A pair of North Bay natives have made the NHL’s Central Scouting Watch List.
Defenceman Brady Lyle, formerly of the North Bay Battalion, and Nate McDonald, the former NOJHL MVP who played for the NOJHL champion Powassan Voodoos last season, both receive a C rating as part of the process heading into the 2018 NHL Draft, June 22-23, in Dallas, Texas.
Brady Lyle, drafted in the first round of the 2015 OHL Priority Selection by the Battalion, was traded in late October to the Owen Sound Attack after requesting a trade.
See related story: Battalion Trade: Lyle joins Attack as Troops add another netminder
So far this season, Lyle, who was eligible for the 2017 NHL Entry Draft but was overlooked, has four goals and two assists for six points in 17 games in the OHL this season. Lyle was invited to the Anaheim Ducks main camp as a free agent this past September.
McDonald was instrumental in leading the Powassan Voodoos to a first place finish in the 2016-17 overall NOJHL standings as well as a perfect playoff run that resulted in the club in being crowned league champions.
In last season’s campaign, he led all NOJHL netminders in goals-against average at 2.159 and wins with 30 while earning league CCM Hockey first team all-star accolades.
Postseason play saw him reel off an impressive 12-0 record while topping all NOJHL goaltenders in both average and save mark at 1.84 and .923 respectively as he backstopped Powassan to the title.
McDonald was also third in save percentage at .923 and finished tied for second in shutouts with three and played the fourth-most minutes in the league at 2,112. He was also a member of Team NOJHL at the 2016 Eastern Canada Cup All-Star Challenge.
Currently a member of the Whitby Fury (OJHL), the former Voodoos standout has committed to attend Cornell University on NCAA Division I scholarship and tend goal for the Big Red, who compete out of the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference.
See related story: Voodoos make blockbuster deal with Fury
The only Battalion players on the list are Adam McMaster and Adam Thilander who are both rated in the C category as well.
McMaster, the Battalion 2016 first round pick, has scored one goal along with nine assists for 10 points in 21 games so far this season.
Meantime Thilander, the Swedish offensive defender who was overlooked in last year's NHL Draft but invited to the Carolina Hurricanes training camp, has one goal and 13 assists for 14 points in 21 games so far this season.
The last North Bay native to be selected in the NHL Entry Draft was Colton Point, who was selected in the fifth round by the Dallas Stars in the 2016 Draft in Buffalo, New York.
See related story: NHL Draft Coverage: The Colton Point Draft Experience (VIDEO)
