KEARNEY, Neb. – The 2014 NHL Draft will take place this weekend in Philadelphia and there are many Storm players, past and present, that are hoping to hear their name called.
A total of eight players with ties to the organization were listed on the NHL’s Central Scouting Final Rankings in April.
The draft will be held at the Wells Fargo Center, the home of the Philadelphia Flyers, on Friday, June 27 and Saturday, June 28.
Headlining the list of draft hopefuls is forward Austin Poganski, of St. Cloud, Minn. Ranked No. 100 on the list of North American skaters, Poganski excelled during 2013-14 in his first USHL season, scoring 19 goals and 12 assists in 55 games.
15 of Poganski’s points came on the power play, including 11 goals, which was fourth-best in the league. The forward’s three short-handed goals were also tied for fourth in the USHL. Before he makes the jump to professional hockey, Poganski is committed to play at the University of North Dakota.
The other forward from Tri-City’s roster last season appearing on the rankings list is Chris Wilkie, of Omaha, Neb.
Wilkie, who led the Storm in scoring with 36 points a season ago, comes in at No. 207 on the North American skater list. The Nebraska native also led the team with 168 shots on goal last season.
Also committed to North Dakota, Wilkie plans on returning to Kearney next season and participated in tryout camp with the team in Las Vegas a week ago.
Tri-City has also acquired two new skaters with NHL potential, both of whom were undrafted in last month’s USHL Draft, but made the team’s roster for next season during tryout camp.
Forward Sam Lafferty, of Hollidaysburg, Penn. is ranked No. 184 on the North American skater list, while defenseman Mattias Goransson of Sweden is No. 107 out of European skaters.
Lafferty played at Deerfield Academy Prep School in Massachusetts last year and is committed to play collegiately at Brown University. Goransson represented Brynas Jr. a season ago, and is a sizeable force, standing 6 feet 4 inches tall with a weight of 187 pounds according to the NHL Central Scouting measurements.
The Storm plan to release their full 30-man training camp roster to the public in early July.
Tri-City also has the rights to three netminders who were ranked on the North American goalie list.
Hayden Lavigne, who saw 27 games of action last year with the Storm, is ranked No. 26, while Phase II draft picks Blake Weyrick and Alec Dillon are No. 11 and 13 respectively.
Lavigne, a Brampton, Ont. native, plans on returning to Kearney for a second season this fall. He is committed to play for the University of Michigan.
Weyrick, who played for the United States National Team Development Program (USNTDP) during the last two seasons, hails from Ojai, Calif. The goaltender measures 6 feet, 3 inches and weighs 203 pounds.
A second round pick by the Storm last month, Dillon spent the 2013-14 season with his hometown team, the Victoria Grizzlies of the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL). Dillon is committed to play college hockey at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI). His measurements are also impressive, at 6 feet 5 inches and 168 pounds.
Former Storm forward Jason Cotton has also made the Central Scouting list, after a successful season with the West Kelowna Warriors of the BCHL. In 50 games, Cotton put up 59 points on 23 goals and 36 assists.
Cotton played in 45 games with Tri-City during the 2012-13 season. He is listed as No. 162 on the North American skater ranks. The forward is committed to Northeastern University.
The first round of the 2014 NHL Draft will be held on Friday and broadcast live on NBCSN, with coverage starting at 6 p.m. CST. Rounds 2-7 will be completed Saturday, beginning at 9 a.m. CST, and shown live on NHL Network.
Stay tuned to stormhockey.com and be sure to follow the Storm on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube for updates from Philadelphia throughout the NHL Draft this weekend.