Hurricanes Select McKechnie with

Hurricanes select McKechnie in Third Round of the 2009 WHL Bantam Draft
rLethbridge, AB – Lethbridge Hurricanes Assistant General Manager Brad Robson has announced the Lethbridge Hurricanes have selected Samuel McKechnie of the Airdrie Xtreme with their second selection – 47th overall of the 2009 Western Hockey League Bantam Draft. This first of two third round picks was acquired by the Hurricanes as part of a trade with the Chilliwack Bruins.  McKechnie had a strong season in the Alberta Alberta Major Bantam Hockey League, posting 52 points (20G, 32A) in 33 games to rank himself fifth in the AMBHL South Division scoring race. He was a key contributor in the Xtreme taking home a Western Canadian Bantam Championship banner with 7 points (2G, 5A) in the tournament.
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r“Our scouts thought Samuel had a very good showing at the Western Canadian Bantam Championships and he is player who brings with him a lot of speed.” said Canes GM Roy Stasiuk “He should compliment our first selection Ryley Bennefeld very well”
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rIronically, McKechnie hails from the Airdrie Xtreme, the same AMBHL club that produced Hurricanes superstar and NHL 1st round draft pick Zach Boychuk. Earlier in the day, the Canes selected forward Ryley Bennefield from the Leduc Allen’s Transport Oil Kings with their first selection – 33rd overall in the second round of the 2009 Western Hockey League Bantam Draft.
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rBennefield is a 5’10” 160 pound forward who tallied 32 goals and 25 assists for 57 points and 59 Pims in 30 games for the Leduc Allen’s Transport Oil Kings of the Alberta Major Bantam Hockey League (AMBHL) in 08-09. Bennefield wrapped up his season with an excellent showing at the Alberta Cup this past weekend in Calgary where he competed with a broken collarbone.   
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r“Ryley is a skilled all around forward with an excellent work ethic and obviously the ability to put the puck in the net” said Stasiuk “As always in the draft, we chose to address skill first and were surprised to see Ryley’s name still on the board at our draft position. We are very pleased to have the opportunity to draft him with the 33rd pick” 
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rThe 2009 WHL Bantam Draft kicked off this morning (April 30th, 2009) at 8:30 AM MT from the Sutton Place Hotel in Edmonton. The Portland Winter Hawks made Derrick Pouliot of Weyburn, SK the first pick of the 2009 Draft earlier this morning. The WHL Bantam Draft is the first step in the identification of the top rated 1994-born prospects as WHL Clubs select players from this age group to add to their WHL Player Protected List. The entire draft can be followed in real time online at www.whl.ca. All of the Hurricanes draft day information can be followed at www.lethbridgehurricanes.com.
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rHere is a recap of the Hurricanes 2009 picks:
r1st round (11th overall) – Traded to Everett
r2nd round (33rd overall) – Ryley Bennefield     5’10”, 160 lbs. – Leduc, AB
rBantam Club: Allen’s Transport Oil Kings (Leduc) – AMBHL    B/D: March 30, 1994   
r3rd round (47th overall – from Chilliwack) – Sam McKechnie  5’7”, 140 lbs. – Airdrie, AB
rBantam Club: Airdrie Xtreme – AMBHL    B/D: July 8, 1994
r3rd round (55th overall) –           
r4th round (77th overall) –
r5th round (99th overall) – Traded to Moose Jaw
r5th round (103rd overall – Swift Current’s pick from Everett) –
r6th round (111th overall – from Moose Jaw) –
r6th round (121st overall) –
r7th round (143rd overall) – Traded to Chilliwack
r8th round (165th overall) –
r9th round (187th overall) – Traded to Medicine Hat
r10th round (209th overall) – Traded to Kamloops
r11th round (231st overall) – Traded to Portland
r12th round (253rd overall) –
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rBreakdown by position:
rForwards – 2
rDefenseman –
rGoaltenders –
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rThe order of the second round and all other rounds will be the inverse order of final 2008-09 regular season standings. Despite dealing their first round draft pick to the Everett Silver Tips as a part of a trade for forward Kyle Beach, the Hurricanes currently hold their picks in the 11th position in the second, third and fourth rounds as well as an additional third round pick acquired from the Chilliwack Bruins as part of their trade for for Jesse Craige.
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rIn the 2008 WHL Bantam Draft, the Canes selected forward Phil Tot (Taw-T) with their first selection – 18th overall. The Canes ended 08-09 with 12 players in their lineup who were originally selected by Lethbridge in the WHL Bantam draft. This included Hurricanes Captain Ben Wright (2003 – 2nd Round), Los Angeles Kings draft pick Dwight King (2004 – 1st Round), two time WHL all star selection Zach Boychuk (2004 – 5th Round) and highly ranked NHL prospect Carter Ashton (2006 – 1st round). Lethbridge Hurricanes Assistant General Manager Brad Robson heads up the Hurricanes scouting staff alongside Stasiuk.
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rThe 20th Annual WHL Bantam Draft will be posted live on www.whl.ca.  Click on the WHL Bantam Draft icon on the www.whl.ca homepage or on the top banner at lethbridgehurricanes.com for real time results.