Saskatoon product and Seattle defenceman Kevin Korchinski is one of six W-H-L players ranked among the top 15 North American skaters in the final rankings by Central Scouting ahead of the 2022 N-H-L Draft.
Korchinski is the top-ranked Saskatchewan product and W-H-L blue-liner. A total of 53 W-H-L players are included in the final rankings, including three members of the Saskatoon Blades. Forwards Brandon Lisowsky (pictured) and Egor Sidorov are 74th and 95th, respectively, while defenceman Charlie Wright is 142nd. In addition, Swift Current forward Connor Hvidston of Tisdale is ranked 107th while Saskatoon product and Kelowna forward Nolan Flamand is rated 218th. Following is the news release from the W-H-L…..
53 WHL PLAYERS NAMED TO NHL CENTRAL SCOUTING FINAL RANKINGS
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE / THURSDAY, MAY 5, 2022
Calgary, Alta. – The Western Hockey League is proud to announce 53 WHL players have been named to NHL Central Scouting’s Final Rankings ahead of the 2022 NHL Draft. The Final Rankings were issued Thursday by the NHL Central Scouting Service.
Six WHL players are listed among the top 15 North American Skaters, led by Winnipeg ICE forwards Matthew Savoie and Conor Geekie, who are ranked fourth and fifth respectively. Kevin Korchinski of the Seattle Thunderbirds is the top-ranked WHL defenceman (seventh). The trio is joined by Moose Jaw Warriors teammates Jagger Firkus (12th), Denton Mateychuk (14th) and Swift Current Broncos defenceman Owen Pickering (15th) in the top 15 North American Skaters.
Prince George Cougars netminder Tyler Brennan is the top-ranked North American Goaltender. The product of Winnipeg, Man. is followed by Spokane Chiefs puck-stopper Mason Beaupit (fifth), Cougars running mate Ty Young (sixth) and Swift Current Broncos goaltender Reid Dyck (eighth) in the top 10 among North American Goaltenders.
Overall, 20 of 22 WHL Clubs are represented in the Final Rankings. The Swift Current Broncos boast seven players to lead all WHL Clubs, while the Prince George Cougars are represented by five players. The Kamloops Blazers and Seattle Thunderbirds each have four players on the Final Rankings, while four other WHL Clubs have three players listed. Nine WHL Clubs are represented with two players on the lists, while three further WHL Clubs have a single player on NHL Central Scouting’s lists.
A total of 27 WHL forwards find themselves on the Final Rankings, joined by 16 WHL defencemen, and 10 WHL goaltenders.
2021-22 NHL Central Scouting Final Rankings – WHL Players
North American Skaters
| Rank | Last Name | First Name | Hometown | Team | Height | Weight | Position |
| 4 | Savoie | Matthew | St. Albert, Alta. | Winnipeg ICE | 5’9” | 175 | C |
| 5 | Geekie | Conor | Strathclair, Man. | Winnipeg ICE | 6’3” | 196 | C |
| 7 | Korchinski | Kevin | Saskatoon, Sask. | Seattle Thunderbirds | 6’2” | 185 | D |
| 12 | Firkus | Jagger | Irma, Alta. | Moose Jaw Warriors | 5’10” | 153 | RW |
| 14 | Mateychuk | Denton | Dominion City, Man. | Moose Jaw Warriors | 5’11” | 188 | D |
| 15 | Pickering | Owen | St. Adolphe, Man. | Swift Current Broncos | 6’4” | 178 | D |
| 28 | Minten | Fraser | Vancouver, B.C. | Kamloops Blazers | 6’1” | 185 | C |
| 31 | Schaefer | Reid | Spruce Grove, Alta. | Seattle Thunderbirds | 6’3” | 213 | LW |
| 38 | Filmon | Josh | Winnipeg, Man. | Swift Current Broncos | 6’2” | 160 | LW |
| 43 | Gustafson | Jordan | Ardrossan, Alta. | Seattle Thunderbirds | 5’11” | 178 | C |
| 47 | Lindgren | Mats | North Vancouver, B.C. | Kamloops Blazers | 5’11” | 173 | D |
| 56 | Weir | Jace | Coldstream, B.C. | Red Deer Rebels | 6’2” | 183 | D |
| 69 | Davies | Josh | Airdrie, Alta. | Swift Current Broncos | 5’9” | 197 | LW |
