Five more Manitobans chosen on Day 2 of draft

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This article was published 08/07/2022 (1246 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

After a bumper crop of three first-rounders on Thursday, five more homegrown Manitoba players were chosen on Day 2 of the NHL Draft in Montreal Friday.

The eight players picked matched the total of eight Manitoba players taken in 2017 and 2018 and was the highest number fro the province since 10 were called to the podium at the 2008 draft.

Leading the way on Day 2 was West St. Paul’s Adam Ingram who was the 82nd overall selection in the third round by the Nashville Predators in the NHL Draft in Montreal today.

The 18-year-old centre spent the 2021-22 season with the USHL’s Youngstown Phantoms, scoring 26 goals and 55 points in 54 games. He was rated the 27th best North American skater by NHL Central Scouting.

He has committed to attend St. Cloud State University on a hockey scholarship this fall.

Other Manitoban selections included:

— Goaltender Tyler Brennan, the No. 1-rated North American goaltender, went in the fourth round (102nd overall) by the New Jersey Devils.

Brennan, who finished the 2021-22 season as the No. 1 man with the WHL’s Prince George Cougars, was the third puckstopper picked.

The 6-4, 190-pound Winnipegger followed a pair of Finns, including Topias Leinonen, who went to the Buffalo Sabres in second round (41st overall) and Niklas Kokko, who landed with the Seattle Kraken, also in the second round (58th overall).

Brennan had an 11-25-2 record in 39 appearances with a 3.58 goals-against average and .899 save percentage. In four post-season appearances, he had a sparkling 1.86 goals-against average and .954 save percentage.

— Winnipegger Josh Filmon, who entered the week as the 38th ranked North American skater, slipped to the fifth round (166th overall) when he was chosen by New Jersey.

The 18-year-old left-winger registered 23 goals and 45 points in 67 games with the WHL’s Swift Current Broncos in 2021-22.

He was one of five Broncos drafted during the two-day event, capped by first-rounder Owen Pickering of St. Adolphe.

— Right-winger Ryan Hofer made good on an excellent sophomore season with the WHL’s Everett Silvertips when he was taken in the sixth round (181st overall) by the Washington Capitals.

The 20-year-old Winnipegger, bypassed at the 2021 draft and unranked by Central Scouting in 2022, scored 25 goals and 58 points in 67 games.

His older brother, goaltender Joel Hofer, was a fourth-round choice (107th overall) of the St. Louis Blues in 2017.

— Winkler’s Reid Dyck, who tends goal for Swift Current, was chosen in the sixth round (183rd overall) by the Boston Bruins.

Dyck, who was rated eighth among North American goaltenders, gathered in his basement with friends and family. Going late in the draft did not diminish his enthusiasm for getting picked.

“My buddies went nuts for sure,” he said about the moment the announcement was made. “They all started screaming and it was a pretty awesome moment. A rush of emotions, just very surreal.”

Dyck said he was interviewed by upwards of 20 teams prior to the draft but had no clue the Bruins were interested.

“I was a little surprised to go to Boston,” said Dyck. “They were one of the teams that didn’t talk to me as much but I’m very grateful. It’s an awesome city and I’m so excited to be going there.”

The super-athletic 6-3, 190-pounder did not have stellar numbers, posting a 6-12-1 record with a .884 save percentage and a 4.26 goals-against average in 23 games for the youthful Broncos.

“I know I’m still very much work in progress,” said Dyck. “I know with my skating, I’m behind some of the other prospects but I feel like my potential is very high. A very high ceiling. I mean, everyone’s gonna criticize you at some point and I’m never going to be perfect and I know that.”

— Meanwhile, the Winnipeg Ice added a third drafted player when forward Mikey Milne was chosen in the third round (89th overall) to the Minnesota Wild.

The 19-year-old from Abbotsford, B.C., product was bypassed in the 2021 draft. He was originally chosen by the Ice in the eighth round (155th overall) of the 2017 WHL Prospects Draft. He joined teammates Matt Savoie (Buffalo Sabres, ninth overall) and Conor Geekie (Arizona Coyotes, 11th overall) on the Ice draft list.

Milne established career highs in games played (68), goals (38), assists (43), points (81) and plus-minus (plus-56). He also played in all of Winnipeg’s 15 playoff games, collecting 13 goals and 19 points.

On Day 1, Strathclair’s Geekie, Dominion City’s Denton Mateychuk (12th overall, Columbus Blue Jackets) and Pickering (21st overall, Pittsburgh Penguins) were all chosen in the first round.

mike.sawatzky@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @sawa14