Raiders’ Fonstad is happy to be a Hab

Cole Fonstad’s draft-day celebration was delayed by a TV timeout.

The Estevan product was watching the NHL draft with several family members on Saturday morning when something caught his attention. It was a muffled announcement from the Montreal Canadiens, who selected Fonstad in the fifth round (128th overall).

“The (TV analysts) were talking but you could kind of hear the announcement in the background,” recalled the Prince Albert Raiders’ forward. “I heard ‘Prince Albert’ and I could kind of hear my name but I wasn’t 100-per-cent sure. Then they went to commercial.

“I didn’t want to get too excited in case it wasn’t me. When the name popped up (on the screen), it was a pretty cool feeling.”

Fonstad wasn’t completely surprised to be selected by the Canadiens, who had shown plenty of interest over the course of last season.

He felt good about his interactions with the team and quietly hoped he’d be speaking to them again on Saturday.

“I had quite a few meetings with them throughout the year and talked to them at the combine again,” he said. “If I could have picked a top three that I thought was going to take me, they definitely would have been in there. It’s something you’re never 100-per-cent sure about but it’s definitely something I thought about.”

Fonstad is excited to join an iconic franchise with a huge following across Canada. His first official exposure will come next weekend at the team’s development camp in Montreal, which only gives him a few days to brush up on his French.

“I need to work on that,” he said with a laugh. “It’s pretty cool to stay in Canada and to be with such a special franchise like Montreal. I have a good opportunity ahead of me and I’m really looking forward to it.”

The same goes for Regina product Alex Kannok Leipert, who provided a little more southern Saskatchewan flavour to the draft. He was selected in the sixth round (161st overall) by the Stanley Cupchampion Washington Capitals.

“I’m still in shock a little bit,” said the Vancouver Giants defenceman. “I wasn’t really watching (the draft) too closely, then I got a call. Everything kind of happened pretty fast.

“It was a nice surprise.”