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ECJLL Entry Draft Watch List
2016-01-25
The ECJLL Midget Entry Draft is loaded with talent and many players have the ability to contribute in their first year in the league. Click READ MORE to learn more about this years top prospects.
Colin Beiswanger
The 2015 Entry Draft saw only one player contribute significantly in their first year of play, yet this draft has multiple players poised to contribute immediately and many others with the ability to provide complementary support in their first year at the Junior level. Connor Aquanno surprised many by posting 32 pts (16G 16A) in his first season, putting him 24th in league scoring and third in rookie scoring.
The Sackville Sportwheels Wolves will look to provide Aquanno and a young group with two more day one contributors, holding the first and third overall picks in the ECJLL Midget Entry Draft. The Mi’kmaq Warriors hold the second overall pick, while the Halifax Northwest Marley Lions have the 4th and 5th overall picks, and four of the first eight selections overall in the draft.
As a result of trades with the Marley Lions, both the Dartmouth Bandits and 2015 champs Southwest Hurricanes do not pick until the third round.
Back on June 7, 2015, I wrote about six players who were highly ranked coming into this season, and for the most part this group remains unchanged.
NOTE: Eligible players for the ECJLL Midget Entry Draft come from organizations that do not have a Junior level club. Please refer to our Eligible Players List for the full list heading into this weekends draft. After the draft we will release a full rookie list of all the top prospects heading into the 2016 season with their respective clubs.
ECJLL Combine Info
ECJLL Draft Info
Entry Draft Order
Mitchell Broussard: Mitchell is thought by many to be a top three pick. He had 23 goals and 20 assists on a Sackville Wolves team that finished 2-14 in the regular season. Mitchell is a multi-sport athlete and it shows in his quickness and agility, and this has served him well in Nova Scotia and nationally on provincial teams. Relying less on his athleticism and more on team-play towards the end of the season, Mitchell will produce day one and could contribute as transition player right away.
Ryan MacDonald: The only goalie available in the draft, makes the leap from the St Margaret’s Bay Storm organization that is loaded with talent. Ryan has provincial team pedigree and has a style suited to the ECJLL. Of all the players in the draft Ryan is hard to project. Surely he will be gone within the first two rounds of the draft, but where? Goalie’s are always highly valued in the ECJLL and Ryan could go anywhere from #2-8 depending on how the chips fall this coming Sunday. A strong Combine performance would do well to increase his stock.
Connor Dennis: Connor put up 16 pts in 16 games for the Sackville Wolves, and had a very strong performance in the Wolves lone playoff game notching four goals. His skill set and potential put him in the first round discussion, and his ability to shoot from the outside would be a commodity in the ECJLL. His style of play can be inconsistent, and while cool and collected can show frustration. Any team wanting to select Connor must have a great coaching staff to nurture his potential and turn him into an All-Star at the Junior level.
Matt Wilson: Matt put up 42 pts (30G 11A) in 16 games for the St Margaret’s Bay Storm last season. His style of play makes him a good fit for a technical team, and his willingness to learn and act as a sponge in the rink would make any coach happy. Matt needs to work on his toughness to compete round-out his abilities on the floor, and with that will be able to play right away on any team in the ECJLL.
Mark Seward: Mark put up 36 pts last season for the Wolves, and like Broussard, could contribute right away as a transition play at the Junior level. His strength is on the defensive side of the ball, but is nor shy to carry the ball up the floor. His style of play mirrors that of Lions transition player Riley Ambrose, and that ability to play both ends of the floor is becoming increasingly scarce as players have become increasingly skilled.
Michael Anthony: Anthony, like Dennis, has a deadly shot from the outside. His play on the right side of the Storm offensive attack alongside Wilson puts him into the first-round conversation. He has good physical attributes, and has good athleticism stemming from his play in other sports. The outside shot is becoming increasingly valuable evidenced by Dartmouth’s Bobby Green and multiple Hurricanes offensive pieces.
In the conversation:
While those six players may very well be taken in the first and second round this year, there are other players worth mentioning that have the potential to contribute in their first year…
Aidan Walsh made things happen in St. Margaret’s Bay last year, and has a left shot which has become increasingly valuable in recent years in the ECJLL.
Chris Duplisea also comes from SMB and his good instincts and great physical tools playing both lacrosse and football at a high level.
Matt Beamish has good size and can be a good player down the road for a team looking a player with potential to player on either side of the floor.
Ian Oyler and Thomas Mahaney were first and second in Midget Club with 39 pts (21G 18A) and 35 pts (28G 7A) respectively. So much focus is placed on players coming out of Midget Select, these two could fly under the radar and surprise people year one in the ECJLL.
Look for these players to be taken early in the 2016 Entry Draft. There are many others with hockey backgrounds that could contribute on defence year one, and they will be the focus of many teams looking to pad the back end come draft day.
The ECJLL Entry Draft is scheduled for this Sunday, January 31st, in the Cameron Room of Howe Hall at Dalhousie University (6230 Coburg Road). There will be coffee and tea available.
