The local breakdown for players of local interest hearing their name called during the now-completed N-H-L Draft in Nashville is impressive to be sure.

Seven young men with ties to Saskatoon Minor Hockey, two members of the Blades and a Prince Albert Raider now have affiliations with an N-H-L team. Moose Jaw forward Brayden Yager was the first SMHA grad taken, by Pittsburgh in the first round Wednesday night. Thursday, it was Red Deer winger Kalan Lind and Prince George forward Riley Heidt in the second round by Nashville and Minnesota, respectively. Then, it was Kelowna defenceman Caden Price by Seattle in the third round. In the fifth round, it was Brooks Bandits’ forward Hudson Malinoski by Toronto with the Maple Leafs taking Lethbridge defenceman Noah Chadwick in the sixth round plus Victoria blue-liner Kalem Parker in the sixth by the Wild. The P-A Raider selected was defenceman Terrell Goldsmith by Arizona in the fourth round while the two Blades picked were D-man Tanner Molendyk in the first round Wednesday night by the Draft host Predators and winger Egor Sidorov Thursday in the third round by Anaheim. In total, 33 W-H-L players were drafted, of course led by the first overall pick Wednesday night in Connor Bedard of the Regina Pats by Chicago. Following are news releases from the W-H-L, the Saskatoon Blades and the Prince Albert Raiders…..

33 WHL PLAYERS SELECTED IN 2023 NHL DRAFT

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE / THURSDAY, JUNE 29, 2023

Nashville, Tenn. – The Western Hockey League is proud to announce 33 WHL players have been selected in the 2023 NHL Draft, which was hosted Wednesday, June 28 and Thursday, June 29 at Bridgestone Arena.

Since the 1967 NHL Amateur Draft, a total of 2,162 players have been selected out of the WHL, including 339 first-round selections. Of the 80 players selected out of the Canadian Hockey League at the 2023 NHL Draft, 41 per cent hail from the WHL.

The 2023 NHL Draft also marked the second consecutive NHL Draft in which the WHL was the most-represented league among the players chosen in the first round.

Wednesday night, six WHL players were selected in the first round of the 2023 NHL Draft, led by Regina Pats captain Connor Bedard, the first-overall selection by the Chicago Blackhawks. Five of the top 16 selections hailed from the WHL; Brandon Wheat Kings co-captain Nate Danielson was selected ninth overall by the Detroit Red Wings, Winnipeg ICE forward Zach Benson was selected 13th overall by the Buffalo Sabres, Moose Jaw Warriors forward Brayden Yager was taken 14th overall by the Pittsburgh Penguins while Vancouver Giants forward Samuel Honzek went 16th overall to the Calgary Flames. Saskatoon Blades defenceman Tanner Molendyk was the top WHL blueliner chosen in the 2023 NHL Draft, going 24th overall to the Nashville Predators.

The second round began with a WHL selection, as Seattle Thunderbirds forward Nico Myatovic was chosen 33rd overall by the Anaheim Ducks before Kelowna Rockets forward Andrew Cristall rounded out the top 40 picks, going 40th overall to the Washington Capitals.

The 2023 NHL Draft marks the 15th time in the past 17 years in which the WHL has seen five or more players selected in the first round of the NHL Draft. With six more WHL players chosen in the first round of the NHL Draft, the WHL’s all-time total number of first-round NHL Draft selections sits at 333 since the 1967 NHL Amateur Draft.

Of the 33 WHL players selected, 17 were called during the first three rounds of the 2022 NHL Draft, including six in the first round, seven in the second round, and four in the third round.

The WHL Champion Seattle Thunderbirds led the way among WHL Clubs with six players selected. In addition to the selection of Myatovic with the 33rd-overall pick, forward Gracyn Sawchyn was selected 63rd overall by the Florida Panthers. In the third round, defenceman Sawyer Mynio was taken 89th overall by the Vancouver Canucks before goaltending partners Scott Ratzlaff (141st, Buffalo Sabres) and Thomas Milic (151st, Winnipeg Jets) were selected in the fifth round.

The Brandon Wheat Kings had three players selected in the 2023 NHL Draft, while eight WHL Clubs, the Everett Silvertips, Kamloops Blazers, Kelowna Rockets, Portland Winterhawks, Prince George Cougars, Saskatoon Blades, Vancouver Giants and Victoria Royals, all saw two players chosen. The Edmonton Oil Kings, Lethbridge Hurricanes, Moose Jaw Warriors, Prince Albert Raiders, Red Deer Rebels, Regina Pats, Tri-City Americans and Winnipeg ICE each had one player selected at the 2023 NHL Draft.

