About Bryan

Center Bryan Little, from the Barrie Colts of the Ontario Hockey League, was the No. 7 ranked North American skater for the 2006 NHL Entry Draft in Vancouver, according to the NHL Central Scouting Service's final 2006 rankings of draft-eligible prospects. He was drafted 12th overall in the first round by the Atlanta Thrashers. .

Little, 18, was Barrie's third-round pick, 50th overall, in the 2003 OHL Priority Selection and is playing in his fourth season for the Colts this season. Last season, Little led the Colts in scoring, finishing sixth-overall in the OHL, with 109 points, including 42 goals. For the performance, he was named a Third-Team OHL All-Star, a year-end honor bestowed by the league's general managers. This year, Bryan was third in OHL scoring prior to the making Team Canada. He has led the Colts to a top 10 national ranking for more than twelve weeks now.

Little was selected to represent his country when he was picked to Team Canada's World Junior Championship 2007 roster. Team Canada won a gold medal. Bryan also played for Team Ontario and won a gold medal at the World Under-17 Hockey Challenge in Newfoundland during the 2003-04 season. That season, he also won a gold medal with the National Under-18 Summer Team at the 2004 World Junior Cup in Breclav, Czech Republic.


A Quick Chat With Bryan Little

Shortly after he was taken 12th overall by the Thrashers in Saturday's NHL Entry Draft, Bryan Little took a few minutes out of his crazy night to call the Web Guy at the Thrashers Draft Central Atlanta Headquarters (also known as our Media Relation Manager's living room). Here is what was said:

Web Guy: "Congratulations Bryan. What do you think about being drafted by the Thrashers?"

Bryan Little: "It's all pretty exciting. Unfortunately I didn't get to see Atlanta play very much on TV in Ontario, but I'm still really excited. I talked to (the Thrashers) a lot before the draft so I knew they were pretty interested. They have some exciting players so it's pretty exciting."

WG: "How do you like the prospect of potentially centering Ilya Kovalchuk and Marian Hossa on the power play some day?"

BL: "Those are the kind of guys I'm talking about. They're both very exciting players. I really like how they play, so the idea of playing with them in a couple of years is crazy. They're just unreal players. I can learn a lot from both of them."

WG: "How would you describe yourself as a player?"

BL: "I'm a goal-scorer, and I have been for my whole life. I can play defense in my own end too, so I guess I'm a two-way player, but I'm definitely a goal scorer."

WG: "Did you get much time on the penalty-kill with the Colts this year?"

BL: "For sure. I played on the penalty kill and on the power play, so I got plenty of ice-time."

WG: "Thank you for your time, and congratulations again. We look forward to seeing you in Atlanta."

BL: "Thank you very much."

-- The Web Guy | 2:40 p.m. 06/25/06 | Have a comment?