Marquardt a Columbus Blue Jacket (updated)

Matt Marquardt, who played last season for the QMJHL's Moncton Wildcats, was drafted by the Blue Jackets. Photo by Chris Dawson.

Matt Marquardt's dream came true late Saturday night at the North Bay native was selected in the seventh round, 194th overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets at the NHL entry draft which was held in Vancouver, B.C. on Saturday.

Marquardt elected to stay in North Bay instead of traveling to Vancouver to potentially be disappointed, so he followed the draft on TV and on the internet but went out with a few friends before he was selected.

But at about 12:30 a.m. his father called him on his cell phone to give him the great news.

"It's quite overwhelming and it's an unbelievable feeling to finally come out of a draft for once," said Marquardt who was overlooked last season at the NHL draft and was not selected in his OHL draft year either.

Marquardt played this past season for the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League’s Moncton Wildcats where he registered 16 goals and 9 assists in 68 regular season games. The power forward followed that up with 5 goals and three assists in 20 playoff games (4th overall in rookie playoff scoring) as the Wildcats captured the league championship and then made it all the way to the Memorial Cup final before losing to the Quebec Remparts.

Central Scouting had Marquardt rated 186th overall in North America in its final rankings.

Marquardt was interviewed last summer by the Columbus Blue Jackets prior to the 2005 NHL Entry Draft and attended the team's fitness camp in the spring.

Marquardt is the first North Bay area hockey player to be selected in the NHL draft since 1997.