OHL Clubs Select 52 Players in 2026 Under-18 Priority Selection
OHL Ontario Hockey League

OHL Clubs Select 52 Players in 2026 Under-18 Priority Selection

Published on June 8, 2026 under Ontario Hockey League (OHL) News Release


TORONTO - The Ontario Hockey League (OHL) today conducted the 2026 OHL Under-18 Priority Selection for U18 AAA hockey players in Ontario.

Eligibility for the 2026 OHL Under-18 Priority Selection included all U18 players (2008 and 2009 birth years) not currently on an OHL Member Team Protected List who were carded with an Ontario based U18 AAA Hockey Club or an accredited Hockey Canada sport school within the Ontario Hockey Federation, Hockey Eastern Ontario or Hockey Northwestern Ontario in the current season.

A total of 52 players were selected from 32 different teams and included 26 forwards, 14 defencemen and 12 goaltenders. 47 of the 52 players selected were born in 2009, with the remaining five born in 2008.

Of note, the Brantford Bulldogs made goaltender Sophie Jovanovic the first woman ever chosen in the Under-18 Priority Selection, taking the Toronto Nationals netminder with the 40th overall pick. She follows Taya Currie as the second woman ever drafted into the OHL. Currie was selected by the Sarnia Sting in the 2021 OHL Priority Selection from the Elgin-Middlesex U16 AAA program.

Winners of the OHL Draft Lottery back in April, the Oshawa Generals used the first overall selection to take 6-foot-4 centreman Ethan Cava out of Thunder Bay's Seventh Fire Secondary School Prep Hockey Program. The son of former Soo Greyhounds captain and Sarnia Sting forward Peter Cava, the 16-year-old produced 40 points (14-26--40) over 42 games this past season.

The Erie Otters used the second overall pick to take Elmira, ON-based centreman Zack Forwell of the Waterloo Wolves before the Brampton Steelheads rounded-out the top-three with the selection of left-winger Zaiden Hraiche of the Burlington Eagles.

The Sarnia Sting used the fourth overall pick to make Dean Sheridan of the North Shore Whitecaps the first defenceman chosen on Monday night. The first goaltender selected was seventh overall pick Landyn Quirk of the Kitchener Jr. Rangers, a late 2009 birthdate chosen by the Guelph Storm.

All OHL member teams were required to draft a minimum of two players, however to enhance opportunities specifically for goaltenders, clubs selecting a goaltender with one of their selections had the option to select another player (skater only) in a third round.

The Greater Toronto Hockey League (GTHL) led the way with 15 players selected while the Ontario Minor Hockey Association (OMHA) had 13, the Minor Hockey Alliance of Ontario (ALLIANCE) had 12, Hockey Eastern Ontario (HEO) featured six, Hockey Canada Accredited Sports Schools produced five and the Northern Ontario Hockey Association had one.

The ALLIANCE's Waterloo Wolves led all teams with five players chosen in the U18 Draft followed by HEO's Upper Canada Cyclones with four.

The OHL Under-18 Priority Selection was conducted in partnership with RinkNet as picks were submitted online by OHL member clubs and displayed in real time at ontariohockeyleague.com.

Announced in January 2017, the concept of the OHL Under-18 Priority Selection was developed with full support from Hockey Canada's three Ontario Branches including the Ontario Hockey Federation (OHF), Hockey Eastern Ontario (HEO), and Hockey Northwestern Ontario (HNO).

Check out the Ontario Hockey League Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



Ontario Hockey League Stories from June 8, 2026


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.


Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central