| 72 | Seminoff | Matthew | Coquitlam, B.C. | Kamloops Blazers | 5’11” | 180 | RW |
| 74 | Lisowsky | Brandon | Port Coquitlam, B.C. | Saskatoon Blades | 5’8” | 171 | LW |
| 76 | Schuurman | Brayden | Abbotsford, B.C. | Victoria Royals | 5’9” | 191 | C |
| 79 | Siepmann | Grayden | Abbotsford, B.C. | Calgary Hitmen | 5’10” | 175 | D |
| 86 | Hemmerling | Ben | Sherwood Park, Alta. | Everett Silvertips | 5’10” | 159 | RW |
| 87 | Roersma | Rylen | Lethbridge, Alta. | Brandon Wheat Kings | 5’10” | 161 | C |
| 93 | Sward | Graham | Abbotsford, B.C. | Spokane Chiefs | 6’2” | 180 | D |
| 95 | Sidorov | Egor | Vitebsk, Belarus | Saskatoon Blades | 5’10” | 154 | RW |
| 96 | King | Ben | Vernon, B.C. | Red Deer Rebels | 6’3” | 205 | C |
| 107 | Hvidston | Connor | Tisdale, Sask. | Swift Current Broncos | 6’2” | 164 | LW |
| 109 | Thornton | Hudson | Winnipeg, Man. | Prince George Cougars | 5’11” | 178 | D |
| 111 | Sloan | Jake | Leduc, Alta. | Tri-City Americans | 6’3” | 207 | RW |
| 112 | Bell | Parker | Campbell River, B.C. | Tri-City Americans | 6’4” | 192 | LW |
| 119 | Milne | Mikey | Abbotsford, B.C. | Winnipeg ICE | 5’10” | 185 | LW |
| 120 | Dowhaniuk | Keaton | Sherwood Park, Alta. | Prince George Cougars | 6’0” | 165 | D |
| 137 | Ward | Mathew | Kamloops, B.C. | Swift Current Broncos | 5’8” | 156 | C |
| 142 | Wright | Charlie | Olds, Alta. | Saskatoon Blades | 6’0” | 175 | D |
| 156 | Graham | Max | Kelowna, B.C. | Kelowna Rockets | 6’2” | 181 | C |
| 157 | Stefan | James | Laguna Beach, Calif. | Portland Winterhawks | 6’0” | 173 | RW |
| 177 | Alscher | Marek | Kladno, Czechia | Portland Winterhawks | 6’3” | 196 | D |
| 180 | Roest | Austin | Coldstream, B.C. | Everett Silvertips | 5’9” | 169 | C |
| 181 | Hodass | Bogdans | Jelgava, Latvia | Medicine Hat Tigers | 6’3” | 202 | D |
| 185 | Bocharov | Pavel | Escondido, Calif. | Medicine Hat Tigers | 6’0” | 184 | D |
| 186 | Kmec | Viliam | Kosice, Slovakia | Prince George Cougars | 6’2” | 198 | D |
| 188 | Bettahar | Rayan | Rodgau, Germany | Swift Current Broncos | 6’1” | 198 | D |
| 197 | Muranov | Maxim | Moscow, Russia | Calgary Hitmen | 6’0” | 158 | LW |
| 210 | Lies | Justin | Flin Flon, Man. | Vancouver Giants | 6’1” | 205 | RW |
| 212 | Feist | Layton | Dawson Creek, B.C. | Regina Pats | 5’10” | 167 | D |
| 217 | Polshakov | Zakhar | Minsk, Belarus | Brandon Wheat Kings | 5’10” | 180 | LW |
| 218 | Flamand | Nolan | Saskatoon, Sask. | Kelowna Rockets | 5’9” | 171 | C |
North American Goaltenders
| Rank | Last Name | First Name | Hometown | Team | Height | Weight | Position |
| 1 | Brennan | Tyler | Winnipeg, Man. | Prince George Cougars | 6’4” | 184 | G |
| 5 | Beaupit | Mason | Surrey, B.C. | Spokane Chiefs | 6’5” | 188 | G |
| 6 | Young | Ty | Coaldale, Alta. | Prince George Cougars | 6’3” | 181 | G |
| 8 | Dyck | Reid | Winkler, Man. | Swift Current Broncos | 6’3” | 190 | G |
| 11 | Holt | Braden | Bozeman, Mont. | Everett Silvertips | 6’1” | 160 | G |
| 12 | Suchanek | Tomas | Olomouc, Czechia | Tri-City Americans | 6’0” | 171 | G |
| 20 | Hay | Kolby | Monte Creek, B.C. | Edmonton Oil Kings | 6’4” | 186 | G |
| 25 | Kieper | Matthew | Winnipeg, Man. | Regina Pats | 6’2” | 178 | G |
| 28 | Milic | Thomas | Coquitlam, B.C. | Seattle Thunderbirds | 6’0” | 175 | G |
| 30 | Ernst | Dylan | Weyburn, Sask. | Kamloops Blazers | 6’2” | 196 | G |
The 2022 NHL Draft is scheduled for Thursday, July 7 and Friday, July 8 in Montreal, Que.
In its 47th year of operation, NHL Central Scouting provides evaluation and scouting of draft-eligible players to NHL member clubs. Headed by Director of Central Scouting Dan Marr, NHL Central Scouting employs eight full-time scouts throughout North America.