WHL Brandon Wheat Kings

Central Scouting Mid Term Rankings

Published on January 12, 2010 under Western Hockey League (WHL)
Brandon Wheat Kings News Release


NHL Central Scouting Service, on Monday, released their Mid-Term Rankings of 2010 Draft-Eligible players.

Prince George Cougars' forward Brett Connolly is the top-rated draft-eligible WHL prospect, coming in at No. 4 on the list.

Connolly, a 17-year-old from Prince George, B.C., enjoyed a terrific season as a 16-year-old last year, scoring 30 goals and 60 points in 65 games to earn the WHL and CHL Rookie of the Year award. The 6'2", 181-lb center has appeared in just 12 games this season, scoring seven goals and 13 points, while battling injury troubles.

Also making the top 10 is Edmonton Oil Kings' defenseman Mark Pysyk. The 17-year-old from Sherwood Park, AB, is currently the Oil Kings' leading scorer with 23 points on seven goals and 16 assists in 36 games. The smooth-skating rearguard suited up for Team WHL at the 2009 SUBWAY Super Series in November, and, along with Connolly, will take part in the 2010 Home Hardware CHL Top Prospects Game in Windsor, ON, on January 20th.

Two members of the Western Hockey League's Wheat Kings were among those making the grade at mid-season - veteran Mark Stone and rookie Michael Ferland. Stone, who was sidelined for six weeks with a broken wrist earlier this season, is currently averaging better than a point per game with eight goals and 18 points in seventeen games. Ferland meanwhile has seven goals, 19 points and 64 penalty minutes in 43 games.

Some of the WHL's other top prospects include Medicine Hat Tigers' sniper Emerson Etem (13th), and Portland Winterhawks' rookies Nino Niederreiter (14th) and Ryan Johansen (16th) are among the top 20 North American draft-eligible skaters.

Seattle Thunderbirds' netminder Calvin Pickard of Winnipeg is the top-ranked North American goaltender in NHL Central Scouting's mid-term rankings.

Pickard, 17, has appeared in 37 games for the T-Birds this season, and boasts the WHL's third-best save percentage at.922. Pickard's older brother, Chet, was a first-round NHL draft pick of the Nashville predators in 2008 and enjoyed a stellar career with the WHL's Tri-City Americans.

Stone, Ferland and the Wheat Kings will kick off a 2-game Saskatchewan road trip Tuesday night in Moose Jaw against the Warriors.

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Western Hockey League Stories from January 12, 2010


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