Geekie shares draft with family

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This article was published 08/07/2022 (1327 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Conor Geekie was happy to be drafted by the Arizona Coyotes on Thursday in the first round of the National Hockey League draft, and just as happy he was able to share it with his family.

Arizona traded up to grab Geekie in Montreal, sending the 27th, 34th and 45th overall picks to the San Jose Sharks for the 11th overall pick.

“It’s something that I’ll never forget,” Geekie said. “A hug with mom (Tobi), a hug with dad (Craig), (brothers) Noah and Morgan being pretty fired up. Again, it’s a super crazy moment, super special. I’m just happy to be there.”

Former Brandon Wheat Kings prospect Dylan James, who chose the college route and played last season in the USHL, was taken 40th overall by the Detroit Red Wings on Friday.

Brandon’s two ranked players, Rylen Roersma and Zakhar Polshakov, were not selected. It’s the eight time Brandon has been skunked at the draft since 1969, with it also happening in 1971, 1976, 1989, 1999, 2000, 2004 and 2018.

It was a busy night for Arizona on Thursday, who also selected American forward Logan Cooley third overall and Drummondville Voltigeurs defenceman Maveric Lamoureux with the 29th pick.

Geekie, a six-foot-four, 190-pound forward with the Western Hockey League’s Winnipeg Ice, said he was happy with how things turned out after a restless night.

“I wouldn’t say there was too much sleep, by any means,” Geekie said with a chuckle. “Again it was a pretty special moment. I thought about Arizona as a team I would like to go to since the start and luckily enough they traded up — I think 15 picks — for me so it was an exciting moment to get to spend with family.”

The Strathclair product, who turned 18 in May, was projected as the fifth-ranked North American skater by the NHL’s Central Scouting, which prepares separate lists for North American goalies and also for international goalies and skaters.

Geekie, who went two picks after the Buffalo Sabres grabbed his Ice teammate Matthew Savoie, admitted there was a roller coaster of emotions early on.

“Being a fan of hockey, when you see all the crazy things that went down (Thursday) night with the trades and who went where, it’s something pretty special,” Geekie said. “I got pretty excited over that but I was just trying to stay even-keeled, which is kind of my thing. Mom helped me with that a little bit.

“I was just trying to stay focused and enjoy the whole thing and soak it in. When I heard Winnipeg Ice with Buffalo, I never thought I would get so nervous so quick because me and Sav both looked at each other because we didn’t know what was happening, but obviously he went there, which is super exciting.”

He also had another connection at the draft, with two of his provincial baseball teammates also getting drafted in the first round when Moose Jaw Warriors defenceman Denton Mateychuk went 12th to the Columbus Blue Jackets and Swift Current Broncos defenceman Owen Pickering was chosen 21st by the Pittsburgh Penguins.

The trio played together for Team Manitoba at the 13-and-under national championship in Montreal in 2017.

“It’s a special moment,” Geekie said. “It’s a proving point that Manitoba is an easy place to play hockey and a good place to come out of. It’s not just the bigger provinces. I think we’re all very proud to come out of there. The last time we were in Montreal we were at baseball nationals. This time we’re at the NHL draft so it’s very cool and I’m very honoured to go through it with them.”

With Geekie, Mateychuk and Pickering, Manitoba had three first-round picks for the third time.

The first was in 1970 when Flin Flon Bombers forward Reggie Leach, forward Chuck Lefley — who briefly played for the Brandon Wheat Kings before being declared ineligible — and junior Winnipeg Jets forward Chris Oddleifson were taken.

In 1974, Wheat Kings star Ron Chipperfield, Flin Flon forward Cam Connors and Swift Current forward John Larway were selected, but all three ultimately decided to play in the World Hockey Association instead of jumping to the NHL.

Arizona doesn’t have many Manitobans in its organization, but former Wheat Kings forward Ben McCartney of Macdonald is a prospect who played most of the season with the American Hockey League’s Tucson Roadrunners but also spent two games with the Coyotes. In Geekie’s rookie season in the Regina hub in 2020-21, he played against McCartney, who was in his final season with the Wheat Kings.

“I know him a little bit and will obviously say hi, through the hockey world,” Geekie said. “I just remember one play where he blew me up. That’s all I remember of Carts last year. I know he’s a good player and works hard so I’m excited to got through it and see him.”

In total, 28 WHL players were selected, including six in the first round. The other first-rounders were Seattle Thunderbirds defenceman Kevin Korchinski (seventh, Chicago Blackhawks) and Seattle Thunderbirds forward Reid Schaefer (32nd, Edmonton Oilers).

Geekie admitted that it was a bit of a relief to have it over.

“All the stress, all the excitement, everything has just kind of mellowed out and maybe I can clear my head a little bit more but again it was a super fun experience and I’m happy I got to go through it,” Geekie said.

The event was held at the Bell Centre after two years of doing it online due to the pandemic. In an era when a live television feed is focused on the top prospects — they become part of the show as they nervously wait to hear their name called — Geekie said there weren’t a lot of surprises in what he experienced.

“You don’t really expect anything, right?” Geekie said. “It’s the NHL draft and anything can (happen), it goes up and down. You just continuously sit there. That’s the bottom line. Normally when you’re on Zoom, you can kind of clear your mind or talk to a family member, but when you’re just sitting there you’re right in the action and can see what’s going on and see all the players who are thinking the same thing.

“It was a super cool experience but definitely I didn’t really have any expectations or differences, It was all just surreal.”

Geekie chuckles he has won the family competition, eclipsing his brother Morgan, who was selected 67th overall by the Carolina Hurricanes in the third round of the 2017 draft and was claimed in the expansion draft by the Seattle Kraken in 2021. The youngest of the three brothers is already excited by the prospect of an NHL matchup between them one day.

“It will be something pretty cool, something we’ve never been able to do,” Geekie said. “I’m really looking forward to that moment.”

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