5 Giants Listed on NHL Central Scouting Final Draft Rankings
WHL Vancouver Giants

5 Giants Listed on NHL Central Scouting Final Draft Rankings

Published on April 16, 2026 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Vancouver Giants News Release


Vancouver Giants forward Joe Iginla
Vancouver Giants forward Joe Iginla
(Vancouver Giants, Credit: Rob Wilton)

Langley, B.C. - The Vancouver Giants are excited to announce that five players have been listed by NHL Central Scouting on their Final rankings for the 2026 NHL Draft: defenceman Ryan Lin, along with forwards Mathis Preston, Joe Iginla, Brett Olson, and Tobias Tomík.

NHL Central Scouting announced the final list of the top North American skaters and goalies, along with the top International skaters and goalies, on Thursday morning.

Below is where the Giants were ranked:

Rank (N.A. Skaters) Last Name First Name Hometown Ht Wt Pos

16th Lin Ryan Richmond, B.C. 5'11" 178 D

32nd Preston Mathis Penticton, B.C. 5'11" 173 RW

173rd Olson Brett Spruce Grove, AB 6'2" 189 C

193rd Tomík Tobias Ilava, SVK 6'0" 186 LW

200th Iginla Joe Lake Country, B.C. 5'10" 170 RW

Lin (Richmond, B.C.) was the highest rated Giant on the list, holding the 16th spot, making him a projected first-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft. The 5-foot-11, 178-pound right-shot defender led the Giants in scoring this season with 57 points in just 53 games (14G-43A). His 14 goals this season were nearly triple the five he scored in 2024-25.

Lin's 1.08 points-per-game this season were the third-highest by a Giants defenceman in franchise history, trailing only Jonathon Blum (1.29 in 2008-09) and Mazden Leslie (1.09 in 2024-25). His 1.08 points-per-game this season ranked 7th amongst all defencemen in the WHL. Lin will have one last opportunity to play in front of scouts when he suits up for Canada at the 2026 IIHF U18 Men's World Championship in Slovakia, which begins on April 22. He was drafted by the Giants with the sixth overall pick in the 2023 WHL Prospects Draft.

Preston (Penticton, B.C.) is the highest-rated Giants forward, coming in at 32nd, which still projects as a first-round talent. The 5-foot-11, 173 lb. winger was acquired by the Giants ahead of the 2026 WHL trade deadline. He recorded 12 points (4G-8A) in 10 games with Vancouver, missing significant time due to a lower-body injury that he suffered on January 10. Preston started the 2025-26 campaign with 32 points in 36 games for the Spokane Chiefs (14G-18A). Preston will also play for Canada at the U18 Men's Worlds later this month. He was drafted by Spokane with the third overall pick in the 2023 WHL Prospects Draft.

Olson (Spruce Grove, AB) is the highest-ranked Giants centre on the list coming in at 173rd. Olson doubled his point total from his 16-year-old rookie season, finishing 2025-26 with 30 points (11G-19A). He was the only Giant to suit up in all 68 games this season. The second-year forward was drafted by the Giants with the eighth overall pick in the 2023 WHL Prospects Draft. Olson rounded out his game this season, averaging 2:20 of penalty killing time per game. Twenty-four of his points came at even-strength, the second-most amongst Giants forwards.

Tomík (Ilava, SVK) is ranked 193rd on the final draft rankings. Tomík finished his first season in North America with 28 points (12G-16A) in 61 games. The forward represented Slovakia at the IIHF World Junior Championship for the second year in a row, this time producing two points (1G-1A) in five games. Tomík was drafted by the Giants with the 29th overall pick in the first round of the 2024 CHL Import Draft.

Iginla (Lake Country, B.C.) is ranked 200th and finished his second full WHL campaign with 31 points (15G-16A) in 59 games split between the Edmonton Oil Kings and the Giants. He was recovering from an injury at the time of the midseason trade to Vancouver, but heated up at the end of the season with seven points (3G-4A) in his final 10 games. Iginla was drafted by Edmonton with the 12th overall pick in the 2023 WHL Prospects Draft.

A total of 69 Western Hockey League skaters and nine goaltenders were listed on the final rankings, including 10 in the first round of North American skaters.

The 2026 NHL Draft will be held at KeyBank Center in Buffalo on June 26-27. The NHL Draft Lottery to determine the first 16 picks is May 5.

Check out the Vancouver Giants Statistics

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Images from this story

Vancouver Giants defenceman Ryan Lin
Vancouver Giants defenceman Ryan Lin
(Rob Wilton)		 Vancouver Giants defenceman Ryan Lin
Vancouver Giants defenceman Ryan Lin
(Rob Wilton)		 Vancouver Giants forward Mathis Preston
Vancouver Giants forward Mathis Preston
(Rob Wilton)
Vancouver Giants forward Mathis Preston
Vancouver Giants forward Mathis Preston
(Rob Wilton)		 Vancouver Giants forward Brett Olson
Vancouver Giants forward Brett Olson
(Rob Wilton)		 Vancouver Giants forward Brett Olson
Vancouver Giants forward Brett Olson
(Rob Wilton)
Vancouver Giants forward Tobias Tomík
Vancouver Giants forward Tobias Tomík
(Rob Wilton)		 Vancouver Giants forward Tobias Tomík
Vancouver Giants forward Tobias Tomík
(Rob Wilton)		 Vancouver Giants forward Joe Iginla
Vancouver Giants forward Joe Iginla
(Rob Wilton)
Vancouver Giants forward Joe Iginla
Vancouver Giants forward Joe Iginla
(Rob Wilton)		   



Western Hockey League Stories from April 16, 2026


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