Peterborough Petes GM David Reid very clearly remembers the first time he saw Slater Koekkoek play. Reid was coaching his son's Triple-A team in Ottawa, and they had a game against the Upper Canada Cyclones. No. 94, a defenseman in blue, yellow and white rushed the puck all day long. "He dominated us," Reid says. "The second time we played them, our game plan had changed. It was just to stop No. 94." That, of course, was Koekkoek. Says Reid: "It's not a name I could forget."
Koekkoek slipped off Reid's radar when he left Ontario to play for the Notre Dame Hounds, a prestigious prep school team in Wilcox, Saskatchewan. During the 2009-2010 season, he had 23 goals and 34 assists, along with 119 penalty minutes, in 64 games. Reid's predecessor, Jeff Twohey, took note and drafted Koekkoek seventh overall in the 2010 OHL draft. When Reid took over in May 2010 and saw Koekkoek's name on the roster, he knew he had himself a pretty talented young player to work with. And work with him he did.
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Grant Sonier
Grant Sonier has scouted for six NHL organizations over the past 13 years, most recently for the Atlanta Thrashers during the 2010-11 season. He is a special contributor to ESPN Insider.
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Victoria Matiash
Victoria Matiash has served as a Fantasy Hockey columnist for ESPN.com since 2007, and contributor to NHL Rumor Central since 2010. She lives in Toronto.
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