The Edmonton Oilers have selected winger Reid Schaefer with the 32nd-overall pick in the 2022 NHL Draft.
The 18-year-old forward — who's from nearby Spruce Grove, Alta. — spent the past season with the Western Hockey League's Seattle Thunderbirds, putting up 32 goals and 58 points through 66 games. He got his first taste of WHL action over a couple brief stints during the two seasons prior, splitting time between the WHL and the AJHL's Spruce Grove Saints.
Checking in at six-foot-three, 214 pounds, Schaefer gives the Oilers a forward who can hold his own offensively, and throw his weight around, too.
“That big body, power forward, type of player is really difficult to find," Sportsnet's Sam Cosentino said of Schaefer during Thursday's broadcast of the 2022 NHL Draft. "They’re often really expensive on the trade market, and they’re really difficult to find. So why not draft and develop that player. With Schaefer, they’re well on their way.”
Sportsnet's Jason Bukala — formerly the director of amateur scouting for the NHL's Florida Panthers — had a specific comparable in mind for the young winger.
“My NHL comparable? Nick Paul," he said on Thursday's Draft broadcast. "Nick Paul, coming out of the Ontario Hockey League had some deficiencies in his mechanics, his stride. And I think today, after seeing what he did in the playoffs … I think there’s a lot teams that would love to have him.
"This kid here is ahead of the curve mechanics-wise. He’s close to Nick at the same age. He’s got the same kind of finish."
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