Andong (Misha) Song made history on Saturday, when he was drafted by the New York Islanders and GM Garth Snow with the 172nd pick in the 2015 NHL Draft.
With his selection, Song becomes the first-ever Chinese-born player drafted into the NHL.
"The Beijing native played high school hockey in New Jersey last year at Lawrence Academy," writes Chris Peters of CBSSports.com. "Song moved to Canada at 9 or 10 years old, but captained China at the 2015 U18 World Championship DII. He plays forward and defense. It's hard to know what kind of prospect he is, but he'll forever be remembered for having his name called on the NHL Draft floor."
Song clearly possesses significant versatility, but as Peters notes it's difficult at this time to tell what position he'll man on a full-time basis now that he's a part of the Islanders organization, though defense does seem the likeliest landing spot.
Song plans to attend Philips Andover Academy in Massachusetts next year as a postgraduate student, according to the Associated Press.
Song said that being the first Chinese-born player drafted into the NHL comes with significant pressure, but dubbed it "good pressure" and said that he simply hopes to make his homeland proud.
