NHL Draft: Utah Hockey Club selects Tij Iginla, son of Jarome Iginla, at number 6 | News, Sports, Jobs

LAS VEGAS – Macklin Celebrini headlined an NHL draft by going first overall to the San Jose Sharks on Friday night as part of the visual spectacle “The Sphere” in a mixed company of hockey and Las Vegas stars.

French-Canadian singer Celine Dion shared the stage with artists such as former Sharks star Joe Thornton and Rookie of the Year Connor Bedard and announced the selections to give the event a real Vegas feel.

And to top it all off, the newly formed Utah Hockey Club leaned on his NHL pedigree and selected Kelowna center Tij Iginla as the franchise’s first pick with the No. 6 overall pick. Iginla is the son of Hockey Hall of Fame inductee Jarome Iginla, who spent much of his career in Calgary.

Utah, which moved from Arizona to Salt Lake City two months ago, chose Iginla, ending any chance Calgary had of getting the son of its former star at No. 9.

“It’s so unpredictable,” said Jarome Iginla, who was selected 11th overall by Dallas in 1995 before being traded to Calgary months later. “Any city is a great city, but Utah is a great city for us. … We’re very happy for him. He’s worked hard and this is a big day.”

The Iginlas are the sixth father-son duo to be selected in the top 15 of the draft.

Four defensemen made it into the top 10 picks, led by the New Jersey Devils, who selected 6’7″ and 215lb Russian Anton Silayev. And six defensemen made it into the top 12 after Minnesota traded up to 12th to recruit defenseman Zeev Buium from the University of Denver.

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