Storm lands Swiss player with Canadian Roots
By Tony Saxon, Guelph Mercury
The Guelph Storm’s newest import has a decidedly home-grown flavour.
The Storm chose Swiss forward Tanner Richard with the 28th overall pick in Wednesday’s Canadian Hockey League import draft.
Richard’s father is former Toronto Marlboros star Mike Richard and Tanner has duel Swiss/Canadian citizenship.
“We think he’s a little bit of a late bloomer in that he kind of made his impact with the Swiss under-18 team at the under-18 championships,” Storm general manager Mike Kelly said shortly after selecting Richard in the on-line draft.
“We think he’s just scratching the surface and has a lot of upside.”
Kelly said Richard, a 6-foot-1, 175-pounder who can play wing and centre, has an edge to his game. While his skating is average, it is his hands and hockey sense that make him stand out.
Kelly has seen him play on video, talked to NHL scouts and people who have played against him in Switzerland.
He was the player the Storm had targeted prior to the draft, Kelly said.
Richard spent most of the past season playing for the Rapperswil juniors in the Swiss junior league where he scored 11 goals and added 32 assists in 28 games. He also had 72 penalty minutes.
