A creative offensive player and responsible two-way forward, Dawson Gamble of the U15 NorthWest Stars was selected 161st overall by the Calgary Hitmen of the Western Hockey League. (Martin Martinson/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Martin Martinson

NorthWest Stars Shine

Battlefords duo realize a dream, drafted to WHL

May 10, 2024 | 3:00 PM

A pair of Battlefords players from the U15 NorthWest Stars saw a dream realized Thursday when they were selected in the 2024 Western Hockey League (WHL) Prospects Draft.

Forward Dawson Gamble was selected in the eighth round, 161st overall by the Calgary Hitmen, while defenceman Rylee Belyk followed in the 10th round, 221st overall to the Saskatoon Blades.

“I got a call from my mom and she sounded very excited, so I checked my phone and when I saw my name [on the online draft board] I couldn’t really think of anything else…I kind of blacked out,” Gamble said with an audible smile, almost still in disbelief.

“I was very excited, and I’d just like to thank all my family and all my coaches from when I was little all the way up to where I am now for helping me get here,” the forward continued. “[NorthWest Stars] coaches, Martin [Smith], Jody [Reiter] and Myles [Gibb] all helped all of us in our development and I took key things from what they said and applied it to my game.”

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Gamble is coming off a season in which he led the U15 NorthWest Stars in scoring by an incredible 24 points, finishing the year with 50 points (23 goals, 27 assists) in 29 games, for a 35-point jump from his first year in the league in 2022-23.

Defenceman Rylee Belyk (#9) was a 10th Round selection of the Saskatoon Blades, 221st overall, following a standout first season of U15 AA as a tower of strength on the NorthWest Stars blue line. (Submitted photo/Rylee Belyk)

For Belyk, fresh off his first season manning the blue line with the NorthWest Stars, the news of his selection came while on the road – travelling to his evening baseball game with a good friend when he refreshed the draft page and saw his name appear next to the Saskatoon Blades.

“I was probably about 20 minutes away from Unity, just heading to my baseball game and was watching [the draft] on my phone,” he said. “It came to the Blades’ pick and I was just hoping it would be the Blades when it popped up [with] my name.”

While in a bit of excited disbelief, Belyk said it wasn’t long until he heard from family, helping the realization set in.

“Right after, my auntie and my mom called me and then my brother was texting me because they were all watching it [too], so that was really cool,” he said with a smile.

Belyk finished his rookie campaign with the NorthWest Stars second in defenceman scoring on the team, with 19 points (six goals, 13 assists) in 29 games.

Head coach of the U15 NorthWest Stars, Martin Smith said it was great to see both receive recognition for their hard work and development and achieve a goal they had been working towards.

“As a coach, I’m really excited for both players that they got drafted yesterday,” Smith said. “Both are well-deserved, they had excellent seasons with our U15 AA NorthWest Stars, and I know there had been interest in both players from Western Hockey League clubs throughout the year so I’m glad that they were both chosen yesterday.

“It’s exciting for our organization, for the community, and for Battlefords Minor Hockey, these players came up through the ranks and the future is bright for both players. It’s a testament to how hard they’ve worked during the season and the seasons they’ve had.”

The full results of the 2024 WHL Prospects Draft can be found here.

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Martin.Martinson@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @MartyMartyPxP1