52 WHL players named to NHL Central Scouting final rankings
Calgary, Alta. – The Western Hockey League is proud to announce 52 WHL players have been named to NHL Central Scouting’s final rankings for the 2020 NHL Draft.
Leading the way in the final rankings of draft-eligible talent are nine WHL skaters inside the top 26 North American skaters as well as three of the top 10 North American goaltenders. Ranked eighth by NHL Central Scouting, defencemen Kaiden Guhle (Prince Albert Raiders / Sherwood Park, Alta.) is the top-ranked WHL skater while Garin Bjorklund (Medicine Hat Tigers / Calgary, Alta.) is the top-ranked WHL goaltender, listed fifth among North American goalies.
Including Guhle, WHL skaters ranked inside the top 26 of North American skaters include defenceman Braden Schneider (Ninth – Brandon Wheat Kings/Prince Albert, Sask.), forward Seth Jarvis (11th – Portland Winterhawks/Winnipeg, Man.), forward Ridly Greig (14th – Brandon Wheat Kings/Lethbridge, Alta.), forward Connor Zary (15th – Kamloops Blazers/Saskatoon, Sask.), Ozzy Wiesblatt (19th – Prince Albert Raiders/Calgary, Alta.), forward Justin Sourdif (23rd – Vancouver Giants/Surrey, B.C.), defenceman Daemon Hunt (25th – Moose Jaw Warriors/Brandon, Man.), and forward Jake Neighbours (26th – Edmonton Oil Kings/Airdrie, Alta.).
The Portland Winterhawks and Saskatoon Blades have the most players represented on the final rankings with five players each. The Everett Silvertips, Lethbridge Hurricanes, and Prince Albert Raiders each have four players listed. Overall 15 WHL member Clubs have two or more WHL players on the rankings and 19 WHL member Clubs are represented with at least one player on the final list.
From the WHL, 28 forwards, 16 defencemen, and eight goaltenders are featured.
2020 NHL CENTRAL SCOUTING FINAL RANKINGS – WHL PLAYERS
North American Skaters
| PTW | Last Name | First Name | Team | Height | Weight | Position |
| 8 | Guhle | Kaiden | Prince Albert | 6’2” | 186 | D |
| 9 | Schneider | Braden | Brandon | 6’2” | 202 | D |
| 11 | Jarvis | Seth | Portland | 5’10” | 175 | C |
| 14 | Greig | Ridly | Brandon | 5’11” | 163 | C |
| 15 | Zary | Connor | Kamloops | 6’0” | 178 | C |
| 19 | Wiesblatt | Ozzy | Prince Albert | 5’10” | 183 | RW |
| 23 | Sourdif | Justin | Vancouver | 5’11” | 173 | RW |
| 25 | Hunt | Daemon | Moose Jaw | 6’0” | 198 | D |
| 26 | Neighbours | Jake | Edmonton | 6’0” | 195 | LW |
| 38 | Finley | Jack | Spokane | 6’6” | 213 | C |
| 58 | Hanas | Cross | Portland | 6’1” | 167 | LW |
| 63 | Sedoff | Christoffer | Red Deer | 6’1” | 190 | D |
| 65 | McClennon | Connor | Winnipeg | 5’8” | 163 | RW |
| 75 | Seeley | Ronan | Everett | 6’0” | 176 | D |
| 76 | Puutio | Kasper | Everett | 5’11” | 180 | D |
| 79 | Cotton | Alex | Lethbridge | 6’2” | 175 | D |
| 80 | Goncalves | Gage | Everett | 6’0” | 165 | C |
| 81 | Knak | Simon | Portland | 6’1” | 185 | RW |
| 85 | Novak | Pavel | Kelowna | 5’9” | 170 | RW |
| 86 | Robins | Tristen | Saskatoon | 5’10” | 176 | RW |
| 98 | Kosior | Landon | Prince Albert | 5’11” | 190 | D |
| 103 | Pederson | Owen | Winnipeg | 6’3” | 191 | C |
| 108 | Usau | Ilya | Prince Albert | 6’0” | 182 | C |
| 115 | Brøndberg | Jonas | Portland | 6’4” | 189 | D |
| 120 | Pillar | Josh | Kamloops | 5’11” | 171 | C |
| 121 | King | Ben | Red Deer | 6’2” | 194 | C |
| 130 | Prokop | Luke | Calgary | 6’4” | 217 | D |
| 136 | Kubicek | Simon | Seattle | 6’2” | 205 | D |
| 139 | Zloty | Benjamin | Winnipeg | 5’10” | 175 | D |
| 149 | Shepard | Cole | Vancouver | 5’11” | 157 | LW |
| 150 | Hughes | Bear | Spokane | 6’1” | 171 | C |
| 151 | Rhinehart | Rhett | Saskatoon | 6’3” | 203 | D |
| 153 | McCartney | Ben | Brandon | 6’0” | 182 | LW |
| 154 | Okuliar | Oliver | Lethbridge | 6’1” | 181 | LW |
| 165 | Svejkovsky | Lukas | Medicine Hat | 5’10” | 165 | C |
| 166 | Bauer | Tyrel | Seattle | 6’3” | 206 | D |
| 176 | Gut | Michal | Everett | 6’0” | 187 | C |
| 178 | Evans | Ryker | Regina | 5’11” | 180 | D |
| 191 | Toporowski | Luke | Spokane | 5’11” | 177 | LW |
| 196 | Fromm-Delorme | Robert | Portland | 6’1” | 182 | RW |
| 197 | De La Gorgendiere | Aidan | Saskatoon | 6’0” | 183 | D |
| 201 | Boyko | Noah | Lethbridge | 6’0” | 173 | RW |
| 208 | Crnkovic | Kyle | Saskatoon | 5’6” | 159 | LW |
| 210 | Williams | Josh | Edmonton | 6’1” | 190 | RW |
North American Goaltenders
| PTW | Last Name | First Name | Team | Height | Weight | Position |
| 5 | Bjorklund | Garin | Medicine Hat | 6’2” | 173 | G |
| 6 | Garand | Dylan | Kamloops | 6’0” | 173 | G |
| 9 | Gould | Brock | Moose Jaw | 6’5” | 198 | G |
| 11 | Thomson | Bryan | Lethbridge | 6’4” | 179 | G |
| 19 | Gauthier | Taylor | Prince George | 6’1” | 193 | G |
| 22 | MacInnes | Koen | Saskatoon | 6’2” | 182 | G |
| 26 | Lyda | Blake | Seattle | 6’2” | 161 | G |
| 30 | Peters | Brayden | Calgary | 6’1” | 205 | G |
About the Western Hockey League
Regarded as the world’s finest development league for junior hockey players, the Western Hockey League (WHL) head office is based in Calgary, Alberta. The WHL consists of 22 member Clubs with 17 located in Western Canada and five in the U.S. Pacific Northwest. A member of the Canadian Hockey League, the WHL has been a leading supplier of talent for the National Hockey League for over 50 years. The WHL is also the leading provider of hockey scholarships with over 350 graduates each year receiving WHL Scholarships to pursue a post-secondary education of their choice. Each season, WHL players also form the nucleus of Canada’s National Junior Hockey Team.