Any players who have not yet confirmed their attendance to the ECJLL Combine taking place at the Prospect Road Community Centre from 12:00-2:00pm on January 30th, please RSVP to Tyler James at TylerJames@dal.ca.
The 2015 Entry Draft saw only one player contribute significantly in their first year of play, yet this draft has multiple players poised to contribute immediately and many others with the ability to provide complementary support in their first year at the Junior level. Connor Aquanno surprised many by posting 32 pts (16G 16A) in his first season, putting him 24th in league scoring and third in rookie scoring.
The Sackville Sportwheels Wolves will look to provide Aquanno and a young group with two more day one contributors, holding the first and third overall picks in the ECJLL Midget Entry Draft. The Mi’kmaq Warriors hold the second overall pick, while the Halifax Northwest Marley Lions have the 4th and 5th overall picks, and four of the first eight selections overall in the draft.
As a result of trades with the Marley Lions, both the Dartmouth Bandits and 2015 champs Southwest Hurricanes do not pick until the third round.
Back on June 7, 2015, I wrote about six players who were highly ranked coming into this season, and for the most part this group remains unchanged.
NOTE: Eligible players for the ECJLL Midget Entry Draft come from organizations that do not have a Junior level club. Please refer to our Eligible Players List for the full list heading into this weekends draft. After the draft we will release a full rookie list of all the top prospects heading into the 2016 season with their respective clubs.
ECJLL Combine Info
ECJLL Draft Info
Entry Draft Order
Mitchell Broussard: Mitchell is thought by many to be a top three pick. He had 23 goals and 20 assists on a Sackville Wolves team that finished 2-14 in the regular season. Mitchell is a multi-sport athlete and it shows in his quickness and agility, and this has served him well in Nova Scotia and nationally on provincial teams. Relying less on his athleticism and more on team-play towards the end of the season, Mitchell will produce day one and could contribute as transition player right away.
Ryan MacDonald: The only goalie available in the draft, makes the leap from the St Margaret’s Bay Storm organization that is loaded with talent. Ryan has provincial team pedigree and has a style suited to the ECJLL. Of all the players in the draft Ryan is hard to project. Surely he will be gone within the first two rounds of the draft, but where? Goalie’s are always highly valued in the ECJLL and Ryan could go anywhere from #2-8 depending on how the chips fall this coming Sunday. A strong Combine performance would do well to increase his stock.
Connor Dennis: Connor put up 16 pts in 16 games for the Sackville Wolves, and had a very strong performance in the Wolves lone playoff game notching four goals. His skill set and potential put him in the first round discussion, and his ability to shoot from the outside would be a commodity in the ECJLL. His style of play can be inconsistent, and while cool and collected can show frustration. Any team wanting to select Connor must have a great coaching staff to nurture his potential and turn him into an All-Star at the Junior level.
Matt Wilson: Matt put up 42 pts (30G 11A) in 16 games for the St Margaret’s Bay Storm last season. His style of play makes him a good fit for a technical team, and his willingness to learn and act as a sponge in the rink would make any coach happy. Matt needs to work on his toughness to compete round-out his abilities on the floor, and with that will be able to play right away on any team in the ECJLL.
Mark Seward: Mark put up 36 pts last season for the Wolves, and like Broussard, could contribute right away as a transition play at the Junior level. His strength is on the defensive side of the ball, but is nor shy to carry the ball up the floor. His style of play mirrors that of Lions transition player Riley Ambrose, and that ability to play both ends of the floor is becoming increasingly scarce as players have become increasingly skilled.
Michael Anthony: Anthony, like Dennis, has a deadly shot from the outside. His play on the right side of the Storm offensive attack alongside Wilson puts him into the first-round conversation. He has good physical attributes, and has good athleticism stemming from his play in other sports. The outside shot is becoming increasingly valuable evidenced by Dartmouth’s Bobby Green and multiple Hurricanes offensive pieces.
In the conversation:
While those six players may very well be taken in the first and second round this year, there are other players worth mentioning that have the potential to contribute in their first year…
Aidan Walsh made things happen in St. Margaret’s Bay last year, and has a left shot which has become increasingly valuable in recent years in the ECJLL.
Chris Duplisea also comes from SMB and his good instincts and great physical tools playing both lacrosse and football at a high level.
Matt Beamish has good size and can be a good player down the road for a team looking a player with potential to player on either side of the floor.
Ian Oyler and Thomas Mahaney were first and second in Midget Club with 39 pts (21G 18A) and 35 pts (28G 7A) respectively. So much focus is placed on players coming out of Midget Select, these two could fly under the radar and surprise people year one in the ECJLL.
Look for these players to be taken early in the 2016 Entry Draft. There are many others with hockey backgrounds that could contribute on defence year one, and they will be the focus of many teams looking to pad the back end come draft day.
The ECJLL Entry Draft is scheduled for this Sunday, January 31st, in the Cameron Room of Howe Hall at Dalhousie University (6230 Coburg Road). There will be coffee and tea available.
Any players who have not yet confirmed their attendance to the ECJLL Combine taking place at the Prospect Road Community Centre from 12:00-2:00pm on January 30th, please RSVP to Tyler James at TylerJames@dal.ca.