Fighting Saints Select Nine Players in Phase I Draft
May 2, 2023 - United States Hockey League (USHL)
Dubuque Fighting Saints News Release
DUBUQUE, IA -- The Dubuque Fighting Saints completed Phase I of the 2023 USHL Draft on Tuesday evening, making nine total selections in addition to their earlier tender of forward Liam Kilfoil.
The Fighting Saints opened the draft selecting forward Cooper Dennis from Bishop Kearney Selects 15's with the 17th overall selection. The Ithaca, NY native netted 59 goals and produced 124 points in 83 games.
With their second second selection (23rd overall), the Fighting Saints selected Luke Brierley, Brierley, a defenseman product of the Chicago Mission, posted 11 points (2 goals, 9 assists) in 15 games for the Mission and added a goal and three assists in five playoff games.
In the third round (38th overall), Dubuque grabbed another forward in Chase Hull. Hull, who is from Ottawa, ONT, grabbed 63 points (33 goals, 30 assists) in 35 games playing 18U AAA with the Renfrew Wolves. Hull also participated in the Canada Winter Games with representing Team Ontario and scored one goal and three assists in six games.
"Cooper Dennis is a small player with lots of energy and shoots the puck," said General Manager and President of Hockey Operations Kalle Larsson. "He gets the puck on his stick then off his stick quick. Brierley plays in Chicago so I see him a lot. He took tremendous strides throughout the year. Chase Hull, I think he's awesome. He's a great player who can really score goals and works hard and wins corner battles."
Sean Barnhill, a defenseman from Scottsdale, AZ was the next pick for Dubuque at 53rd overall in the 4th round. Barnhill appeared in 12 games for the Phoenix Jr. Coyotes 15U AAA. He recorded one goal and one assist.
With their next selection (68th overall), the Steel selected forward Gavin Lock from Plymouth, MI. Lock, who stands at 6'0" and weighs 172 lbs, drew comparisons to Noah Powell from Director of Scouting Dan Shrader. Lock played this past season for Little Caesars 15U AAA and compiled 87 points (36 goals, 51 assists).
In the sixth round, the selection was Brandon Mickelson at 83rd overall. Mickelson, a Minnesota native, spent last season with the Minnesota Blue Ox and posted 28 points (10 goals, 11 assists) as a defenseman in 19 games,
With the 98th overall pick, the Fighting Saints added forward Ryan Aaronson. Aaronson, another Chicago Mission product, produced 15 points (9 goals, 6 assists) in the regular season and added five goals and an assist in five playoff games for the Mission.
Tommy Bleyl was the penultimate selection (113th) for the Saints in the 2023 Phase I Draft. Bleyl, a defenseman for the Mid Fairfield Jr. Rangers and with Burnt Hills-Ballston Spa High School in New York, registered 45 points (26 goals, 19 assists) for Burnt Hills- Ballston Spa in 16 games.
With their final pick of the Phase I Draft (143rd overall), the Fighting Saints selected defenseman Alex Huang from RosemÃère, QBC. Huang put up 40 points (6 goals, 34 assists) in 42 games playing for the Saint-Eustache Vikings U18 AAA.
"I thought we had a really good plan going into the day," added Larsson. "We got some players that we are really excited about, and we feel really good right now. Our scouting staff does an unbelievable job. They watch a lot of players and provide unbelievable information.
The draft will continue with Phase II tomorrow at 11:00 a.m. CT. Phase II is open to all players who are eligible to play junior hockey and are not currently on a protected USHL Roster. The Phase II Draft continues until all member clubs have filled their Initial Protected List to a total of 45 players.
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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
