After many years of hard work and determination, Oakville's Calum Ritchie and Nick Lardis have achieved step one of their NHL journey after being selected in the 2023 NHL Entry Draft, taking place this week in Nashville.
This has been an enormous goal for both of these players since they strapped on a pair of skates at a very young age.
Calum Ritchie was selected in the first round and 27th overall by the Colorado Avalanche.
"My heart just dropped when I heard my name [get called]," Ritchie said to the media in Nashville. "To be able to spend this with my family and friends and trainers… it’s a dream come true and something I’ve worked towards my whole life."
Ritchie also told reporters that there was a watch party back home in Oakville for the Oakville Rangers.
He's joining a great organization with the Colorado Avalanche. The Avalanche are just one year removed from winning the Stanley Cup and still have many players and staff from that great season.
Ritchie will also get the chance to learn from former first-overall pick and Stanley Cup Champion Nathan Mackinnon.
Nick Lardis, the next day during round three, was selected 67th overall by the Chicago Blackhawks.
Lardis will be heading to the Windy City with the hope of helping the Blackhawks with their rebuild.
On the first day of the draft, the Blackhawks took generational talent Connor Bedard with the first overall pick. If all goes well, the Bedard-Lardis combo could be a lethal combination for years to come in the NHL.
Chicago also has other great forwards coming up in their system such as Paul Ludwinski, Gavin Hayes, and Colton Dach.
With Ritchie going to Colorado and Lardis going to Chicago, the two childhood friends now enter two organizations that are not only in the same conference but also in the same division.
A heated rivalry may be a possibility for these two longtime Oakville friends. Congratulations to Calum and Nick!