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OHL Ottawa 67's

67's Welcome Newcomers to Barber Poles Family at OHL Priority Selection

April 11, 2015 - Ontario Hockey League (OHL)
Ottawa 67's News Release


OTTAWA -- The Ottawa 67's addressed the team's needs for the future during Saturday's 2015 Ontario Hockey League Priority Selection, but broke away from tradition with the first-round pick.

After successive years of choosing a player in the opening round with Travis as a given name (Konecny first overall in 2013 and Barron third overall in 2014), the 67's deviated from that moniker trend and selected 16-year-old centre Austen Keating of the Guelph Gryphons Minor Midget AAA squad with the team's first pick (16th overall).

There's plenty of potential for Keating, the youngest of four children of Bill and Melanie Keating, who scored 30 goals and added 30 assists in 36 games while serving as captain of the Gryphons as a first-year midget-aged player.

"Personally, I try to play my type of game," said Keating who received congratulatory texts from both Konecny and Barron after his name was called, along with phone conversations with 67's general manager Pat Higgins and head coach Jeff Brown.

"I really look up to Jonathan Toews because he does so many things right. He'll score big goals, he'll block shots. It seems that whatever he's asked to do, he does it so well. That's the kind of player I want to be."

Keating landed on the 67's radar as early as 2014 when he scored three goals and six points in five games as a bantam-aged forward for the Gryphons at the OHL Cup, a tournament of the top minor-midget teams in Ontario and the United States.

He fell in love with Ottawa playing atom during the Bell Capital Cup and attended a Senators game.

"I liked the old buildings in Ottawa and just the whole atmosphere and actually thought that it would be a great place to play hockey one day," said Keating.

His wish to play in Ottawa took a step toward reality last month when the 67's brought him in for a visit to watch the second game of the playoff series against Niagara.

"I was really impressed. I liked the atmosphere and the fans were loud. It was nice to see so many fans supporting the 67's."

Keating considers himself a normal kid. He likes taking English classes at school because it's good for his imagination.

"If fans see me at the rink or outside of the rink, they shouldn't be shy to come right up to me and say hi. I don't mind taking a photo and being friendly," he said.

Keating also has a hockey pedigree. His father's cousin is Walt Tkaczuk who played for the New York Rangers through the 1970's.

"It's been a great day for me," said Keating. "A couple of years ago, I really never thought I would have been in this situation, but now it's real and I guess all the hard work has paid off.

"But now I know the real hard work is just beginning."

The 67's picked up two defencemen with the second and third-round picks: 16-year-old Noel Hoefenmayer (6'0", 178 lbs., Don Mills Flyers) and 15-year-old (turns 16 next month) Hudson Wilson (6'1", 171 lbs., Vaughn Kings).

Corey Andonovski, a winger from the York-Simcoe Express, was chosen in the fourth round, followed by centre Marcel Bérubé of the London Junior Knights.

The top Ottawa-area player selected by the 67's was defenceman Erik Ross of the Ottawa Junior 67's, chosen in the ninth round.

A complete list of 67's draftees can be found at the Ontario Hockey League website.

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Ontario Hockey League Stories from April 11, 2015


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