Detroit draft city
A pair of Peterborough Petes were chosen by the Detroit Red Wings in the NHL 2017 Entry Draft.
Zach Gallant and Cole Fraser wear maroon and white as Peterborough Petes teammates but they were decked out in Detroit Red Wings red and white on Saturday.
The Red Wings selected Gallant in the third round, 83rd overall, at the NHL Entry Draft in Chicago. Two rounds later they also selected Fraser 131st overall. The pair met up in the Red Wings’ suite to share the moment and get some photos together.
“I had just got upstairs to the suite and one of the guys told me they had just drafted Cole,” Gallant said. “It was pretty cool especially to have a guy who you play with and are so close with drafted to the same team. It was pretty awesome.”
“It was kind of cool,” Fraser said, “to know I’m going to a team with a friendly face and there is going to be someone I know there. I’m going to have someone there I can talk to without being nervous about it.”
Gallant, a centre from Oakville, had a standout season with the Petes in 2016-17. The sophomore put up 21 goals, 26 assists, 47 points and 74 penalty minutes in 60 regular season games. The six-footone, 184-pond faceoff specialist recorded nine assists in 12 playoff games.
“It was a feeling like no other,” Gallant said, of hearing his name called. “I had a great conversation with Detroit at the combine and I knew they had interest. To be drafted by them is unbelievable. I grew up watching Detroit a lot since they are so close to home. They’ve had so many great teams over the years being an original six team. I was just real excited.
“I’ve been looking forward to this for a long time and I’ve put a lot of hard work into it. To be drafted is really satisfying and humbling.”
It’s also a moment to share with others.
“You think of all the people who have helped you along the way, all your family, friends and coaches and people who sacrificed their time to help you.”
Fraser, a six-foot-two, 191-pound defenceman from Beckwith, Ont., had six goals, 13 assists, 19 points and 82 penalty minutes in 61 regular season games.
He drove more than 10 hours to attend the draft and was walking up the stairs to his seat, after a bathroom break, when he heard his name called.
“I ran over to my parents real quick and gave them a hug and then ran down and got my jersey and my hat,” said Fraser. “It’s an original six team. I was going for the experience and if it didn’t work out, it didn’t work out but, obviously, I was hoping for the best. Everything ended up working out and it’s something I could have never imagined going into it. Being picked by such a prestigious organization.”
Fraser said there is a real sense of satisfaction in that moment.
“Looking back, all the stuff I went through as a young kid, not being able to do certain things a regular teenager would, has really shown me that it’s worth the sacrifice. That I wasn’t doing it all for nothing.”
It certainly made the long trek worthwhile.
“It was more than anything I ever would have expected. The whole experience itself was amazing,” said Fraser.