The USHL Phase 2 Draft was completed on Tuesday. It was a busy day for New Englanders, as a whopping 31 locals were picked, along with a slew of players with ties to the region.
While the Phase 1 Draft was only for 2009-born players, Phase 2 was for anyone born from 2005-08. Prospects selected in Phase 2 are typically breakout prospects from the past year in prep, U16 hockey and different junior levels.
The Green Bay Gamblers traded for the first pick and selected U.S. National Team Development Program forward Landon Hafele. The Chicago Steel picked defenseman Garrett Lindberg, a teammate of Hafele with the NTDP, with the second pick.
Niko Tournas (Redding, Conn.), an '06, was the first local off the board, getting taken in the first round by the Sioux Falls Stampede. Tournas notched 39 goals and 74 points in 56 games for the Danbury Jr. Hat Tricks in the NAHL this season. He's committed to New Hampshire.
