Thursday marked an exciting day for hockey academies around the Okanagan.
Dreams were made as some of the best hockey talent in the Okanagan was taken in the first round of the Western Hockey League’s Prospects draft.
In the first round, consisting of 22 selections, six players were taken in total from two different Okanagan hockey academies.
The highest selection was third overall, when the Spokane Chiefs took Penticton’s Mathis Preston from the Okanagan Hockey Academy U15 Prep team, which is run out of the Peach City. Right behind him, Keaton Verhoeff was taken by the Victoria Royals out of the RINK Hockey Academy U15 Prep team in Kelowna. Verhoeff is from Port Saskatchewan, Alberta.
Congratulations to OHA U15 Prep student-athlete, and Forward, Mathis Preston on being selected in the 1st round, 3rd overall by the @spokanechiefs in the 2023 @THEWHL Draft! #OkanaganHockey #WHLDRAFT2023 pic.twitter.com/RtRrjNPvaa
— Okanagan Hockey Group (@OkanaganHockey) May 11, 2023
Got our guy 👊
— Victoria Royals (@victoriaroyals) May 11, 2023
With the 4th overall pick in the 2023 WHL Prospects Draft, the Royals are proud to select Keaton Verhoeff from @rha_kelowna U15 Prep.
Welcome to Victoria, Keaton! pic.twitter.com/tuYu0tas6a
Four other players (two from each academy) were drafted in the first round:
- Liam Ruck - Medicine Hat Tigers - 9th overall - Okanagan Hockey Academy U15 Prep - Osoyoos, B.C.
- Joe Iginla - Edmonton Oil Kings - 12th overall - RINK Hockey Academy U15 Prep - Lake Country, B.C.
- Giorgos Pantelas - Brandon Wheat Kings - 19th overall - RINK Hockey Academy U15 Prep - Victoria, B.C.
- Markus Ruck - Medicine Hat Tigers - 21st overall - Okanagan Hockey Academy U15 Prep - Osoyoos, B.C.
The draft continues throughout the day and will go into Thursday night. Black Press will be releasing another story on Friday, May 12 detailing all players that got taken from Okanagan-based hockey academies as well as all the Kelowna Rockets draft selections.
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@cunninghamjordy
jordy.cunningham@kelownacapnews.com
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