Many NHL mock drafts had Regina’s Cole Sillinger going in the first round of the NHL draft somewhere between picks 10-20. Those mock drafts were correct.
The Columbus Blue Jackets moved up by making a trade with Chicago to take Sillinger with the 12th pick.
Cole, who is the son of long-time NHL’er and former Regina Pat Mike Sillinger who went with the 11th overall pick to Detroit back in 1989 and had a 17-year career, played with Sioux Falls in the USHL after leaving his WHL team in Medicine Hat due to uncertainty about a season. He had 46 points in 31 games. It is expected the 18-year-old will return to the Tigers for the upcoming season.
Another Saskatchewan player was also taken with the last pick of the first round. Prince Albert Raiders defenceman Nolan Allan, who comes from Davidson, went to Chicago with the 32nd pick.