NHL Draft-Eligible Prospects in the WHL Playoffs

The second round is just getting under way, so let's check in on how all the WHL's draft-eligible prospects are faring.

Aside from the U18 World Championships coming up later this month, the playoffs are the best way for a prospect to increase their reputation ahead of the NHL Draft. Playoff competition is always a different beast than the regular season, allowing some more underrated players to shine. Even if the playoff run ends early, a standout performance will be the last thing scouts will see, which is always good. Conversely, a bad performance can hurt a prospect’s rankings, even if they were strong all season.

With the three CHL leagues’ playoffs underway, I thought it would be interesting to look through the teams who have been eliminated and see which prospects have done the most to their draft stock and who have done the least. For a few, it might be the difference of being drafted at all. I’ve also chosen to focus on eliminated teams since those performances won’t change and I can be a little more confident in my analysis.

Finally, the prospects. Players born between Jan. 1, 2004, and Sep. 15, 2006, are eligible for the 2024 NHL Draft, meaning dozens of prospects are playing in the playoffs right now. I’m not going to highlight all of them because that would take too long to put together, so I’m focusing on just the players featured in the NHL’s Central Scouting midterm ranking, with a few exceptions that I’ll highlight below.

With the guidelines set, let’s get into the players, in no particular order, who have done the most for their draft potential in the WHL.

Rising

Berkly Catton (C, Spokane Chiefs)

You might not have thought that Berkly Catton could rise any more this season, but he all but guaranteed himself a spot in the top six at the draft after his playoff performance. Aside from the Raiders, the Spokane Chiefs had one of the most unenviable matchups in the playoffs, forced to take on the lethal Prince George Cougars, and after four games, the series was finished. But Catton continued to impress.