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Courier: Special Day for Hamiltons

June 28, 2010 - Kelowna Daily Courier

Curtis Hamilton described his NHL draft experience as a surreal moment.
Watching with his older sister, Jill, from the couch at their Kelowna home, Hamilton was selected by the Edmonton Oilers in the second round (48th overall) of the NHL draft on Saturday in Los Angeles.

"The picks go faster after the first round and they had the (NHL Network) panel talking about whoever went ahead of me, and then I just kinda heard it in the background," said Hamilton, adding he had to pause the TV, rewind and play it again before he started celebrating. "It caught me off guard, but it was exciting.

"It still hasn‘t really kicked in yet, and I‘m sure it won‘t for a couple days or maybe even a couple weeks."

His dad, Bruce Hamilton - president and general manager of the WHL‘s Kelowna Rockets - was at Staples Center watching the draft unfold live, before catching a flight home to join the family celebration on Saturday evening.

"I would say that‘s as special as it gets," Bruce said. "It was a great experience, and, if anything, a very proud moment for myself and our family."

Bruce was representing the WHL and CHL at the draft after attending the NHL awards show in Las Vegas last Wednesday, where former Rockets Duncan Keith and Tyler Myers won the Norris and Calder trophies, respectively.

Asked about the decision for Curtis not to attend the draft, as is customary of most top picks, Bruce said it was ultimately a family choice, influenced by Newport Sports Management and agent Craig Oster.

"They traditionally don‘t bring their (clients) down unless they‘re first-round guys," Bruce said. "They just didn‘t want to put him through it. . . . He‘d already had enough this year of ups and downs. And why sit there and watch guys go that you‘re not so sure they‘re better than you. So he stayed here (in Kelowna) and tracked it."

A 6-foot-2 winger with the Saskatoon Blades of the WHL, Hamilton is coming off an injury-plagued campaign in which he registered nine goals and 19 points in 31 regular-season and playoff games. He suffered two separate collarbone fractures during the regular season before returning for playoffs, where he scored two game-winning goals in a first-round sweep of Red Deer only to sustain a shoulder dislocation in the second round against Brandon.

Prior to the season, some scouts had pegged Hamilton a potential first-round pick, but injuries prevented him from playing in the Top Prospects Game, which likely hurt his draft stock. He ended up going 18 picks into the second round, nine picks after Rockets forward Brett Bulmer (39th overall to Minnesota).

"I was a little bit surprised where (Curtis) went. I thought he was going to go a little bit earlier than that, from what I had heard," Bruce said. "I had a good idea on Saturday that he was going to go pretty early in the morning.

"I knew there were four or five teams that were all in the mix for him. With Edmonton getting the picks, it made sense. And I think they knew the other teams that were probably in the running were still behind them."

Curtis admits it was a trying season for him, and that he breathed a sigh of relief when his draft dreams came true.

"With the way my season went and stuff, I was just hoping I‘d still get drafted. It didn‘t really matter to me where I went at all," he said. "The draft is kinda made into this big deal a year in advance really, before it even happens, so it‘s nice to get it over with and just focus on hockey now."

That focus will take him to Edmonton in July for the team‘s annual prospect camp, then to St. John‘s, Nfld., in early August as one of 41 skaters invited to Hockey Canada‘s world-junior evaluation camp. It may also take him to Penticton in mid-September, where the Vancouver Canucks are hosting a prospect tournament which includes the Oilers.

With his shoulder now fully healed, Hamilton hopes to leave a lasting impression in these upcoming summer camps and enters the season motivated to prove the Oilers made a worthwhile pick.

"You can use that to maybe fuel the fire a bit," he said. "But for the most part, you just gotta go out and play and show everyone why they had confidence in picking you as high as you went.

"I‘ll be out there working my tail off."

As for becoming an Oiler, Hamilton sees the franchise as a good fit and looks forward to developing alongside Edmonton‘s other top prospects, a list that includes Taylor Hall - the first overall selection on the weekend - Jordan Eberle and Magnus Paajarvi-Svensson.

"Growing up I liked all the Canadian teams, probably more so than a lot of the other teams, so to get picked by one of them was something special," Hamilton said. "I think the Oilers have a bright future with a lot of really good young players coming up. For me to be a part of something like that, it‘s going to be neat."

Gauging the reaction of fans on Oilers message boards, most were happy, or at least optimistic, with Hamilton‘s selection. Some suggested his future upside could be a "harder working Dustin Penner.

"Dustin Penner‘s a great player and if I can get my name next to him, that‘s pretty high praise," Hamilton said. "I see myself as probably a power forward, but I don‘t really try to pattern my game after anybody."

Bruce wasn‘t about to make any comparisons regarding his son, though he could picture Curtis as a piece to Edmonton‘s puzzle.

"They‘re a team that appears to be in need of size and he certainly brings that," Bruce said. "He‘s going to be a 6-foot-3, 220-pound guy by the time he gets there, probably. But I don‘t compare him to anybody. . . . He‘ll earn his own stripes as Curtis Hamilton."

That‘s a point Bruce wanted to ensure, making it clear his relationship with Oilers GM Steve Tambellini and president of hockey operations Kevin Lowe had nothing to do with Curtis‘ selection.

"Throughout this whole draft thing, I‘ve been very careful to stay out of everything - just simply because Curtis has earned this on his own," Bruce said. "The tough thing is, all along (people have said) he‘s always getting something because of who he is not what he is. Now, I hope that‘s all behind him.

"When you get to this level, you don‘t influence anybody. These guys make their decisions, it‘s such a big business up there, they don‘t pick friends‘ kids."