Evan Campbell had the quintessential Canada Day weekend: while enjoying a family barbecue on Sunday afternoon, he got the call that he had been drafted by the Edmonton Oilers.
“It came as a complete shock to me, I really had no idea this was going to happen and it still hasn’t really sunk in,” said Campbell in a press release from the Langley Rivermen, the junior A hockey club which he played for the past two seasons.
The 6’ 1″, 174-pound left-winger was selected 128th overall in the fifth round of the National Hockey League entry draft in Newark, N.J. on Sunday. It marked the first time in franchise history that a Rivermen player was drafted into the NHL.
Campbell is coming off a career year with Langley’s junior A hockey club, putting up 20 goals and 46 assists in 51 games to finish second on the team in scoring.
Rivermen head coach and general manager Bobby Henderson said Campbell’s combination of size, speed, grit, and skill is hard to pass up at the NHL level.
“This is something Evan deserves and it is nice to see all the hard work he put into last season pay off,” said Henderson in the same press release. “Edmonton is an exciting destination for him as they have a lot of good young players on the roster and I believe he will make the most of the opportunity.”
There will be a couple days of reflection for the 20-year-old before he arrives in Edmonton on Wednesday for a week-long development camp. Having studied the Oilers’ team these past few seasons, Campbell is confident Edmonton will be a solid training ground for him.
“I think the Oilers’ franchise is going to be a powerhouse in the league for many years to come,” opined Campbell. “Just looking at some of the players they have on the team now, it only makes me want to work harder than I ever have before to try and crack the team and play with those guys one day.”
Campbell singles out his family, saying their support is the reason he has made it this far in his hockey career.
“My mom, uncle, and stepdad are huge reasons why this has all happened,” says Campbell.
His future plans include attending the University of Massachusetts Lowell next season where he will play his freshman year with the River Hawks.
