Two of the three Canadian Hockey League players picked in the top-10 selections in this year’s NHL draft are going back to their junior teams.
The Buffalo Sabres sent centre Dylan Cozens back to the Western Hockey League’s Lethbridge Hurricanes on Thursday, while the Colorado Avalanche shipped defenceman Bowen Byram to the WHL’s Vancouver Giants.
Buffalo took the Whitehorse-born Cozens seventh overall, while Byram, from Cranbrook, B.C., went fourth overall to the Avs.
The other top-10 pick from the CHL, Chicago Blackhawks centre Kirby Dach of Fort Saskatchewan, Alta., remains with his NHL club, but is in concussion protocol.
Dach’s WHL rights are owned by the Saskatoon Blades.
Byram gives a big boost to a Giants team ranked sixth in the CHL. Vancouver lost in overtime in Game 7 of the WHL final against Prince Albert last season.
Having Cozens and Byram in the WHL also is likely good news for the Canadian junior team. They will be strong candidates to play for Canada at the world junior championship starting on Boxing Day in the Czech Republic.