Post your 2025 draft list

[ValeriKamensky]

Not ready to post even top-15, but Carter Bear is my breakout man

 

[BKarchitect]

Feels like very early on, if we were doing reactionary weekly power rankings…

Martone and Misa probably right up with Hagens in a three-way contest for #1. Hagens is really just getting going in his NCAA season so this is more about the two OHL guys blowing up. Martone’s size and projection is incredible but the other two are true dynamic centers so it would come down to team needs and traits. This feels like 2023 a bit, minus Bedard factor - just get me a top 3 pick and I know I’m gonna get a foundational piece.

Tier 1: Hagens, Martone, Misa

Frondell probably temporarily drops out of Tier 1 simply due to coming back from injury and rust. Same with Schaefer. I don’t think McQueen is quite the level of the tier 1 guys but he should be right behind them.

Tier 2: Frondell, Schaefer, McQueen

Of the rest, I think you have to drop Ryabkin out of the top two tiers due to his start-stop situation - but he’s got the talent to get back in the convo. I think Eklund 2.0 might have the best chance of all the forwards to crash the top groups….he’s having a great season in Sweden.

As far as challenging Schaefer on the blueline - Hensler has the tools but will need more freshman level production and that may be hard to do on UW. I think Jackson Smith may be the guy to watch…his got a great combo of size, skill and production and big two-way WHL defenders tend to go high. Mrtka’s traits may put him up there as well. I think there are lots of good defenseman prospects in the middle and late 1st but this doesn’t appear to be a great defenseman draft if you are picking super high. Definitely not as good as 2024 though I think Schaefer has the potential to be the best of both years.

Schmidt has taken the lead among the mini-stars with his incredible start, with Benak still adjusting to North America and Mooney shelved.

Big risers: Bear, Behm, Sharpe, Genborg, Lakovic, Potter, Carbonneau, Cootes, Cihar. Somebody is going to take Genborg in the first round, he’s an animal.

Too early to single out fallers but disappointed in Gavin’s start and most of the USNTDPs.

Side note: This is gonna be the Canadian, Swedish and goalie draft. The CHL crops look great…the high end OHL talent, WHL depth and at least a trio of potential high Q picks. Everybody has known about the Swedish 07 group for years and add in Eklund. And tons of goalie prospects. As suspected, the American 07’s and Finnish crop look weak. Russian crop looks wild cardish at best. Czech’s look pretty interesting.

 

[Briser la glace]

Feels like very early on, if we were doing reactionary weekly power rankings…

Martone and Misa probably right up with Hagens in a three-way contest for #1. Hagens is really just getting going in his NCAA season so this is more about the two OHL guys blowing up. Martone’s size and projection is incredible but the other two are true dynamic centers so it would come down to team needs and traits. This feels like 2023 a bit, minus Bedard factor - just get me a top 3 pick and I know I’m gonna get a foundational piece.

Tier 1: Hagens, Martone, Misa

Frondell probably temporarily drops out of Tier 1 simply due to coming back from injury and rust. Same with Schaefer. I don’t think McQueen is quite the level of the tier 1 guys but he should be right behind them.

Tier 2: Frondell, Schaefer, McQueen

Of the rest, I think you have to drop Ryabkin out of the top two tiers due to his start-stop situation - but he’s got the talent to get back in the convo. I think Eklund 2.0 might have the best chance of all the forwards to crash the top groups….he’s having a great season in Sweden.

As far as challenging Schaefer on the blueline - Hensler has the tools but will need more freshman level production and that may be hard to do on UW. I think Jackson Smith may be the guy to watch…his got a great combo of size, skill and production and big two-way WHL defenders tend to go high. Mrtka’s traits may put him up there as well. I think there are lots of good defenseman prospects in the middle and late 1st but this doesn’t appear to be a great defenseman draft if you are picking super high. Definitely not as good as 2024 though I think Schaefer has the potential to be the best of both years.

