Draft pipeline rolls through B.C. again as NHL mid-term rankings revealed

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The best B.C.-connected prospect in this year’s NHL draft conversation might be from Alberta.

But the West Coast angle this winter is strong, with B.C. talent dotted throughout Central Scouting’s rankings.

NHL Central Scouting unveiled its mid-term rankings for the 2026 NHL entry draft, set for June 26-27 in Buffalo, N.Y.

Former Victoria Royal Keaton Vernheoff — a native of Fort Saskatchewan — topped all local connections, ranking second among North American skaters. In addition to his Western Hockey League stint with the Royals last year, Vernheoff also played his prep hockey in Kelowna.

The 17-year-old is coming off a bronze-medal performance with Team Canada at the 2026 World Juniors and is now a freshman at the University of North Dakota.

Vernheoff has four goals and eight assists for 12 points this season, after a record-setting year in Victoria where he posted 21 goals and 24 assists for 45 points in 2024-25.

Verhoeff trails only Yukon native Gavin McKenna among North American skaters. Dan Marr, director of NHL Central Scouting, said the next group, including Verhoeff, consists of top-end prospects.

“The remainder of the first round contains a diverse mix of talented players with the next 8-to-10 considered top-end prospects who will be hard to displace in the second half while the remainder of the first round is considered interchangeable going forward,” Marr said.

Several Vancouver Island and B.C. connections also appeared in the rankings.

Across the province, Richmond’s Ryan Lin of the Vancouver Giants ranked 13th, Penticton’s Mathis Preston of the Giants was 24th, Osoyoos brothers Liam and Markus Ruck were 26th and 31st, Prince George’s Chase Harrington was 32nd, Peachland’s Ethan Mackenzie landed 74th, and Lake Country’s Joe Iginla was listed 124th.

Langford’s Noah Kosick and Giorgos Pantelas were listed 55th and 58th respectively.

Both play in the WHL, with Kosick now skating for the Seattle Thunderbirds after being acquired from Swift Current just prior to the deadline, while Pantelas has spent the past season and a half manning the blue-line with the Brandon Wheat Kings.

Pantelas has two goals and 17 assists for 19 points this season. He was selected to represent Team CHL at the 2025 CHL USA Prospects Challenge in November and won bronze with Canada at the 2025 Hlinka Gretzky Cup.

Kosick has produced 10 goals and 24 assists for 34 points in 39 games.

He is the son of former Victoria Salsa forward Mark Kosick, who later played professionally in Germany, where Noah was born.

Seattle Thunderbirds general manager Bil LaForge said Kosick, who they acquired at the deadline on Jan. 7, was someone they were targeting.

“Noah’s a really exciting offensive talent,” he said in a press release. “Top-end individual skills, very good on the power play. He’s going to be an exciting player for our fans to watch.”

Ladysmith’s Riley Steen of the Medicine Hat Tigers was ranked 188th, while Duncan’s Gavin Lesiuk of the Lethbridge Hurricanes checked in at 177th.

A pair of current Royals are also in the mix.

Defenceman Timofei Runtso was listed 53rd in the midst of an impressive rookie season.

Runtso has seven goals and 25 assists for 32 points, a total that places him 13th among WHL defencemen in scoring.

“Timmy has had a great year thus far. He’s come in and really bought into how he needs to play. He’s a difference maker every night and he’s got a bright future ahead of him,” Royals general manager Jake Heisinger told Victoria News.

Runtso said his attention remains on the Royals, not the upcoming draft, in a Jan. 5 interview with Victoria News.

“At the end of the day, it’s just a ranking,” Runtso said. “Obviously, it’s cool to hear your name, but I just want to help this team win, now.

Nolan Stewart, a two-way forward with the Royals, is ranked 200th.

The Calgary, Alta. native has 10 goals and 21 assists for Victoria this season and has become one of the Royals’ most consistent forwards.

The final NHL Central Scouting rankings will be released in April, ahead of the NHL draft in June.

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