Latest news with #Saskatchewan-born
Ottawa Citizen
11 hours ago
- Automotive
- Ottawa Citizen
NHL Entry Draft: A return to Disneyland, it is, for Ducks pick Roger McQueen
A return to Disneyland is in the cards for Roger McQueen and his family. Article content The 6-foot-5 forward from Saskatoon — whose family made a point of taking in Disneyland prior to the National Hockey League Entry Draft — ended up getting selected by the Anaheim Ducks at 10th overall Friday in Los Angeles. Article content Just as fittingly, McQueen lists former Ducks great and fellow Saskatchewan-born forward Ryan Getzlaf as the one player he has patterned his game while playing for the Western Hockey League's Brandon Wheat Kings. Article content Article content 'What we really liked — obviously he has size — but what goes along with that is the skill and skating ability and basically a really hard player to play against,' said Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek. 'We're looking forward to him being a power forward for our organization. Article content Article content 'We can't be more happy. You'll just being coming up down the road (from L.A.), Rog. We'll see you soon.' Article content McQueen entered the draft as a bit of a question mark following a fracture in his lower back that sidelined him for much of last season. Article content 'I'm so grateful for this,' McQueen told the Ducks brass, led by Verbeek. Article content 'It's unbelievable, especially being to close here (to Los Angeles) and all the fans in the background. It's such a great feeling. I couldn't be more happy.' Article content McQueen played in 20 games, regular season and playoffs, during his shortened season while recovering from a fracture in his lower back. Some NHL teams threw out the caution flag, but not the Ducks and, for that, McQueen is grateful. Article content Article content 'It's unbelievable,' said McQueen. 'It's just one of those thing you've been working towards your entire life. It's kind of crazy. There's no real emotion. It's just shock at this point, but I'm so grateful to be with them and it's unbelievable.' Article content Article content Members of the Sportsnet's NHL Draft panel appeared to like the pick and are pulling for the pride of Saskatoon. Article content 'It's really hard to check people like this and he's not an easy out,' said scout Jason Bukala. Article content 'He'll drop the flippers if things get hard. Ryan Getzlaf, back in the day when Anaheim started to get good, what did they have? They had that meat in the middle of the ice. I'm really pulling for this guy because he worked so hard ot get ready in his draft year and then was set back by injury. You know he was stressed, right? But he tested during the (NHL) combine. He came there 100 per cent healthy, put himself through the paces and I'm hoping for good things for Roger McQueen.'
Calgary Herald
11 hours ago
- Automotive
- Calgary Herald
NHL Entry Draft: A return to Disneyland, it is, for Ducks pick Roger McQueen
A return to Disneyland is in the cards for Roger McQueen and his family. Article content The 6-foot-5 forward from Saskatoon — whose family made a point of taking in Disneyland prior to the National Hockey League Entry Draft — ended up getting selected by the Anaheim Ducks at 10th overall Friday in Los Angeles. Article content Just as fittingly, McQueen lists former Ducks great and fellow Saskatchewan-born forward Ryan Getzlaf as the one player he has patterned his game while playing for the Western Hockey League's Brandon Wheat Kings. Article content Article content 'What we really liked — obviously he has size — but what goes along with that is the skill and skating ability and basically a really hard player to play against,' said Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek. 'We're looking forward to him being a power forward for our organization. Article content Article content 'We can't be more happy. You'll just being coming up down the road (from L.A.), Rog. We'll see you soon.' Article content McQueen entered the draft as a bit of a question mark following a fracture in his lower back that sidelined him for much of last season. Article content 'I'm so grateful for this,' McQueen told the Ducks brass, led by Verbeek. Article content 'It's unbelievable, especially being to close here (to Los Angeles) and all the fans in the background. It's such a great feeling. I couldn't be more happy.' Article content McQueen played in 20 games, regular season and playoffs, during his shortened season while recovering from a fracture in his lower back. Some NHL teams threw out the caution flag, but not the Ducks and, for that, McQueen is grateful. Article content Article content 'It's unbelievable,' said McQueen. 'It's just one of those thing you've been working towards your entire life. It's kind of crazy. There's no real emotion. It's just shock at this point, but I'm so grateful to be with them and it's unbelievable.' Article content Article content Members of the Sportsnet's NHL Draft panel appeared to like the pick and are pulling for the pride of Saskatoon. Article content 'It's really hard to check people like this and he's not an easy out,' said scout Jason Bukala. Article content 'He'll drop the flippers if things get hard. Ryan Getzlaf, back in the day when Anaheim started to get good, what did they have? They had that meat in the middle of the ice. I'm really pulling for this guy because he worked so hard ot get ready in his draft year and then was set back by injury. You know he was stressed, right? But he tested during the (NHL) combine. He came there 100 per cent healthy, put himself through the paces and I'm hoping for good things for Roger McQueen.'
