Terrace’s Kenny Nordstrom has gone first in round one of the inaugural 15-year-old draft for the B.C. Hockey League.
It was the Prince George Spruce Kings who had the first pick, and general manager Mike Hawes said the team chose Nordstrom with the understanding that he would get a few games on the ice this year.
Hawes explained the new draft will introduce younger players to programs within BCHL and develop relationships.
“He’s got some good size.... and is a good puck moving mobile defenceman who sees the ice well,” Hawes said, adding Kenny could be playing with the Spruce Kings full-time as early as next season.
“Kenny is a good player, and a guy that has the potential to one day be a Spruce King,” Hawes said.
Currently Nordstrom is four-games deep as a Cariboo Cougar in the Major Midget league.
Head coach for the Cougars, Trevor Sprague, said he is not surprised at the Spruce Kings’ choice to go with a northern player for its first draft pick.
“There was no doubt in my mind that a kid from the north would be drafted first overall,” Sprague said.
He adds that Kenny is settling in well with the team, coming back from an injury and adapting to the learning curve from minor hockey to major midget.
“He is a first year player that has fit in very well with the team,” Sprague said.
Nordstom has been busy on the ice for the past few months, having also spent some time with the WHL’s Regina Pats hockey team, who has also put the defenceman on its protected list.