2024 WHL Prospects Draft Preview, 2023 Review
Kennewick, WA – The 2024 WHL U.S. Priority Draft and WHL Prospects Draft are set for Wednesday and Thursday respectively this week. It’s a week that’s circled on the calendar for the management staff of every WHL club as all the work they’ve put in scouting players throughout the season comes to a head.
In this write up we’ll preview where the Americans are slated to select in both the U.S. Priority Draft and the WHL Prospects Draft. Tri-City holds six of the top 69 picks in Thursday’s WHL Prospects Draft.
2024 U.S. Priority Draft
The WHL held the lotteries for both drafts in late March and the Americans ended up with the fourth overall pick in the U.S. Priority Draft. All six teams that missed the playoffs in the 2023-24 season had equal odds to win the first-overall pick in the U.S. Priority Draft, with the Regina Pats coming out on top. The second round of the draft reverts to reverse order of standings from the 2023-24 season, so Tri-City will select 24th overall in round two.
2024 WHL Prospects Draft
The WHL Prospects Draft has different odds, weighted towards teams that finished lower in the regular season standings. There were 21 lottery balls placed into a machine: six for Kamloops (pick traded to Everett), five for the Americans, four for Regina (pick traded to Kelowna), three for Prince Albert, two for Edmonton and one for Calgary, giving teams that finished lower in the standings higher odds of winning the lottery.
The winning team could only move up a maximum of two spots in the lottery and for the second year in a row, the Prince Albert Raiders were the lucky ball to come out of the machine vaulting them to second overall from fourth, while pushing the Americans down to third overall.
This will be the first time the Americans have selected third overall since 2000 when they drafted Ian McDonald of Edmonton. McDonald spent his entire five-year WHL career with Tri-City, recording 217 points (72-145-217) in 329 career games. His 329 games ranks him fifth all time in franchise history.
Below is a full list of selections the Americans currently hold for the 2024 WHL Prospects Draft:
Round | Overall |
1 | 3 |
2 | 24 |
3 | 47 |
3 | 56* |
4 | 68** |
4 | 69 |
6 | 127*** |
7 | 135 |
7 | 144**** |
7 | 147***** |
8 | 157 |
8 | 167****** |
10 | 201 |
11 | 223 |
12 | 245 |
13 | 267 |
*This pick was acquired from the Kelowna Rockets with Cole Tisdale on November 7, 2021 in exchange for Talyn Boyko.
**This pick, originally belonging to the Kamloops Blazers, was acquired from the Red Deer Rebels on October 11, 2022 in exchange for Dwayne Jean Jr.
***This pick was acquired from the Medicine Hat Tigers on May 11, 2023 in exchange for a 2023 6th rounder.
****This pick was acquired from the Kelowna Rockets on May 11, 2023 in exchange for a 2023 7th rounder.
*****This pick was acquired from the Brandon Wheat Kings on October 31, 2021 in exchange for Landon Roberts.
******This pick was acquired from the Wenatchee Wild on October 24, 2023 in exchange for Justus Chyld.
Below is a list of picks that belonged to the Americans but were traded:
Round 4, 77th overall – This pick, originally belonging to the Vancouver Giants, was traded to the Red Deer Rebels on October 30, 2023 along with a 2025 2nd rounder in exchange for Kyle Kelsey.
Round 5, 91st overall – This pick was traded to the Calgary Hitmen on August 8, 2023 in exchange for Brandon Whynott.
Round 5, 94th overall – This pick, originally belonging to the Edmonton Oil Kings, was traded to the Vancouver Giants on October 23, 2022 in exchange for Nicco Camazzola.
Round 6, 113th overall – This pick was traded to the Lethbridge Hurricanes on November 17, 2022 in exchange for Jared Picklyk.
2023 U.S. Priority Draft Review
Tri-City held the 13th and 35th overall selections in the 2023 WHL U.S. Priority Draft, selecting defenseman Sean Burick and forward Rowan McCord.
