Caledon's Peter Holland was selected 15th overall by the Anaheim Ducks in the first round of the 2009 National Hockey League Entry Draft Friday night in Montreal. He poses here Monday at his Palgrave area home. Photo by Jon Yaneff

The further down the 2009 National Hockey League Entry Draft's first round went Friday night in Montreal at the Bell Centre, the more anxious Caledon's Peter Holland became.

But finally when the Anaheim Ducks director of amateur scouting Martin Madden said the centre's name with the 15th overall pick, Holland's NHL dream came that much closer.

"To hear the Anaheim Ducks call your name in the first round, especially in the top 15, is unbelievable, and it's a moment I'll never forget," said Holland, a native of the Palgrave area. "At the time I was thrilled, excited and nervous and when my name was called a lot of those nerves were lifted.

"It was also great to have everybody there with me, so there was a lot of happy people up in the stands," said Holland, who was accompanied at the draft with 17 family members and friends, including his mom Jude and father Jan.

Peter Holland is shown here after a game during the 2008-09 season with the Guelph Storm. His improved play with the Storm contributed to the Ducks taking him 15th overall at NHL Entry Draft in Montreal Friday. Photo by Paul Surette

"It was just amazing experience," said Jan Holland, of his son's NHL draft moment. "Anaheim has now opened the door a crack and now Peter is going to work extra hard to make the jump to the NHL."

The 18-year-old Holland said Anaheim was one of 27 NHL teams to interview him at the league's annual Combine in late May. The Combine is where NHL draft hopefuls participate in grueling physical testing, as well as one-on-one interviews in order to try to impress NHL general managers before the draft. He also talked to Anaheim representatives the Thursday before the draft.

"I had a couple of tough interviews, but for the most part I sold myself as a player, mostly with Anaheim," said Holland, who still expects to fill into his six-foot two-inch, 195-pound frame, becoming a valid NHL offensive forward. "There's a lot of excitement to go there."

Anaheim, who finished eighth in the Western Conference last year at 42-33-7, attracts Holland because of their talented roster including the names of Scott Niedermayer, Ryan Getzlaf, Corey Perry and Bobby Ryan. The Ducks won the franchises' first Stanley Cup in 2007 and Holland hopes he can make the NHL in time for another Cup run.

"One of the things they (Anaheim) mentioned to me when I met with them after they drafted me was they were hoping to make a Cup run within the next four or five years and they wanted me to be a part of that," he said. "So, that gives you goose bumps as well, knowing that you might have a chance to put your name on that Cup."

Holland's NHL stock rose after an impressive second Ontario Hockey League season with the Guelph Storm, where he was second on the team with 67 points (28 goals, 39 assists) in 68 games. He became a two-way player last season, becoming better defensively as he added a plus-10 rating, while averaging 13 critical minutes of ice time a game. Heading into the draft, he was ranked 19th by NHL Central Scouting and 11th by International Scouting Services, but felt he had something to prove after a 23- point rookie campaign for the Storm in 2007-08.

"I was trying to go into this season with more confidence than my rookie year," said Holland. "It was just a matter of putting in time by working hard in the summer and because of that, I came into the season on top of my game."

Besides Holland, four other Storm players were taken in this year's draft, including Taylor Beck (70th) and Michael Latta (72nd), both in the third round to the Nashville Predators. Ben Chiarot (120th to the Atlanta Thrashers) and Matt Kennedy (131st to the Carolina Hurricanes) were the other Storm members selected in the draft, as they went in the fourth and fifth rounds respectively.

Holland's long list of season accomplishments had him represent the OHL in the 2008 Canada/Russia Challenge, being selected to the 2009 OHL All-Star Classic, as well as participating in the 2009 Canadian Hockey league Top Prospects Game. His international play includes being chosen to play for Team Canada at the 2009 Under-18 World Championships, while contributing five points (one goal, four assists) and a plusfive rating in Canada's fourth-place finish. He was also a member of the gold-medal winning Team Ontario at the 2008 World Under-17 Challenge. Holland was one of 17 Canadians selected in the first round of the draft. Prior to the OHL he played for the triple-A Brampton Battalion, where he had 119 points at the midget level.

"It shows how much went into (getting drafted), but it also shows how much work I have left," he said. "I don't know if it's realistic whether I'm going to make the Ducks next year, but I'm still going to training camp (in September) with the thought process that I want to and I'm going to leave it up to them (Anaheim) to decide."

For where he's gotten to now though, Holland thanks his parents first and foremost. That list also includes skill coach Joey Simon of Powerhouse Hockey, who developed Holland for nine years, as well as his power skating coach with the Storm, Barb Underhill. He also is appreciative of his Storm coaches, Dave Barr in his rookie year, for rounding out his defensive game and Jason Brooks this season for giving him a chance to further developing his skills.