The Colorado Avalanche were busy during the 2024 NHL Entry Draft, making many moves to move back into the later rounds while gaining more draft picks for that draft and future ones. Their trade with the Utah Hockey Club to move out of the first round helped them secure goaltender Ilya Nabokov and later dealt with the Buffalo Sabres to move a couple of picks back during the third round while gaining an additional fifth-round pick that turned out to be Maxmilian Curran. However, we will be going into depth about who they selected with the third-round pick acquired from the Sabres.
With the 76th-overall pick of the 2024 Draft, the Colorado Avalanche selected William Zellers from the United States High School Preparatory (USHS-Prep) Shattuck St. Mary’s 18U prep. I was lucky enough to sit down with him and discuss what his draft process was like, his time with St. Mary’s and the Green Bay Gamblers in the United States Hockey League (USHL) and what the future holds for him.
Zeller’s Journey in St. Mary: A Path of Growth and Transformation
Born and raised in Maple Grove, Minnesota, he began his career in the Minnesota Bantam Elite League in 2020-21. He joined St. Mary’s 15U AAA team in the 2021-22 season and played one game for the Gamblers in 2022-23 before returning to St. Mary’s for two years. He recorded 19 goals and 30 assists for 49 points in his first season. His second season saw a significant leap: he scored 57 goals and added 54 assists in 54 games, leading his team in all categories and finishing first in the USHS for goals and points. He credited his performance and the team’s support for his success.
I mean, we had a pretty special team that year and we had a lot of guys on that team that helped me make the plays and put me in those positions to get a lot of those points and produce the way I did. But I think at the end of the day, you’re only as good as your weakest link. And we had a really good team that kind helped me thrive the best I could.
Willam Zellers
For Zellers, St. Mary’s wasn’t just a great hockey program that develops kids well but teaches them how to grow and develop as better human beings. He made this a significant point about his time there and how he and his teammates have become better people on and off the ice due to the school staff who helped these teenagers from a young age become better people in all life aspects.
I mean, I owe that school my whole life…They’ve created me, the hockey player I’m today, but also made me a great person. That was one of their big things at the school is they want to create good hockey players but they also want to create good people for society in America and society in the world.
Though the school was teaching him about life, he also made sure he improved independently and set goals to become a better hockey player in every way possible. At 5-foot-11 and 175 pounds, his relatively small frame might alarm many people, but he makes sure his game speaks for itself and continues to work hard to be a better all-around player.
A big thing I started to work on this summer — and it’s mainly watching film and watching guys — but my off-the-puck movement when I don’t have the puck, what am I doing to get open for my teammates or even being used as a decoy, guys are attached to me and gives my teammate the open space to make the play… I want to get stronger and defensive; when coaches trust you on every zone in the ice, you play a lot more and you have a lot more trust with if they trust you in that D zone, defence leaves the offence.
Zeller’s Experience Throughout the Draft
Entering the draft, there wasn’t much separation regarding his projected rankings. Many had him as a high third-round pick, while some had him fall into the early fourth round. When it came to his time to be selected, Zeller wasn’t surprised to see who selected him but thought he could have gone higher when another passed on him.
No, they weren’t really a surprise. I talked to them multiple times throughout the year and they were talking to my coaches and also my advisor and they said that they really enjoyed my game so I knew they were going to keep on me… I also thought, surprisingly Montreal, I thought they really liked me a lot, so they had a couple picks before ’em so I thought I could get taken by them.
Zellers effectively navigates pass receptions by leveraging the space he creates to gain advantages. He uses weight shifts and stutter steps, demonstrating his ability to handle the puck in significant and small-ice situations. He targets defensive triangles when attacking defenders, skillfully popping pucks through their legs. He even adapts his rushing patterns to move to the inside of the ice.
As stated before, Zeller’s size stands out to many; having a smaller frame can be challenging when playing against other guys that are 6-foot-4 and taller, but he has come to accept it and has learned to play around it. It doesn’t change a thing about his physicality; he wants to use his frame to his best advantage in any way possible and ignore the outside voices telling him he’s “too small.”
I try not to think about too much. I think the bigger they are the harder they fall… So I just kind of use my speed to stay above the puck and get over the puck and be stronger and lower down on the puck so they can’t take it away.
Zeller’s Experience in the USHL
Zellers’ has been hot to start the 2024-25 season with the Gamblers. Eight goals and three assists for 11 points in 10 games have him tied for first in goals within the USHL and second in points on the team. Like his performance with St. Mary, he acknowledges his performance but doesn’t want to undermine his teammates’ importance to his success.
I feel really good about it. I mean it’s always nice to have a good fast start but the hardest thing is maintaining it. So just got to keep playing my game and being around the puck, always being open for my teammates .and kind of just maintaining that shot-first mindset but also pass it when it’s open and just keep maintaining what I have going right now.
The Gamblers are 7-6-1 on the season but are currently on a three-game winning streak and only seven points from first in the Eastern Conference. While there is a lot of season left to play, Zellers acknowledged that their start of the season could have been better but recognizes how well his team is currently playing to keep pushing up the standings.
It feels good. I mean it’s always a struggle in the beginning of the year. Coming in with whole new team… I think we only have seven, eight returners on our team, maybe even less. And so I mean it’s always hard starting off at the beginning of the year but once the team starts clicking it, I mean morale in the locker room is always high and practise is going good.
What the Future Holds for Zellers
After this Gamblers’ season is finished, Zellers will look to advance his career significantly. Announced this past summer, he will attend the University of North Dakota and their program to continue to grow his game and show off his skills on a more extensive and brighter stage. This was a significant announcement for him and his family; North Dakota wasn’t his first choice when deciding where he would go. However, he felt the option to switch to North Dakota was right.
I was originally committed to BU (Boston University) in my first recruitment and then kind of just didn’t feel right..I knew I had to make a change and my whole family grew up in North Dakota. My dad grew up on a small farm in Devil’s Lake. My mom grew up in Bismarck, my parents met there. Actually my grandparents met there too. I’ve got family that live out in North Dakota and my sister goes there right now too. So I grew up going to those Sioux games ever since I couldn’t even walk. I was in a onesie and I was going to those games. So it’s always been a dream of mine to put on that jersey and play it through Ralph.
Like many prospects within the league and the Avalanche organization, Zeller knows the true climb starts now. Getting a starting position in the NHL is one of the most challenging tasks ahead of someone who knows they are competing with many others within the organization. Luckily, he’s only 18 and has time to continue and grow his game. Stating how one of his favourite players growing up and one he idolized was Zach Parise, he wants to show the organization that when it’s his time to show what he can do on the ice, he’s willing to put everything on the line to make sure he doesn’t lose his position in that lineup.
Kind of just ask them what they expect of me and play that to a “T”, whether it be a power-play guy or even a PK (penalty kill), enforcer guy, whatever role they want me to play. I’m going to play to a “T” and learn how to play it and just try to stay in that professional hockey level as long as I can.
