Aberdeen Wings 2016 Draft Results.
The North American Hockey League (NAHL) has concluded and announced the results of the 2016 NAHL Draft, which was held on Tuesday, June 7th.
In total, 250 players were selected in the draft, which took just under three and a half hours to complete.
View the results of the 2016 NAHL Draft here
“The draft is a special day for the players and is one of the important ways that our teams build their rosters for the upcoming season. There is a lot of hard work that goes into the evaluation of the players by coaches, scouts and their respective staffs. We congratulate everyone who was selected and wish them continued success in their next steps toward playing in the NAHL,” said NAHL Commissioner Mark Frankenfeld.
For the Aberdeen Wings and New Head Coach Scott Langer and his staff it was a familiar job with a new backdrop. “Aberdeen is a franchise put together and ran by good people. Everything is first class, The ownership, The staff and the facilities.” In total the Wings selected 3 defensemen, 3 forwards and a goaltender. All drafted players will join previously tendered, and returning players at Final Camp to be held July 14-17 at St. Thomas Ice Arena in Mendota Heights, MN.
Aberdeen’s first pick was the 6th overall and selected Nick Minerva, a 5’10” 203 LB, 96 born, RH Defenseman from New Brunswick, NJ. “Nick is a veteran player who brings a lot of offense and maturity to this team” Last season Nick played for the Fort Frances Lakers of the SIJHL. Nick had 21 goals and 52 assists in 52 games played for the Lakers.
The Wings next pick came in the 3rd round pick number 54th overall. With that selection they took Eric Otto, a 6’2” 181 LB, 97 born, RH Forward from Burnsville, MN. “Eric plays extremely determined and at a very good pace. He possesses good size and very good feet.” Eric played last season with Burnsville High School in 25 games Eric had 12 goals and 18 assists.
In round 5 the Wings had the 102nd overall pick and took Timmy Makowski a 5’11” 146 LB, 98 born, LH Defenseman from Ballwin, MO. “Timmy is one of the top 98 defenseman in the country, he has a solid skill set that will deepen our back end” Timmy spent last season with the St. Louis AAA Blues U18 team, in 32 games played he has 1 goal and 3 assists.
With the 126th overall pick in the 6th round the Wings Selected RH Forward Gage Mackie, a 6’3” 185 LB, 97 born player from Anchorage, AK. “Gage is a veteran player that can bring a lot of leadership to the team. He has size and the ability to help both offensively and defensively.” Gage spent his 15-16 season playing for the Surrey Eagles out of the BCHL. In 54 games played Gage had 9 goals and 8 assists. Gage is currently committed to Arizona State University.
In the 7th round with the 151st overall pick the Wings selected Bobby Dugan, a 6’1 190 LB, 97 born, goaltender from Seminole, FL. “Bobby is a good sized goaltender who has played at some of the highest levels of junior hockey. His Preperation, work ethic will a welcomed addition.” Bobby played last season with the Miramichi Timberwolves out of the MJAHL. In 30 games played Bobby had a 3.75 GAA and .890 SVS%.
Zach Noble was the Wings 8th round selection and number 174th overall pick. Zach is a 6’2” 165 LB, 98 born, RH Forward from Toms River, NJ. “Zach is a big rangy center that plays a 200 ft game. He is a player that can play in all situations and has a skill set that allows him to.” Zach spent last season with the New Jersey Jr. Titans 18U team in both the AYHL and NAPHL leagues. In his 44 games played Zach had 25 goals and 15 assists.
With their final pick in the draft and pick 198 overall the Wings selected Nicholas Jenny a 5’10” 185 LB, 96 born, RH Defenseman from Strongsville, OH. “Nick is a player with a lot of compete, highly skilled two way Defenseman. Nick is another player that can bring leadership to the Locker room.” Last season Nicholas played in 57 games for the Omaha Lancers of the USHL, where he tallied 2 goals and 10 assists. Nicholas is committed to Robert Morris University.
“I felt the staff was very prepared. They did a great job of identifying the needs of this year’s team and put together a solid draft to fill those areas”- Head Coach Scott Langer.
Each team’s protected list now stands at 30 players. All rosters must be reduced to 25 players by September 1st and 23 players by October 1st.