Four Giants Named to NHL Central Scouting's Midterm Rankings

January 14, 2025 - Western Hockey League (WHL)
Vancouver Giants News Release

Langley, B.C. - The Vancouver Giants are pleased to announce that four players have been named to NHL Central Scouting's midterm rankings for the 2025 NHL Draft: forwards Cameron Schmidt and Aaron Obobaifo, defenceman Mazden Leslie and goaltender Burke Hood.

NHL Central Scouting revealed the lists of the top North American skaters and goalies, along with the top International skaters and goalies, on Tuesday morning.

Schmidt (Prince George, B.C.) was once again the highest rated Giant. After being named a "B" skater in the preliminary rankings in October, Schmidt is now the 30th ranked North American Skater in these mid-term rankings, which they classify as 'Round 1'. He scored a goal and added an assist for Team CHL in the inaugural CHL USA Prospects Challenge in November and is currently second in the WHL in goals with 29. Schmidt leads Vancouver in scoring with 48 points in 35 games (29G-19A).

Despite only playing 13 games this season due to injury, Obobaifo (Calgary, Alta.) was ranked 150th among N.A. skaters, or 'Round 5'. The 17-year-old started the season on fire with six goals and four assists in his first nine games. He is currently out indefinitely, but clearly made a mark on scouts with his early season play.

Leslie (Lloydminster, Alta.) has been on a tear since returning from the holiday break and was ranked 196th among N.A skaters, or 'Round 7'. With an assist on Saturday in a win over Kelowna, the Giants 19-year-old captain increased his point streak to 5 games, with 10 points during that span (2G-8A). He also has 15 points in his last 9 games (2G-13A) and has already equalled his point total from last season (44) in 28 fewer games. His 44 points are T-2nd among all WHL blueliners this season. This is Leslie's third draft-eligible season.

Hood (Brandon, Man.) is the 25th ranked North American goaltender on the rankings. The 17-year-old is 8-6-4-0 in his first WHL season with a 3.56 goals-against average, .895 save percentage and two shutouts. He was named the WHL's Goaltender of the Week last Monday after going 3-0-0 with back-to-back shutouts. The 6-foot-3 netminder is 5-2-1 with a .923 save percentage in his last 10 appearances, dating back to December 6.

Below is the breakdown of the four Giants players and their rankings.

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

30th Schmidt Cameron Prince George, B.C. Vancouver Giants 5'7" 161 RW

150th Obobaifo Aaron Calgary, Alta. Vancouver Giants 5'10" 183 LW

196th Leslie Mazden Lloydminster, Alta. Vancouver Giants 6'0" 200 D

25th (Goalies) Hood Burke Brandon, Man. Vancouver Giants 6'3" 197 G

The Giants are one of four WHL teams with four players listed.

The Giants had previously had four players crack the 'Preliminary Players to Watch' List, which was released on October 23. At that time, Schmidt ('B'), Obobaifo ('C'), Matthew Hutchison ('C') and Hood ('W') were all named.

Unlike the preliminary rankings that use a tiered letter-grade system, the midterm rankings simply go numerically, with the top 224 North American skaters being ranked (seven rounds) and the top-32 North American goalies being ranked (one round). Four rounds of International skaters are also ranked (122 players), as well as 16 International goaltenders.

A total of 66 Western Hockey League players were listed on the midterm rankings, made up of 38 WHL forwards, 21 defencemen and seven goaltenders.

Six WHL skaters were ranked in the top 20 among North American skaters, including Roger McQueen (Brandon Wheat Kings), Radim Mrtka (Seattle Thunderbirds), Jackson Smith (Tri-City Americans), Carter Bear (Everett Silvertips), 2024 WHL Champion Lynden Lakovic (Moose Jaw Warriors) and Benjamin Kindel (Calgary Hitmen).

