Pittsburgh, PA – The Canadian Hockey League announced that 99 CHL players were selected in the seven rounds of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft representing nearly 47% of the 211 drafted players.

Of the 99 players selected, the Ontario Hockey League leads the way with 48 players which represents a modern draft record and their highest total since 1999 when 52 OHL players were picked in the nine-round draft process.  This season the Western Hockey League had 32 players selected, and the Quebec Major Junior League had 19 players selected.

“On behalf of the Canadian Hockey League I would like to congratulate all of our players and their families as they celebrate this special day and look forward to professional careers,” said CHL President David Branch.  “I would also like to congratulate all CHL teams who continue to work together to see that the CHL remains the number one development league in the world.”

The 99 players included 18 selected in the first round beginning with Nail Yakupov of the Sarnia Sting who became the sixth straight CHL player to be chosen first overall when he was picked by the Edmonton Oilers.  Ryan Murray of the Everett Silvertips was the second overall pick of the Columbus Blue Jackets and one of five WHL defencemen selected in the top-eight picks and among the record-tying 13 defencemen that were chosen in the first round matching the 1996 Entry Draft.  The Sting’s Alex Galchenyuk was the third overall pick to the Montreal Canadiens and alongside Yakupov became just the fourth pair of teammates to be selected in the top-three picks following the Sedin twins in 1999, Wilf Paiement and Rick Hampton of St. Catharines in 1974, along with Rejean Houle and Marc Tardif of the Montreal Jr. Canadiens in 1969.

48 CHL teams produced NHL Entry Draft picks including the OHL champion London Knights who led the CHL with six players selected including first round pick Olli Maatta.  The Owen Sound Attack set a new franchise record with five players selected in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, while the Belleville Bulls, Guelph Storm, and Windsor Spitfires all had four players selected.  Three WHL teams had three players selected including the league-champion Edmonton Oil Kings who had two first round selections in Griffin Reinhart and Henrik Samuelsson.  The Calgary Hitmen also had three players selected as did the Portland Winterhawks who tied a league-high with four players last year and just one season after leading the WHL with eight players picked in 2010.  The Quebec Remparts led the QMJHL with three players selected including first round pick Mikhail Grigorenko. 

29 of the NHL’s 30 teams selected at least one CHL player with the exception of the New York Rangers.  The host Pittsburgh Penguins led the way selecting six CHL players including two first round picks Derrick Pouliot and Olli Maatta.  Four NHL teams each had five CHL picks including the Colorado Avalanche who used all five of their choices on CHL players, along with the Montreal Canadiens, New Jersey Devils, and Tampa Bay Lightning.  The Ottawa Senators and Toronto Maple Leafs each selected four CHL players, with the Calgary Flames selecting three players along with the Edmonton Oilers and Winnipeg Jets, followed by the Vancouver Canucks selecting just two CHL players.

In total there were 110 forwards selected in 2012 including 59 from the CHL, 77 defencemen including 32 from the CHL, and 24 goaltenders picked including eight from the CHL.

Last season, 101 CHL players were taken in the 2011 NHL Entry Draft including 46 from the OHL, 33 from the WHL, and 22 from the QMJHL.

The CHL continues to be the number one supplier of talent to the NHL.

OHL Players Selected in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft:

Click on a name below to watch the player's post-draft interview from Pittsburgh

First Round (11 OHL Players):

1.  Nail Yakupov (Sarnia Sting) – Edmonton Oilers

3.  Alex Galchenyuk (Sarnia Sting) – Montreal Canadiens

10.  Slater Koekkoek (Peterborough Petes) – Tampa Bay Lightning

13.  Radek Faksa (Kitchener Rangers) – Dallas Stars

15. Cody Ceci (Ottawa 67’s) – Ottawa Senators

16. Thomas Wilson (Plymouth Whalers) – Washington Capitals

20.  Scott Laughton (Oshawa Generals) – Philadelphia Flyers

22.  Olli Maatta (London Knights) – Pittsburgh Penguins

24.  Malcolm Subban (Belleville Bulls) – Boston Bruins

26.  Brendan Gaunce (Belleville Bulls) – Vancouver Canucks

30.  Tanner Pearson (Barrie Colts) – Los Angeles Kings

Second Round (5 OHL Players):

35.  Matt Finn (Guelph Storm) – Toronto Maple Leafs

40.  Dylan Blujus (Brampton Battalion) – Tampa Bay Lightning

41.  Mitchell Heard (Plymouth Whalers) – Colorado Avalanche

47.  Brock McGinn (Guelph Storm) – Carolina Hurricanes

55.  Chris Tierney (London Knights) – San Jose Sharks

Third Round (10 OHL Players):

65.  Adam Pelech (Erie Otters) – New York Islanders

69.  Daniel Altshuller (Oshawa Generals) – Carolina Hurricanes

70.  Scott Kosmachuk (Guelph Storm) – Winnipeg Jets

71.  Tanner Richard (Guelph Storm) – Tampa Bay Lightning

73.  Justin Kea (Saginaw Spirit) – Buffalo Sabres

80.  Jake Paterson (Saginaw Spirit) – Detroit Red Wings

82.  Jarrod Maidens (Owen Sound Attack) – Ottawa Senators

83.  Matthew Murray (Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds) – Pittsburgh Penguins

90.  Ben Johnson (Windsor Spitfires) – New Jersey Devils

91.  Daniil Zharkov (Belleville Bulls) – Edmonton Oilers

Fourth Round (7 OHL Players):

92.  Matia Marcantuoni (Kitchener Rangers) – Pittsburgh Penguins

94.  Brady Vail (Windsor Spitfires) – Montreal Canadiens

95.  Josh Anderson (London Knights) – Columbus Blue Jackets

96.  Ben Thomson (Kitchener Rangers) – New Jersey Devils

104. Gemel Smith (Owen Sound Attack) – Dallas Stars

110. Andreas Athanasiou (London Knights) – Detroit Red Wings

115. Trevor Carrick (Mississauga Steelheads) – Carolina Hurricanes

Fifth Round (6 OHL Players):

131. Seth Griffith (London Knights) – Boston Bruins

132. Michael Clarke (Windsor Spitfires) – Colorado Avalanche

139. Garret Ross (Saginaw Spirit) – Chicago Blackhawks

143. Clark Seymour (Peterborough Petes) – Pittsburgh Penguins

145. Cody Payne (Plymouth Whalers) – Boston Bruins

151. Colin Miller (Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds) – Los Angeles Kings

Sixth Round (6 OHL Players):

155. Jesse Graham (Niagara IceDogs) – New York Islanders

156. Connor Brown (Erie Otters) – Toronto Maple Leafs

157. Ryan Rupert (London Knights) – Toronto Maple Leafs

161. Jake Dotchin (Owen Sound Attack) – Tampa Bay Lightning

162. Joseph Blandisi (Owen Sound Attack) – Colorado Avalanche

180. Artur Gavrus (Owen Sound Attack) – New Jersey Devils

Seventh Round (3 OHL Players):

182. Gianluca Curcuruto (Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds) – Columbus Blue Jackets

193. Brady Austin (Belleville Bulls) – Buffalo Sabres

211. Nick Ebert (Windsor Spitfires) – Los Angeles Kings

Click here to see photos of OHL players at the 2012 NHL Entry Draft

For complete results from the 2012 NHL Entry Draft please visit www.nhl.com.