GLENDALE – Coyotes prospects Henrik Samuelsson and Brendan Burke have reached the Western Hockey League Championship Series, which begins this weekend.

Samuelsson is a high-scoring forward for the Edmonton Oil Kings, the champs of the WHL’s Eastern Conference. Burke tends goal for the Portland WinterHawks, the WHL's Western Conference champs. The two teams have reached the WHL’s championship series for a third straight season.

Brendan Burke and Henrik Samuelsson. Photo by Norm Hall.

Samuelsson, whom the Coyotes selected with the 27th overall pick in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, notched a team-high 95 points (35 goals, 60 assists) in 65 regular-season games and has chipped in 15 points (two goals, 13 assists) in 14 playoff games.

Burke, whom the Coyotes selected with the 163rd overall pick in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft, posted a 34-10-2-2 record in the regular season and is 8-2-0-0 in the playoffs with a 2.52 goals-against average and a .907 save percentage in 11 games.

Both prospects played youth hockey in Arizona and are sons of former NHL players with ties to the Coyotes. Henrik Samuelsson’s dad is Ulf Samuelsson, a former Coyotes associate head coach. Burke’s dad is Sean Burke, the current Assistant to the Coyotes General Manager / Goaltender Coach.

For more info on the 2014 Western Hockey League Championship Series, visit whl.ca.

Meanwhile, Coyotes prospect Max Domi and his London Knights teammates are eagerly awaiting the start of the 2014 Memorial Cup tournament. London, which was bumped from the Ontario Hockey League’s playoffs by Guelph in the Western Conference semifinals, is hosting the four-team, round-robin event starting May 16.



NOTE: Click here for the latest Coyotes Prospect Report (posted 04/28/2014).