Schmidt has taken the lead among the mini-stars with his incredible start, with Benak still adjusting to North America and Mooney shelved.

Big risers: Bear, Behm, Sharpe, Genborg, Lakovic, Potter, Carbonneau, Cootes, Cihar. Somebody is going to take Genborg in the first round, he’s an animal.

Too early to single out fallers but disappointed in Gavin’s start and most of the USNTDPs.

Side note: This is gonna be the Canadian, Swedish and goalie draft. The CHL crops look great…the high end OHL talent, WHL depth and at least a trio of potential high Q picks. Everybody has known about the Swedish 07 group for years and add in Eklund. And tons of goalie prospects. As suspected, the American 07’s and Finnish crop look weak. Russian crop looks wild cardish at best. Czech’s look pretty interesting.

Genborg

 

[JotAlan]

My current top 10:

1. James Hagens
2. Michael Misa
3. Porter Martone
4. Matthew Schaefer
5. Anton Frondell
6. Ivan Ryabkin
7. Logan Hensler
8. Roger McQueen
9. Victor Eklund
10. Cullen Potter

 

[kayhud]

My current top 10:

1. James Hagens
2. Michael Misa
3. Porter Martone
4. Matthew Schaefer
5. Anton Frondell
6. Ivan Ryabkin
7. Logan Hensler
8. Roger McQueen
9. Victor Eklund
10. Cullen Potter

Surprised to see Potter that high. What makes him a top ten prospect in your eyes?

 

[DudeWhereIsMakar]

I have a rough draft of the top three but it can change.

1. Michael Misa
2. James Hagens
3. Porter Martone

 

[JotAlan]

Surprised to see Potter that high. What makes him a top ten prospect in your eyes?

It's a personal taste. The sum of skating and qi impresses me. If he were taller and stronger I would see a case for the top 5. But it is very likely that he will be somewhere between the end of the first and beginning of the second round.

 

[Quinnisinoverhishead]

Misa is going 1

 

[MoneyManny]

Frustrations 4 Hagens

 

[Favin]

Rough back-of-envelope

1. Hagens

2. Martone
3. Hensler
4. Schaefer

5. Frondell
6. Misa
7. Ryabkin

8. Moore
9. McQueen
10. Spence

Really curious where top dmen land

 

[newmanager]

1 Michael Misa
2 Porter Martone
3 James Hagens
4 Roger McQueen
5 Anton Frondell
6 Matthew Schaefer
7 Ivan Ryabkin
8 Caleb Desnoyers
9 Radim Mrtka
10 Malcolm Spence
11 Artyom Vilchinsky
12 Jakob Ihs Wozniak
13 Victor Eklund
14 Jackson Smith
15 Logan Hensler

 

[macbowes]

Spoiler: Preseason Top 32

1. James Hagens
2. Matthew Schaefer
3. Porter Martone
4. Ivan Ryabkin
5. Michael Misa
6. Anton Frondell
7. Logan Hensler
8. Roger McQueen
9. William Moore
10. Caleb Desnoyers
11. Brady Martin
12. Charlie Trethaway
13. Malcolm Spence
14. Radim Mrtka
15. Cole Reschny
16. Carter Amico
17. Artyom Vilchinsky
18. Emile Guite
19. Kurban Limatov
20. Jakob Ihs-Wozniak
21. Adam Benak
22. Jake O'Brien
23. Conrad Fondrk
24. Sacha Boumdienne
25. Cole McKinney
26. Jack Ivankovic
27. Luka Radivojevic
28. Joshua Ravensbergen
29. Kashawn Aitchison
30. Jackson Smith
31. Cullen Potter
32. Justin Carbonneau

