Six new faces have been added to the Battlefords North Stars long-term plans.
As part of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League’s annual meeting in Nipawin Friday, all 12 teams in the league drafted players born in 2003 during the SJHL Bantam Draft.
Having dealt their top two draft picks a year ago, the North Stars once again had their own selections in first two rounds, which was a huge bonus for the team staff as they looked at their draft board.
“It was pretty nice to have those picks as it gave us a better chance of getting some high-end guys,” North Stars assistant general manager and head scout Wylie Riendeau said.
“We tried to keep our picks somewhat local, and we did that for the most part. Other than one of our sixth round picks, everyone is within an hour-and-a-half from the Civic Centre.”
With the 11th overall pick, the North Stars used their first round selection on forward Holden Doell of Martensville, who had 38 points in 24 games for his hometown Maruaders last season.
“He’s an honest player and a really good leader, which was one of the big reasons why we drafted him,” Riendeau said.
“Holden has a really quick release, and you can see that with the 24 goals he scored this season. He’s planning to play with his older brother [Nolan] with Beardy’s Blackhawks in the midget ranks next year, so we’re excited to see how his game grows there.”
In the second round, the North Stars drafted forward Keenan Allan of Warman with the 23rd overall pick.
Allan, who had 29 points in 30 games for the Winnipeg based Rink Hockey Academy last year, was an eighth round selection by the Moose Jaw Warriors in last month’s Western Hockey League Bantam Draft.
“We didn’t think he’d still be around with that pick, so we were really excited to draft him,” Riendeau said.
“He made huge strides over the last year. He’s got great speed and an unmatched work ethic, which is something that guys who have worked out with him during the summer have spoken highly of when we talked to them about Keenan.”
The North Stars moved to the blueline in the third round as they picked Hunter Weber with the 35th overall selection.
Weber, a native of Saskatoon, started off the season with his hometown Generals before moving to Caronport to suit up with the Prairie Hockey Academy.
“He’s 6’2” and weighs 200 pounds already and he skates well for a bigger guy,” Riendeau said.
“I think the move to Moose Jaw really did a lot for him and you could see the improvement in his game from being on the ice every day. His family has roots in the Battlefords and I think he’ll be a solid piece for the team down the road.”
With their fourth round selection (47th overall) in the hands of the league champion Nipawin Hawks, who would pick Regina Monarchs forward Jackson Smith, the North Stars returned to drafting in the fifth round as they took Ethan Scriven with the 59th overall pick.
Scriven, who is from Warman, had 40 points in 30 games this year for his hometown Wildcats and also had 78 penalty minutes.
“Ethan had a really strong showing at our spring camp in Saskatoon last month and it was great to see him perform well there after a strong regular season,” Riendeau said.
“He has a high skill level and I think he’ll get to the next level fairly quickly. He’s one of those players that other teams hate to play against, so he’ll fit right in with our organization.”
The North Stars rounded out the proceedings with a pair of picks in the sixth round.
With the 66th overall selection, which orginally belonged to the Weyburn Red Wings but was acquired by the North Stars from the Yorkton Terriers for defenceman Austin Wieler, the team drafted Prairie Hockey Academy forward Atley Calvert of Moose Jaw.
“It’s always exciting as a scout when you are able to draft a guy in the sixth round who scored 30 goals last season,” Riendeau said.
“They are going to have a really good Elite 15 team next year in Caronport and I’m really excited to see how his game grows, as their program is close by to where I live so I get to see them play on a regular basis.”
Finally, with the 71st overall pick, the North Stars selected forward Riley Giroud.
Giroud, a Saskatoon native, had 37 points in 28 games this winter for the Generals.
“Riley was someone that we noticed at the SaskFirst Bantam Camp in Regina back in December, as he had a really good showing there,” Riendeau said.
“He has a really high hockey IQ already. He’s got nice skill around the net and great vision.
A total of 71 players were picked in Friday’s draft, with the La Ronge Ice Wolves selecting forward Cash Arntsen of the Swift Current Raiders with the first overall pick.
Eric Robbie, a defenceman from Rosetown who suited up in eight games for the Battlefords Stars of the Saskatchewan Midget AAA Hockey League last season, was picked by the Nipawin Hawks in the first round with the 12th pick.
Unity’s Garin Scheer, who played on defence for the West Central Wheat Kings last season and was a fourth round pick by the Saskatoon Blades in the WHL Bantam Draft last month, was selected in the third round by the Melville Millionaires with the 39th overall selection.
In other news, North Stars defenceman Connor Smith was drafted in third round of the North American Hockey League draft Tuesday with the 50th overall pick by the Topeka Roadrunners.
Smith, who is 18 years of age and is from Santa Margarita, Calif., had four assists in 43 regular season games in his first season of junior hockey after being acquired from the Vancouver Island Junior Hockey League’s Oceanside Generals.
