The Albert Lea Thunder drafted an eclectic mix of players from across the country Wednesday in the North American Hockey League draft, including a pair of dynamic goal scorers from the same team.The Thunder made Moorhead senior forward Nick Thielen its first overall pick with the second selection overall in the draft. Thielen tallied 16 goals and 34 assists this past season for the Spuds. Albert Lea assistant coach Brian Murphy said that Thielen is a smart player who can contribute right away next season for the Thunder.

Albert Lea also added forwards Alex Cantor and Jeremy Langlois from the Phoenix Polar Bears, a Junior A Tier III team. Cantor and Langlois led the Polar Bears to a 41-2 record last season and both had over 80 points on the season. Cantor scored 43 goals and had 44 assists in 47 games played. Langlois had 30 goals and 54 assists.

Nothing is set in stone at this point for the players as they will still have to go through tryouts in order to earn one of the 24 spots on the roster and the players may choose not to sign. The Thunder essentially holds the first right of refusal of each player it has selected. “They’re not guaranteed anything,” Murphy said. “But every kid we drafted for a reason.”

Murphy felt the team did well in the draft and that the players the Thunder drafted have the potential to reach Division I college hockey.

“Overall I was very pleased,” Murphy said. “A lot of these kids can play Division I hockey. It might take them a year or two in Juniors to help them develop.” Albert Lea added a number of Minnesota hockey players including John Affolter from St. Paul, Chris Cass from Lakeville, Jeff Lesmeister from Anoka, Landon Olson from Duluth Marshall and Grant Pavek from Faribault.Affolter scored 19 goals and had 15 assists last season playing for the Peoria Mustangs of the Central States Hockey League, a Junior A Tier III league. Affolter played for Henry Sibley high school before moving on to Junior hockey.Cass had 14 goals and nine assists for the Cougars as they made a run to state last season. Lesmeister scored two goals and had 13 assists for the Tornados last season. Olson had seven goals and 12 assists for Duluth Marshall. Pavek led the Falcons with 28 goals and 18 assists.The Thunder have already signed Albert Lea native Adam Royce to a tender sheet and signed two others before the draft.Brady Sand, of Eau Claire, was an All-State goalie in Wisconsin and helped lead his team to a 26-0-0 record and state title. Tyler Sorensen a defenseman from Madison, Wis. was also signed. Sorensen tallied 12 goals and 29 assists for Madison Edgewater and also earned All-State honors this past season.Others in the draft included: Ted Behrend, an All-State defenseman from Oregon, Wis., Matt Gates, a forward from the Chicago Mission Midget Major team, Cody Heal a defenseman with the New Hampshire Jr. Monarchs of the Eastern Junior Hockey League, forward Mitch Koralewski of the Victory Honda Midget Major hockey team, defenseman Justin Thomas of the Vernon Vipers of the British Columbia Hockey League, forward Mitch Torrel of the Russell Stover Midget Major team and forward Dan Wood of the Valley Jr. Warriors which play in the Eastern Junior Hockey League.In all Albert Lea selected 10 forwards and five defensemen. They have signed two additional defensemen in Royce and Sorenson, but expect to add more from tryouts.

The Thunder will hold five tryouts with the first tryout scheduled for June 14 through June 16 at the City Arena in Albert Lea. Murphy says he expects to watch 400-500 players in the coming months.“I’m happy that the day went well,” Murphy said. “I look forward to the future. It’s an exciting time.”