Nash drafted in 1st Round

[Toswammi]

Interstingly enough one of our prospects, Riley Nash was drafted in the first round by Edmonton. Although i doubt it will happen, maybe they (Edmonton) will help persuade him to play juniour instead of college.

[Broncs in RD]

Interstingly enough one of our prospects, Riley Nash was drafted in the first round by Edmonton. Although i doubt it will happen, maybe they (Edmonton) will help persuade him to play juniour instead of college.

I would love to see that happen, but I am pretty sure he has signed a letter with NCAA and he will also be playing with his brother. Too bad though it would be great to see him in a Bronco uni.

[Toswammi]

Yeah it would probably never happen, just a nice thought. Although, if we could convince his entire family to play here..... lol

[Scout]

All indications are that Riley will go to Cornell. I found it interesting the comment Kevin Lowe made to Jon Keen on Nash playing in the W.H.L. Kevin says he is ok with Riley going the college route but " would pick him up himself and deliver him personally to the W.H.L. if Nash ever considers it ". Hmmm, do you think the Oilers want Nash in a Bronco uniform playing in the W.H.L.? I think he let his feeling be known by personally picking him up. You can find this on Keens Korner which i've posted under The Draft.

Scout

[Scout]

The question was posed at the AGM meeting to Coach Dean on the status of 1st round N.H.L. pick Riley Nash about the possibility of wearing a Bronco Uniform. I hope i get the details straight on what Dean said. Dean said that Riley has comitted to Cornell for the up coming season and he doubts Riley will be at camp. Interesting enough is Dean said the Broncos have a very good relationship with the Nash family and they have nothing but good things about Swift Current. The point is his brother also is at Cornell. Now Riley has not omitted Swift Current down the road and we may see him in a Bronco uniform down the road. G.M. of the Edmonton Oilers Kevin Lowe wants his 1st round pick to play in Swift Current but respects his wishes to at least try the NCAA. Another intersting note from last night was coach Dean mentioned that the Nash family had mentioned that Rileys future of where he plays depends somewhat on what happens at the draft so him playing here, although minimul this year is not 100% out. So the drawing card to go to Cornell is his brother goes there, but do the Oilers and his agent feel it would be best for him to play in the W.H.L. Not sure of his agents feelings but Kevin Lowe has said he would much rather have him in Swift Current. Being a 1st rounder of the Oilers can they convince him. I don't believe this year but he may in the future.

Scout

[Johnsy05]

The question was posed at the AGM meeting to Coach Dean on the status of 1st round N.H.L. pick Riley Nash about the possibility of wearing a Bronco Uniform. I hope i get the details straight on what Dean said. Dean said that Riley has comitted to Cornell for the up coming season and he doubts Riley will be at camp. Interesting enough is Dean said the Broncos have a very good relationship with the Nash family and they have nothing but good things about Swift Current. The point is his brother also is at Cornell. Now Riley has not omitted Swift Current down the road and we may see him in a Bronco uniform down the road. G.M. of the Edmonton Oilers Kevin Lowe wants his 1st round pick to play in Swift Current but respects his wishes to at least try the NCAA. Another intersting note from last night was coach Dean mentioned that the Nash family had mentioned that Rileys future of where he plays depends somewhat on what happens at the draft so him playing here, although minimul this year is not 100% out. So the drawing card to go to Cornell is his brother goes there, but do the Oilers and his agent feel it would be best for him to play in the W.H.L. Not sure of his agents feelings but Kevin Lowe has said he would much rather have him in Swift Current. Being a 1st rounder of the Oilers can they convince him. I don't believe this year but he may in the future.

Scout

U make a good point it would be sweet if Nash made his way down to swifty some day!

