Colts players drafted by Utah, Vancouver Canucks

Colts Forward Cole Beaudoin at the Sadlon Arena in Barrie, Ont., on Thurs., March 30, 2023. (CTV News/Ian Duffy)

Two Barrie Colts stars were drafted by NHL teams this weekend in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Cole Beaudoin became the first Colts player selected in the opening round of the 2024 NHL Entry Draft since former captain Brandt Clarke was taken eighth overall in 2021 when Beaudoin was drafted 24th overall by the Utah Hockey Club.

His teammate Riley Patterson was then drafted by the Vancouver Canucks 125th overall in the fourth round. Patterson is a centre and totalled 29 goals and 33 assists with Barrie last season.

Beaudoin and Patterson head to Western Conference teams as highly-touted prospects. They are 18 years old and could spend another year or two in Barrie before going pro.

Patterson is from Burlington, Ont. while Beaudoin is from Kanata, Ont. in the nation’s capital.

Utah, formerly known as the Arizona Coyotes until the end of the 2023-2004 season, traded up to take Beaudoin Friday night when it moved three of its draft picks to re-enter the opening round. Utah selected Tij Iginla with the sixth-overall pick. He is the 17-year-old son of former NHL star Jarome Iginla.

The draft took place days after former Barrie Colts captain and first-overall OHL, and NHL draft picks Aaron Ekblad won the Stanley Cup with the Florida Panthers, who defeated the Edmonton Oilers in the seventh and deciding game to end the Oilers’ comeback bid after Edmonton lost the first three games of the final series.