Thursday, July 11, 2013

Cullen Mercer, Bryce Yetman and Zach Bowman Commit to Plymouth

Press Release

PLYMOUTH – Plymouth Whalers General Manager and Head Coach Mike Vellucci announced the commitment of three players to a Standard Ontario Hockey League Player’s Agreement.

All three players were taken by Plymouth in last spring’s 2013 Ontario Hockey League Priority Selection in April.

1-16-year-old center Cullen Mercer was taken in the third round (57th overall) of the 2013 Draft after scoring 37 goals with 36 assists for 73 points last season for the Huron-Perth minor midgets.  He also played for Team Alliance in last spring’s Ontario Hockey League’s Gold Cup tournament.                                                                         

“Cullen’s a good two-way center who plays an intelligent game,” said Vellucci. “With experience, he should develop into a young man who can be used in all situations.”

2-16-year-old right wing Bryce Yetman was selected in the fourth round (73rd overall) of the 2013 Priority Selection after scoring 15 goals with 8 assists for 23 points in 36 games last season for the Whitby Wildcats minor midgets.  After playing in the OHL Gold Cup playoffs in the spring, Yetman received an invitation to the Ontario Minor Hockey Association's Under-16 Program of Excellence selection camp.

“Bryce is a young man who is still growing and developing as a player,” Vellucci said.  “We see him maturing into a power forward.  Bryce has an excellent offensive up-side.”

3-Goaltender Zach Bowman - who turns 16 later this month - was taken by Plymouth in the fourth round (76th overall) after playing for the Niagara North Stars minor midgets.  Like Yetman, Bowman received an invitation to the Ontario Minor Hockey Association's Under-16 Program of Excellence selection camp.

“Zach plays his position with good lateral movement and solid reflexes,” Vellucci said.  “We know he’s committed to getting better and should improve within our system.”

Mercer, Yetman and Bowman will attend high school at the Plymouth-Cantonal Educational Park starting in late August. They’ll report to the Whalers’ training camp during the same time frame in preparation for the upcoming 2013-14 season.

 (Nathan can be reached at nathanfournier@mainehockeyjournal.com)

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