Bern Brings Back Core; adds star power

[STZ 5,360]

 

Bern, Switzerland.

 

It was a very active draft, for the Bern Royals. They had three of the top four picks, and then the top two picks in the second round. There was a clear direction they went for, as they brought back three of the four players that ended the season with the VHLM team.

 

They were able to secure their goalie from last year, Ryan Price, with the second overall pick. Price has shined since arriving with Bern last year, so much so that he warranted a first round selection in the VHL Draft by the Seattle Bears. With the 4th overall pick, Bern went off the board to ensure they got the returning high-potential prospect in Jordan Maverick. They left a few very high ranking prospects on the board, but that was the cost of ensuring your preferred pick. In a later round selection, Bern scooped up the hard hitting defenseman Benjamin Tumack. Tumack was unproven, but was a star in the 8 games he played for the Royals last year.

 

While the story of the draft was the three returnees, lets not overshadow the fact that they selected first overall. With that selection they chose the outright most sought after prospect in this draft, and most likely the S45 VHL Draft in Zach Parechkin. Parechkin is projected to be a franchise player, and even has the potential to be a generational player when he makes it to the VHL. They kind of star power has already shown to be a morale booster.

 

Bern acquired players Sean Blacker, Mathieu Baptiste, Jon Panik, and Jayden Fasth - all who have storied player agency ties to the VHL. These four represent youth and future, but also maturity and discipline as they have a lot of respect within the league.

 

Of all the picks Bern made, I think one did stand out as being a potential sleeper pick, and one which might take them from a playoff team to a championship team. That was the selection of Kol Mikaelson. Mikaelson was a late sign-up last year, so will actually fall into the S45 VHL Draft. He has very similar comparisons to Jordan Maverick, although Maverick's name has been a little sexier in the press. The Royals are very high on Mikaelson and believe that he could easily be a top five pick in next year's VHL Draft.

 

It's a very exciting start to the year, and we will watch as these players progress and prepare themselves for their VHL careers.

Edited September 6, 2015 by STZ

[Dmoushey_31 106]

Woohoo! Can't wait for the season!

[DollarAndADream 3,356]

I like those high hopes for Parechkin.

 

 

Great write-up on the team. Can't wait to see what happens during the season.