June 25, 2010

Boston College incoming freshman Kevin Hayes was selected by the Chicago Blackhawks in the first round (24th overall) of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft in Los Angeles' Staples Center.

Hayes is a 6-foot-3, 205-pound forward from Dorchester, Mass.  He played each of the last two seasons at the Noble and Greenough School.  Hayes registered 69 points - 25 goals and 44 assists - in 29 games as a left wing for the Bulldogs in 2009-10.

He will enroll at Boston College in September 2010 and be eligible to play in the 2010-11 season.  Hayes' older brother Jimmy is a junior on the BC hockey team.

Hayes is the 13th Eagle in the last 25 years - and 10th in the last 15 years - to have been selected in the first round of the NHL Entry Draft.  He joins Brian Leetch (ninth, 1986), Craig Janney (13th, 1986), Bill Guerin (fifth, 1989), Marty Reasoner (14th, 1996), Brooks Orpik (18th, 2000), Krys Kolanos (19th, 2000), Chuck Kobasew (14th, 2001), Brian Boyle (26th, 2003), Patrick Eaves (29th, 2003), Cory Schneider (26th, 2004), Nick Petrecki (28th, 2007) and Chris Kreider (19th, 2009) as Boston College first-round draftees.

Earlier this month, Hayes was one of six BC hockey players that were selected to participate in the 2010 U.S. National Junior Evaluation Camp in Lake Placid, N.Y., from July 3 - Aug. 7, joining sophomores Brian Dumoulin, Chris Kreider, Philip Samuelsson, Patrick Wey and Steven Whitney.