The Kelowna Rockets selected a total of ten players in the 2023 WHL Prospects Draft that took place online today, including four defencemen and six forwards.
"We're excited to add another group of young talented players to our prospect pool," said Rockets general manager Bruce Hamilton following the draft. "Our head scout Terry McFaul, assistant general manager Curtis Hamilton and team of scouts did a fantastic job of identifying players for our program. Terry himself scouted over 600 games this season."
With their first pick of the day, the Rockets selected centre Eli Barrett four picks into the second round (No. 26) from St. George's School U15 Prep of the CSSHL.
Barrett, born in 2008, posted 73 points (31G, 42A) and 10 penalty minutes through 27 games this season with the U15AA team. The 5’8″, 142-pound centre also added six points (2G, 4A) in three playoff games.
"The draft went really well, a little better than what we thought it would," said McFaul. "We got very lucky with some of the kids that we got, some that we missed out on, but we scored big where we had to. Our scouts worked hard and it was a team effort, it went very well."
Round 2, pick 26
PLAYER: Eli Barrett
POSITION: Centre
HEIGHT: 5’8
WEIGHT: 142
BIRTHDATE: April 11, 2008
HOMETOWN: Surrey, BC
Terry's take on Eli: I saw Eli play lots this year at St. George's, in the first half of the year he scored a lot and played hard. Then he kind of had a down month, month and a half where he was fighting the puck and gripping his stick a little too tight doing too much. After the John Reid tournament he started on the upswing, by the BC Cup he was back where he was at the start of the year.
I told our assistant general manager Curtis Hamilton, I think this guy has a big window to get better. His upside is huge, he's just a baby-faced kid that has lots of room to grow. He plays hard, he plays the right way and works in all areas of the ice. He's not afraid, he plays tough on the puck, makes good passes and has the touch to score.
|
Season |
Team |
GP |
G |
A |
PTS |
PIM |
|
2022-23 |
St. George's U15 Prep (CSSHL) |
27 |
31 |
42 |
73 |
10 |
Round 3, pick 48
PLAYER: Kanjyu Gojsic
POSITION: Right Wing
HEIGHT: 5’11
WEIGHT: 174
BIRTHDATE: Jan. 11, 2008
HOMETOWN: Langley, BC
|
Season |
Team |
GP |
G |
A |
PTS |
PIM |
|
2022-23 |
St. George's U15 Prep (CSSHL) |
26 |
19 |
27 |
46 |
58 |
Round 3, pick 50
PLAYER: Jacob Henderson
POSITION: Right Defence
HEIGHT: 5’11
WEIGHT: 152
BIRTHDATE: Mar. 13, 2008
HOMETOWN: Burnaby, BC
|
Season |
Team |
GP |
G |
A |
PTS |
PIM |
|
2022-23 |
Yale U15 Prep (CSSHL) |
28 |
7 |
21 |
28 |
22 |
Round 4, pick 76
PLAYER: Owen Folstrom
POSITION: Centre
HEIGHT: 5'9.75
WEIGHT: 162
BIRTHDATE: Mar. 21, 2008
HOMETOWN: Calgary, AB
|
Season |
Team |
GP |
G |
A |
PTS |
PIM |
|
2022-23 |
Calgary Flames U15 AAA (AEHL) |
34 |
15 |
37 |
52 |
30 |
Round 5, pick 91
PLAYER: Dallin Antos
POSITION: Right Defence
HEIGHT: 5'10
WEIGHT: 156
BIRTHDATE: Jan. 2, 2008
HOMETOWN: Red Deer, AB
.
|
Season |
Team |
GP |
G |
A |
PTS |
PIM |
|
2022-23 |
Red Deer Rebels U15 AAA (AEHL) |
34 |
7 |
12 |
19 |
16 |
Round 6, pick 116
PLAYER: Gabriel O'Brien
POSITION: Left Wing
HEIGHT: 6'1.5
WEIGHT: 162
BIRTHDATE: Apr. 3, 2008
HOMETOWN: Red Deer, AB
|
Season |
Team |
GP |
G |
A |
PTS |
PIM |
|
2022-23 |
Edmonton KC U15 AAA Squires (AEHL) |
34 |
23 |
30 |
53 |
86 |
Round 7, pick 136
PLAYER: Ben MacBeath
POSITION: Left Defence
HEIGHT: 5'11.5
WEIGHT: 157
BIRTHDATE: Mar. 4, 2008
HOMETOWN: Calgary, AB
|
Season |
Team |
GP |
G |
A |
PTS |
PIM |
|
2022-23 |
Yale Hockey Academy U15 Prep (CSSHL) |
28 |
7 |
36 |
43 |
12 |
Round 7, pick 145
PLAYER: Sullivan Fogolin
POSITION: Left Defence
HEIGHT: 5'9
WEIGHT: 150
BIRTHDATE: May 23, 2008
HOMETOWN: St. Albert, AB
|
Season |
Team |
GP |
G |
A |
PTS |
PIM |
|
2022-23 |
St. Albert U15 AAA Sabres (AEHL) |
33 |
0 |
12 |
12 |
34 |
Round 9, pick 180
PLAYER: Boston Schmidt
POSITION: Left Wing
HEIGHT: 5'9
WEIGHT: 150
BIRTHDATE: Apr. 18, 2008
HOMETOWN: Pilot Butte, SK
|
Season |
Team |
GP |
G |
A |
PTS |
PIM |
|
2022-23 |
Prairie Storm U15 AA (SAAHL) |
26 |
14 |
14 |
28 |
57 |
Round 9, pick 180
PLAYER: Nolan Beddow
POSITION: Left Wing
HEIGHT: 5'8
WEIGHT: 133
BIRTHDATE: Sept. 20, 2008
HOMETOWN: Parker, CO, USA
|
Season |
Team |
GP |
G |
A |
PTS |
PIM |
|
2022-23 |
Shattuck-St. Mary's Sabres 14U |
54 |
16 |
24 |
40 |
18 |
In total, 232 players were selected by WHL member Clubs, including 128 forwards, 88 defencemen, and 16 goaltenders.
Alberta led all provincial branches with 93 players selected. A total of 50 players from B.C. were chosen, with another 44 players coming from Saskatchewan. Manitoba saw 38 players selected. Thursday’s proceedings saw seven players selected from the United States, following on the heels of 44 American-born players taken in the 2023 WHL U.S. Priority Draft on Wednesday.
Players eligible for the 2023 WHL Prospects Draft were 2008-born players residing in Alberta, B.C., Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Northwest Territories, Yukon, Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.
CLICK HERE for a complete list of all players selected in the 2023 WHL Prospects Draft.