Spoiler: November Top 32

1. James Hagens
2. Matthew Schaefer
3. Michael Misa
4. Porter Martone
5. Roger McQueen
6. Logan Hensler
7. Anton Frondell
8. Jackson Smith
9. Victor Eklund
10. Caleb Desnoyers
11. Ivan Ryabkin
12. Malcolm Spence
13. Jack Nesbitt
14. Justin Carbonneau
15. Lynden Lakovic
16. Cameron Schmidt
17. Brady Martin
18. Braeden Cootes
19. Jake O'Brien
20. Kashawn Aitcheson
21. Joshua Ravensbergen
22. Radim Mrtka
23. Carter Bear
24. Nathan Behm
25. Cole Reschny
26. Henry Brzustewicz
27. Sascha Boumedienne
28. Blake Fiddler
29. Jakob Ihs-Wozniak
30. Cullen Potter
31. Eddie Genborg
32. Peyton Kettles

 

[MichaelFarrell]

I still don’t feel comfortable with posting a full top 32, but here’s my top 20 as of Nov. 1st.

1	Misa,Michael	Center	OHL	Saginaw Spirit
2	Hagens,James	Center	NCAA	Boston College
3	Martone,Porter	Right Wing	OHL	Brampton Steelheads
4	Eklund,Victor	Left Wing/Right Wing	HA	Djurgårdens IF
5	Schaefer,Matthew	Left Defense	OHL	Erie Otters
6	Ryabkin,Ivan	Center	MHL	MHK Dynamo Moskva
7	Frondell,Anton	Left Wing/Center	J20 Nationell	Djurgårdens IF U20
8	Hensler,Logan	Right Defense	NCAA	University of Wisconsin
9	Lakovic,Lynden	Left Wing	WHL	Moosejaw Warriors
10	Spence,Malcolm	Left Wing	OHL	Erie Otters
11	Schmidt,Cameron	Right Wing	WHL	Vancouver Giants
12	McQueen,Roger	Center/Right Wing	WHL	Brandon Wheat Kings
13	Bear,Carter	Center/Right Wing	WHL	Everett Silvertips
14	Cootes,Braeden	Center	WHL	Seattle Thunderbirds
15	Potter,Cullen	Left Wing/Center	NCAA	Arizona State University
16	Reschny,Cole	Left Wing	WHL	Victoria Royals
17	Desnoyers,Caleb	Center	QMJHL	Moncton Wildcats
18	Aitcheson,Kashawn	Left Defense	OHL	Barrie Colts
19	Bounedienne,Sascha	Left Defense	NCAA	Boston University
20	Smith,Jackson	Left Defense	WHL	Tri-City Americans

 

[Garbageyuk]

1. Hagens
2. Martone
3. Misa
4. Ryabkin
5. McQueen

It’s early; I haven’t really dived into it too much yet. These 5 seem to have distinguished themselves from the rest of the class so far though, especially the first three, although a lot can change between now and draft time.

Ryabkin and McQueen both have a bit of a wildcard element going on compared to the others here, for different reasons.

Should be an interesting year.

 

[landy92mack29]

Pretty good looking WHL class so far and will be helped with Mrtka coming to Seattle but McQueen will need to stay healthy once back along with Hamilton+Gavin getting on the right track or they'll fall. Bear+Lakovic could push for close to top 10 if they keep progressing, Behm+Schmidt have the skill but still have questions how they'll translate to pro hockey.