Vancouver Sun
11 hours ago
- Sport
- Vancouver Sun
NHL Entry Draft: A return to Disneyland, it is, for Ducks pick Roger McQueen
A return to Disneyland is in the cards for Roger McQueen and his family. The 6-foot-5 forward from Saskatoon — whose family made a point of taking in Disneyland prior to the National Hockey League Entry Draft — ended up getting selected by the Anaheim Ducks at 10th overall Friday in Los Angeles. Just as fittingly, McQueen lists former Ducks great and fellow Saskatchewan-born forward Ryan Getzlaf as the one player he has patterned his game while playing for the Western Hockey League's Brandon Wheat Kings. 'What we really liked — obviously he has size — but what goes along with that is the skill and skating ability and basically a really hard player to play against,' said Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek. 'We're looking forward to him being a power forward for our organization. Start your day with a roundup of B.C.-focused news and opinion. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sunrise will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. 'We can't be more happy. You'll just being coming up down the road (from L.A.), Rog. We'll see you soon.' McQueen entered the draft as a bit of a question mark following a fracture in his lower back that sidelined him for much of last season. 'I'm so grateful for this,' McQueen told the Ducks brass, led by Verbeek. 'It's unbelievable, especially being to close here (to Los Angeles) and all the fans in the background. It's such a great feeling. I couldn't be more happy.' McQueen played in 20 games, regular season and playoffs, during his shortened season while recovering from a fracture in his lower back. Some NHL teams threw out the caution flag, but not the Ducks and, for that, McQueen is grateful. 'It's unbelievable,' said McQueen. 'It's just one of those thing you've been working towards your entire life. It's kind of crazy. There's no real emotion. It's just shock at this point, but I'm so grateful to be with them and it's unbelievable.' Members of the Sportsnet's NHL Draft panel appeared to like the pick and are pulling for the pride of Saskatoon. 'It's really hard to check people like this and he's not an easy out,' said scout Jason Bukala. 'He'll drop the flippers if things get hard. Ryan Getzlaf, back in the day when Anaheim started to get good, what did they have? They had that meat in the middle of the ice. I'm really pulling for this guy because he worked so hard ot get ready in his draft year and then was set back by injury. You know he was stressed, right? But he tested during the (NHL) combine. He came there 100 per cent healthy, put himself through the paces and I'm hoping for good things for Roger McQueen.' Sam Cosentino echoed those sentiments. 'You can see that he's a Pat Verbeek type of player,' said Cosentino. 'What you're getting is a big guy down the middle of the ice. He can skate. He's got ton of skill. He can shoot the puck extremely well, but you see the smile on his face. This guy is not fake. He's got that gregarious personality and, similar to (No. 1 pick overall Matthew) Schaefer, when he walks into a room, he shake your hand, looks you in the eye and he's happy to be there. This type of character, I love what McQueen brings to the table and I'm really interested to see what happens. 'It looks to all signs to him being healthy right now.' Cosentino said there was such a wide divergence with NHL people he had talked with on McQueen in terms of the medicals. 'There were some teams that said, 'no.' There were other teams that said, 'yeah, maybe later.' There were other teams that said, 'multi-picks.' And other teams were saying, 'If he's there for us, we are taking him. So Anaheim is obviously that team.' dzary@ The Saskatoon Star Phoenix has created an Afternoon Headlines newsletter that can be delivered daily to your inbox so you are up to date with the most vital news of the day. Click here to subscribe. With some online platforms blocking access to the journalism upon which you depend, our website is your destination for up-to-the-minute news, so make sure to bookmark and sign up for our newsletters so we can keep you informed. Click here to subscribe.
