36 WHL’ERS NAMED TO FIRST NHL WATCH LIST
The Western Hockey League is proud to announce 36 WHL players have been named to NHL Central Scouting’s ‘Players to Watch’ List for the 2021 NHL Draft. The annual ‘Players to Watch’ list was issued Tuesday by the NHL Central Scouting Service.
NHL Central Scouting identifies players with a rating system that includes four categories. The ‘A’ rating indicates players projected to be first-round candidates. The ‘B’ rating indicates players projected to be second- or third-round candidates, and the ‘C’ rating indicates players projected to be fourth-, fifth-, or sixth-round candidates. Though no players received this designation, ‘LV’ represents a player who has not had sufficient viewings, due to injury.
Five WHL players were assigned ‘A’ ratings, including Edmonton Oil Kings forward Dylan Guenther, Moose Jaw Warriors forward Ryder Korczak, Winnipeg ICE defenceman Carson Lambos, Seattle Thunderbirds forward Conner Roulette, and Medicine Hat Tigers forward Cole Sillinger.
Four WHL players were given ‘B’ ratings, including Prince Albert Raiders defenceman Nolan Allan, Edmonton Oil Kings goaltender Sebastian Cossa, Portland Winterhawks forward Jack O’Brien, and Kamloops Blazers forward Logan Stankoven. A total of 27 WHL players earned ‘C’ ratings.
Overall, 18 of 22 WHL Clubs are represented in the preliminary ‘Players to Watch’ List. The Brandon Wheat Kings, Moose Jaw Warriors, Portland Winterhawks, Prince Albert Raiders, Red Deer Rebels, and Seattle Thunderbirds all boast three players each to lead WHL Clubs. Six other WHL Clubs each have two players listed. Another six WHL Clubs are represented by a single player on NHL Central Scouting’s preliminary list.
A total of 20 WHL forwards find themselves on the list, joined by 12 WHL defencemen, and four WHL goaltenders.
2021 NHL Central Scouting ‘Players to Watch’ – WHL Players
| PTW | Last Name | First Name | Team | Height | Weight | Position |
| A | Guenther | Dylan | Edmonton | 6’0” | 166 | RW |
| A | Korczak | Ryder | Moose Jaw | 5’10” | 164 | C |
| A | Lambos | Carson | Winnipeg | 6’0” | 200 | D |
| A | Roulette | Conner | Seattle | 5’11” | 161 | LW |
| A | Sillinger | Cole | Medicine Hat | 5’11” | 194 | LW |
| B | Allan | Nolan | Prince Albert | 6’1” | 174 | D |
| B | Cossa | Sebastian | Edmonton | 6’5” | 207 | G |
| B | O’Brien | Jack | Portland | 6’0” | 154 | C |
| B | Stankoven | Logan | Kamloops | 5’8” | 170 | C |
| C | Alarie | Eric | Moose Jaw | 6’0” | 197 | LW |
| C | Bankier | Caedan | Kamloops | 6’0” | 164 | C |
| C | Boyko | Talyn | Tri-City | 6’6” | 184 | G |
| C | Busygin | Yaroslav | Brandon | 6’2” | 170 | D |
| C | Chiasson | Jake | Brandon | 6’1” | 165 | RW |
| C | Ciona | Lucas | Seattle | 6’2” | 201 | LW |
| C | Dach | Colton | Saskatoon | 6’2” | 186 | C |
| C | Englot | Drew | Regina | 6’2” | 194 | RW |
| C | Grubbe | Jayden | Red Deer | 6’2” | 192 | C |
| C | Iorio | Vincent | Brandon | 6’2” | 191 | D |
| C | Jordan | Cole | Moose Jaw | 6’0” | 173 | D |
| C | Knak | Simon | Portland | 6’0” | 185 | RW |
| C | Kosior | Landon | Prince Albert | 5’11” | 190 | D |
| C | Kozak | Tyson | Portland | 5’10” | 160 | C |
| C | Krebs | Dru | Medicine Hat | 5’11” | 167 | D |
| C | Lajoie | Marc | Tri-City | 6’4” | 226 | D |
| C | Masters | Kyle | Red Deer | 5’11” | 155 | D |
| C | Milne | Michael | Winnipeg | 5’10” | 182 | LW |
| C | Ostapchuk | Zack | Vancouver | 6’3” | 187 | C |
| C | Sedoff | Christoffer | Red Deer | 6’1” | 190 | D |
| C | Serhyenko | Carter | Prince Albert | 6’4” | 193 | G |
| C | Stringer | Zack | Lethbridge | 6’0” | 155 | LW |
| C | Sward | Graham | Spokane | 6’1” | 169 | D |
| C | Thomson | Bryan | Lethbridge | 6’3” | 179 | G |
| C | Tschigerl | Sean | Calgary | 6’0” | 179 | LW |
| C | Uchacz | Kai | Seattle | 6’1” | 190 | C |
| C | Zellweger | Olen | Everett | 5’8” | 162 | D |
Players have been identified using the following criteria:
- A Rating – Indicates a first-round candidate
- B Rating – Indicates a second- or third-round candidate
- C Rating – Indicates a fourth-, fifth-, or sixth-round candidate
- LV (Limited Viewing) – Injured players who have not had sufficient viewings to be categorized
(WHL Communications)
