The Prince Albert Raiders made 13 picks in the WHL prospects draft yesterday. (raiderhockey.com)

By Rob Mahon

Raiders Draft Recap

Zarrillo “proud” after eventful WHL prospects draft for Raiders

May 20, 2022 | 11:54 AM

For a team in transition, the draft is of prime importance. Armed with the tenth overall pick to start the day, the Prince Albert Raiders made the most of the 2022 Bantam Draft even though they did not, in fact, make that tenth overall pick.

The Raiders made 13 picks over the course of 12 rounds in the WHL prospects draft, selecting players from all over Western Canada and even as far south as Texas. The players picked were high-scoring prospects, in many cases among the best in their respective leagues.

“I’m so proud of our group,” said Bruno Zarrillo, Raiders director of player personnel. “I’m really proud of our mid-round picks. The Bursaws (fifth rounder Liam Bursaw), the Bibeaus (sixth round pick Ethan Bibeau) and that group in there. I think we found some really quality players that are going to step in and be really good players in the WHL.”

Before the Raiders could go after those mid-round picks, however, they had to make their first selection. They made it a bit later than they initially planned, trading the tenth overall pick for the 15^th, 60^th, and 126^th overall choices with the Seattle Thunderbirds.

Once the 15^th overall pick rolled around, however, the Raiders were still able to get their guy. Their first pick was Luke Moroz, the leading scorer in the Saskatchewan U15AA circuit.

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“It was a bit of a game of chicken,” said Zarrillo. “We thought we could move down five guys and still get him, and we were able to get a third round pick. It worked out really well, we were able to get the guy we wanted and also get a third round pick.”

Moroz terrorized the AA ranks last season to the tune of 47 goals and 108 points in just 27 games. A player who scores like that has a lot of tools in his offensive toolkit, but there was one attribute that stuck out.

“The puck always seems to find him and he always seemed to be where the puck was going,” Zarrillo said. “He wasn’t getting by because he was faster than somebody, he was getting by on his brain was what I really liked.”

Another Saskatchewan-born player who will join the Raiders after he was selected 64^th overall is forward Dayce Derkatch. The son of Dale Derkatch, a former Raiders director of player personnel who had an excellent WHL career himself, Dace put up 31 goals and 84 points for the Regina Aces at the AA level last season.

“Ultimate competitor,” Zarrillo said. “He plays every shift the right way, plays hard, good hockey sense. He just does everything the right way. He’s got good skills and he’s going to be a guy who can play in all situations for us.”

Many of the players the Raiders picked were from Saskatchewan or Manitoba, but Zarrillo said that was more of a coincidence, though it’s often good to have players who play close to home. What wasn’t a coincidence was a focus on skill and puck control with each pick.

“I wasn’t so concerned with the production,” said Zarrillo. “I was more concerned with who’s controlling the game, who’s having all the puck touches, who’s making things happen. Usually that leads to points, so those are the kind of guys I draw to.”

Perhaps the most intriguing prospect on the list, and certainly the one with the least information available about him, was 10th rounder Cooper Anderson. A goaltender playing at a lower level, he’s starting to climb the ranks in his home province.

“He’s a player that played A hockey, the lowest level of hockey,” Zarrillo said. “But he went to the provincial tryouts for the B.C. team and he made the top 150. Every game he went in, he was great, he never let in any goals. When I started checking into him, I found he was a multi-sport kid, he’s very athletic. He was a great skater. Then I started hearing he’s probably going to make it to their next round. If I’m going to take a chance on somebody, he fits all the criteria of a goalie.”

Zarrillo also singled out a pair of defensemen the team selected with their second and fourth round picks, Ryan Gower from Manitoba and Jaxon Herchak from Waldheim, Sask. not far from Warman. Herchak led his league in goals by a defenseman this past season, while Gower led his league in points by a defenseman and was second in goals.

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rob.mahon@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @RobMahonPxP