Edmonton Journal
11 hours ago
- Sport
- Edmonton Journal
NHL Entry Draft: A return to Disneyland, it is, for Ducks pick Roger McQueen
Article content A return to Disneyland is in the cards for Roger McQueen and his family. The 6-foot-5 forward from Saskatoon — whose family made a point of taking in Disneyland prior to the National Hockey League Entry Draft — ended up getting selected by the Anaheim Ducks at 10th overall Friday in Los Angeles. Article content Just as fittingly, McQueen lists former Ducks great and fellow Saskatchewan-born forward Ryan Getzlaf as the one player he has patterned his game while playing for the Western Hockey League's Brandon Wheat Kings. Article content 'What we really liked — obviously he has size — but what goes along with that is the skill and skating ability and basically a really hard player to play against,' said Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek. 'We're looking forward to him being a power forward for our organization. 'We can't be more happy. You'll just being coming up down the road (from L.A.), Rog. We'll see you soon.' McQueen entered the draft as a bit of a question mark following a fracture in his lower back that sidelined him for much of last season. 'I'm so grateful for this,' McQueen told the Ducks brass, led by Verbeek. 'It's unbelievable, especially being to close here (to Los Angeles) and all the fans in the background. It's such a great feeling. I couldn't be more happy.' McQueen played in 20 games, regular season and playoffs, during his shortened season while recovering from a fracture in his lower back. Some NHL teams threw out the caution flag, but not the Ducks and, for that, McQueen is grateful. Article content Article content 'It's unbelievable,' said McQueen. 'It's just one of those thing you've been working towards your entire life. It's kind of crazy. There's no real emotion. It's just shock at this point, but I'm so grateful to be with them and it's unbelievable.' Members of the Sportsnet's NHL Draft panel appeared to like the pick and are pulling for the pride of Saskatoon. 'It's really hard to check people like this and he's not an easy out,' said scout Jason Bukala. 'He'll drop the flippers if things get hard. Ryan Getzlaf, back in the day when Anaheim started to get good, what did they have? They had that meat in the middle of the ice. I'm really pulling for this guy because he worked so hard ot get ready in his draft year and then was set back by injury. You know he was stressed, right? But he tested during the (NHL) combine. He came there 100 per cent healthy, put himself through the paces and I'm hoping for good things for Roger McQueen.' Article content Sam Cosentino echoed those sentiments. 'You can see that he's a Pat Verbeek type of player,' said Cosentino. 'What you're getting is a big guy down the middle of the ice. He can skate. He's got ton of skill. He can shoot the puck extremely well, but you see the smile on his face. This guy is not fake. He's got that gregarious personality and, similar to (No. 1 pick overall Matthew) Schaefer, when he walks into a room, he shake your hand, looks you in the eye and he's happy to be there. This type of character, I love what McQueen brings to the table and I'm really interested to see what happens. 'It looks to all signs to him being healthy right now.' Cosentino said there was such a wide divergence with NHL people he had talked with on McQueen in terms of the medicals. 'There were some teams that said, 'no.' There were other teams that said, 'yeah, maybe later.' There were other teams that said, 'multi-picks.' And other teams were saying, 'If he's there for us, we are taking him. So Anaheim is obviously that team.' Article content Latest National Stories
Global News
2 days ago
- Sport
- Global News
McQueen, Reschny lead Saskatchewan contingent of prospects ahead of 2025 NHL Draft
Back home with his family in Saskatoon this month, Roger McQueen has been given the chance to take a breath after a WHL season which tested him at the best of times. Now the pressure is ramping back up yet again, as he awaits to hear his name called at the 2025 NHL Draft on Friday in Los Angeles. 'It's one of the biggest moments in a while for me and it's insane how quick it's moved,' said McQueen. 'Just thinking about 10 years ago me on the pond, just hanging out on my own. It's crazy how far I've come and it's going to be cool to finally get my name called.' Few draft-eligible players have overcome as many hurdles as McQueen this year, following a 2024-25 campaign with the Brandon Wheat Kings which did not go according to plan. Story continues below advertisement Racing out of the gates with eight goals and 11 points in just eight games, McQueen was tabbed as a sure fire top-10 prospect ahead of the 2025 draft. That was until his season grinded to a halt in mid-October as he suffered a back injury which included fractured vertebrae, keeping him out of the Wheat Kings lineup for close to five months before making his return in early March. Given a clean bill of health, the six-foot-five-inch tall McQueen was a full participant at the recent NHL Draft combine where he met with 24 teams and has been listed as the eight-best North American skater by NHL Central Scouting. 