Forty-four W-H-L players were listed by N-H-L Central Scouting in their Players to Watch release ahead of the 2020 Draft.

Saskatoon product and Kamloops forward Connor Zary is rated to be a second or third round selection while Blades’ defencemen Aidan De La Giorgendiere (pictured) and Radek Kucerik are felt to be fourth to sixth round choices. Following is the news release from the W-H-L…

44 WHL PLAYERS NAMED TO NHL CENTRAL SCOUTING ‘PLAYERS TO WATCH’ LIST

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE / MONDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2019

Calgary, Alta. – The Western Hockey League is proud to announce 44 WHL players have been named to NHL Central Scouting’s ‘Players to Watch’ list for the 2020 NHL Draft. The annual ‘Players to Watch’ list was issued Monday by NHL Central Scouting. NHL Central Scouting identifies players with a rating system that includes four categories. The ‘A’ rating indicates a first-round candidate, a ‘B’ rating indicates a second- or third-round candidate, and a ‘C’ rating indicates a fourth-, fifth-, or sixth-round candidate. A ‘LV’ rating indicates Limited Viewing of injured players who have not had sufficient viewings to be categorized. Four WHL players were given ‘A’ ratings, including Prince Albert Raiders defenceman Kaiden Guhle, Moose Jaw Warriors defenceman Daemon Hunt, Brandon Wheat Kings defenceman Braden Schneider, and Vancouver Giants forward Justin Sourdif. Guhle, Hunt, and Sourdif raised their profile throughout the summer, competing for Canada at the 2019 Hlinka Gretzky Cup. Schneider won gold at the tournament in 2018 with Canada. Fourteen WHL players earned ‘B’ rating, including Edmonton Oil Kings forward Jake Neighbours and Calgary Hitmen goaltender Jack McNaughton. Twenty-six more players earned ‘C’ ratings. In total, 21 of 22 WHL member Clubs are represented in the ‘Players to Watch’ list. The Portland Winterhawks lead all WHL teams with five players on this year’s initial list, followed by four from the defending WHL Champion Prince Albert Raiders. The Brandon Wheat Kings, Edmonton Oil Kings, Kamloops Blazers, Lethbridge Hurricanes, and Vancouver Giants each have three players listed. Six WHL teams are represented by a pair of players while eight have a single player on the list. The positional breakdown of this year’s initial list favours WHL forwards, with 22 named to the list. The blue line has strong representation as well, providing 17 names to the list. Five WHL goaltenders also made the grade. Eleven WHL players selected in the Canadian Hockey League Import Draft were named to the list, including Swift Current Broncos defenceman Kasper Puutio, the first-overall selection from the 2019 CHL Import Draft. 2020 NHL CENTRAL SCOUTING PRELIMINARY ‘PLAYERS TO WATCH’ – WHL PLAYERS Skaters

Goaltenders

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/sixth round candidate

LV (Limited Viewing) – Injured players who have not had sufficient viewings to be categorized.