scamperdog
05-02-2007, 08:23 PM
Blazers hope to trade up to earlier selection
by Mark Hunter
www.kamloopsnews.ca
There’s no telling if Dean Clark is a Howie Mandel fan, but the Kamloops Blazers’ head coach and general manager is getting ready to play a game of Deal or No Deal?
The Blazers hold the 15th pick in the WHL’s bantam draft, scheduled for Thursday in Calgary. While the team is confident it can get a quality, 1992-born prospect in that spot, Clark still is looking to trade his way into the top 10.
“I haven’t ruled out potentially trying to move up in the draft to get a higher pick,” Clark said. “We have extra fourth- and fifth-round picks to use to maybe jump up in the draft. We’ll try to do some different things, but if we can’t, we’ll still get a good player at 15.”
Available for Clark to trade are the fourth-round picks of the Lethbridge Hurricanes and Everett Silvertips, both coming from trades. The Blazers also have their own fourth-rounder, along with the fifth-round picks of the Moose Jaw Warriors and the Red Deer Rebels.
Unless a trade is made, the Blazers will pick in the 15th spot in each of the first three rounds, three times in the fourth and twice in the fifth. Kamloops traded away its sixth- and seventh-round picks, but holds a selection in rounds eight through 15.
But the first-round pick is the most crucial.
Consider this: Each of the Blazers’ first-rounders in the last five drafts ended up in the league, with four of them suiting up for Kamloops last season (Tyler Shattock, Travis Dunstall, Victor Bartley and Reid Jorgensen) and the other (Kalvin Sagert) playing for the Prince George Cougars.
“We can’t really say who we’re going to get because we’re picking 15th, so we don’t have as good an idea as we did last year,” said Clark. “It all depends on what people do in front of us, but we’re going to get a good player.”
Clark and Blazers’ director of player personnel Randy Hansch have their ducks in a row, but everyone knows how much can change on draft day.
“It’s not one of those things where you go in with a plan,” Clark said. “I think you have a general idea of what you would like to do, but as things develop, that plan changes.
“Every year, there’s some guys that you rank pretty high and for one reason or another, they slip down to where you are. It happens in a lot of different rounds.”
Last year, the Blazers took Jimmy Bubnick, a centre from Saskatoon, with the fifth selection.
This year, the Blazers might be looking to take a defenceman, but the real studs will be long gone by the time the Blazers get their chance at the microphone with the 15th pick.
“If we were able to move up, there’s some good defencemen who I think we would like to pick,” Clark said.
One of those would be Mark Pysyk, who played last season for the Strathcona, Alta., Warriors bantams and was outstanding at the Kamloops International Bantam Ice Hockey Tournament in April.
“He’s definitely a good player,” Clark said, “but I don’t think he’ll be there at 15.
“He’s one of those guys, if we have a chance to move up, it’s certainly someone we would be looking at.”
Since everything can change in a few short minutes on draft day, Clark isn’t committing to a blue-liner.
“I wouldn’t rule out picking a forward,” he said. “I think, with our first pick, we’ll pick the best player that’s available, whether that’s a forward or a defenceman.”
by Mark Hunter
www.kamloopsnews.ca
There’s no telling if Dean Clark is a Howie Mandel fan, but the Kamloops Blazers’ head coach and general manager is getting ready to play a game of Deal or No Deal?
The Blazers hold the 15th pick in the WHL’s bantam draft, scheduled for Thursday in Calgary. While the team is confident it can get a quality, 1992-born prospect in that spot, Clark still is looking to trade his way into the top 10.
“I haven’t ruled out potentially trying to move up in the draft to get a higher pick,” Clark said. “We have extra fourth- and fifth-round picks to use to maybe jump up in the draft. We’ll try to do some different things, but if we can’t, we’ll still get a good player at 15.”
Available for Clark to trade are the fourth-round picks of the Lethbridge Hurricanes and Everett Silvertips, both coming from trades. The Blazers also have their own fourth-rounder, along with the fifth-round picks of the Moose Jaw Warriors and the Red Deer Rebels.
Unless a trade is made, the Blazers will pick in the 15th spot in each of the first three rounds, three times in the fourth and twice in the fifth. Kamloops traded away its sixth- and seventh-round picks, but holds a selection in rounds eight through 15.
But the first-round pick is the most crucial.
Consider this: Each of the Blazers’ first-rounders in the last five drafts ended up in the league, with four of them suiting up for Kamloops last season (Tyler Shattock, Travis Dunstall, Victor Bartley and Reid Jorgensen) and the other (Kalvin Sagert) playing for the Prince George Cougars.
“We can’t really say who we’re going to get because we’re picking 15th, so we don’t have as good an idea as we did last year,” said Clark. “It all depends on what people do in front of us, but we’re going to get a good player.”
Clark and Blazers’ director of player personnel Randy Hansch have their ducks in a row, but everyone knows how much can change on draft day.
“It’s not one of those things where you go in with a plan,” Clark said. “I think you have a general idea of what you would like to do, but as things develop, that plan changes.
“Every year, there’s some guys that you rank pretty high and for one reason or another, they slip down to where you are. It happens in a lot of different rounds.”
Last year, the Blazers took Jimmy Bubnick, a centre from Saskatoon, with the fifth selection.
This year, the Blazers might be looking to take a defenceman, but the real studs will be long gone by the time the Blazers get their chance at the microphone with the 15th pick.
“If we were able to move up, there’s some good defencemen who I think we would like to pick,” Clark said.
One of those would be Mark Pysyk, who played last season for the Strathcona, Alta., Warriors bantams and was outstanding at the Kamloops International Bantam Ice Hockey Tournament in April.
“He’s definitely a good player,” Clark said, “but I don’t think he’ll be there at 15.
“He’s one of those guys, if we have a chance to move up, it’s certainly someone we would be looking at.”
Since everything can change in a few short minutes on draft day, Clark isn’t committing to a blue-liner.
“I wouldn’t rule out picking a forward,” he said. “I think, with our first pick, we’ll pick the best player that’s available, whether that’s a forward or a defenceman.”