Five players from New England and seven more prospects playing prep or full-season Midget hockey in the region were selected in this weekend’s Quebec Major Junior Hockey League Entry Draft.
The first round of the annual draft took place Friday night while rounds two through 13 were carried out Saturday. The majority of the players selected were born in 2004, but there were a few older players drafted who were re-entries or not selected previously.
The QMJHL is an 18-team major junior league part of the Canadian Hockey League. Its territory is Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, Prince Edward Island and the six New England states.
South Kent Selects Academy 15-U right wing Jordan Dumais was the first player with ties to the New England region to be selected. The L’Ile-Bizard, Quebec, native was selected in the first round, 18th overall, by the Halifax Mooseheads. Dumais had 50 goals and 88 assists in 61 games for Selects Academy this past winter.
Next up was Mount Saint Charles 15-U defenseman Jake Furlong, who went in the second round, 22nd overall, to Halifax. From Upper Tantallon, Nova Scotia, Furlong is a puck-moving defenseman who excelled this past winter for the Woonsocket, R.I., full-season Midget program. In 61 games, he had seven goals and 39 assists.
One of Dumais’ linemates at Selects Academy, Jake Rozzi, was selected in the third round by the Moncton Wildcats. The left wing from Kirkland, Quebec, had 67 goals and 62 assists in 73 games for Selects Academy.
The Saint John Sea Dogs took Mount Saint Charles 16-U defenseman Guillaume Richard, a Maine commit, with the 62nd overall pick in the fourth round. Richard, an ’03, had been drafted in the first round by Victoriaville in last year’s draft. As is the rules with first-round picks who don’t report, he was eligible to be selected again this year, and Victoriaville earned a compensatory pick in the first round of this year’s draft.
Richard is a highly touted prospect who played for Canada White at the World U-17 Hockey Challenge and skated in five games for the USHL’s Tri-City Storm. In 43 games for Mount Saint Charles, the Quebec City, Quebec, native had four goals and 33 assists.
Mount Saint Charles 15-U center Nathan Casey was picked with the 75th overall pick in the fourth round by Moncton. In 61 games, the Grand Falls, Newfoundland, native had 17 goals and 24 assists.
Deerfield goaltender Justin Katz was selected in the fifth round, 87th overall, by Moncton. The Mont-Royal, Quebec, native posted an .890 save percentage in 13 appearances for the Big Green.
Mount Saint Charles 15-U right wing Brandon Crowell was pegged by the Charlottetown Islanders in the 10th round with the 178th overall pick. The Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, native had 10 goals and 24 assists in 60 games.
The first American taken was Cushing Academy defenseman Jackson Dorrington. The North Reading, Mass., native was grabbed by Halifax with the 186th overall pick in the 11th round. In 34 games for the Penguins, Dorrington had nine goals and 18 assists.
In the 13th round, Thayer Academy center Shane Taddia was selected by Saint John. From Medford, Mass., Taddia had four goals and seven assists in 27 games for the Tigers this past winter.
Three New England players were picked in the 14th and final round. Halifax selected Elite Hockey Academy defenseman Brady Schultz with the 240th overall pick. The Monroe, Conn., native had five goals and 18 assists in 35 games. He’s transferring to Trinity-Pawling for the 2020-21 season.
St. Sebastian’s right wing Michael Callow was selected 246th overall by Saint John. From South Boston, Mass., Callow had nine goals and seven assists in 28 games for the Arrows.
Islanders Hockey Club 16-U defenseman Luke Santilli was plucked by Moncton with the 255th overall pick. The Reading, Mass., native had two assists in 16 games this past winter.
I don’t expect any of the five New England natives selected to go the major junior route. With how high Dumais and Furlong were picked, I’d be shocked to see either one of them back at their respective schools in the fall.
Both Dumais and Furlong were good players before going to South Kent and Mount Saint Charles, respectively, but the coaching staffs at both schools should be applauded for bringing in high-caliber players and doing a good job developing talent.
