Lindstrom is the first player from Medicine Hat to be selected in the top 10 since Cam Barker was taken No. 3 by the Chicago Blackhawks in 2004.
“I was excited,” Lindstrom said. “All my meetings have gone well with them. They’re all really nice people. I practice with some guys in Columbus and they have a lot going on. I’m really excited to be a Columbus Blue Jacket.”
Tij Iginla, son of Kelowna (WHL) and Hockey Hall of Famer Jarome Iginla, was the first pick at No. 6 by the Utah Hockey Club. He was selected ahead of his father, who was no. 11 by the Dallas Stars in the 1995 NHL Draft.
“I’ve been hearing that story (being overdrafted) a little bit, but if I want to stack it up against what Dad did in his NHL career, I think I’ve got to continue to build my resume,” Iginla said.
Two Norwegian-born players were selected in the first round: right wing Mikael Brandsek-Nygaard of Mora in Sweden’s second division of the Detroit Red Wings and defenseman Stian Solberg of Valerenka and Norway’s top professional men’s league no. Ranked 15th out of 23. The Anaheim Ducks moved up eight spots in a trade with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
“It’s been a dream of mine for a long time, and now I’ve achieved my dream, and I’m going to keep going and be an NHL player soon,” Brantschek-Nygaard said.
Two players were selected in the first round of USA Hockey’s Under-18 National Team Development Program: left winger Cole Iserman (No. 20, New York Islanders) and defenseman Eric Emery (No. 30, New York Rangers).
Eiserman (6-0, 197), committed to Boston University for 2024-25, scored 58 goals in 57 games this season and became the program’s all-time leader with 127 goals in 119 games. Emery (6-3, 183), committed to the University of North Dakota in 2024-25, had 16 assists in 61 games with the NTDP U-18 team this season.
Demidov was the first of four Russian-born players selected in the first round when he went No. 5 to the Canadians. The left-handed shot (6-0, 192) led St. Petersburg in the MHL, Russia’s junior league, with 60 points (23 goals, 37 assists) in 30 games.
He was joined with the Torpedo in the Kontinental Hockey League by defenseman Anton Silev (No. 10, New Jersey Devils), center Yegor Surin (No. 22, Nashville Predators) of Yaroslavl in Russia’s Junior League and right wing Matvi Kridin. (No. 28, Calgary Flames) of Muskegon in the United States Hockey League.
New Jersey drafted Silev, agreeing to KHL contract with Torpedo through 2025-26.
“I have new goals now; on top of that is to win the Stanley Cup,” Silev said through a translator.
