WOLVES USE FINAL ROUNDS ON EDUCATED PICKS

Carl Hagelin

Thunder Bay, Ont.- With a sixth-round selection and Miami University-graduate, Andy Miele by the Timberwolves, many viewed the pick as solid. But completely off the board. Miele did lead the NCAA in scoring with 71 points in 39 games. An 11-point cushion over the #2 leading scorer. But he was four years removed from his first draft-eligible year. The Grosse Pointe Woods, Michigan-native capped off his senior year with the Hobey Baker award, as the NCAA's top male collegiate hockey player.
>>>A trend had started with their next selection in the seventh round of University of Michigan captain, Carl Hagelin. Another graduated player, Hagelin led the Wolverines in scoring the past two years, and finished his senior year ranked 14th in the NCAA. Although sticking with a North American team, Hagelin [a native of Sweden] was the first European picked by the Timberwolves in the 2011 Entry Draft.
>>>With their final selection in the bonus eighth round, the Timberwolves stayed in the NCAA and picked from the University of Minnesota-Duluth, forward Justin Fontaine. The Bonnyville, Alberta-native was an integral part of the Bulldogs 2011 National Championship. Playing quality minutes on the team's top line and finishing second in scoring for the past two seasons and fourth in the NCAA in 2010-11.
>>>"What we set out to do and accomplished in these later rounds was to bring into our organization, mature players that come from top-tier hockey clubs and were developed by the very best," said general manager Blake Wendt. "We absolutely achieved that goal here. We have guys that can step in right away [in Duluth for the Pups] and contribute to the overall development of the depth of our organization and in a very short time, fight for spots up here with the Timberwolves."
>>>Stay tuned for a comprehensive review of the Thunder Bay Timberwolves 2011 draftees.