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Flames and Canucks both picked Oilers fans in first round

Colton Pankiw
Colton Pankiw
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Jun 28 2025, 4:00 pm
Flames and Canucks both picked Oilers fans in first round
Kirby Lee/Imagn Images

The Vancouver Canucks and Calgary Flames each drafted a player who, growing up, likely rooted against them.

The first round of the 2025 NHL Draft kicked off on Friday night. There wasn’t a ton of action for Canadian teams in the first round, with the Canucks having the highest selection at 15th overall. With that pick, they selected centreman Braeden Cootes of the Seattle Thunderbirds.

Cootes appears to be a very good pick, as he’s said to have great leadership qualities and putĀ  up an impressive 26 goals and 63 points in 60 WHL games this past season. The one gripe, however, is that the Sherwood Park native grew up cheering for the Edmonton Oilers.

“I was an Oilers fan, but not anymore obviously,” said a grinning Cootes.

It seems that many prospects who have had the opportunity to watch the likes of Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl growing up enjoy doing so, as Cootes wasn’t the only prospect who grew up an Oilers fan.

Just a few picks after Cootes, the Calgary Flames walked to the podium for the first of their two opening-round selections and took a centre of their own in Cole Reschny. The 18-year-old who hails out of Macklin, Saskatchewan, was revealed by the crew at Sportsnet to be a fan of the Flames’ provincial rival growing up.

“I think they’re more than willing to switch,” Reschny said when asked if his family was upset about the thought of cheering for the Flames going forward. “It’s pretty crazy the way it worked out, but it’s so special. It’s something I’ll remember for the rest of my life.”

The Flames also picked at 32nd overall, where they took yet another centre in Cullen Potter. Both the Flames and Canucks will have several more picks today as the remainder of the draft is set to get underway in a short time.

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