'Having this injury this year is obviously tough for anyone,' said McQueen. 'Looking back at it when I'm five years older from now, I think it's going to be probably one of the best things for me. Just in the sense of what I learned and how I've become as a person, the other side of the game in the mental side which arguably could be more important.' Despite the injury, McQueen is expected to be picked anywhere between fifth overall and 15th overall on Friday night with a wide open draft expected following the first few picks. The former Saskatoon AAA Blazers star is one of two Saskatchewan-born players expected to be taken in the first round in Los Angeles, along with Macklin product Cole Reschny. Story continues below advertisement 'It's just so surreal and so special that I have this opportunity,' said Reschny. 'My family and I get to go down to (Los Angeles), enjoy that and experience it. It's pretty cool to see that the day has come. It's honestly crazy; it kind of flew by.' Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy Completing his sophomore season with the Victoria Royals, Reschny became one of the top offensive threats in the WHL posting 26 goals and 92 points in 62 games and is ranked 25th among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting. He followed that up with a gold medal performance with Team Canada at the 2025 IIHF World U18 Hockey Championships in Texas, scoring five goals and eight points in five games including an overtime winner to advance past the Czechs in the quarter-finals. 'Getting the opportunity I got there playing meaningful minutes and being put in a lot of big situations was big,' said Reschny. 'I was able to produce myself, but the biggest thing was the team was able to have success and that was a big part of it. It was nice to get that opportunity to finish on a winning note.' Reschny, who has committed to leave the Royals and join the University of North Dakota in the fall, will likely fall in the mid-to-late first round after meeting with 26 NHL teams at the combine and could be the second Blazers alum after McQueen to hear his name called Friday. Story continues below advertisement 1:13 Saskatchewan WHL star Cole Reschny speaks on move to NCAA Down the road in Moose Jaw, Warriors captain Lynden Lakovic is also expected to be a first round selection after leading the team in scoring with 27 goals and 58 points in 47 games. As for Day 2 of the draft on Saturday, up to a dozen picks with Saskatchewan connections could be selected by NHL teams with Dawson Gerwing (Meadow Lake), Reese Hamilton (Whitewood), Joby Baumuller (Wilcox), Kolten Bridgeman (Regina), Jayden Kraus (Prince Albert) and Carson Adair (Clavet) all listed in NHL Central Scouting's final draft rankings. Meanwhile, the WHL's Saskatchewan-based teams will be eagerly anticipating picks with Lakovic, Swift Current Broncos defender Peyton Kettles and Saskatoon Blades import forward David Lewandowski among those expecting to be drafted this weekend. For Lewandowski, who came over to Saskatoon early in the season from Germany, he was able to adapt to the smaller ice surface with 15 goals and 39 points in 52 games. Story continues below advertisement 'It's hard to come from Europe so it's kind of different,' said Lewandowski. 'But I always got my chances from [head coach Dan DaSilva], they always trusted in me. So it was fine.' Lewandowski, who is ranked 51st by NHL Central Scouting and is projected as a second-to-fourth round pick, also got the chance to represent Germany at the 2025 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championships in Ottawa this past winter. He also took part in the combine along with McQueen, Reschny and Lakovic where he finished top-1o in pull ups and was able to meet with eight NHL clubs over the week. 'It was pretty cool to see that,' said Lewandowski. 'You're there doing the test, you look around and then all the people are looking. So it was pretty cool.' Riding a wave of recent Saskatchewan-born first rounders like Brayden Yager, Kevin Korchinski and Berkly Catton, McQueen and Reschny say they're eager to add to that list and take that next step towards the NHL. Story continues below advertisement Reflecting back on his upbringing on the family farm outside of Macklin, Reschny said there's a reason why so many Saskatchewan prospects are hearing their names called early in recent years. 'Saskatchewan just has that hockey identity the way players are, but also as people too,' said Reschny. 'I think the way we grow up here as small-town kids and smaller-city kids gives an identity that helps us and takes us a long way in hockey.' Both Reschny and McQueen will be in Los Angeles alongside family on Friday night, wanting to share their biggest night with those closest to them as they take the next step in their development. 'Obviously it's something you always think about and dream about,' said McQueen. 'I've definitely put some thought (into it) and I'm super excited, hopefully that dream does come true.' The first round of the 2025 NHL Draft will begin at 5 p.m. Saskatchewan time, while rounds two through seven will be held on Saturday.
