Pair of Oil Kings have high hopes for NHL draft
Forward Lazar, goalie Jarry projected to be picked early
The wait has been a challenge, maybe even more challenging than the notorious bike sprint and the 26 interview sessions that Curtis Lazar sat through with team personnel at the NHL combine.
“The longest two weeks of my life,” said Lazar, the Edmonton Oil Kings forward who is expected to be selected in the first round of the NHL entry draft on June 30 at Newark, N.J.
Lazar, who is ranked 20th by NHL Central Scouting, and goaltender Tristan Jarry are the two Oil Kings who will be in New Jersey for the proceedings.
Lazar interviewed with all but four NHL teams at the combine, then at the behest of the teams, made trips to Toronto, Newark and Buffalo, N.Y.
No team is as familiar with the six-foot, 198-pound forward as the Edmonton Oilers, who have seen his competitive level and his ability to play a two-way game. The Oilers were among the teams that interviewed him.
Jarry, who claimed most valuable player honours at the CHL Top Prospects game in January, had an opportunity to showcase his game when Oil Kings starter Laurent Brossoit auditioned for the Canadian world junior team. Brossoit didn’t make the cut.
“With Laurent going away with the U-20s, it really gave me a chance to show teams and scouts what I had. I thought it was very good for me,” said Jarry, who finished the season with a 1.61 goals-against average and a .936 save percentage in 27 games.
He is ranked third among North American goaltenders.
“This will be the highlight of my life, probably. Getting picked by an NHL team is the dream of every kid,” said Jarry, who returned to his hometown of Surrey, B.C., after the combine. “Everyone I’ve talked to says it is special and something I’ll remember forever.”
Jarry interviewed with 22 teams, including the Oilers.
“I thought the combine went well. It was pretty neat to see the top 100 kids in North America and the European kids and realize that you’re one of them,” Jarry said. “I had talked to a couple of guys on the team before the combine and I heard them say it was probably one of the toughest things you’ll do. I think they’re right.”
The Oilers have the seventh pick in the first round, but it is a selection general manager Craig MacTavish is willing to deal, so there could be a move up or down. The club has, obviously, kept close tabs on Lazar, given he’s in their backyard and they interviewed him.
In his second season with the Oil Kings, the Salmon Arm, B.C., product registered 38 goals and 23 assists in 72 games. During the playoffs, he contributed nine goals and 11 points in 22 games as Edmonton reached the Western Hockey League final before losing in six games to the Portland Winterhawks,
By his own admission, Lazar didn’t have the best start to the 2012-13 season, in large part because he got caught up in the statistics and the rankings.
“I let it control who I was and I’m not proud of that, looking back on it. It was almost selfish of me,” he said. “I got a hat trick in the second game and that was probably the worst thing that could have happened to me because I expected myself to get all-time records and stuff like that, stuff that was unreachable. Instead of just showing up and just enjoying it because we had a pretty good team in Edmonton.
“I just had to play my role, be myself, and come December, I said I was going to do just that and help the Oil Kings win as many games as possible.
“(Now) I’m looking forward to getting this over, so I can get with an organization and they can help me along the way and help me become a pro as soon as possible.”