Forward drafted No. 109 by Winnipeg, will return to Niagara of OHL next season

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LAS VEGAS – When Kevin He first donned a pair of rollerblades at age 3 and started skating with his father, hockey wasn’t on the immediate radar.

There weren’t really any hockey teams or a sanctioned hockey league in Beijing, China, where He was born and spent the first few years of his childhood. But once the family moved to Canada, hockey became a passion and Kevin’s focus moving forward.

On Saturday he fulfilled a dream and made history, becoming the highest China-born player drafted in the NHL when the Winnipeg Jets selected him in the fourth round (No. 109) at the 2024 Upper Deck NHL Draft at Sphere in Las Vegas.

“It’s a dream come true,” the 18-year-old forward said of being the second China-born player drafted. Andong Song was the first when the New York Islanders selected him in the sixth round (No. 172) in the 2015 NHL Draft.

“It’s incredible, a huge honor. I have a lot of fans texting me right before the draft, wishing me good luck and showing me support.”

The feeling when He heard his name called at Sphere? Well, it was a mix of the usual emotions and a different kind of pang.

“I was more hungry than anything,” He said with a laugh. “I didn’t eat this morning. I didn’t have breakfast. I woke up early and just got ready for the draft. I was more focusing on not starving.

“But no, in the moment, I was a little nervous, little anxious and you don’t know where you’re going to go. Then when the Jets made that trade, I had a feeling a little bit.”

The Jets originally had the No. 123 pick in the fourth round, but they traded that and their seventh-round pick (No. 219) to the Buffalo Sabres to move up to 109 and select He.

“We felt strong enough that he wasn’t going to be there if we waited much longer. Fortunately, we found an opportunity to jump up and grab them,” Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff said.

“When someone takes so much pride in their heritage and so much pride in their craft in the sport they want to be involved in, it says a lot about the person and the individual. If it can turn out to be a great story, that’s secondary. It is always nice to see the diversity in the game and help maybe grow the game more. It would be a great story if he can continue to make that next step.”

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He had 53 points (31 goals, 22 assists) in 64 games last season with Niagara of the Ontario Hockey League. He’s played the past two seasons with Niagara, finishing with 87 points (52 goals, 35 assists) in 130 games. He said many from the Niagara team and staff made the trip to Vegas to see his big moment.

He also had about 13 family members present, including five aunts, a few cousins, two nephews that He said he got to meet for the first time and his dad.

The love for hockey actually came from He’s father, Jason, who went to school in Moncton, New Brunswick, as an international student. When Kevin was 5, the family moved to Montreal.

“I wanted them to play hockey. That’s my passion. The best place to play hockey is in Canada, so we moved to Canada,” Jason said.

“He was a great skater probably from Day One. I took him on rollerblades first at the age of 3. He has a younger brother (Eric), and both love skating and both play hockey. They spent so many years in outdoor hockey, roller hockey and that makes them great skaters.”

Adjusting on ice was one thing, off ice was another. Kevin came to Canada speaking only Mandarin.

“French was very hard for me,” said He, who is now trilingual in speaking Mandarin, French and English fluently. “I remember sitting there, first day (in school) and just not knowing anything and I’d have to quickly pick it up or something.

“When I moved to Toronto, I tried to work on my English a little bit more. It helps with the culture as well. I went to a few Habs games, able to speak French with some of the fans. It’s all fun.”

He will get back to training and will return to Niagara this season. He’ll have a familiar face with him: brother Eric, who’s one year younger than him. Eric spent most of last season with North York of the Ontario Junior Hockey League and also played 12 games with Niagara, who signed him to an OHL scholarship and development agreement in February.

Could Eric follow in Kevin’s footsteps one day?

“Keep my fingers crossed,” Jason said with a smile. “He works hard. He’ll be playing on the same OHL team but (there’s still a) lot of work, lot of work.”

Kevin has not been back to China since moving from there as a child. He’d love to return some day to see family and he’d love to inspire more players from China in the future.

“I hope so, yeah,” He said. “I hope to be a role model for the kids, to try to pick up hockey.”