Smashville at the Draft & other updates:
Nashville, née Smashville, ended the 2015 Draft with a final total of 2 goalies (as per the Preds’ usual Goalie Requirements, both are over 6 feet tall) four centermen and one defenseman.
55th overall – Iakov Trenin
– he plays for Gatineau in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (QMJHL) and is a 6-2, 194 pound center from Chelyabinsk, Russia (same hometown as the Caps’ forwards Evgeny Kuznetsov & Sergei Gonchar).
– following stats are thanks to NHL.com: Trenin averaged a point per game and ranked second in rookie scoring in the QMJHL Playoffs, collecting 11 points (3-8—11) to help Gatineau upset No. 3-ranked Armada before falling in the second round to eventual League champion Rimouski. He placed third among QMJHL rookies in assists (49) and fifth in points (67) in 58 regular season games in 2014-15.
– in 2013-14, Trenin recorded 14 points (7-7—14) in 22 games to help Belye Medvedi Chelyabinsk finish third overall in Russia’s junior league. He added one assist in four playoff games as the club reached the semifinals.
85th overall – Thomas Novak
– he is a 6-0, 179 pound center from St. Paul, Minnesota who plays for Waterloo of the USHL. He had 14 goals, 48 points in 46 games last season. According to Adam Vingan, Novak has committed to the University of Minnesota for next year. And his twitter is: @paraloschicos15
100th overall – Anthony Richard
– he is a 5-10, 163 pound center from Trois-Rivieres, Quebec who plays for Val-D’or of the QMJHL. Richard was tied for 10th in the QMJHL last season for scoring, and for those who miss Jordin Tootoo, he already has a hockeyfights page.
145th overall – Karel Vejmelka
– the 6-3, 202 pound left-handed goaltender from Trebic, Czech Republic played for Czech Junior (for Trebic of Czech Republic-2 and Pardubice of Czech Republic in 2014-15). He was 4-3-0 for HC Dynamo Pardubice in the Czech league this year with over 500 min and a save percentage near .930. Vejmelka is the third Czech goalie drafted by the Preds (Miroslav Hanuljak in 2003 & Marek Mazanec in 2012), which does not include the Predators most famous & fan-friendly Czech goalie, Tomas Vokoun (originally drafted by the Canadiens in 1994). Trebic (or Třebíč) is also the hometowns of former Bruin/Blue Vladimir Sobotka (now playing in Siberia for Avangard Omsk in the KHL), New Jersey Devils’ Patrik Elias and former Nashville Predator Martin Erat.
115th overall – Alexandre Carrier
– the 5-11, 168 pound defenseman from Quebec, played in the QMJHL for Gatineau. He’s only 18 and had 55 points in 68 games last year and is one of the highest scoring defensemen from this league.
175th overall – Tyler Moy
– is a 6-1, 194 pound centerman from San Diego currently playing for Harvard University and one of the more interesting prospects for the Preds. During his freshman year at Harvard, he played with fellow Predators prospect Jimmy Vesey (picked 66th in 2012) and has been interviewed by The Harvard Crimson (the nation’s oldest continuously published daily college newspaper) many times, including a feature on how not only is he a hockey player but a (very good) artist as well. And according to their article interviewing him after he was drafted by the Predators, he said that while he grew up a Detroit Red Wings fan (one of the Preds biggest rivals for a variety of reasons), he also rooted for the Preds as a young child because of how “cool” the Predators logo is. You can find him on twitter @tymoy2.
205th overall – Evan Smith
– is a 6-6, 174 pound goalie from Parker, Colorado who plays for the Austin Bruins in the North American Hockey League (NAHL — the first player drafted from that league by the Preds). In 19 games this season, including four of those in the WHL, Smith compiled a 12-1-2 record, with a 1.73 goals-against-average and 0.923 save percentage. His twitter is @evansmith60 and it’s completely plausible that with his height (again, the Predators love their tall goalies), when he gets a little bit bigger, he could easily be the Predators sleeper pick from this years draft.
Notes
In one final Predators 2015 Draft note, Seth Jones’ younger brother, Caleb Jones was chosen 117th, going to Edmonton, so now Popeye Jones will have to wear one of those terrible half jersey shirts that certain sports parents wear when he makes it to the NHL and plays against Seth.
The Predators prospect development camp will be held July 6-11 in Nashville.
In other Predators news since the end of the season; they have re-signed veteran center Mike Fisher for two-years at $8.8 million and greatly enjoyed how some people took to the news on his Instagram. And Rich Clune, who spent most of this season in Milwaukee playing for the Preds AHL team, was placed on unconditional waivers for the purposes of being bought out. He posted on his twitter (which he tends to delete every now & then, so I am saving for posterities sake):
Thank you Nashville.
June 28, 2015, 2:46 PM
I’m very grateful for my years playing for the Nashville Predators. I want to thank David Poile and the rest of the staff for everything. Most important my teammates and the fans mean the world to me. Thank you. Nothing changes, I plan on playing in the NHL next season and will continue my rigorous training regimen out in Los Angeles this off season. (emoji peace fingers)
