USHL Has Record-Setting 2014 NHL Draft
Published on June 29, 2014 under United States Hockey League (USHL) News Release
Chicago, IL - The United States Hockey League reached an all-time high in player selections over the two days of the 2014 NHL Draft as a total of 35 players who appeared during the 2013-14 USHL season were chosen by NHL clubs.
"These numbers further validate the USA Hockey developmental model in which the USHL plays such a huge role," said Bob Fallen, USHL President and Commissioner. "The draft selections were the result of a lot of hard work and dedication from the players, and the USHL coaches and team staffs that have helped them reach this point. The USHL continues to be a key step in the development path for so many players as they move on to NCAA and NHL careers, and we are really proud of the recognition they are receiving from NHL clubs."
During the first round on Friday night, Team USA forward Dylan Larkin became the first player from the USHL selected as he was picked 15th overall by the Detroit Red Wings. His selection made it 10 consecutive years that a USHL player was picked in the first round of the NHL Draft. The product of the Belle Tire youth hockey organization in Detroit grew up as a Red Wings fan and put up 40 points (24g, 16a) over 63 games in two seasons in the USHL with Team USA. He will continue his career next season in his home state as he enrolls at the University of Michigan.
Following Larkin's pick, his teammate Sonny Milano was taken next at 16th overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets. The New York native recorded 61 points (24g, 37a) over 63 USHL games in two seasons with Team USA. Only two picks later, a third member of Team USA was chosen as Alex Tuch went to the Minnesota Wild at 18th overall. In addition to his 42 points in his USHL career, he was one of the recipients of the 2013-14 USHL Scholar-Athlete Award. Tuch will join Milano next season at Boston College.
A bit of drama took place only two picks later as the Chicago Blackhawks moved up to get the 20th overall selection. With that pick, they selected Nick Schmaltz from the Green Bay Gamblers. The forward tied for seventh in USHL scoring during the 2013-14 season with 63 points, including the third-most assists in the League (45). He became the second member of the Schmaltz family to be selected in the first round of the NHL Draft as his brother, Jordan Schmaltz, was chosen 25th overall in 2012 by the St. Louis Blues after helping the Green Bay Gamblers win the Clark Cup.
It was a busy day for the USHL on Saturday when the second day of the 2014 NHL Draft began. Defenseman Josh Jacobs of the Indiana Ice was picked 41st overall by the New Jersey Devils, making it 10 consecutive years that a member of the Clark Cup champion would go on to be selected in the NHL Draft.
A trio of Team USA defensemen were chosen in the second round - Ryan Collins, 47th overall to Columbus Blues Jackets, Jack Dougherty, 51st overall to Nashville Predators, and Johnathan MacLeod, 57th overall to Tampa Bay Lightning. Also in the second round, the USHL Player and Defenseman of the Year was picked as Brandon Montour from the Waterloo Black Hawks was taken 55th overall by the Anaheim Ducks. Just a year earlier, Montour was picked in the 18th round (267th overall) of the USHL Draft. Of the six USHL players taken in the second round, the lone forward was Maxim Letunov from the Youngstown Phantoms as he was picked 52nd overall by the St. Louis Blues. He became the second-highest draft selection in the history of the Phantoms, following Scott Mayfield who was 34th overall in the 2011 NHL Draft.
The six total USHL players selected in the second round equals a record high (2010), and the 10 total players picked over the first two rounds also equaled a high for the League (2012, 2010).
In the third round, the Chicago Blackhawks made a splash again as they orchestrated a trade to acquire the 83rd overall pick from the Calgary Flames. With the pick, the Blackhawks chose forward Matt Iacopelli from the Muskegon Lumberjacks who led the USHL in 2013-14 with 41 goals. As part of the trade, Chicago sent former Lincoln Stars player Brandon Bollig (2005-08) to Calgary. Three picks later, the fans from the draft host Philadelphia Flyers roared as the hometown team chose defenseman Mark Friedman of the Waterloo Black Hawks with the 86th overall selection. He was fourth in scoring among USHL defensemen this past season with 40 points (10g, 30a) in 51 games.
More history was made in the fourth round as J.J. Piccinich was chosen 103rd overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs, making it the first time that two players from the Youngstown Phantoms were chosen in the same NHL Draft. Austin Poganski was then selected 110th overall by the St. Louis Blues, the first NHL Draft pick for the Tri-City Storm since Jaden Schwartz was picked by the Blues in the first round of 2010. With the final pick of the fourth round, the Los Angeles Kings selected defenseman Steven Johnson from the Omaha Lancers at 120th overall. That made it 10 consecutive years that a member of the Lancers was taken in the NHL Draft, the longest active streak among USHL teams.
