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Lumberjacks Draft First Five for 2010-2011

May 18, 2010 - United States Hockey League (USHL) - Muskegon Lumberjacks News Release

The Muskegon Lumberjacks continue to build for the future. Three months after announcing the Lumberjacks will join the United States Hockey League, the team drafted its first players.

Day one of the three days of drafts took place Monday, May 17 with the expansion draft. The Lumberjacks selected five players in the expansion draft: Brendan Woods, Nick Czinder, Kevin Albers, John Parker, and DJ Vandercook.

Woods spent last season with the Chicago Steel. Woods is a 6'2", 180-pound forward out of Palmyra, PA. He is committed to the University of Wisconsin for the 2011-2012 season. The soon-to-be eighteen-year-old Woods is the son of Washington Capitals assistant coach Bob Woods and is projected by the NHL Central Scouting service as the #83 best skating prospect in North America for the upcoming draft. He will more than likely be drafted somewhere in the second to fifth round of this summer's NHL Draft.

Czinder, 17, played his rookie USHL season last year for the Youngstown Phantoms. He is a 6'5", 215-pound power forward out of West Bloomfield. Prior to signing with the Phantoms, Czinder played for Orchard Lake St. Mary's. Czinder is touted as having tremendous NHL potential and could possibly be taken in the 2010 NHL Draft. Czinder was named to the USHL All-Star team in his first season.

Albers, 19, adds more size and championship experience to the Lumberjacks back line. The 6'0", 194-pound defenseman won the Clark Cup (the USHL Championship) with the Green Bay Gamblers last week. Albers, a native of Lake Orion, was a member of the gold-medal winning Team USA Junior Select Team in 2009.

Parker, 18, spent the past two seasons with the Indiana Ice. He adds more championship experience for the Lumberjacks. Parker, a 5'11", 180-pound forward out of Green Brook, NJ, won the Clark Cup with Indiana in 2008-2009 and a gold medal with the Team USA Junior Select Team along with Albers. Parker is committed to the University of Massachusetts.

Vandercook, 19, spent his rookie season in 2009-2010 with the Des Moines Buccaneers. He is a native of Farmington Hills. The 6'3", 190-pound forward spent 2008-2009 with the Wenatchee Wild of the NAHL where he scored 40 goals. Vandercook was named to the NAHL All-Tournament team, leading his team to the Robertson Cup finals. Drafts continue today with the Futures Draft and Wednesday is the Entry Draft. By the end of the week, the Lumberjacks will hold the rights to about 35 players.

Prior to the draft, Muskegon was allowed to sign up to six players. Over the last two weeks the Lumberjacks have signed Matt Berry, Jaycob Megna, Sebastien Gingras, Joel Vienneau, Mark Yanis, and Mike Conderman.

Berry, 17, a forward from Canton finished the season as the leading scorer for Belle Tire Midget Major U-18. The 5'9", 160-pound winger had 52 goals and 70 assists in 77 games.

Megna, 17, is a 6'4", 190-pound defenseman out of Northbrook, IL. He played last season for Team Illinois Midget Major U-18. He has committed to play at the University of Nebraska-Omaha after one or two seasons in the USHL. Megna also excels in the classroom, scoring a 31 on the ACT. Megna comes from an athletic family. His father, Jay, played NFL football for the New Orleans Saints and Miami Dolphins. His mother, Jacqueline, was an All-American in water polo. His brother, Jayson, played in the USHL last season with the Cedar Rapids Roughriders.

Gingras, 18, is the son of former NHL defenseman Gaston Gingras. The 6'3", 181-pound defenseman is a native of Pierrefonds, Quebec. Gingras played last year for Brockville of the CJHL Tier 1. Gingras is committed to the University of Maine for 2011.

Vienneau, 18, of Heart, Ontario played for Kingston of the Ontario Junior A Hockey League last season. The 6'3", 187-pound goaltender is ranked No. 14 among North American goaltenders and could be drafted this summer in the NHL Entry Draft. Vienneau is committed to the University of Minnesota in 2011.

Yanis, 15, is a 6'3", 190-pound defenseman out of Grosse Point. He played for Belle Tire Midget Minor this past season and was coached by Kyle Krug, father of the IHL Lumberjacks Matt Krug.

Conderman, the 5'9", 185-pound forward is a native of Rochester, NY and played for Cushing Academy in Massachusetts. He scored 31 goals and had 41 assists in 31 games for Cushing and was named to the All-New England Team. Conderman is committed to the University of Massachusetts-Lowell in 2011.

The Jacks will hold an open camp June 14-16 and an invite-only camp June 17-20 as the team narrows down the roster to prepare for the inaugural USHL season.

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