'We got a lot of players that we feel are going to be able to help us either right away or players that are going to fit really good in our development model' In Michael Lewis’ book "Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game," Lewis gives the readers a deep dive on the Oakland Athletics 2002 draft. General Manager Billy Beane drew up a wish list of 20 players. When all was said and done, the A’s got 13 of those players, in what is considered one of the “master classes” in Major League History, and Lewis does an excellent job of capturing the pure joy and excitement of the A’s front office staff following that draft. The North Bay Battalion could be replicating those feelings after this weekend’s OHL priority selection as 2025 might stand out to be a game changer for the Troops for the sheer amount of raw talent they believe they scooped up. Following Friday, in which Camryn Warren and Cater Kunopaski were selected in the first and second round respectively, the Troops made 13 more selections on Saturday, many of which General Manager John Winstanley was ecstatic about. “I think we're pretty happy right now,” Winstanley says in the moments following their final pick, which came in the 14th round. “It’s been a good two days for the North Battalion in our opinion, and we got a lot of players that we feel are going to be able to help us either right away or players that are going to fit really good in our development model.” It started with Jax Pereira, a 5’10” centreman who played with the Toronto Jr. Canadiens. He was chosen in the fourth round (#67 overall). Pereira was a player a lot of scouts thought might be a late first-rounder, or possibly an early second-rounder. “He reminds us a lot of the way Owen Van Steensel plays,” says Winstanley. “He's a guy who plays up and down his lineup and he can score a ton. He's relied on when the team plays on the penalty kill, five on three situations, and when you have a guy like that who can play in all situations and be a leader on his team, for us it was just a no-brainer. We were so thrilled to get him in that spot." The Battalion used their next selection to take their first of two goaltenders in the draft, Cole Vreugdenhill, who is listed at 6’3” and 202 lbs. "I can't say enough about our goaltending development team,” says Winstanley. “I've learned so much over my time here just from them and what they're looking for and Cole is a kid they identified right away as somebody that we wanted to have. It’s interesting when you decide to take a goalie and look at your depth at the position and what you have and he's definitely somebody that was very high on the list." Vreugdenhill was also high on a lot of scouts’ lists, including being listed as the 31st best player overall on the Neutral Zone scouting list. Paul O’Hagan, Ontario Director of Scouting for Neutral Zone says, “He was solid for Halton all year. Big body, big frame and he got better as the season went on. He’ll benefit from getting more refined with the goalie coaches up in junior. He’s got the tools.” Lincoln Edwards was selected 89th overall, the Troops second of two fifth-round picks. The 5’9” 159 lbs winger from the Don Mills Flyers program is someone who the Battalion feel will bring a lot of leadership qualities. “Edwards is a winner. He's played on that Don Mills team basically his entire minor hockey career and he's just proven as a winner. He plays hard. When you can get kids who are used to winning, used to playing in those high-pressure situations, it’s a win for your organization. And to get him where we got him, we're just very happy." This top five by the Battalion were all ranked in pre-draft lists among the top 45 players available in the draft. One scout told me after the draft, “I feel like we just spent the last two days collecting first and second round calibre players that could not have gone any better.” In the sixth round, North Bay chose their second defenceman of the draft, Oskar Konobelj with the 109th overall pick. Konobelj is a 6’3” 170-pound right d-man from the Ottawa Jr. 67’s program. A round later, at 129th overall, Benjamin Maharaj was chosen. Another six-footer, played for the Jr. Canadiens team. “I think for our group, it's about balance, right?” says Winstanley, “You can have all big guys, you can have all small guys. It's kind of like that old Nintendo game Ice Hockey where you got the big, medium and small players. But at the end of the day, you need competitive players, you need coachable players and that's really what we are looking for. If you can get them sometimes in a six-foot range, six-foot two range, obviously that's a bonus on top of that." With two selections in the eight round, North Bay chose two defensemen; Colton D’Amico from the Halton Hurricanes and 149th overall and Richard Wang from the Don Mills Flyers at 155th overall. See related: Four locals selected in OHL Priority Selection Three forwards followed, with Isaac Tracze chosen in the ninth round, 169th overall, Dylan Nobili went in the tenth round, 189th overall and from the North Bay Trappers organization Owen Smith went in the 11th round 209th overall. The Battalion took their second goalie of the draft in the 12th round, Gavin Zepp from St. Andrew’s College. They rounded out the draft with another local product, selecting Karter Buchmann with the 261st overall pick in the 13th round and James Rosenberg with the 269th overall pick in the 14th round.