The Sioux Falls Stampede saw three players from their season-ending roster picked in the fifth round. Forward Dakota Joshua was selected 128th overall by the Toronto Maple Leafs, and with the next pick, the Winnipeg Jets chose his teammate C.J. Franklin with the 129th overall selection. Franklin put up 111 points (54g, 57a) over 115 career games in the USHL. Later in the round, defenseman Tyler Nanne was picked 142nd overall by the New York Rangers. He came to the Stampede after helping Edina High School win a Minnesota state championship in addition to playing for Team Southwest in the Minnesota High School Elite League. Another product from the Elite League that made a jump to the USHL before and after his high school season with Eden Prairie in Minnesota was Luc Snuggerud, picked 141st overall by the Chicago Blackhawks. The defenseman appeared in seven USHL games split between the Omaha Lancers and Muskegon Lumberjacks this past season.
Anthony Angello of the Omaha Lancers was taken in the fifth round (145th overall) by the Pittsburgh Penguins. He joined Alex Tuch as a recipient of the 2013-14 USHL Scholar-Athlete Award and both were drafted by NHL teams over the weekend.
Three more Omaha Lancers players were chosen in the sixth round of the 2014 NHL Draft. Forward Tyler Vesel was taken 153rd overall by the Edmonton Oilers. He was third in USHL scoring this past season with 71 points (33g, 38a) in 49 games and earned a selection to the All-USHL Second Team. Steven Spinner was then taken 159th overall by the Washington Capitals. He finished off the season with the Omaha Lancers after being teammates with Snuggerud at Eden Prairie High School and with Team Southeast in the Minnesota Elite League. Later in the sixth round, Hayden Hawkey was picked 177th overall by the Montreal Canadiens. He was named USHL Goaltender of the Year after posting a 22-6-3 record and a 1.99 goals-against-average, the first goaltender in the USHL Tier 1 era (2002-present) to finish the season with a sub-2.00 GAA. Overall, six players who competed for the Omaha Lancers during the 2013-14 season were selected in the NHL Draft.
The final USHL player selected in the 2014 NHL Draft was Dwyer Tschantz by the St. Louis Blues in the seventh round with the 202nd overall pick. He was the third member of the Clark Cup champion Indiana Ice to be chosen, joining Josh Jacobs (41st overall, New Jersey Devils) and Ryan Mantha (104th overall, New York Rangers).
In addition to the 35 USHL players from the 2013-14 season that were selected in the draft, 16 additional players with USHL experience were chosen by NHL clubs. Among that group was Nathan Walker who spent the 2012-13 season with the Youngstown Phantoms and put up 27 points (7g, 20a) in 29 games. He was chosen in the third round (89th overall) and became the first-ever player from Australia picked in the NHL Draft. With the 203rd overall pick, the Pittsburgh Penguins selected Jeff Taylor. The defenseman was third overall in the USHL during the 2012-13 season with a plus-41 rating. He would help the Dubuque Fighting Saints win the Clark Cup in 2013 and then helped Union College win the NCAA Championship in 2014.
Eleven different USHL Member Clubs from the 2013-14 season had at least one player selected, and 28 of the 30 NHL teams picked players with USHL experience during the 2014 NHL Draft.
