USHL Cedar Rapids RoughRiders

Kaunisto First of 12 Forwards Drafted by Riders

Published on May 12, 2005 under United States Hockey League (USHL)
Cedar Rapids RoughRiders News Release


Cedar Rapids, Iowa- The Cedar Rapids RoughRiders selected forward Ray Kaunisto in the first round of today's United States Hockey League entry draft with the tenth overall choice. Kaunisto, who was a North American Hockey League All-Rookie Team selection while playing for the Soo Indians last season, was the first of 12 forwards picked by the Riders today and the first of seven forwards the Riders drafted out of the junior A NAHL.

The Riders began restocking up front early in the draft, selecting forwards with their first four picks and six of their first seven. In addition to a dozen forwards, the Riders also drafted two defensemen and two goaltenders.

The Riders also traded for defenseman Jeff Carlson today, sending a fourth round pick in next year's draft to the Tri-City Storm in exchange for the veteran blue liner.

Kaunisto played for his hometown team last season- the 18-year old is a native of Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan. Kaunisto (20-20-40) tied for the Indians team lead in goals and was also the club's second leading point scorer. The 6-4, 185-pound Kaunisto has already committed to play his college hockey at Northern Michigan.

The Riders did not have second round pick, having traded that choice to the Sioux Falls Stampede last summer in exchange for goaltender Alex Stalock. The Riders selected another NAHL forward- Jacob Cepis of the Cleveland Barons- in the third round with the thirty-second overall choice. Cepis, 17, was second on the Barons in goals (22), assists (27), and points (49) last season. The Parma, Ohio, native has already committed to Bowling Green.

Scott Wietecha became the first defenseman taken by the Riders when he was chosen in the fourth round with the forty-third overall pick. Wietecha, 17, has ample size at 6' 1" and 205 pounds. The Wolverine Lake, Michigan, native played for the Victory Honda midget team last season.

In the fifth round, the Riders again tabbed an NAHL forward, using the forty-sixth pick (a choice acquired in a trade with the Green Bay Gamblers last December) on Johnston, Iowa, native Chad Costello of the Wichita Falls Wildcats. Costello has a chance to become the first Iowa native to play for the Riders in the team's history.

Last season Costello (29-34-63) was tied for eighth in the NAHL in goals and finished tied for ninth in points. Costello played in the USHL two years ago, scoring five goals and totaling 15 points in 49 games with the Des Moines Buccaneers. Prior to making the jump to the junior ranks, the 5' 7", 155-pound Costello skated in the Iowa High School League for the Des Moines Capitals.

Defenseman Ben Youds became the first high school player selected by the Riders when he was taken later in the fifth round with the fifty-fourth overall choice. Youds played for Minnesota's Maple Grove High last season.

After using their sixth round selection (the sixty-fifth overall choice) on 17-year old Team Illinois midget forward Toby Heaslip, the Riders turned once more to the NAHL to take Carter Camper- another Cleveland forward- in the seventh round with seventh-sixth overall pick. Camper, a 16-year old product of Rocky River, Ohio, scored 14 goals and notched 37 points in 54 games last season. Two years ago, Camper and RoughRider defenseman Alec Martinez were teammates on Michigan's Honeybaked midget team.

In the eighth round the Riders again dipped into the NAHL talent pool, selecting forward Phil Fox. Fox (22-38-60), who was taken with the eighty-fifth overall choice, led the Fargo-Moorhead Jets in point scoring and ranked seventh in the league in assists. Like fifth round pick Costello, Fox also played for the USHL's Buccaneers in 2003-04. The Stillwater, Minnesota, native scored one goal and totaled five points in 28 games with Des Moines.

The Riders looked east for their ninth round choice, using the ninety-third overall selection on defenseman Brett Dickinson of New Jersey's Mercer Chiefs midget program.

After taking Dickinson, the Riders did not choose again until selecting goaltender Adam Kraus in the tenth round. The Riders first nine selections brought the number of players on the Cedar Rapids protected list to 23. Per USHL draft rules, teams that fill the first 23 spots on their protected lists are required to wait until all other clubs have reached 23 players, at which point all teams resume drafting until they have filled out their protected lists with 30 players.

