Shane Wright was expecting to hear his name called as the No. 1 pick in the NHL Draft to the Canadiens.
When that didn't happen, he got a different kind of call instead.
Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman reported ahead of Day 2 of the draft that Wayne Gretzky yes, that Wayne Gretzky reached out Fabian Moreau Jerseys to people to get Wright's number and called the top prospect to check on Avery Williams Jerseys him. Gretzky wanted to make sure that the Kingston Frontenac center was "still in a great frame of mind" as Wright fell from No. 1 to No. 4.
While it certainly could not have been a fun experience for Wright hearing three names get announced before his, Friedman said that the call Josh Andrews Jerseys from the NHL legend cheered Wright up.
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A cla sy move from a cla sy guy.
Why did Shane Wright fall from No. 1?Wright's fall from the top spot wasn't exactly unexpected, but it was still shocking that it came to fruition. Montreal had been debating between Wright, Juraj Slafkovsky and Logan Cooley Drew Dalman Jerseys ahead of the first round, and elected to take the Slovakian winger Slafkovsky instead.
Both the Devils and Coyotes pa sed on Wright before the Kraken stopped his free fall, taking him at No. 4. With New Jersey already owning a few young centers, it wasn't a position of need, and the team instead chose Slovakian defenseman Simon Nemec. The Coyotes likely were set on taking Logan Cooley and did not anticipate Wright to be around at No. 3. As a result, they stuck with Cooley and took Deion Jones Jerseys the American center.
Wright now joins Matty Beniers as the top key cornerstones for Seattle to build their team around, and he admitted last night that the snub put a chip on his shoulder. While he was respectful of Montreal in his interviews, he did seemingly send a after the Kraken selected him.
Nonethele s, Wright is now a member of the Kraken, and came with the bonus of being on the receiving end of a great gesture from Jalen Mayfield Jerseys The Great One.
