into the Taylor Swift of baseball. But at least her breakups result in good songs.
*Comedy writer Janice Hough of Palo Alto, California www.leftcoastsportsbabe.com
In Case You Missed It:
Minor leagues have reached a settlement with the MLB in a suit to at least pay players the minimum wage. Major league representatives were quoted as saying: ‘Who do they think we are? The CFL?
*Western Canadian comedy writer RJ Currie www.Sportsdeke.com
Hartley Miller is the news and sports director/supervisor plus morning news anchor for 94.3 the GOAT and Country 97fm. He also is the radio colour commentator for P.G. Cougars’ home games. Hartley has been on the Prince George airwaves since 1979 and is the author of You Don’t Say (sports quotes).