Plenty of CHL talent available on Day 2 of 2023 NHL Draft
Wednesday saw 11 CHL players have their name called at the 2023 NHL Draft in Nashville, TN.
As the second round gets underway at 11 a.m. today, plenty of quality CHL options remain available to all 32 NHL franchises.
Here’s a quick look at ten prominent players who will have their name called sooner than later.
Tristan Bertucci — Flint/OHL
In his second OHL season, Bertucci tallied 50 points from the Firebirds blue line to rank tied 12th in the OHL in that category.
His 50 points were the fourth most by a Flint d-man in franchise history.
Andrew Cristall — Kelowna/WHL
In just 54 games, Cristall tallied 95 points (39) goals with the Rockets to finish sixth in WHL scoring.
His 1.76 point-per-game average was the fourth best as he was named to the B.C. Division’s First All-Star Team. Cristall also won gold with Canada at the 2022 Hlinka Gretzky Cup.
Lukas Dragicevic — Tri-City/WHL
Dragicevic’s 75 points from the Americans’ blue line last season were the second most in team history by a d-man and ranked fourth overall in 2022-23 among WHL defencemen.
A U.S. Division First All-Star, Dragicevic won bronze at the 2023 U18 Worlds with Canada.
Ethan Gauthier — Drummondville/QMJHL
The newest Voltigeur, and topped ranked QMJHL player by NHL Central Scouting, Gauthier recorded 69 points (30 goals) with Sherbrooke last season.
Gauthier won gold with Canada at the 2022 Hlinka Gretzky Cup and led the tournament with six goals and earlier this year was awarded the Mike Bossy Trophy as the QMJHL’s top professional prospect.
Riley Heidt — Prince George/WHL
Heidt led the WHL with 72 assists in 2022-23 while he also established a new career high with 97 points, tied for the fourth most in the league and the third most by a Cougar skater.
A gold medallist at the 2022 Hlinka Gretzky Cup and bronze medallist at the 2023 U18 Worlds, Heidt was named B.C. Division Second All-Star this past season.
Nick Lardis — Brantford/OHL
A midseason trade to Hamilton sparked Lardis’ season as he scored 25 goals in 33 games with the Bulldogs.
Between Peterborough and Hamilton, Lardis set a new career high with 65 points and also claimed bronze with Canada at the 2023 U18 Worlds.
Etienne Morin — Moncton/QMJHL
Morin’s 72 points in 2022-23 were the third most among QMJHL defencemen while his 21 goals were the most.
He too won a bronze with Canada at the 2023 U18 Worlds while his point total from last year is the third best in Wildcats history.
Nico Myatovic — Seattle/WHL
A WHL champion with the Thunderbirds, Myatovic’s 30 goals were tied for the second most on the team.
Myatovic was one of six players to tally at least 60 points with Seattle last year.
Carson Rehkopf — Kitchener/OHL
In his second OHL campaign, Rehkopf reached the 30-goal mark for the first time in his career.
Rehkopf, who won gold at the 2023 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, also set a career best with 59 points.
Koehn Ziemmer — Prince George/WHL
Ziemmer’s 89 points last year were the fifth most in Prince George history while he became just the 11th player to score at least 40 goals in a season.
Over the past two seasons, Ziemmer has 71 goals.