Bobcats Make Ready for 2015 NAHL Entry Draft
FRISCO, TX – The 2015 offseason will hit a major milestone for the Bismarck Bobcats Tuesday when the Cats participate in the North American Hockey League Entry Draft, scheduled to begin at 1:00pm Central Time.
“Every year, the Draft is an opportunity for our staff to find impact players,” assessed Bobcats head coach and general manager Layne Sedevie, who will oversee his sixth Entry Draft Tuesday. “There are always guys that turn out to be big names that are found in the NAHL Draft; just look at the last few years for our program: Evan Giesler (3rd round, 2012), Stanislav Dzakhov (8th round, 2012), Jared Pike (2nd round, 2014), Dan Zawacki (7th round, 2010), Charlie Mosey (1st round, 2010) and Frankie DeAugustine (11th round, 2010)—all Draft picks.”
Thanks to a 13th place overall finish in 2014-15, the Bobcats hold the 11th pick in each round of the Draft except the third: that round’s pick was traded to Kenai River as part of the deal for Cody Longie.
For the 2015 Draft, the Bobcats will have five picks, comprising the first, second, fourth, fifth and sixth rounds. Teams draft until their Protected List reaches 30 players; the Cats enter Tuesday with a Protected List of 25.
It will be a culmination of a nearly year-long evaluation process for the front office.
“Since last September, our scouting staff has seen over 150 teams’ worth of players,” illustrated Bobcats assistant coach Garrett Roth, who heads up the scouting side of the Cats’ hockey operations, “so it’s a very exciting time to see everything come together—to put together that final Protected List, to get to the point where we can start helping these players that we’ve talked to along that path, from junior hockey to college hockey and beyond.”
Bobcat fans can get live pick information and analysis on Twitter from the team’s official account, @BismarckBobcats.
Live coverage of the 2015 NAHL Entry Draft will begin Tuesday at 1:00pm at NAHL.FASTHockey.com; the broadcast will be free-of-charge.
Season tickets are now on sale for 2015-16; if you want to beat the rush of 40,000 fans for next season, now is the time! Call 222-3300 today to reserve your seats.
