Where Are They Now?
A Look Back at WHL Prospects
Congratulations, you’ve been selected in the 1st round of the WHL Prospects Draft. Now what? First line, top pairing, all things easy moving forward? Not so quick. The work to get this opportunity has just begun. There are around 200 players selected in the draft each year, all fighting for a chance to crack the junior lineups. With only 20 spots on the roster, it’s not an easy task to complete. There are many different reasons why some players don’t pan out and ever crack the junior and pro ranks, but for those who do, you can guarantee it came from lots of hard work. Some of the Manitoba born players that have been fortunate enough to be drafted in the WHL, have had success in the league while others have taken different paths and some just never cracked the lists.
Players drafted in the 5th round, 7th round, 10th round or even the undrafted players still want those same opportunities as the first rounders. These players may not have been the breakout stars or the biggest kids during the Bantam seasons but have developed into everyday roster players or even superstars. The development curve for each player is different and you never know when the big step will be taken. Looking at a list of top prospects, some players further down the charts or even those undrafted players, never give up on your goals and chase those dreams.
Starting with the 2005 born players up until the 2008’s, here’s a look at some of the top prospects or rising stars from over the years and what they have accomplished since draft day.
2020 WHL Draft (2005 Birth Year)
2nd Round - 23rd overall - Jayden Perron – Portland Winterhawks Jayden Perron was a top-tier prospect heading into the WHL Draft. Through his 2 seasons at the U15AAA level with the former club Winnipeg Warriors, he put up massive numbers in just 66 games. Perron scored 76 goals and added 78 assists. In the 18 playoff games, he added 36 points. Perron’s fall in the WHL draft was due to the fact that he might be joining the USHL and NCAA instead. During the covid shortened season, he joined the Sioux Falls Power U16 Prep School. After committing to the Chicago Steel of the USHL, he later accepted an offer to UND in Div I hockey. Perron was eventually taken in the 3rd round of the NHL Entry Draft by the Carolina Hurricanes.
2nd Round - 28th overall - Lukas Hansen – Saskatoon Blades Another member of the loaded Winnipeg Warriors team, Hansen finished 2nd in points behind Perron with 62 goals and 66 assists in 63 games. He made the Bruins U18 team and then made the jump right to the WHL contributing on the teams 3rd line. He has played in over 140 games for the Blades.
2nd Round - 29th overall - Brayden Dube – Seattle Thunderbirds
Brayden Dube played his minor hockey in Roblin, Manitoba and suited up for the Parkland Rangers AAA program at both U15 and U18. In his major aged season, Dube saw his name on the scoresheet in 34 of his 36 games where he totalled an astounding 74 goals and 56 assists besting his closest competitors by 28 goals and 26 points. He started his junior career playing with the Dauphin Kings in the MJHL finishing 4th on the team in points and winning the provincial title getting a chance to play in the Centennial Cup where he scored 4 goals in 5 games. Dube made the jump to Seattle the following season only playing 14 games before getting traded in a blockbuster deal to the Prince Albert Raiders. Seattle went on to win the championship that season. Brayden has now played in over 100 games for the franchise for the Raiders
5th Round - 97th overall - Carter Sotheran – Portland Winterhawks A native of Sanford, Manitoba, Sotheran grew up playing for the Pembina Valley Hawks AAA program. As a 6’3, 200lb defenceman, Sotheran is a transition ace who consistently creates favourable situations up ice with patience and skill. He put up solid numbers at U15 and took a big jump in his sophomore season at U18. Having now played 2 full seasons with the Portland Winterhawks, Sotheran has gained confidence in the league and is producing at a higher level offensively. He scored 13 goals and added 40 assists from the backend. Through three rounds of the playoffs he had 11 points and was a +20 before an unfortunate injury occurred after blocking a trio of shots. Carter was selected by the Philadelphia Flyers in the 5th round of the 2023 NHL Entry Draft and is projected to be in their lineup in a few years.
7th Round - 148th Overall - Aiden Ziprick – Lethbridge Hurricanes Through 2 seasons at U15AAA with the Parkland Rangers, Ziprick played 72 games and tallied 14 goals, 38 assists and 44PIMs. Ziprick was acquired in September 2023 by the Moose Jaw Warriors for a 6th round pick in the 2026 WHL Prospects Draft. The 6’1 defenceman from Russell has spent parts of the lasts 2 seasons in the WHL. After making the jump from Waywayseecappo to Lethbridge mid-season, he became a regular for the Warriors as they made their run to the Memorial Cup.