[Dwight Schrute]

signing him to a contract (and instantly getting his signing bonus) might be a nice incentive to come to the dub. hopefully it doesnt take getting kicked off his college team (ala AJ Thelen) for him to come to the dub

[Scout]

Oilers 2007 draft review

Written by Guy Flaming on 06/27/2007

Riley Nash, C


21st Overall – Salmon Arm Silverbacks (BCHL)
6’ 175 lbs.
Projection: 2nd/3rd line 2-way center

More dramatics ensued as the draft continued after both Cherepanov and Esposito were finally claimed when Edmonton packaged the No. 30 and 36 picks to move up to the No. 21 spot previously held by the Phoenix Coyotes. Oiler fans were surprised for the second time in the round when Edmonton overlooked talented Swedish scorer Mikael Backlund and instead zeroed in on a tier I rookie originally from rural Alberta.

Riley Nash was named the BCHL’s Rookie of the Year for his outstanding effort with the Sliverbacks where he totalled 38 goals and 83 points in 55 games. Nash follows in the footsteps of former Salmon Arm stars Travis Zajac (NJ) and Kris Chucko (CGY) who were both first round picks in 2004. Similarily, the Devils traded up in order to select Zajac just as Lowe and the Oilers did to secure the rights to Nash.

“I was a little surprised,” admitted Nash on The Pipeline Show after the draft. “I knew I had a really good interview with them and I knew they liked me. When they traded up I had a little inkling that it might be for me but I didn’t want to put to much pressure on myself and just let it happen and fortunately it came out for the best.”

Most rating services had Nash ranked as a mid-second rounder. However, as was the case with Plante, the Oilers believe their list resembled other NHL teams in that Nash was not going to make it out of the first round.

“If you really like a player you have to move up to get him and we’d talked to a couple teams earlier about moving back behind Phoenix [21st overall] at that point but they weren’t prepared to do it,” Prendergast recounted. “We didn’t think we were going to get him past that point as a matter of fact, Phoenix traded back thinking that they were going to get him with the No. 30 pick.”

Nash has heard that some fans were disappointed in the team’s decision involving the pick, but feels that’s just extra fire that he can use for motivation.

“I know that there’s always going to be doubters,” Nash said. “In my case being a junior A guy, not many people have heard of the junior A players from out of province. There are always going to be skeptics out there trying to critique you and put you down, but if you let that get to you they’ll get the best of you. If you just stick to what you believe you’ll be alright.”

In Nash, the Oilers get a driven character player who is considered by many as a ‘can’t miss NHL player’ albeit one that might be a third liner with second line potential. The fact that Nash is NCAA-bound should not be lost in this case because had Edmonton chosen to select another CHL player or dipped into Europe, they would have been faced with three first-round picks all needing entry-level contracts at the same time, a potentially costly scenario. But because Nash has committed to joining his brother Brandon as a member of the Big Red of Cornell, the Oilers have the luxury of delaying that possibility if they need to.

Nash’s choice of NCAA program seems a bit odd considering he has been quoted as saying he’s fully prepared to stay in school only as long as necessary. If education isn’t really the reason to head south one has to wonder why he didn’t head for a destination like North Dakota or Denver both of which are considered premier hockey development NCAA programs and options he had available. As an Ivy League school, Cornell also plays fewer games per season. The allure of playing with his brother at Cornell appears to have overridden what was arguably a better development path to the NHL, a decision some scouts mentioned when speaking with HF.

“Heck of a player, bad college choice,” said one bird dog.

Another said he wasn’t as concerned with the scholastic decision Nash made.

“I don’t think it’s a huge deal at all,” he said. “I couldn't care less. As long as the kid gets ice time, he can play and he improves that’s all that matters to me.”

Pros: Top-notch work ethic and character in a talented package make Nash a desirable prospect for any NHL team. Having the ability to delay his progression to the professional ranks could be useful in two years time and the 18-year-old will benefit from the extra practice and workout time that a college program provides.

Cons: Was his performance in 2006-07 a fair read on his future potential considering the level he was playing at? Like Andrew Cogliano before him, Nash will have to prove in college that his tier I numbers were not a product of weaker competition but an indication that he possesses the ability to deliver at any level.