Stamkos, Del Zotto Top OHL Draft List
McKeen's Hockey is pleased to introduce our first-ever rankings for the OHL Priority Selection. The OHL draft takes place on May 6th and will be a 15-round affair conducted on-line. Steven Stamkos and Michael Del Zotto from the Markham Waxers are our consensus No. 1 and 2 picks. Their strong performances this season for the Waxers, who went undefeated in the regular season and the playoffs, should pay immediate dividends to both the Sarnia Sting and Oshawa Generals, who have missed the playoffs for two straight seasons.
The Sarnia Sting have four picks in the top two rounds while the Generals have three picks. Conversely, the London Knights have their first round pick but don't pick again until the fourth round.
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It projects to be a solid draft as far as defence goes with 15 of our top 40 picks being defenders. Several blueliners emerged this season with strong seasons to bolster their draft status. Players such as Pietrangelo, Cuma and Gaulton should have no problems adjusting to the speed of the OHL game.
Of the top 40 players projected only five of them played ahead of their age group, Cody Hodgson and James Livingston both played Midget in the ETA while the trio of Vern Cooper, Dean Howard and Kyle Tarini played in the Greater North Midget League.
Only two goalies managed to crack the top forty with Anthony Peters, brother of Justin Peters topping the list and Peter DiSalvo also making the grade. A separate category has been given to the goalies as McKeen's rates the top 10 to be drafted.
American born players have been omitted from the top 40 due to uncertainty as far as commitment issues are concerned with regards to playing in the OHL. The top five have been ranked with Philip McRae being the best available 1990-born American player, the son of former NHL tough guy Basil McRae.
Positions, height and weight are included:
First Round:
1. Steven Stamkos 6'0-165
2. Michael DelZotto D, 6'1-195
3. Alex Pietrangelo D, 6'3-190
4. Cody Hodgson C, 5'10-170
5. Greg Nemisz C, 6'2-170
6. James Livingston C, 6'1-185
7. Mitch Gaulton D, 6'1-190
8. Tyler Cuma D, 6'1-180
9. Vern Cooper C, 5'8-150
10. Corey Trivino C, 6'1-155
11. Shawn Lalonde D, 6'1-165
12. Michael D'Orazio D, 6'0-191
13. Nazem Kadri C, 6'0-165
14. Brandon Burlon D, 6'0-180
15. Nathan Moon C, 6'0-170
16. Jared Staal RW, 6'1-170
17. Thomas Nesbitt RW, 5'11-175
18. Justin Larson C, 6'2-180
19. Dean Howard C, 5'10-165
20. Nicholas Crawford D, 6'2-185
Second Round:
21. Matt MacDougall D, 6'3-185
22. Anthony Nigro C, 6'1-165
23. Mark Canduri D, 5'10-185
24. Adam Henrique C, 5'11-165
25. Jordan O'Neill D, 6'2-180
26. Josh Dadic C, 6'3-210
27. Josh Brittian LW, 6'2-200
28. Anthony Peters G, 6'1-170
29. Tucker Hunter C, 6'1-180
30. Kyle Tarini RW, 6'1-190
31. Tim Billingsley D, 6'1-170
32. Brian Shaw D, 6'3-185
33. Stefan DellaRovere LW, 5'11-190
34. Brett Sullivan D, 6'1-180
35. Jason Wilson LW, 6'2-185
36. Tyler Allen RW, 6'1-175
37. Alex Hutchings C, 5'9-165
38. Peter DiSalvo G, 6'0-200
39. T.J. Brodie D, 5'10-160
40. Chris Desousa C, 5'9-190
Top 10 Goalies:
1. Anthony Peters 6'1-170
2. Peter DiSalvo 6'0-200
3. Chris Corrazzi 6'2-170
4. Cody St.Jacques 5'11-170
5. Jason Missiean N/A
6. Michael Hutchinson 6'2-170
7. Matt Hoyle 6'2-185
8. Patrick Killeen 6'3-180
9. Justin Soave 5'9-180
10. Steven Zoffranieri 5'9-185
Top 5 Americans:
1. Philip McRae C, 6'0-175
2. A.J. Jenks F, 6'1-170
3. Justin Florek F, 6'3-175
4. Robbie Czarnik RW, 5'11-170
5. Brian Lashoff D, 6'2-185