Adding some offense
Hurricanes happy with selection of Heerema
Posted: Saturday June 27, 1998 07:37 PM
RALEIGH, North Carolina (AP) -- The Carolina Hurricanes selected 18-year-old Canadian rookie Jeff Heerema as the 11th overall pick in the NHL Entry Draft Saturday.
Hurricanes coach Paul Maurice said Heerema possesses all the skills that the team was looking for in a first-round pick.
"We're looking for guys who can score," Maurice said during a telephone interview from the NHL draft headquarters in Buffalo, New York. "It's
a lot easier to take the best available player when he's a guy who can put the puck in the net."
Heerema had 32 goals and 40 assists in 63 games last season with the Ontario Hockey League's Sarnia Sting.
In 1996-97, Heerema notched 42 goals and 29 assists with his Midget team in Thunder Bay, Ontario.
The Hurricanes tried to trade for a higher spot in the draft, but lacked the "ammunition necessary" to get a top 10 pick, said Jim Rutherford, the team's president and general manager.
"We had a short list of three players we wanted that included [No. 5 pick overall Vitali] Vishnevsky and [No. 8 pick Mark] Bell," he said. "As it turned out, Jeff Heerema was on that short
list, so it all turned out well for us."
Hurricane scouts say Heerema is a solid player with an outstanding shot who just needs more size and strength to make it in the NHL.
"Jeff has all the same skills that [No. 2 pick overall David] Legwand has," Rutherford said. "He just needs to fill out some. He's probably two or three years away from playing regularly in the
NHL."
Heerema, a 6-1, 171-pound right winger, admits he needs to grow, but thinks he has the required skills to make it in the NHL once he does.
"I think I'm a fast skater and a hard worker who takes the puck to the net," Heerema said.
"I'm not going to be initiating a lot of hits at my size, but I'm going to get in there get my nose dirty and fight for that puck. I'm not a fighter or a heavy hitter, but I'm not scared out
there, either."
Maurice said he believes the NHL's crackdown on obstruction and increased area behind the crease would favor faster skaters like Heerema.
"That makes speed much more valuable. I think you'll see that with Jeff," Maurice said. "He's a quality guy. When he gets his chance, he's going to be big."
Heerema said he was undaunted about joining a franchise that hasn't made the Stanley Cup playoffs since 1992 and finished 33-41-8 in its first year in North Carolina.
"All the meetings I had with Carolina went really, really well," Heerema said. "I had a good feeling about Carolina. So, when they called my name out, I was very happy.
"This was a great day for me. I've been waiting for this a long time," he said. "I can't imagine why anyone wouldn't be happy to play for any team in the NHL."
The Hurricanes also selected Kevin Holdridge, a defenseman with the OHL's Plymouth Whalers and left wing Erik Cole from Clarkson University with back-to-back picks in the third round.
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