[Boreal]

Interesting that Burke mentioned picking Jason Herter and the pick not working out because he had bad hips. Partly true, partly horse manure. His father was a little too involved in his career. However, sounds like he's learned from his mistakes, and is tight with Brad Pascall. Probably another resource the Flames will query for any questions about USHL talent before the draft.

http://www.faceoff.com/hockey/nhlnew...pfeatures.atom

Brad Pascall, the senior director of men's national teams for Hockey Canada, was Herter's defence partner at North Dakota and remains a close friend. He's not surprised by Herter's honest, earnest take on things.

"He's a Canadian," said Pascall. "He's a very respectful guy. He'll tell you the truth.

"He isn't bitter. That's not the right word. He's more disappointed. I know that he really wanted to make the Canucks organization and the Canucks fans proud."

He still seems to have plenty of hockey left in him. Herter played two IHL seasons with the Kansas City Blades before going to Europe.

He and his wife Laura, who's from North Dakota, opted to move back there with their daughter, Jordyn, 12, and son Jacob, 8.

Russell Stover is an up-and-coming hockey academy, much like Notre Dame, the famed Wilcox, Sask., institution that lists Herter as a product.

One of his top players this season was 15-year-old Garrett Clarke, a defenceman from New Brunswick who was believed to be the youngest player to verbally commit to North Dakota when he told coaches at Herter's alma mater in January that he would play for them in 2010.

Clarke and Herter will be together next season, but with the Fargo Force, an expansion team in the Junior A USHL. Herter has signed on to be an assistant to Dean Blais, a former Sioux coach.

Herter enjoys coaching. He can certainly give a different perspective.

"I still have a ton to offer kids," said Herter. "I could offer advice to some pro hockey players on how to be better. I've turned into a student of the game.

"I've got 15-year-old guys here who walk around like they're perfect. I can tell them, 'I screwed up. I was like you, but nobody ever told me until it was too late.'

http://blogs.theprovince.com/2008/05...?__federated=1

Of all the Vancouver Canucks’ draft-pick busts, Jason Herter stands out as the biggest for me. Not to persecute the guy or anything – it’s not a quantitative comparison at all. There were others, after all. Many… (sigh)…others. But Herter, for lack of a better phrase, was my first. By 1989, the year he was drafted, I had grown beyond simply cheering for a terrible team and had moved into the realm of full-fledged, elementary-school hockey nerd. Draft picks were important, Dan Russell told me every night. Not to mention, the Canucks desperately needed a quarterback for their power play. And Herter was it.

Alas, he wasn’t. He never suited up for the big club and played just one NHL game in his career, for the New York Islanders. This despite the fact he was taken eighth overall, which means he was picked ahead of Bobby Holik, Olaf Kolzig, Adam Foote, Sergei Federov and Pavel Bure. Granted, he was also taken behind Dave Chyzowski and Adam Bennett, so Vancouver wasn’t the only team to crap out that year.