Wednesday, July 3, 2013

ICE Selections at Import Draft

In today’s CHL Import Draft the ICE selected
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HVfR0bpP7Y8
1st round 25th overall - 18-year-old Russian Defenseman Rinat Valiev.
He is 6'1" 205 lbs and last year played in the USHL for Indiana and registered 6 goals and 7 assists and 43 penalty minutes.
He was the 3rd overall pick in the 2012 KHL Draft.

2nd round 85th overall - 18-year-old forward Artturi Lehkonen from Finland.
He was selected in the 2nd round of the 2013 NHL Draft by Montreal.
He is 5'11" 163 lbs and last year played Finland Jr KalPa 45 GP 14 goals and 16 assists and 12 penalty minutes.

From the ICE Office
Cranbrook, BC – Jeff Chynoweth, General Manager of the Kootenay ICE Hockey Club announced today the Club has selected 18-year-old Russian Defenseman Rinat Valiev (1st round, 25th overall) and 18-year-old Finland Forward Artturi Lehkonen (2nd round, 85th overall) in today's 22nd annual CHL import Draft.

"Our number one priority today was to select a defenseman that could step into our lineup immediately and contribute to our team. Rinat was a player that was ranked by a number of NHL teams for this past weekend's NHL Draft and even though he was not selected every NHL team we spoke to felt his game was suited for the CHL. He played last year in the USHL so he is accustomed to the North American culture as well as speaking and understanding the English language which is huge from our end," continued Chynoweth.

"The selection of Artturi Lehkonen was a complete flyer on our end. He is a world class player (2nd round selection, 55th overall by the Montreal Canadiens in the 2013 NHL Draft) who plays professionally in Finland. We had some other forwards on our list who were selected just before our pick so we decided to take a chance on Artturi," added Chynoweth

RINAT VALIEV(V-aleeve)
Birthdate: May 11, 1995 Country: Russia
Position: Defense Shoots: Left
Height: 6'1" Weight: 190 lbs.
NHL Draft: Eligible 2014
2012-2013 Team: Indiana Ice - USHL
GP: 15 G: 1 A: 1 TP: 2 PIM: 10

ARTTURI LEHKONEN
Birthdate: July 4, 1995 Country: Finland
Position: Forward Shoots: Left
Height: 5'11" Weight: 163 lbs.
NHL Draft: 2013 2nd Round Montreal
2012-2013 Team: KalPa - Finland
GP: 45 G: 14 A: 16 TP: 30 PIM: 12