The Riders used the one hundred twelfth overall choice on Kraus, an Irving, Texas, native who played midget hockey for the Los Angeles Junior Kings last season. The 6' 3", 165-pound Krause turns 18 in July.

The Bismark Bobcats' Aaron Bendickson became the sixth NAHL forward taken by the Riders when he was scooped up in the fifteenth round with the one hundred twenty-third choice. Bendickson, 19, scored 13 goals and registered 38 points in 48 games last season. The 5' 11", 170-pound product of Thief River Falls, Minnesota, was part of a Bobcat squad that finished third in the Junior A National Tournament last month.

The Riders shifted gears to select a pair of midget forwards with their next two picks. The Pittsburgh Hornets' Alec Wright went to the Riders in the sixteenth round on the one hundred thirty-fourth overall pick. In the next round the Riders followed up that choice by tabbing Ian Slater of the Madison Capitols with the one hundred forty-fifth selection. Slater, 17, migrated from his native Satellite Beach, Florida, to skate for the Capitols.

In the eighteenth round, the Riders selected the Winkler Flyers' Matt Ostash, the 2004-05 Manitoba Junior Hockey League Rookie of the Year. Ostash, a 20-year old product of Brandon, Manitoba, ranked seventh in the MJHL in assists (45) and points (75) last season.

The Riders selected a second goaltender in the nineteenth round, choosing 18-year old netminder Pat McGann with the one hundred sixty-seventh pick. McGann was Heaslip's teammate with Team Illinois last season.

Fittingly, the Riders used their final pick on one more NAHL forward, Ian Schaser of the Billings Bulls. The Riders grabbed Schaser, 20, in the twentieth round with the one hundred seventy-eighth choice. Schaser scored 23 goals and recorded 48 points in 54 games last season. The Eden Prairie, Minnesota, native finished tied for second in the NAHL with five shorthanded goals.

Defenseman Carlson joins the Riders via the trade with Tri-City after splitting last season between the Gamblers and the Storm. Carlson scored two goals and picked up one assist while posting a plus/minus rating of -13 in 50 USHL games. The 6' 2", 200-pound Carlson played 36 games for the Storm, scoring a pair of goals after joining Tri-City in December. Carlson, a native of Richfield, Minnesota, began his USHL career with a ten game stint with Green Bay in 2003-04. Carlson skated for Richfield High School before stepping up to the USHL.

The RoughRiders' draft picks will take to the ice for the first time in Cedar Rapids at the team's try-out camp June 2-5 at the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena. Try-out camp marks the beginning of the Riders' on-ice preparations for the 2005-06 season- less than one month after the Riders finished off the 2004-05 season as Clark Cup champions.

RoughRiders' 2005 Draft Choices

Rd Overall Name Pos. Team

1 10 Ray Kaunisto F Soo Indians (NAHL)

3 32 Jacob Cepis F Cleveland Barons (NAHL)

4 43 Scott Wietecha F Victory Honda midget AAA

5 46 Chad Costello F Wichita Falls Wildcats (NAHL)

5 54 Ben Youds D Maple Grove HS

6 65 Toby Heaslip F Team Illinois midget AAA

7 76 Carter Camper F Cleveland Barons (NAHL)

8 85 Phil Fox F Fargo-Moorhead Jets (NAHL)

9 93 Brett Dickinson D Mercer Chiefs midget AAA

14 112 Adam Kraus G Los Angeles Jr. Kings midget AAA

15 123 Aaron Bendickson F Bismarck Bobcats (NAHL)

16 134 Alec Wright F Pittsburgh Hornets midget AAA

17 145 Ian Slater F Madison Capitols midget AAA

18 156 Matt Ostash F Winkler Flyers (MJHL)

19 167 Pat McGann G Team Illinois midget AAA

20 178 Ian Schaser F Billings Bulls (NAHL)

Check out the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



United States Hockey League Stories from May 12, 2005


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.

OurSports Central