LOS ANGELES (NBC 26) — There’s a saying: good things come to those who wait. For former Green Bay Gambler Aidan Park, the wait was worth it.
Park was selected by the Edmonton Oilers with the second-to-last pick in the 2025 NHL Draft — and he wasn’t even expecting to hear his name called.
“You know, second round rolls around, and I happen to get picked,” Park said. “And I’m sitting there in shorts and a hoodie, and I really didn’t have big expectations to get picked. It was a whirlwind.”
The California native had only attended the draft in Los Angeles to support his friend Ryker Lee, who was taken in the first round by the Nashville Predators.
“I wasn’t even planning on going on day two,” Park said. “Ryker Lee got drafted, and I thought we were gonna do something the next day with his family and stuff. But then Nashville actually flew him out on a private jet at 8 a.m. the next morning so he wasn’t there anymore. He just left me his day two tickets that he had.”
With nothing else to do, Park figured he might as well go. At pick No. 223, he heard his name called.
“There weren’t that many people left there but they saw the noise,” Park said. “They kinda started looking at me and started clapping. So I guess that’s how the camera found me, and then I had to walk up.”
Park earned attention in his final season with the Green Bay Gamblers of the USHL, where he scored 33 goals and recorded 66 points, earning All-USHL Second Team honors.
“I just wanted to become a better skater, get better on the net, improve my playmaking, like a bunch of those things,” he said. “And the coaches were awesome, and my teammates were also awesome. They helped me out a lot with all of that stuff.”
After wrapping up development camp in Edmonton, Park is looking ahead to his next chapter: NCAA hockey with the University of Michigan.
“I think I definitely took a step in terms of my development, but I still have a long way to go,” Park said. “So just continuing to take the things I learned in Green Bay. So, yeah, I’m super excited for what’s ahead but it’s been a really fun year for sure.”
