The Western Hockey League’s annual bantam draft is where opportunities are born.
It’s also where highly coveted prospects see their profiles bolstered or diminished, due to the whims of a hundred or more scouts.
The Burnaby Winter Club remains a favourite stop for WHL teams stocking their cupboards with 15-year-old talent, as evident by Thursday’s bantam draft results.
Goaltender Koen Mac-Innes was the first Bruin chosen, going 35th overall to the Saskatoon Blades.
The 6-foot-1 netminder backstopped BWC to both a B.C. bantam AAA and Western Canadian title, picking up the Top Goalie award in the latter tournament.
In the third round, Portland picked up the rights to defenceman Ryan Helliwell with the 55th selection. The 5-foot-11 blueliner, considered one of the top talents in the draft, had earlier signed a letter of intent with the University of Notre Dame, causing his stock to tumble for signability concerns.
Winger Kyle Kovich was taken 78th overall by Red Deer. Also drafted were team-mate Kalen Szeto, by Saskatoon, in the fifth round, and goalie Logan Terness, who went in the 10th round to Prince George.
In the seventh round, Burnaby native James Bohn, a defenceman, was chosen by Kelowna.
