Canucks Make History By Drafting Neely

VANCOUVER—When it comes to drafting, the Vancouver Canucks have a history of failing to do two things—keeping first-round picks and ignoring local talent. Allow for a little history lesson. Since their inception in 1970, the Canucks’ first-rounders have been Jocelyn Guevremont, Don Lever, Dennis Ververgaert, Ron Sedlbauer, Rick Blight, Bob Manno, Jere Gillis, Bill Derlago, Rick Vaive, Rick Lanz, Garth Butcher and Michel Petit. Only Lanz and Butcher are with the club, while Petit, who’s with the St. Jean Beavers of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, is almost sure to make the jump to the Canucks this year. Whether they stay with the club—more importantly, how long they will stay—will be told in time. As for native sons, the most obvious is Barry Beck, though most forget the Canucks didn’t have a…

The Cat Bypasses Pat For Svlvain

HARTFORD—The irony of the Hartford Whalers’ draft, the club’s first under Emile Francis, was overwhelming because in the end, all that Francis did was lend support. “You have to give Emile a tremendous amount of credit,” said Larry Pleau, who has been reduced to assistant GM under Francis in the Whalers’ new scheme of things. “He could have taken the easy way out, but he put his faith in our reports.” The “easy way out” would have been to select Pat LaFontaine, an American center who became almost as popular as Guy Lafleur while scoring 103 goals and 235 points for the Verdun Juniors of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. The Whalers, however, especially Pleau and head scout Bill Dineen, the two men who carry the most weight behind closed doors, were…

Regina Leads League In Plauers Selected

H&B Louisville Hockey H&B Louisville Hockey REGINA—The final numbers tell one story, but the Regina Pats tell you another. It was a lean year for Western Hockey League hopefuls at the recent National Hockey League entry draft in Montreal. Only nine WHL players managed to go in the first three rounds and only 40 of 240 total selections—less than 16 per cent. While Memorial Cup champion Portland Winter Hawks had six players selected in the first four rounds, Regina had eight players picked to lead the league. Left winger Nevin Markwart went to Boston in the first round, while center John Bekkers was taken by Calgary in the fourth. Defenseman Jayson Meyer went to Buffalo in the fifth round and center Dale Derkatch, the league’s leading scorer, didn’t go until the seventh round to Edmonton.…

OHL Midget Draft