The Everett Silvertips added nine 1998-born prospects to their protected list during the 2013 WHL Bantam Draft today in Calgary, Alberta. The new draft class is headlined by forward Tyson Jost from Leduc, Alberta, who Everett selected with the seventh overall pick in the first round of their 11th bantam draft.

Jost, 15, led a group of five forwards selected by the Silvertips today, with the club picking up three defensemen and one goaltender as well. Everett drafted three players each from the provinces of Alberta and British Columbia, while one was from Manitoba.

The other two were American-born prospects: second-round pick Patrick Khodorenko (Walnut Creek, California) was the first American player drafted this year at #26 overall and local product Connor Nobach (Stanwood, WA) became just the third Washington native drafted by the ‘Tips when he was taken in the fifth round.

“I think it went well for us today,” said Silvertips General Manager Garry Davidson. “Of course the proof will be in the pudding later on, but we worked hard to put our list together and our picks were solid. We came away with a couple of really outstanding players and a good mix of forwards, defensemen and one goaltender."

"As we’ve talked about, we were looking for guys that could skate well, make plays with the puck, think the game and have a plenty of compete in them while doing those things. I think today we picked players that are certainly capable of showing some, if not all, of those attributes.”

2013 WHL Bantam Draft - Everett Silvertips Selections
Round 1, #7: Tyson Jost, RW, Leduc, AB (Kelowna P.O.E.)

Head Scout Bil La Forge, offered some thoughts on Tyson Jost:
"He’s a very competitive player who doesn’t lose many puck battles. He has excellent ability with and without the puck, and when he has the puck, he has the ability to finish himself or to find his teammates. Tyson’s greatest strength is his hockey sense."

"He’s a player we identified early on, and he was definitely the top player from our rankings still on the board. We were pleasantly surprised to get him with the seventh pick and couldn’t be happier to get him in the organization."

Round 2, #26: Patrick Khodorenko, C, Walnut Creek, CA (Honeybaked Hockey Club)

Thoughts from Head Scout Bil La Forge:
"“We had Patrick rated as one of the elite players at the top of this draft. He’s a guy that can score goals and distribute the puck well. He has played for elite programs for the last two years and was a team leader on the National Championship Honeybaked team. He had back-to-back hat tricks in the national tournament, which shows that he is the type of player who is capable of filling the net.”

“Right now we’re looking for a chance to show him our program and we certainly hope that he sees the Silvertips and the WHL as a positive option. He will be a difference maker for us if he comes to Everett, much like our selection of Auston Mathews last year.”

Round 3, #51: Alex Astasiewicz, D, Salmon Arm, BC (Salmon Arm Silvertips Tier 2)

Head Scout Bil La Forge on Astasiewicz:
“Alex is a big, strong, steady D-man who has some offensive upside to his game. Next year he’ll be playing for the same midget team that Kevin Davis played for this year (the BCMML Thompson Blazers out of Kamloops, BC), and he even played a few games for them this season. We’ve had our eyes on him all year and had him targeted to be gone a little earlier, but jumped all over it when he was still there for our third pick.”

- USHL Scout Dan Sallows' thoughts on Astasiewicz from November:
"Alex Astasiewicz is a smooth-skating defensemen that is blessed with good size and possesses all the attributes of tremendous puck-moving blueliner. The 5-foot-11, 170-pound Bantam has incredible hands, a high hockey IQ, excellent vision, a good shot, utilizes his stick well when defending, isn't overly physical but hits when the opportunity arises, makes smart decisions with the puck, rarely panics, and has a very good work ethic. Astasiewicz could be an elite defensemen one day if he puts in the work, as he has an outstanding all-round skill set."

Round 4, #81: Kevin Jakisch, LW, Winnipeg, MB (Winnipeg Monarchs Bantam AAA)

Bil La Forge on Everett's fourth-round pick:
“Kevin is a hard, up-and-down winger who can bring some offense to your team as well. He had over a point a game this season, but he plays 200 feet and is certainly not a one-dimensional player. Our Manitoba regional scout, Doug Sinclair, had a loud voice at the draft table on this pick, because Kevin is a guy he really believes in. There’s a great deal to like about him.”

Round 5, #92: Connor Nobach, D, Stanwood, WA (La Junior Kings Bantam AAA1)

La Forge talks about the Stanwood native:
“Nobach is a local kid that both Zoran Rajcic and Mitch Love identified as a top player during the Anaheim prospects camp. We see him as a D-man who is going to play quality minutes for us going forward in the future. The fact that he is local to the area certainly adds a special something to having him in the system, but that’s not why we drafted him. We like what he brings and I’m looking forward to seeing him at camp.”

#108: Andrew Fyten, C, Didsbury, AB (Airdrie Xtreme Major Bantam)

La Forge's thoughts:
“Fyten is the Captain of his team. He’s got a lot of edge to his game and nothing but upside going forward. I see him as a guy who’s hard to play against, willing to go into the dirty areas for us and still has the ability to put some pucks in the net as well. I think he fits roughly into the Reid Petryk mold.”

Round 7, #136: Keyvan Mokhtari, RW, Burnaby, BC (North Shore Winter Club Tier 1 Bantam)
Round 8, #158: Carter Hart, G, Sherwood Park, AB (Sherwood Park Flyers Major Bantam)
Round 9, #180: Ryan Warner, D, Victoria, BC (Juan de Fuca Tier 1 Bantam)

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