OHL Priority Selection History

The “midget draft” has its roots dating back to the late 1960’s when it was held under the auspices of the OHA Junior “A” series as part of the Ontario Hockey Association’s annual meetings at the Royal York Hotel.

Through the years, the OHL Priority Selection was held at various locations in Toronto until 1981 when it found a home for 10 years at North York Centennial Arena. Its first time outside of Toronto was in 1991 when the Kitchener Rangers were the host.

The draft order is typically based on reverse order of the overall regular season standings beginning with non-playoff teams.

In 2024, a total of 302 players were selected in the 15-round process from 78 different teams across Ontario and parts of the United States. The selected players included 170 forwards, 102 defencemen, and 30 goaltenders. While 298 of the players chosen were 2008-born athletes, an additional two were born in 2007 and two were born in 2006.

The Windsor Spitfires made the first overall pick after winning the 2024 OHL Priority Selection Draft Lottery held on March 27. The Spitfires selected 2008-born forward Ethan Belchetz of the Oakville Rangers to open the proceedings.

The Ontario Minor Hockey Association led the way with 103 selections from 19 different teams with the OMHA champion Barrie Jr. Colts leading with 14 picks, while the OHL Cup champion Oakville Rangers developed 12 and the U16 Peterborough Petes produced 10. The Greater Toronto Hockey League had 77 players selected from 11 different teams, as the GTHL finalist North York Rangers led the way with 16 selections. The Toronto Marlboros and GTHL champion Vaughan Kings trailed close behind with 13 selected players each. The Minor Hockey Alliance of Ontario produced 40 selections from 11 different teams with the Elgin-Middlesex Canucks on top of the list with nine players selected, followed closely by the London Jr. Knights with eight. Hockey Eastern Ontario saw 26 players find their way onto OHL Draft boards from five different teams with the Upper Canada Cyclones and Ottawa Myers Automotive each leading with seven. The Northern Ontario Hockey Association had 13 players selected from across five teams as the Sudbury Wolves developed five, followed by the Soo Jr. Greyhounds with four. An additional four prospects were selected from Ontario-based junior teams, along with an out of province and Canadian Prep School player. A total of 34 players were chosen from across 22 different American-based teams led by Detroit Little Caesars with five players chosen, followed closely by Shattuck-St. Mary’s School, Detroit HoneyBaked, and the Chicago Mission with four each. An additional two players were chosen from U.S Prep Schools, while one was selected from an American-based Junior program.

Pre-1998 OHL Priority Selection Historical Results:
Results from 1998 to present can be found here.

1997 OHL Priority Selection Results

1996 OHL Priority Selection Results

1995 OHL Priority Selection Results

1994 OHL Priority Selection Results

1993 OHL Priority Selection Results

1992 OHL Priority Selection Results

1991 OHL Priority Selection Results

Historical Draft Media Guides:

2024 OHL Priority Selection Preview and Media Guide

2023 OHL Priority Selection Preview and Media Guide

2022 OHL Priority Selection Preview and Media Guide