2025 NHL Central Scouting Midterm Rankings - WHL Skaters

Rank Last Name First Name Hometown Team Height Weight Position

5 McQueen Roger Saskatoon, Sask. Brandon 6'5.25 197 C

6 Mrtka Radim Havlickuv, Cze. Seattle 6'5.75 207 D

9 Smith Jackson Calgary, Alta. Tri-City 6'3.25 195 D

11 Bear Carter West St. Paul, Man. Everett 6'0 179 LW

12 Lakovic Lynden West Kelowna, B.C. Moose Jaw 6'4.25 190 LW

20 Kindel Benjamin Coquitlam, B.C. Calgary 5'10 176 C

21 Cootes Braeden Sherwood Park, Alta. Seattle 5'11.25 183 C

24 Fiddler Blake Frisco, Tex. Edmonton 6'4 209 D

26 Kettles Peyton Winnipeg, Man. Swift Current 6'5.25 190 D

30 Schmidt Cameron Prince George, B.C. Vancouver 5'7.25 161 RW

31 Behm Nathan Calgary, Alta. Kamloops 6'1.5 192 RW

34 Reschny Cole Macklin, Sask. Victoria 5'10.5 183 C

42 Gard Matthew Winnipeg, Man. Red Deer 6'4.75 192 C

48 Paupanekis Hayden Winnipeg, Man. Kelowna 6'4.25 196 C

52 Lewandowski David Dusseldorf, Ger. Saskatoon 6'1.25 177 LW

65 Sharpe Will Ladner, B.C. Kelowna 6'0 195 D

69 Martin Owen Oakbank, Man. Spokane 5'11.75 185 C

70 Lajoie Jett Winnipeg, Man. Prince George 5'11.5 178 RW

72 Mistelbacher Luke Steinbach, Man. Swift Current 5'11.75 196 RW

73 Pickford Bryce Chauvin, Alta. Medicine Hat 6'0.25 183 D

74 Hamilton Reese Whitewood, Sask. Regina 6'0 172 D

81 Gorzynski Brandon Scottsdale, Ariz. Calgary 6'1.5 185 C

86 Lafreniere Tommy Hornby Island, B.C. Kamloops 5'11 172 RW

101 McCann Kadon Cochrane, Alta. Medicine Hat 6'3 200 C

109 Vlooswyk Luke Calgary, Alta. Red Deer 6'4.5 200 D

111 McGregor Josh Brandon, Man. Swift Current 6'1.25 170 D

118 Miller Ryan Medicine Hat, Alta. Portland 5'11.75 177 C

119 Sawchyn Lukas Grande Prairie, Alta. Edmonton 5'9.75 168 LW

121 Klippenstein Carter Lethbridge, Alta. Brandon 6'2.5 180 C

122 Garland Gavin Calgary, Alta. Tri-City 5'9.5 183 RW

123 Gavin Jordan Surrey, B.C. Brandon 5'11 187 LW

125 Sarkenov Asanali Astana, Kaz. Spokane 6'3.5 203 RW

130 Burzynski Grayson Winnipeg, Man. Swift Current 6'3.5 212 D

131 Schoettler Owen Edmonton, Alta. Spokane 6'0 181 D

134 Foster Aiden Lloydminster, Alta. Prince George 6'2 182 C

135 Gerwing Dawson Meadow Lake, Sask. Kelowna 6'3 225 LW

142 Bridgeman Kolten Regina, Sask. Regina 6'4 216 D

143 Degenstein Noah Airdrie, Alta. Moose Jaw 6'3.75 206 C

144 Mayes Sawyer Salmon Arm, B.C. Seattle 6'4 188 C

146 Baumuller Joby Wilcox, Sask. Brandon 5'11.25 188 RW

147 Woo Jonas Winnipeg, Man. Medicine Hat 5'8.75 165 D

150 Obobaifo Aaron Calgary, Alta. Vancouver 5'9.5 183 LW

160 Koch Cassius Calgary, Alta. Tri-City 5'11.25 197 LW

163 MacKenzie Ethan Peachland, B.C. Edmonton 6'0 174 D

169 Busch Shea North Vancouver, B.C. Everett 6'1.75 208 LW

170 Fuder Jaxon Cold Lake, Alta. Red Deer 6'0 166 C

173 Temple Cole Brandon, Man. Everett 5'9.25 166 C

174 Riche Ben Bethune, Sask. Prince George 5'9.5 179 C

191 Buttazzoni Diego Langley, B.C. Portland 5'9 183 LW

192 Thurston Derek Delta, B.C. Red Deer 6'0.75 190 D

195 Coupland Ty North Vancouver, B.C. Red Deer 5'10.25 165 C

196 Leslie Mazden Lloydminster, Alta. Vancouver 6'0.25 200 D

206 Schmidt Connor Sturgeon County, Alta. Moose Jaw 5'11.25 180 D

214 Gudelj Jake Vancouver, B.C. Tri-City 6'1.75 198 C

221 Ziprick Aiden Russell, Man. Moose Jaw 6'0.5 190 D

223 Corbet Nate Calgary, Alta. Kelowna 6'1 171 D

224 Kachkowski Jack St. Albert, Alta. Saskatoon 5'11.75 176 D

Vancouver Giants forward Cameron Schmidt (Rob Wilton)	Vancouver Giants forward Cameron Schmidt (Rob Wilton)	Vancouver Giants forward Aaron Obobaifo (Rob Wilton)
Vancouver Giants forward Aaron Obobaifo with the puck (Rob Wilton)	Vancouver Giants defenceman Mazden Leslie (Rob Wilton)	Vancouver Giants defenceman Mazden Leslie (Rob Wilton)
Vancouver Giants goaltender Burke Hood (Rob Wilton)	Vancouver Giants goaltender Burke Hood (Rob Wilton)

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