USHL Selections in 2014 NHL Draft
1st Round
Dylan Larkin (F), Team USA - Detroit Red Wings, 15th overall
Sonny Milano (F), Team USA - Columbus Blue Jackets, 16th overall
Alex Tuch (F), Team USA - Minnesota Wild, 18th overall
Nick Schmaltz (F), Green Bay Gamblers - Chicago Blackhawks, 20th overall
2nd Round
Josh Jacobs (D), Indiana Ice - New Jersey Devils, 41st overall
Ryan Collins (D), Team USA - Columbus Blues Jackets, 47th overall
Jack Dougherty (D), Team USA - Nashville Predators, 51st overall
Maxim Letunov (F), Youngstown Phantoms - St. Louis Blues, 52nd overall
Brandon Montour (D), Waterloo Black Hawks - Anaheim Ducks, 55th overall
Johnathan MacLeod (D), Team USA - Tampa Bay Lightning, 57th overall
3rd Round
Jack Glover (D), Team USA - Winnipeg Jets, 69th overall
Louis Belpedio (D), Team USA - Minnesota Wild, 80th overall
Matt Iacopelli (F), Muskegon Lumberjacks - Chicago Blackhawks, 83rd overall
Mark Friedman (D), Waterloo Black Hawks - Philadelphia Flyers, 86th overall
4th Round
Joe Wegwerth (F), Team USA - Florida Panthers, 92nd overall
Fredrik Olofsson (F), Chicago Steel/Green Bay Gamblers - Chicago Blackhawks, 98th overall
Shane Eiserman (F), Dubuque Fighting Saints - Ottawa Senators, 100th overall
J.J. Piccinich (F), Youngstown Phantoms - Toronto Maple Leafs, 103rd overall
Ryan Mantha (F), Indiana Ice - New York Rangers, 104th overall
Austin Poganski (F), Tri-City Storm - St. Louis Blues, 110th overall
Steven Johnson (D), Omaha Lancers - Los Angeles Kings, 120th overall
5th Round
Dakota Joshua (F), Sioux Falls Stampede - Toronto Maple Leafs, 128th overall
C.J. Franklin (F), Sioux Falls Stampede - Winnipeg Jets, 129th overall
Shane Gersich (F), Team USA - Washington Capitals, 134th overall
Luc Snuggerud (D), Omaha Lancers - Chicago Blackhawks, 141st overall
Tyler Nanne (D), Sioux Falls Stampede - New York Rangers, 142nd overall
Anthony Angello (F), Omaha Lancers - Pittsburgh Penguins, 145th overall
Anders Bjork (F), Team USA - Boston Bruins, 146th overall
6th Round
Christopher Brown (F), Green Bay Gamblers - Buffalo Sabres, 151st overall
Tyler Vesel (F), Omaha Lancers - Edmonton Oilers, 153rd overall
Steven Spinner (F), Omaha Lancers - Washington Capitals, 159th overall
C.J. Yakimowicz (F), Team USA - St. Louis Blues, 172nd overall
Hayden Hawkey (G), Omaha Lancers - Montreal Canadiens, 177th overall
7th Round
Jared Fiegl (F), Team USA - Arizona Coyotes, 191st overall
Dwyer Tschantz (F), Indiana Ice - St. Louis Blues, 202nd overall
USHL Alumni Selections
Anthony DeAngelo (D), Cedar Rapids RoughRiders (2010-11) - Tampa Bay Lightning, (1st round, 19th overall)
Brendan Lemieux (F), Green Bay Gamblers (2012-13) - Buffalo Sabres (2nd round, 31st overall)
Thatcher Demko (G), Team USA (2012-13)/Omaha Lancers (2011-12) - Vancouver Canucks (2nd round, 36th overall)
Ryan MacInnis (F), Team USA (2012-13) - Arizona Coyotes (2nd round, 43rd overall)
Christian Dvorak (F), Chicago Steel (2012-13) - Arizona Coyotes (2nd round, 58th overall)
Rinat Valiev (D), Indiana Ice (2012-13) - Toronto Maple Leafs (3rd round, 68th overall)
Connor Chatham (F), Omaha Lancers (2012-13)/Team USA (2011-12) - New Jersey Devils (3rd round, 71st overall)
Alex Schoenborn (F), Lincoln Stars (2011-12) - San Jose Sharks (3rd round, 72nd overall)
Blake Siebenaler (D), Indiana Ice (2012-13) - Columbus Blue Jackets (3rd round, 77th overall)
Nathan Walker (F), Youngstown Phantoms (2012-13) - Washington Capitals (3rd round, 89th overall)
Nick Magyar (F), Sioux City Musketeers (2012-13) - Colorado Avalanche (4th round, 93rd overall)
Josh Wesley (D), Team USA (2012-13) - Carolina Hurricanes (4th round, 96th overall)
Kyle Schempp (F), Sioux Falls Stampede (2012-13) - New York Islanders (6th round, 155th overall)
Kevin Labanc (F), Team USA (2012-13)/Des Moines Buccaneers (2011-12) - San Jose Sharks (6th round, 171st overall)
Cam Darcy (F), Muskegon Lumberjacks (2012-13)/Team USA (2010-12) - Tampa Bay Lightning (7th round, 185th overall)
Jeff Taylor (D), Dubuque Fighting Saints (2012-13) - Pittsburgh Penguins (7th round, 203rd overall)
United States Hockey League Stories from June 29, 2014
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