2021 WHL Draft (2006 Birth Year)
1st Round - 6th Overall - Clarke Caswell – Swift Current Broncos A young phenom, Caswell dominated his peers at a young age. In his Bantam seasons, he travelled to Pursuit of Excellence in Kelowna before it was bought and renamed by RINK Hockey Academy. He returned to his hometown of Brandon to play for the U18 Wheat Kings. In just 38 games he totalled 35 goals and 53 assists. He was recalled by the Broncos for 3 games during his 15-year-old season and then became a full-time player the following year where he was named to the World Under 17 Canada Black team. Entered his NHL Draft year, he finished the season with 26 goals and 51 assists. Caswell is known as a playmaking specialist with good hustle and vision. His transition game is hit-or-miss, but when its working, Caswell can create entries with his skating or passing, find targets early in rush sequences, hold onto pucks through checks, and display an expert delay game. While it may be difficult to translate his offence to higher levels, the upside of a middle-six playmaker is within reach. Ranked as high as 41st by The Hockey News and as low as #77 by NHL Central Scouting, expect Caswell to be drafted somewhere in the middle rounds.
1st Round - 7th Overall - Josh Fluker – Swift Current Broncos Despite being an undersized defenceman at 5’11, 161 pounds, Fluker is regarded as a top end shutdown defenceman that shows grit and intelligence. You can imagine how difficult it would be to move away from family at 16. Fluker got settled in Swift Current, had great friends and was on a good team but before he knew it, he was another player involved in a WHL blockbuster deal this season where he was traded to Wenatchee for fellow Manitoban, Conor Geekie. These situations can take a toll on young players and affect their game. In his rookie season, he was able to dress in 10 games where he added 5 assists. The points didn’t come as easy in following seasons but it is is defensive ability that is most noticed. He earned a spot on the U17 Canada Black team. Josh is ranked 216th by NHL Central Scouting for North American Skaters.
4th Round - 85th Overall - Hayden Moore – Winnipeg ICE A small forward, standing at only 5’9 and 154 pounds, Moore dominated the U18AAA league as a sophomore where he put up 35 goals and 39 assists. He played 2 games for Winnipeg ICE before relocation and in his first season with Wenatchee, scored 14 goals and 18 assists along with 46PIMs
6th Round - 132nd Overall - Carter Bear – Everett Silvertips The 6’0 172lbs left-handed forward from West St Paul put up over 100 points in his 2 seasons with the U18 Thrashers. Bear was called up for 10 games in November/December during his 16-year-old season and then recalled again for 9 games in March. Now in his first full season, he posted 25 goals and 32 assists and was +23. Carter was named Rookie of the Month for January after scoring 9 goals, 10 assists in 13 games during a 10-game point streak. One scout said the best element to Carter’s game was the creativity he showed in his stickhandling and ways he found to attack the net.
10th Round - 204th Overall - Dimitri Fortin – Moose Jaw Warriors Born in Quebec, Dimitri grew up in Winnipeg and played for the Winnipeg Warriors and Winnipeg Bruins AAA clubs. He posted 18-6-0 record with 2.52GAA and .911sv% in his final season with the Bruins. Dimitri made the jump to the WHL this year where he backed up in Moose Jaw only getting into 12 games where he went 6-4-1 with a 3.42GAA and a .901sv%. He was named Rookie of the Week on March 17, 2024 where he went 2-0 with a 1.70GAA and .938sv%. Fortin made 2 playoff appearances in relief, most notably, a strong performance in game 5 versus Saskatoon where he entered the game down 4-0 and made 24 straight saves before falling in overtime 5-4. His team went onto win the WHL Championship and now will be playing in the Memorial Cup.
2022 WHL Draft - 2007 Birth Year
1st Round - 5th Overall - Cole Temple – Regina Pats A top end prospect entering the draft, Temple put up large numbers. He had 58 goals and 50 assists in just 28 games with the U15 Wheat Kings and then 25 goals 33 assists in 35 U18 games. The Regina Pats are in a rebuild after the departure of Connor Bedard, finishing dead last in Eastern Conference. Being on a struggling team and being a 16-year-old rookie, it will take some time to transition from AAA to Junior hockey. That has been the case for Temple as the offence hasn’t translated as easy as expected for the 5th overall pick only scored 6 goals and 13 assists in 57 games this season. “We’ve flipped him to centre and I think that he’s a high IQ kid and he skates really well. So, if you can skate like that and make transitions at these levels of hockey, it makes it a lot easier for people. Every game he’s gotten better,” said Coach Herauf. Temple was named to the Canada U17 team where he put up 6 points in 8 games and won gold!
