D Ryan Lin - Vancouver Giants, WHL (2026 Draft)

[GermanSpitfire]

Ryan Lin - Stats, Contract, Salary & More

Eliteprospects.com hockey player profile of Ryan Lin, 2008-04-18 Richmond, BC, CAN Canada. Most recently in the WHL with Vancouver Giants. Complete player biography and stats.

www.eliteprospects.com

One of the best defenders available out of western Canada for the 2008 age group. Lin has been seen as a top defender in this age group for while, combines excellent decision making and positioning in both the offensive and defensive zones with physical play, and a calmness to his game. He should go quite high In the upcoming WHL draft and is an exiting prospect moving forward.

Click to read more...

 

[GermanSpitfire]

 

[landy92mack29]

There were college worries with him but went to local team and now signed. Going to be a good one

 

[czech]

Looked good in the u17 league playoffs.

 

[Bubbles]

2A tonight. He looks very poised out there for a 16 year old D.

 

[Pip]

He has looked awesome even going back to the playoffs last year. Extremely poised and had a great preseason so I’m not surprised by the strong start. Really excited to see how much offence he can produce at this level as the rest of his game is so polished.

 

[Bubbles]

Crazy game, tonight, 4-1 for Kamloops in the first, and the Giants come back and win 8-6.

3A more for Lin. Putting up serious numbers.

 

[Hockeyville USA]

8 GP 10 A, solid D-1 start.

 

[Pip]

10 GP, 13A after 2 primary assists last night. Has bumped 19 year old Mazden Leslie off the top unit on the powerplay. Feels like he’s getting super close to potting his first goal. Very mature game for a 16 year old, often having to be the more responsible one on his pair with Leslie.

 

[Ryan Van Horne]

10 GP, 13A after 2 primary assists last night. Has bumped 19 year old Mazden Leslie off the top unit on the powerplay. Feels like he’s getting super close to potting his first goal. Very mature game for a 16 year old, often having to be the more responsible one on his pair with Leslie.

Thanks for sharing your insight. He's made quite an impression, not just on his team, but on other teams as well, as this article attests.

Vancouver Giants rookie D-man Ryan Lin drawing rave reviews — including from Kelowna Rockets GM

Lin, who's 2026 NHL Draft eligible, is 'one of the better young defencemen I’ve seen in a long time,' says Rockets GM Bruce Hamilton.

theprovince.com

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

I thought Lin did well at the WHC17. As some have said, mature game. I question if maybe a little too mature at this age compared to some of the others. He was better defensively than I expected. Does he have a high ceiling is my main question? 5'11 defenseman. Offensive ability and skating is not bad, but is it NHL caliber unless he grows taller than 5'11 or 6'0?

I think we're probably talking about an early round pick, but the ceiling could see him be a slider as time goes by.

 

[MS]

I thought Lin did well at the WHC17. As some have said, mature game. I question if maybe a little too mature at this age compared to some of the others. He was better defensively than I expected. Does he have a high ceiling is my main question? 5'11 defenseman. Offensive ability and skating is not bad, but is it NHL caliber unless he grows taller than 5'11 or 6'0?

I think we're probably talking about an early round pick, but the ceiling could see him be a slider as time goes by.

We saw a continual trend of smallish defenders getting drafted higher and higher between 2000 and 2020 and it's now moving the other way, and it's going to be really hard to be drafted in the first round again as a sub-6'0 defender unless your offensive skill level is off-the-charts.

 

[FourQuarters]

2a last night, 19pts in 21gp. Really smart player.

 

[pgfan66]

We saw a continual trend of smallish defenders getting drafted higher and higher between 2000 and 2020 and it's now moving the other way, and it's going to be really hard to be drafted in the first round again as a sub-6'0 defender unless your offensive skill level is off-the-charts.

And the issue isn’t that the league is reverting to D-men who bring nothing but size. It’s just that 6-foot-3 D these days are more and more skilled and teams would rather have a 6-foot-3 two-way D than a 5-foot-10 two-way D, if given the choice.

 

[Bubbles]

Saw him live against Kelowna. Really controls the speed of the game when he has the puck. When he doesn't have it, his positioning is solid. Covers for Leslie who can be a bit of a wildcard sometimes.

Doesn't shoot nearly enough and doesn't have a good shot. But an excellent passer.

Being overshadowed by a Dupont, but he's put up a very solid season as a rookie in the Dub.

 

[lawrence]

I thought Lin did well at the WHC17. As some have said, mature game. I question if maybe a little too mature at this age compared to some of the others. He was better defensively than I expected. Does he have a high ceiling is my main question? 5'11 defenseman. Offensive ability and skating is not bad, but is it NHL caliber unless he grows taller than 5'11 or 6'0?

I think we're probably talking about an early round pick, but the ceiling could see him be a slider as time goes by.

but hes 5'11 at the age of 16. Which means he can be 6'0 or 6'1 by the time he's hits his draft year. 23 points in 30 games for a 16 year old dman, extremely impressive. Would love to see a "Lin" Play for Vancouver.

 

[wetcoast]

Lin looks pretty good so far and I wonder where he gets drafted compared to Carson Carels who is doing quite well in Prince George this year.

 

[Bubbles]

Lin looks pretty good so far and I wonder where he gets drafted compared to Carson Carels who is doing quite well in Prince George this year.

Hard to say now, they are similar at the moment in terms of development. Slight nod to Lin as he plays on a much crappier team.

 

[Bubbles]

3A tonight. The assist in the vid shows his skills, great edges, ability to recognize moving in instead of backing up, and the pass is pure class.

 

[Pip]

Up to 37 points in 41 games. Such a smart player and impressive skater.

 

[Hockeyville USA]

Surprised he isn't getting talked about more for 2026. Really really good so far in the Dub.

 

[Ryan Van Horne]

I am really liking what I see so far.

 

[wetcoast]

Surprised he isn't getting talked about more for 2026. Really really good so far in the Dub.

Another 2 assists tonight to raise his line to 48-5-38-43 +10.

Like others have said he doesn't have a great shot and looks mature even if not uber sexy like Dupont.

Excellent WHL class for 26 especially for defenders.

 

[Ryan Van Horne]

Another 2 assists tonight to raise his line to 48-5-38-43 +10.

Like others have said he doesn't have a great shot and looks mature even if not uber sexy like Dupont.

Excellent WHL class for 26 especially for defenders.

Quinn Hughes doesn't have a great shot either and Evan Bouchard has a bomb for a shot. Who would you rather have? Not saying Lin will be as good as Hughes, but there's a place for this style of defenceman. Also, he's only 16 so let him fill out a bit and maybe his shot will get stronger.

 

[StreetHawk]

Quinn Hughes doesn't have a great shot either and Evan Bouchard has a bomb for a shot. Who would you rather have? Not saying Lin will be as good as Hughes, but there's a place for this style of defenceman. Also, he's only 16 so let him fill out a bit and maybe his shot will get stronger.

He needs time to fill out. I don't expect him to be a 200 lb plus Dman. More likely, for his height, more like Bieksa who was 6'1 and maybe 200 lbs when he played. Style is very different, just commenting on the size.

Is he going to be a future NHL PP1 Dman? Or is he more likely to be on the 2nd unit with another Dman which is typical of most NHL clubs.