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Urq660 · 02-03-2021, 06:28 AM

Think this’ll juuuuuuuuust squeak in before the deadline for double draft week media?

What did it mean to me to be drafted 23OA in the SHL Draft? Well, I’m going to tell you…..

Obviously 23rd overall doesn’t sound very exciting, it’s certainly far far FAR from 1OA, heck it’s a fair distance away from my teammate and friend Friedensreich Hundertwasser, who went 6th. Nobody really gets excited by second rounders. It’s not like I can compare the position I went with the mock draft projections, as everyone just covered the first round.
My own expectations were late second round, possibly third. I was under no illusions that I was an ‘elite’ prospect, in the mould of Blouin, Goode, Hundertwasser etc. These guys all had real name value, people were talking about them well before the draft. I didn’t even have name recognition from the J draft, as I was late to the party and didn’t start my time with St Louis until 6 games in. Due to this, I was lagging behind the majority of the class in TPE, despite being a strong earner in comparison to what has been available to me. I made diligence my watch-word, making sure I was getting involved as much as possible with anything that was earning me TPE, such as ACs, Deep Dives, PTs etc, I was all over them like a rash. And trying to keep active in the Locker Room was a big thing for me too. Luckily, I was with an outstanding set of individuals, a great mix of other rookies with infectious enthusiasm, and sometimes asking questions that had also been at the back of my mind, and some more experienced guys, who were extremely helpful in maximising our earnings and abilities. Topped off with one of the most genuinely supportive GMs in the game, I was extremely lucky the ‘Crows took a punt on me in free agency!
Now, heading into the Draft, I was under no illusions with regards to how the season went for me personally, as well as my team. I had some very good performances, I put up 15 points (4G, 11A) over 60 games, which doesn’t sound like a lot, but I was mostly playing on the 3rd defensive pairing, and my numbers were competitive with some of the rookies playing forward positions, albeit they had less ice time than me. I also had some absolute howlers of games. This is where the experienced guys in the locker room were a big help, reassuring me that rookie seasons are tough, they’re inconsistent and that I’d bounce back. St Louis had a pretty rough time of it for the majority of the season, although we sprinkled good performances against some of the top teams, like QCC and Anchorage, in there. We really built up a head of steam towards the end of the season, and even got through the first round of the playoffs against Kelowna, in 7 games. The locker room was electric following the game 7 win, it was like we had won the cup, after the torrid season we had endured.
I still felt my stock was fairly low, as I sat down to watch the draft stream on Saturday. I had no name recognition from the J draft, I was lagging on TPE due to my late start, as a team we had struggled for the majority of the season and my numbers were pretty bang average, let’s not beat about the bush! In the lead up to the draft, several teams were in contact with me, to scout me for the draft. I found it hard to gauge how much interest some teams had in actually signing me, there were a couple who were the most obviously keen in getting me onboard, but looking at the draft order, one was early second round, which I assumed I had no chance of, and one of the others had traded away their second round pick. There was one at the very tail end of the second that seemed fairly interested, but at that point I thought I was a third round pick for sure! And honestly, I was fine with that. One of the SHL GMs I spoke to pre-draft told me not to worry about where I’m picked, if I’m picked high then I deserve it, if I’m picked later then somebody has got a bargain, and I’ll also look like a smarter pick in the future, when I develop more. Wise words indeed!
I honestly expected to probably be the last of the active rookies from St Louis to come off the board. The others had all surpassed me in TPE, and I explained previously the way my potential suitors were lined up in the draft order, or not as the case may be! I watched the top 5 picks come off as pretty much expected, there was never any real doubt that Blouin was going first. My locker room buddy Friedensreich Hundertwasser going to NOLA at 6OA was good to see, he’s an incredibly hard worker and has been amazing in the locker room, so much so that he was made an Alternate Captain in his rookie year proper, having first appeared as a DFA towards the end of season 56. The Specters are also an outstanding destination for him, a great organisation and he knows the management team already, through his time with the Scarecrows. The rest of the first round passed without too many surprises, there were a couple of players, Izzy and Zidane, who probably would’ve slotted in there somewhere, had they not been automatic seconds for Calgary and NOLA respectively. Another one of my locker room brothers went second in the second round, 20th overall, Hunter Sharpe, who was drafted by the Tampa Bay Barracuda. A great move for him, and the Barracuda. Hunter is another hard worker, he’s always looking to improve in any way he can and has all the enthusiasm in the world. Tampa have called up for this season, our captain for both our rookie year, Colin Lambert, so Hunter will be in good hands when he moves up there in a few seasons time.
So, I was just kicking back, watching the stream, when ‘with the 23rd pick of the draft, the Seattle Argonauts choose…. Daryl Urquhart, out of St Louis’. Excuse me? Did you just…? 23rd overall?? No, there must be some mistake? *ping* A Discord notification from Tig, the Seattle GM with a link to the locker room…. it’s real, I’m going to be an Argonaut!!
Seattle also had the next pick, and picked another Brit, Brian Davenport! And we couldn’t have been made to feel more welcome! The guys in the Seattle locker room seemed genuinely excited to have us on board, and the GM made sure we knew to go to them with any questions etc. Greg Davies went later in the second round, being drafted by the San Francisco Pride, another great fit for a great franchise. Greg is another player who is always looking to improve and make sure he is developing the correct skill set for the player he wants to be, working with our player development coach at St Louis to ensure he’s heading in the right direction.
Since the draft, I’ve been getting to know both my new teammates in Seattle, and the new ‘Crows drafted in the J draft by St Louis. I’ve also been competing in the WJC for Team British Isles, which is obviously an honour, to represent your country in international competition. My new Seattle teammate, Davenport, is also my WJC teammate, as well as a couple of ‘Crows, the aforementioned Davies, and Adrian Ayres.
I hope the coming season will be an improvement, as I take my experiences from season 57 and the offseason and apply them to making myself, and my team better, and show Seattle that they were right to pick me at 23OA!

Asked Madden · 02-03-2021, 02:45 PM

Cracking piece of media - 23rd is still a steal! Gutted we won't be on the same team in the seniors. Seattle got a good one.
Looking forward to playing against you in he WJC though. Beer after the game?