The Prince George Cougars will have the third-overall pick in the upcoming Western Hockey League bantam draft.
The order of selections for the draft, May 2 in Calgary, was determined on Wednesday when the league held its bantam draft lottery. The Regina Pats were the winners and moved up two spots in the order -- from fourth to second. The Vancouver Giants, who finished at the bottom of the league standings, retained the first-overall pick.
The Cougars, ninth in the Western Conference and 21st out of 22 teams, also had the third-overall selection last year but general manager Dallas Thompson swung a trade with the Prince Albert Raiders on draft day and moved up to second in the order. With the No. 2 pick, the Cats nabbed highly-touted centreman Jansen Harkins of North Vancouver. Harkins appeared in three WHL games as an underager this season and was held without a point. With his regular team, the Vancouver Northwest Giants of the B.C. Hockey Major Midget League, he had 14 goals and 59 points in 37 games.
In the second round of this year's draft, and in all subsequent rounds, the Cougars will have the second pick.
The draft is for 1998-born players who reside in the four western provinces, the Northwest Territories, the Yukon, Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington or Wyoming.