2023 NHL Draft – WHL Players
Overall – Player (Pos.) – NHL Team; WHL Team; Hometown

Round One (6)
#1 Connor Bedard (F) – Chicago Blackhawks; Regina Pats; North Vancouver, B.C.
#9 Nate Danielson (F) – Detroit Red Wings; Brandon Wheat Kings; Red Deer, Alta.
#13 Zach Benson (F) – Buffalo Sabres; Winnipeg ICE; Chilliwack, B.C.
#14 Brayden Yager (F) – Pittsburgh Penguins; Moose Jaw Warriors; Saskatoon, Sask.
#16 Samuel Honzek (F) – Calgary Flames; Vancouver Giants; Trencin, Slovakia
#24 Tanner Molendyk (D) – Nashville Predators; Saskatoon Blades; McBride, B.C.

Round Two (7)
#33 – Nico Myatovic (F) – Anaheim Ducks; Seattle Thunderbirds; Prince George, B.C.
#40 – Andrew Cristall (F) – Washington Capitals; Kelowna Rockets; Burnaby, B.C.
#46 – Kalan Lind (F) – Nashville Predators; Red Deer Rebels; Shaunavon, Sask.
#51 – Carson Bjarnason (G) – Philadelphia Flyers; Brandon Wheat Kings; Carberry, Man.
#57 – Lukas Dragicevic (D) – Seattle Kraken; Tri-City Americans; Richmond, B.C.
#63 – Gracyn Sawchyn (F) – Florida Panthers; Seattle Thunderbirds; Grande Prairie, Alta.
#64 – Riley Heidt (F) – Minnesota Wild; Prince George Cougars; Saskatoon, Sask.

Round Three (4)
#78 – Koehn Ziemmer (F) – Los Angeles Kings; Prince George Cougars; Mayerthorpe, Alta.
#84 – Caden Price (D) – Seattle Kraken; Kelowna Rockets; Saskatoon, Sask.
#85 – Egor Sidorov (F) – Anaheim Ducks; Saskatoon Blades; Vitebsk, Belarus
#89 – Sawyer Mynio (D) – Vancouver Canucks; Seattle Thunderbirds; Kamloops, B.C.

Round Four (3)
#102 – Terrell Goldsmith (D) – Arizona Coyotes; Prince Albert Raiders; Fort St. James, B.C.
#112 – Jaden Lipinski (F) – Calgary Flames; Vancouver Giants; Scottsdale, Ariz.
#123 – Luca Cagnoni (D) – San Jose Sharks; Portland Winterhawks; Burnaby, B.C.

Round Five (5)
#135 – Carter Sotheran (D) – Philadelphia Flyers; Portland Winterhawks; Sanford, Man.
#141 – Scott Ratzlaff (G) – Buffalo Sabres; Seattle Thunderbirds; Irma, Alta.
#148 – Kaden Hammell (D) – Seattle Kraken; Everett Silvertips; Langley, B.C.
#151 – Thomas Milic (G) – Winnipeg Jets; Seattle Thunderbirds; Coquitlam, B.C.
#160 – Justin Kipkie (D) – Arizona Coyotes; Victoria Royals; Calgary, Alta.

Round Six (5)
#161 – Vojtech Port (D) – Anaheim Ducks; Edmonton Oil Kings; Jihlava, Czechia
#175 – Austin Roest (F) – Nashville Predators; Everett Silvertips; Coldstream, B.C.
#181 – Kalem Parker (D) – Minnesota Wild; Victoria Royals; Clavet, Sask.
#185 – Noah Chadwick (D) – Toronto Maple Leafs; Lethbridge Hurricanes; Saskatoon, Sask.
#187 – Jeremy Hanzel (D) – Colorado Avalanche; Seattle Thunderbirds; Coquitlam, B.C.

Round Seven (3)
#200 – Brett Hyland (F) – Washington Capitals; Brandon Wheat Kings; Edmonton, Alta.
#201 – Emmitt Finnie (F) – Detroit Red Wings; Kamloops Blazers; Lethbridge, Alta.
#210 – Connor Levis (F) – Winnipeg Jets; Kamloops Blazers; Vancouver, B.C.

It was a big day for Terrell Goldsmith in his hockey career, as he heard his name called on Thursday in the NHL Draft. The defenceman was selected in the fourth round, 102nd overall by the Arizona Coyotes.

Goldsmith, a Fort St. James, B.C. product, recently finished his third season with the Raiders in the WHL. In 58 games during the 2023-24 regular season, he registered three goals and added nine assists to go along with 102 penalty minutes.

In 119 total WHL games, the 6’3”, 220 pound d-man has seven goals and eight assists, with 156 penalty minutes. He becomes the first Raider since Nolan Allan (2021) to be selected in the NHL Draft.

You can see Goldsmith and the rest of the Raiders in action when the 2023 WHL pre-season kicks off on September 6th, when Prince Albert hosts the Saskatoon Blades at the Jim Neilson Arena in Big River First Nation.

The 2023-24 WHL regular season kicks off for the Raiders on Friday, September 22nd, when the team welcomes the Moose Jaw Warriors to the Art Hauser Centre for their home opener.