The Edmonton Oil Kings have the best odds to land the No. 1 pick in the WHL prospects draft followed by the Regina Pats
Taylor Shire
Regina Leader-Post
We’re about to find out who gets the No. 1 overall pick in the upcoming Western Hockey League prospects draft.
On Thursday, the WHL will be holding a draft lottery to determine the order of selection for all six non-playoff teams plus the expansion Penticton Vees in the 2025 WHL prospects draft.
The Moose Jaw Warriors finished with a league-worst 38 points this season but last year’s WHL champions traded their 2025 first-round pick to the Edmonton Oil Kings in 2024 for forwards Rilen Kovacevic and Voytech Port, meaning the Oil Kings will have the best odds to land the first overall pick this year.
The Regina Pats — who had 40 points this season — will have the second-best odds followed by the Kelowna Rockets, expansion Penticton Vees, Kamloops Blazers, Wenatchee Wild and Red Deer Rebels. Additionally, the Vees will be holding an expansion draft on May 7.
How does the WHL draft lottery work?
Traditionally, the WHL used 21 lottery balls and distributed them appropriately based on each team’s odds in the lottery. With seven teams in the lottery this year, those numbers will be adjusted slightly to reflect the current odds.
A team can only move up two positions from their lottery ranking, meaning Edmonton, Regina and Kelowna will be the only teams with a chance at landing the No. 1 pick.
Who are the top WHL prospects?
Regina product Maddox Schultz is considered by many as the top prospect for this year’s draft.
This season, the 15-year-old had 43 goals and 50 assists for 93 points in 44 games to win the Saskatchewan Male U18 AAA Hockey League scoring race despite being an underage player. He was also named league MVP and rookie of the year.
Schultz applied to play in the SMAAAHL as an underager but will not be applying for exceptional status to play in the WHL full-time as a 15-year-old next year. However, through the Western Canadian Development Model, Schultz will be eligible to play 34 regular season games next year with the team who drafts him.
Another prospect to keep an eye on is Liam Pue, a Langley, B.C. product who also played U18 this season.
In 29 games with the Langley Hockey Academy U18 squad, Pue, 15, had 30 goals and 20 assists for 50 points to finish second in the Junior Prospects Hockey League (JPHL) scoring race. Last year, Pue had 118 points in 37 games at the U15 level.
Who won the WHL draft lottery last year?
In 2024, the Everett Silvertips, who had the best odds with six of the 21 total balls, won the draft lottery and proceeded to pick defenceman Landon DuPont, who received exceptional status to play in the league as a 15-year-old this season.
How does the rest of the draft work?
The lottery will be used to determine the first round of the draft only. For the remaining rounds, teams will draft based on the inverse order of the regular season standings, meaning Edmonton will have the first pick in the second round followed by Regina.
What about the WHL U.S. draft?
While it’s not the most important lottery of the day, the WHL will also be holding a U.S. priority draft lottery to determine the order of the first six picks of the WHL U.S. priority draft.
Each of the six non-playoff teams, plus Penticton, will each receive one ball in the lottery with all teams having a chance at landing the first pick. The remaining order will be determined by the regular season standings.
Last year, Regina won the U.S. lottery and selected forward Braden Hordichuk from the Phoenix Jr. Coyotes 14U AAA team.
Prospects who reside in Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington and Wyoming are eligible for the WHL U.S. priority draft.
Who is eligible for the prospects draft?
Players born in 2010 who reside in Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Northwest Territories, Yukon, plus any players not selected in the U.S. priority draft can still be selected in the prospects draft.
Any player not drafted in either draft remains eligible to be listed by a WHL club at any time following the conclusion of the draft.
Who are some of the top No. 1 picks in recent history?
Several players who were drafted with the first pick in the WHL have gone on to become high picks in the National Hockey League draft including Connor Bedard, who was drafted by Regina first overall in 2020 and first overall the Chicago Blackhawks in 2023.
Gavin McKenna, who was drafted in first overall by the Medicine Hat Tigers in 2022, is considered a top prospect for the 2026 NHL Draft.
Other notable NHLers who were picked No. 1 in the WHL include Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (Red Deer Rebels, 2008), Mathew Barzal (Seattle Thunderbirds, 2012), Peyton Krebs (Winnipeg Ice, 2016), Kaiden Guhle (Prince Albert Raiders, 2017) and Dylan Guenther (Edmonton Oil Kings, 2018).
