The Prince Albert Raiders added a big piece to their blueline on Tuesday afternoon as they signed 16-year-old Graydon Gotaas to a standard player agreement.
“Graydon is a hard-nosed defenceman and he moves the puck extremely well,” Raiders general manager Curtis Hunt said in a prepared statement.. “We’re very excited to add him to the organization.”
A second round pick by the defending WHL champions last May, Gotaas joins forward Niall Crocker and defenceman Tre Fouquette as the players that have signed thus far from the 2019 draft class.
The 16-year-old from Camrose, Alta., who is the nephew of former Raiders forward Steve, had 14 points in 26 games this season for the Sherwood Park Kings of the Alberta Midget AAA Hockey League.
He also suited up four times in the Alberta Junior Hockey League with the Bonnyville Pontiacs and had a goal for Alberta at the WHL Cup , where he was named to the tournament all-star team along with Moose Jaw Warriors defensive prospect Denton Mateychuk.
The Raiders have also inked defensive prospects Tayem Gislason (a sixth round pick in 2018) and Adam McNutt (a fourth round pick in 2018) over the course of the 2019-20 season.
