Rockets' Bantam Draft Selections

May 1, 2008 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Kelowna Rockets News Release

Kelowna, BC: The Kelowna Rockets are pleased to announce they have selected NINE players in the 2008 Western Hockey League Bantam Draft.

The Rockets first selection was Shayne McColgan, a forward from Manhattan Beach, California. He played Midget AAA last season in Los Angeles and stands at 5'10, 160 pounds. McColgan was the only US born player chosen by Kelowna.

Rockets President/General Manager Bruce Hamilton states, "We are really excited to draft Shayne, as he is one of the top US born players. We look forward to Shayne playing with the Kelowna Rockets in the near future as our scouting staff had him rated as one of the top three players in the draft. Needless to say we are really pleased to have Shayne joining the Rockets organization."

Thanks to a couple of trades, the Rockets selected three players in the fourth round; Daniel Lee (74th overall), Jordan Paddock (76th overall) and Jordan Cooke (79th overall). Lee and Paddock are both defensemen, while Cooke was the only goalie chosen by Kelowna.

The Rockets final pick of the draft was Dillon Simpson, a defenseman from Edmonton, who is the son of Oiler great Craig Simpson.

President/General Manager Bruce Hamilton responded, "We felt we had a real successful day. We chose nine excellent prospects and are looking forward to watching them grow. In two or three years we'll find out how good they really are."

The following are the Rockets' 2008 Bantam Draft picks:

1st Round (13th overall) - Shayne McColgan - 5'10/160 - C - Manhattan Beach, CA

2nd Round (32nd overall) - Zachery Franko - 5'9/135 - C - Winnipeg, MB

3rd Round (54th overall) - Tanner Clark - D - Rosetown, SK

4th Round (74th overall-trade from Saskatoon) - Daniel Lee - 6'0/166 - D - Surrey, BC

4th Round (76th overall) - Jordan Paddock - D - Merritt, BC

4th Round (79th overall-trade from Brandon) - Jordan Cooke - 5'9/145 - G - Leduc, AB

5th Round (98th overall) - Spencer Graboski - 6'2/165 - LW - Quesnel, BC

6th Round (120th overall) - Jessey Astles - 5'11/160 - RW - Coquitlam, BC

8th Round (164th overall) - Dillon Simpson - 6'0/175 - D - Edmonton, AB

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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.

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