Chiefs focus on forwards in bantam draft

The Spokane Chiefs are moving forward with forwards.

The Chiefs selected seven forwards among their 12 picks during Thursday’s Western Hockey League bantam draft in Calgary, Alberta.

Spokane’s first two selections were forwards, starting with Jaret Anderson-Dolan of Calgary, a 5-foot-10, 167-pound center who was the 14th choice overall.

“Jaret has a great combination of skill, tenacity and smarts,” Chiefs director of player personnel Chris Moulton said. “He does a lot of things well, takes pride in playing good defense, wins draws and is creative offensively.”

Spokane tabbed forward Hayden Ostir of Winnipeg, Manitoba, in the second round, with the 36th overall pick.

“Hayden does everything at high speed with energy and tenacity,” Moulton said. “He attacks with speed, has good hands and handles the puck well.”

The Chiefs had two third-round picks, taking defenseman Matthew Holzer of Edmonton, Alberta, and another forward, Ethan McIndoe of Camrose, Alberta.

Spokane’s other selections were: defenseman Jake Harrison, fourth round, West Kelowna, British Columbia; goaltender Matthew Armitage, fourth round, Calgary; forward Joseph Cassetti, sixth round, Wenatchee; forward Logan Foster, seventh round, Kamsack, Saskatchewan; forward Jacob McGrew, eighth round, Orange, California; defenseman Tyler Jubenvill, ninth round, Gilbert Plains, Manitoba; forward James Stagg, ninth round, Chandler, Arizona; and defenseman Austin Shumanski, 10th round, Hafford, Sask.

Last year, the Chiefs’ first three selections in the draft were defensemen, starting with Jeffrey Faith, who played this year with the Notre Dame Hounds Midget AAA team.

Spokane is coming off a season in which it finished sixth in the Western Conference at 40-26-3-3.

The Chiefs were swept by the third-seeded Victoria Royals in the first round of the playoffs.