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UND Athletics
LAS VEGAS – Incoming North Dakota forward Sacha Boisvert was selected 18th overall by the Chicago Blackhawks on Friday evening at the 2024 NHL Draft from The Sphere in Las Vegas.
“It means the world to be drafted by the Chicago Blackhawks,” said Boisvert. “Couldn’t imagine a better scenario and just really excited to get going.”
Boisvert becomes the 22nd North Dakota player to be selected in the first round of the NHL Draft in program history and first since Jake Sanderson went fifth to Ottawa in 2020. He is also the 195th selection in UND history, which are the second most in the nation.
He is coming off a stellar campaign with the Muskegon Lumberjacks in the USHL, scoring 36 goals and tallying 68 points in 61 games. His 36 goals were the most by a UND-bound player from the USHL since Jason Gregoire had 37 in 2007-08.
Boisvert is the first North Dakota player to come from the province of Québec and will join the Fighting Hawks for the upcoming 2024-25 season.
North Dakota has had at least one selection in every NHL Draft since 1999, the third longest active streak in the nation.
North Dakota First Round Draftees
John Marks – 1968, Chicago (9th)
James Patrick – 1981, New York Rangers (9th)
George Pelawa – 1986, Calgary (16th)
Jason Herter – 1989, Vancouver (8th)
Landon Wilson – 1993, Toronto (19th)
David Hale – 2000, New Jersey (22nd)
Zach Parise – 2003, New Jersey (17th)
Drew Stafford – 2004, Buffalo (13th)
Travis Zajac – 2004, New Jersey (20th)
Brian Lee – 2005, Ottawa (9th)
T.J. Oshie – 2005, St. Louis (24th)
Joe Finley – 2005, Washington (27th)
Jonathan Toews – 2006, Chicago (3rd)
Derek Forbort – 2010, Los Angeles (15th)
Brock Nelson – 2010, New York Islanders (30th)
Jordan Schmaltz – 2012, St. Louis (25th)
Nick Schmaltz – 2014, Chicago (20th)
Brock Boeser – 2015, Vancouver (23rd)
Tyson Jost – 2016, Los Angeles (10th)
Jacob Bernard-Docker – 2018, Ottawa (26th)
Jake Sanderson – 2020, Ottawa (5th)
Sacha Boisvert – 2024, Chicago (18th)
EJ Emery selected 30th overall by the New York Rangers in 2024 NHL Draft
LAS VEGAS – Incoming North Dakota defenseman EJ Emery was selected 30th overall by the New York Rangers on Friday night from the 2024 NHL Draft at The Sphere.
“Brad Berry, the entire coaching staff, the fans, the community and the players really made me feel at home,” said Emery on why he chose to go to UND. “The moment I stepped foot on campus it was a no brainer to go there. They develop great defensemen and I want to go there and win a national championship.”
Emery joins Sacha Boisvert as first round selections in this year’s draft, becoming the first pair of North Dakota players to be taken in the first round since Derek Forbort and Brock Nelson in 2010 and only the fourth time in program history that UND has had multiple first round selections in the same draft class.
UND also becomes the first NCHC program to have multiple first round selections in the same draft and the 196 overall selections are the second most in the nation.
Emery will come to NoDak after manning the blueline for the U.S. National Under-18 Team, where he carved out a role as a shutdown defender for the development program while adding 16 assists in 61 games.
A native of Compton, Calif., Emery will join the Fighting Hawks for the upcoming 2024-25 season.
LAS VEGAS – After a pair of first round selections on Friday night, two more North Dakota products were selected on the final day of the 2024 NHL Draft on Saturday from The Sphere in Las Vegas.
With the four total selections, UND has eclipsed 200 all-time draft picks in program history to become only the second college hockey program to reach that number. NoDak also had three picks in the first 76 picks (Sacha Boisvert, EJ Emery and Will Zellers) for the first time since 2005.
The day was highlighted by the selection of Will Zellers in the third round (76th overall) by the Colorado Avalanche. Zellers, who will likely come to North Dakota for the 2025-26 season, is coming off a monster offensive season with Shattuck St. Mary’s, where he potted 57 goals and 54 assists for 111 points in just 54 games. He also scored five goals and seven points in five contests at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup for Team USA.
In the seventh round, incoming forward Mac Swanson was selected 207th overall by the Pittsburgh Penguins to become UND’s fourth selection of the weekend. The Anchorage, Alaska, native was showered with accolades after last season with Fargo in the USHL, earning the league’s player of the year, forward of the year, playoff most valuable player and a first team selection after finishing with 77 points in 55 games. On the international stage, Swanson appeared on the 2023 U.S. Junior Select Team that finished third at the 2023 World Junior A Challenge in Truro, Nova Scotia, in December. He led all skaters at the tournament with nine assists and tied for a Team USA lead with 11 points in six games. He also was selected to participate at the 2024 Chipotle All-American Game in January.
UND Selections at 2024 NHL Draft:
Sacha Boisvert, Chicago, 1st Round (18th)
EJ Emery, New York Rangers, 1st Round (30th)
Will Zellers, Colorado, 3rd Round (76th)
Mac Swanson, Pittsburgh, 7th Round (207th)
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