1st Round - 6th Overall - Peyton Kettles – Swift Current Broncos Kettles played his 14 and 15-year-old seasons with Rink Hockey Academy Winnipeg. He has made a seamless jump to the WHL this year playing in 61 games, scoring 2 goals adding 11 assists. He racked up 44PIMs and finished +19. As a big player, Kettles isn’t afraid to shift momentum his teams way as he was assessed 4 fighting majors this season. The scouts have been very impressed with Kettles this season. One scout has these comments, “Standing at 6'5, 176lbs, and shoots right; this player has the potential to become a stud. Not only does he own great size, but he can move with it which is the most important part of it all. Very strong 4-way mobility, he's very fluid on his feet and can change directions in a pinch both with the puck and without.” Kettles was also named to Canada Red at the Under 17 World Hockey Challenge. His brother Chase, a goalie, was just drafted to Prince Albert this season.
1st Round - 18th Overall - Graham Jones – Portland Winterhawks Portland is well-known for drafting small, skilled forwards. Manitoban’s will recognize the names of Nic Petan, Seth Jarvis, Skyler McKenzie, Brendan Leipsic and Chase De Leo. Last year was no different as they took their chance on Jones. A first-round pick in the NHL is must hit for the organization. In the WHL, the teams are very hopeful their first rounders will pan out. Unfortunately for Portland, Jones will never see the WHL. Standing at only 5’8, 140lbs, Jones made the decision to play college hockey which matches his skill set much more than the rough and tough WHL. He played with RINK Hockey Academy leading the team by over 30 points where he scored 33 and assisted on 48. He then made the move south for his 15-year-old season to join the prestigious school at Shattuck St. Marys. He will play for the U18 program next season after torching the U16 league putting up 80 points in 57 games. In 2025, he will join the Boston College Eagles in Division I NCAA. He is one of the most slippery players shifting side to side on his inside edges with fluidity and control. He may not be the biggest, fastest, or strongest but his ability to read the play gives Jones and his team an advantage when he’s on the ice.
2nd Round – 27th Overall - Owen Martin – Spokane Chiefs. The Oakbank native, Martin played his Bantam seasons with his regional Eastman Selects team. He led the league in goals with 61. He later joined the RINK Hockey Academy for his first season at U18. Martin joined a team that is in transition from being at the bottom of the standings during their rebuild to now making playoffs. He scored 14 goals and added 10 assists and was named Spokane Chiefs Rookie of the Year.
5th Round - 97th Overall - Brady Turko – Brandon Wheat Kings Brady Turko played his minor hockey in the Parkland region before being acquired by the Brandon Wheat Kings region. Turko took a big step this year netting 41 goals in 41 games in the regular season, another 9 goals in 9 games in the playoffs, 4 goals in 4 games in the Western Regionals including the overtime winner and then 8 goals in 7 games at the Telus Cup national tournament. A true sniper, Brady Turko was named U18 Western Region Player of the Year by the Canadian Elite Hockey League. Turko was called up the WHL club for 7 games this season where he scored his first WHL goal and added 2 assists. Expect to see Turko, along with Jacobson and Odut, a line that has been together for 3 seasons playing together again next year with the WHL Brandon Wheat Kings. We may even get to see him play with his brother Easten, who was selected by Brandon in this year's draft.
11th Round - 230th Overall - Hubert Clarke – Prince Albert Raiders A big left-handed defenceman standing at 6’3, 190lbs, Clarke made the move from Norway House First Nation to Winnipeg to play with the AAA Thrashers organization for 2 seasons and then moved again to Edmonton to play with the Northern Alberta Xtreme (NAX) Prep School. Since having a strong season with the U17 & U18 teams, he has committed to play Division I hockey at Western Michigan University. He was recently drafted by Youngstown Phantoms in the 4th round of the USHL Draft.
As you can see, there are quite a few top end players that have had success in the WHL or NCAA. This is exactly what most people expected from those first-round draft picks. The best stories come from those in the middle or near the bottom of the draft. Seeing players that have been drafted in the 5th round or later go on to have great success is a testament to their dedication and hard work. Each of those players should be extremely proud of their development and we can all agree that it wouldn’t be achieved without the support of family, friends and coaches. We’ll be keeping an eye on the 2007/2008 players this season as they take on larger roles or step into the WHL for the first time. To the 2010 players entering their draft year, put your head down and get to work. As you can see, whether you’re a first rounder or a tenth rounder, the difference you can make on your hockey journey is up to you.