NHL Entry Draft this weekend

Lethbridge, AB – The 2007 NHL Entry Draft will kick off in Columbus, Ohio on Friday, June 22^nd. NHL club executives, coaches and scouts all gather with the game’s top prospects at the Blue Jackets home arena. This 45^th edition of the NHL Entry Draft will begin in prime time this year, with the first round of the draft being held at 5:30 pm MST, Friday evening. The draft will then conclude with the remaining six rounds on Saturday June 23^rd.

r

The Lethbridge Hurricanes eligible prospects include forwards Dwight King and Mitch Fadden, goaltender Justin Leclerc and defenseman Jesse Craige.

r

Fadden, who was bypassed in his initial draft year of 2006 is ranked 51^st amongst North American skaters for 2007, according to NHL Central Scouting Services. He is coming off the best season of his WHL career in which he tallied 84 points (36G, 48A) in 71 games, finishing seventh in league scoring.

r

King, the younger brother of former Hurricane and current St. Louis Blues’ forward D.J. King, was ranked 104^th amongst North American skaters in the CSS final rankings. The 6’3”, 210 pound native of Meadow Lake, SK is coming off of a sophomore WHL season in which he tallied 44 points (12G, 32A) in 62 games.

r

Leclerc, was ranked 20^th among North American goaltenders after finishing his season with a 15-17-1-2 record and a GAA of 3.62 and a save percentage of 0.872. Both Leclerc and King were part of Canada’s U-18 Junior World Cup Gold medal winning team along side Hurricanes forward Zach Boychuk. Because of an October birth date, Boychuk will not be eligible for the NHL draft until 2008.

r

Craige, was drafted by Lethbridge in the 4^th round of the 2004 Bantam Draft. He is a product of Edmonton’s South Side Athletic Club; the same AAA program that produced NHL defensemen Dion Phaneuf and Jay Bouwmeester. Craige became a regular last season on the Hurricanes power play, tallying 21 points (9G, 12A), including eight power play goals in 59 WHL games. Craige also tallied the Hurricanes first goal of the 2006-2007 season, during a thrilling 4-3 home opener win against the Medicine Hat Tigers.

r

The first round of the 2007 NHL Entry Draft will be broadcast live on TSN, and can be seen in its entirety on the NHL Network. Check local listings for show times.