1-Roger McQueen, C Brandon Wheat Kings Top 10
2-Jackson Smith, LHD Tri-City Americans Top 10
3-Cole Reschny, C Victoria Royals 11-20
4-Joshua Ravensbergen, G Prince George Cougars 15-25
5-Carter Bear, C Everett Silvertips 21-32
6-Lynden Lakovic, W Moose Jaw Warriors 21-32
7-Braden Cootes, C Seattle Thunderbirds 25-40
8-Reese Hamilton, LHD Calgary Hitmen 25-40
9-Nathan Behm, F Kamloops Blazers 2nd
10-Cameron Schmidt, W Vancouver Giants 2nd
11-Ben Kindel, W Calgary Hitmen 2nd
12-Blake Fiddler, RHD Edmonton Oil Kings 2-3
13-Jordan Gavin, W Tri-City Americans 2-3
14-Will Sharpe, LHD Lethbridge Hurricanes 2-3
15-Peyton Kettles, RHD Swift Current Broncos 3-4
16-Matthew Gard, C Red Deer Rebels 3-4
17-Owen Martin, F Spokane Chiefs 3-4
18-Jett Lajoie, W Prince George Cougars 3-4
19-Aaron Obobaifo, W Vancouver Giants 3-4
20-Hayden Paupanekis, C Spokane Chiefs 3-4
21-Matthew Hutchinson, G Vancouver Giants 5-7
22-Ty Coupland, W Swift Current Broncos 5-7
23-Jayden Kraus, G Victoria Royals 5-7
24-David Lewandowski, F Saskatoon Blades 5-7
25-Jett Woo, RHD Medicine Hat Tigers 5-7
26-Ryan Miller, F Portland Winterhawks 5-7
27-Brandon Gorzynski, LHD Calgary Hitmen 5-7
28-Vit Zahejsky, F Kamloops Blazers 5-7
29-Ondrej Stebetak, G Portland Winterhawks 5-7
30-Kadon McCann, C Medicine Hat Tigers 5-7

 

[LeProspector]

Pretty good looking WHL class so far and will be helped with Mrtka coming to Seattle but McQueen will need to stay healthy once back along with Hamilton+Gavin getting on the right track or they'll fall. Bear+Lakovic could push for close to top 10 if they keep progressing, Behm+Schmidt have the skill but still have questions how they'll translate to pro hockey.

1-Roger McQueen, C Brandon Wheat Kings Top 10
2-Jackson Smith, LHD Tri-City Americans Top 10
3-Cole Reschny, C Victoria Royals 11-20
4-Joshua Ravensbergen, G Prince George Cougars 15-25
5-Carter Bear, C Everett Silvertips 21-32
6-Lynden Lakovic, W Moose Jaw Warriors 21-32
7-Braden Cootes, C Seattle Thunderbirds 25-40
8-Reese Hamilton, LHD Calgary Hitmen 25-40
9-Nathan Behm, F Kamloops Blazers 2nd
10-Cameron Schmidt, W Vancouver Giants 2nd
11-Ben Kindel, W Calgary Hitmen 2nd
12-Blake Fiddler, RHD Edmonton Oil Kings 2-3
13-Jordan Gavin, W Tri-City Americans 2-3
14-Will Sharpe, LHD Lethbridge Hurricanes 2-3
15-Peyton Kettles, RHD Swift Current Broncos 3-4
16-Matthew Gard, C Red Deer Rebels 3-4
17-Owen Martin, F Spokane Chiefs 3-4
18-Jett Lajoie, W Prince George Cougars 3-4
19-Aaron Obobaifo, W Vancouver Giants 3-4
20-Hayden Paupanekis, C Spokane Chiefs 3-4
21-Matthew Hutchinson, G Vancouver Giants 5-7
22-Ty Coupland, W Swift Current Broncos 5-7
23-Jayden Kraus, G Victoria Royals 5-7
24-David Lewandowski, F Saskatoon Blades 5-7
25-Jett Woo, RHD Medicine Hat Tigers 5-7
26-Ryan Miller, F Portland Winterhawks 5-7
27-Brandon Gorzynski, LHD Calgary Hitmen 5-7
28-Vit Zahejsky, F Kamloops Blazers 5-7
29-Ondrej Stebetak, G Portland Winterhawks 5-7
30-Kadon McCann, C Medicine Hat Tigers 5-7

I’m glad to see you not think McQueen is a top-5 talent. He could be, but from what I’ve seen this season he lacks the “it” factor that I would want to see for a player taken that high. I’m personally worried he is a Logan Brown, but I do understand the upside there.