New York Islanders ignore red flags, pick Thornhill product in 1st round

YorkRegion.com
June 28, 2014
By Michael Hayakawa

In the days leading up to the 2014 NHL draft, the rumour mill had teams sending up a red flag over Thornhill resident Joshua Ho-Sang being selected during Friday’s first-round in Philadelphia.

The New York Islanders though, chose to ignore any negativity towards the 18-year-old Windsor Spitfires’ five-foot, 11-inch, 180-pound forward and selected him with the 28th overall pick in the first round.

Amassing 32 goals and 53 assists in 67 games with the Spitfires this past Ontario Hockey League regular season, Ho-Sang was elated the Islanders are providing him with the opportunity to prove the naysayers wrong as the pre-draft gossip labelled him as being outspoken.

“It feels absolutely amazing (to be an Islander),” Sang said on the NHL club’s website. “According to everyone else they are taking a chance on me and I am really grateful that they’re doing that and I’m going to give them everything I have.”

Ho-Sang’s selection by the Islanders came through a trade in which they dealt both of their second-round picks, the 35th and 57th overall to the Tampa Bay Lightning for the 28th selection.

With the Islanders surrendering their two second-round picks to move up to grab another selection in the first round, Ho-Sang vowed he will prove the club to be worthy of being a first-round draft pick.

“It’s amazing the fact that they traded two seconds away to pick me,” he said. “That just shows that they believe in me and that’s all I really need, a team that believes in me. I’ll give them everything that I have and push until I can’t breathe. I want to give them (the Islanders organization) everything I have because you know it’s not just about you, it’s about your family and the Islanders, after today, have become my family.”

Garth Snow, Islanders general manager, said Ho-Sang was a player the team had targeted and didn’t shy away from the opportunity to land their guy.

“We didn’t want to take a chance,” he said on the club’s website. “We said we had this currency, the extra picks, so let’s use them and get the player we identified. We didn’t want to wake up tomorrow and have any regrets, so we went for it.”