Battalion selects Teshome
The North Bay Battalion selected right winger Natan Teshome of Finland in the Canadian Hockey League Import Draft on Wednesday.
Teshome, who stands five-foot-11 and weighs 172 pounds, is a resident of Lappeenranta who turned 18 on June 9.
In 37 games in 2023-24 with the Helsinki-based Jokerit U20s, Teshome scored four goals and earned 10 assists for 14 points with 18 penalty minutes. He produced one goal and four assists for five points with two PiM in seven playoff games.
Teshome also played a total of 19 games with Finland’s U18 national team, scoring one goal and adding three assists for four points with no penalty minutes.
The left shot, who also plays centre, completes North Bay’s import quota with Ukrainian left winger Ihnat Pazii, who played his rookie Ontario Hockey League campaign last season and who turns 18 on Dec. 4.
The Battalion also holds the OHL rights to Latvian right winger Sandis Vilmanis, a fifth-round pick of the Florida Panthers in the 2022 National Hockey League Draft who has signed a three-year entry-level contract.
The Battalion selected Teshome, also known as Gashaw-Teshome, in the first round, 45th overall, of the two-round draft conducted over the Internet after three teams earlier in the selection order passed. North Bay did not exercise its second-round pick.
“Natan is a player who drew our attention right away with his work ethic and puck pursuit,” said Adam Dennis, the Battalion’s director of hockey operations. “We feel that he’ll fit into our program and be able to make an impact right out of the gates.
