Malc
02-13-2008, 03:13 PM
by Dana Soleski
Anytime a WHL team drafts an American-born player, they know they’re taking a risk.
Despite that, the Kelowna Rockets haven’t been shy in choosing guys from south of the 49th parallel. On some counts, they’ve beat the odds and won the gamble. Other times they haven’t.
Tysen Dowzak, Kyle Verdino and Scott Parker count among the former group while Jason Ryzner is the most celebrated member of the latter. Fans of this year’s Rockets’ team certainly know who Dowzak and Verdino are. And Alaska-native, Parker, had productive career in Kelowna on his road to the NHL.
Meanwhile, Ryznar was chosen 5th overall by the Rockets in the 1999 Bantam Draft but elected to play at the University of Michigan instead of the WHL.
Aside from first round pick, Luke Moffat, two other American prospects were chosen by the Rockets in the 2007 Bantam Draft. And there are many similarities between them.
Scott Wamsganz (picked in the 5th round, 108th overall) is center ice man from Anchorage, Alaska and Nick Shore (7th round, 135th overall) a right winger from Colorado. Both are highly skilled players who would have been chosen higher in the draft if not for their heritage and the likelihood of them pursuing the NCAA scholarship route.
But, the Rockets would love to have both players.
“Wamsganz is a quality centerman who plays for the Alaska All-Stars,” says Rockets’ Director of Player Personnel and Assistant GM, Lorne Frey. “I’m hoping to get a chance to see him play soon. He's a highly skilled guy and he's been putting points on the board.”
In 38 games for the All Stars ‘16A’ team, Wamsganz has 16 goals and 34 points. As the name would suggest, the All Stars represent the best Alaskan players in their age group. Over the Christmas break this year, they travelled to Richmond to compete in a tournament against teams from BC, Nevada, California and other places. There, they ended up finishing third after losing in the semi-final to the South Island Thunderbirds of the BC Major Midget League.
Shore plays for the Colorado Thunderbirds U-16 team Minor Midget team. The Thunderbirds’ organization competed in the Kelowna International Major Midget tournament. But, it wasn’t Shore’s team that came here. Instead a team of 1992 born players competed (Shore and company have 1991 birth dates).
“Shore’s having a really good year. He’s certainly a quality player and if we get him to come here it will be a steal,” says Frey.
“He’s a first round talent but he slipped to the 7th round because teams don’t expect him to choose the WHL.”
It’s worth noting that even if these prospects do initially choose the NCAA route, there’s nothing to stop them from making a decision to join the WHL sometime down the road. Players often re-think their plans, especially if drafted by an NHL team that wants them to expedite their development by moving to major junior hockey.
Anytime a WHL team drafts an American-born player, they know they’re taking a risk.
Despite that, the Kelowna Rockets haven’t been shy in choosing guys from south of the 49th parallel. On some counts, they’ve beat the odds and won the gamble. Other times they haven’t.
Tysen Dowzak, Kyle Verdino and Scott Parker count among the former group while Jason Ryzner is the most celebrated member of the latter. Fans of this year’s Rockets’ team certainly know who Dowzak and Verdino are. And Alaska-native, Parker, had productive career in Kelowna on his road to the NHL.
Meanwhile, Ryznar was chosen 5th overall by the Rockets in the 1999 Bantam Draft but elected to play at the University of Michigan instead of the WHL.
Aside from first round pick, Luke Moffat, two other American prospects were chosen by the Rockets in the 2007 Bantam Draft. And there are many similarities between them.
Scott Wamsganz (picked in the 5th round, 108th overall) is center ice man from Anchorage, Alaska and Nick Shore (7th round, 135th overall) a right winger from Colorado. Both are highly skilled players who would have been chosen higher in the draft if not for their heritage and the likelihood of them pursuing the NCAA scholarship route.
But, the Rockets would love to have both players.
“Wamsganz is a quality centerman who plays for the Alaska All-Stars,” says Rockets’ Director of Player Personnel and Assistant GM, Lorne Frey. “I’m hoping to get a chance to see him play soon. He's a highly skilled guy and he's been putting points on the board.”
In 38 games for the All Stars ‘16A’ team, Wamsganz has 16 goals and 34 points. As the name would suggest, the All Stars represent the best Alaskan players in their age group. Over the Christmas break this year, they travelled to Richmond to compete in a tournament against teams from BC, Nevada, California and other places. There, they ended up finishing third after losing in the semi-final to the South Island Thunderbirds of the BC Major Midget League.
Shore plays for the Colorado Thunderbirds U-16 team Minor Midget team. The Thunderbirds’ organization competed in the Kelowna International Major Midget tournament. But, it wasn’t Shore’s team that came here. Instead a team of 1992 born players competed (Shore and company have 1991 birth dates).
“Shore’s having a really good year. He’s certainly a quality player and if we get him to come here it will be a steal,” says Frey.
“He’s a first round talent but he slipped to the 7th round because teams don’t expect him to choose the WHL.”
It’s worth noting that even if these prospects do initially choose the NCAA route, there’s nothing to stop them from making a decision to join the WHL sometime down the road. Players often re-think their plans, especially if drafted by an NHL team that wants them to expedite their development by moving to major junior hockey.