Import draft add

The Everett Silvertips used the 59th pick of the CHL import draft on Russian C Vitali Karamnov. His father, also Vitali, played some in the NHL with the St. Louis Blues. . . . The junior Karamnov (why do I feel his name should be spelled Karmanov?) was Russia's captain at the u-18 worlds in Finland in April.

Pet peeve: A lot of places will show Karamnov as being the 60th selection. He wasn't; he was the 59th pick (and the last selection in the first round). . . . The Moncton Wildcats passed with the 45th selection but the CHL website doesn't show an adjustment; instead, the selections continued to be numbered as though no one passed.

This was a strange import draft, what with 10 goaltenders taken among the 71 players. The WHL, if you hadn't noticed, hasn't exactly been teeming with import goaltenders over the years. There was Alexandre Fomitchev and . . . .

The Seattle Thunderbirds landed Riku Helenius, whom the Tampa Bay Lightning took in the first round of the NHL's 2006 draft. Helenius apparently signed with the Lightning after the 2006-07 season. The connection between the Lightning and the Thunderbirds? Jake Goertzen, Tampa Bay's chief scout, used to work for the Thunderbirds. . . . Adding Helenius cost the T-Birds LW Radek Meidl. He was a 16-goal scorer last season and has a late 1988 birthdate so you've got to think someone will take a look at him.

There also were just seven players taken whose rights are held by NHL teams. As well, 23 of the players selected were 1990s. Bruce Hamilton of Kelowna was looking at taking a 1990-born player with the 43rd selection but chose to take Mikael Backlund, the Calgary Flames' first-rounder (24th overall) in last weekend's NHL draft, instead. Hamilton knows that chances are he won't get Backlund this season — the kid has signed a contract to play in Sweden — but didn't think there was a 1990-born player available who is better than the 1990s on his roster now.

And how about D Juraj Valach blaming the Tri-City Americans for his not being selected in the NHL draft and telling them to trade him or he was taking his puck and going home? His billet, Teri Einan, told Annie Fowler of the Tri-City Herald: "He told us before he went home in April that if he wasn't drafted he wouldn't come back. He did not like having to make public
appearances with the team. He didn't have the community spirit; he came to
play hockey. I hope he's happy in Vancouver, but I don't think he will be
happy unless he's playing at home (Slovakia)." . . . Had to love (Trader) Bob Tory's response, too. "It was surprising and a little shocking," Tory, the Americans' GM, told Fowler. "We spent a lot of time developing him. He said he did not enjoy his time in Tri-Cities and blamed the team for him not being drafted last week (in the NHL entry draft). If he doesn't want to be here, I don't want him in the dressing room. He's not our worry any more."

Tory shipped the 6-foot-6 Valach, 18, to Vancouver for a pick with which he took 6-foot-6 Czech D Josef Tichy, 19, on the recommendation of formers Tri-City players Vladimir Vujtek and Yogi Svejkovsky. It will be interesting to see Tichy in action if only because he had 157 penalty minutes last season.