Sean Burick – Defenseman – 13th Overall
Burick, from San Clemente, California, stands at an imposing 6-foot-6 and 181 pounds. After recording 23 points (6-17-23) in 52 games with the Los Angeles Jr. Kings 14U team in 2022-23, Burick made the move to the Midwest and joined the prestigious Shattuck St. Mary’s program in Faribault, Minnesota. Suiting up for their U15 team Burick recorded 25 points (2-23-25) in 51 games.
Rowan McCord – Forward – 35th Overall
McCord, from Kennewick, had an excellent 2022-23 season with the Rocky Mountain Roughriders 14U team in Colorado by racking up 64 points (39-25-64) in 61 games. Like Burick, McCord travelled across the country for the 2023-24 season heading all the way to the East Coast to play for the Bishop Kearney Selects U15 team in Rochester, New York. In 64 games McCord picked up 25 points (11-14-25).
2023 WHL Prospects Draft Review
The Americans made 12 selections in the 2023 Draft: six forwards, five defensemen and one goaltender. As of May 6, Tri-City has signed five of those 12 players including their first four selections in the draft.
Cruz Pavao – Forward – 13th Overall
With their first selection the Americans drafted Cruz Pavao out of the Edge School Prep U15 program in Calgary, Alberta. This came following an impressive 2022-23 season where Pavao averaged nearly three points per game with 67 points (32-35-67) in just 23 games. He carried that momentum into the playoffs by adding 11 points (5-6-11) in four games to help the U15 Edge team win the U15 Canadian Sport School League championship.
Jumping to the U18 level for this past season, Pavao posted 39 points (16-23-39) in 27 games before another strong playoff performance of 11 points (3-8-11) in five games to lift the Edge U18 team to another CSSHL championship. That included assisting on the overtime-winning goal in the championship game.
Pavao also made his mark in the WHL by scoring the game-winning goal in each of his first two career games on November 4 and 7. He suited up for eight games with the Americans in 2023-24, scoring five goals.
Team | GP | G | A | Pts |
Edge Prep U18 (CSSHL) | 27 | 16 | 23 | 39 |
Tri-City Americans | 8 | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Carter Kingerski – Forward – 35th Overall
With their lone second-round selection the Americans went to Manitoba to draft forward Carter Kingerski 35th overall. The Headingley, Manitoba native had a sensational 2022-23 campaign, leading the Winnipeg AAA U15 league in scoring with 107 points (54-53-107) in just 34 games and being named the league’s MVP. He then added 29 points (12-17-29) in 13 playoff games.
In 2023-24 Kingerski joined the Winnipeg Wild U18 team and transitioned smoothly against older competition with 52 points (22-30-52) in 43 games. His 52 points placed him fourth among 2008-born skaters in the Manitoba U18 League. Kingerski helped his team reach the league finals as he posted 15 points (5-10-15) in 12 playoff games.
Early in the season Kingerski also helped Team Manitoba win their first WHL Cup Gold Medal with four assists in five games.
He has signed a Scholarship and Development Agreement with the Americans but is yet to make his WHL debut.
Team | GP | G | A | Pts |
Winnipeg Wild U18 | 43 | 22 | 30 | 52 |
Jesse McKinnon – Forward – 55th Overall
The Americans held back-to-back picks in the third round and used the first one to draft Jesse McKinnon out of St. Albert, Alberta. McKinnon had a strong draft year with 51 points (20-31-51) in 33 games, but brought his game to another level in the playoffs with 15 points (7-8-15) in only eight games.
McKinnon stayed in his hometown to play for the U18 St. Albert Raiders in 2023-24, recording 23 points (8-15-23) in 35 games.
He has signed a Scholarship and Development Agreement with the Americans but is yet to make his WHL debut.
Team | GP | G | A | Pts |
St. Albert Raiders U18 | 35 | 8 | 15 | 23 |
Mason Mykichuk – Forward – 56th Overall
With the very next pick in the draft the Americans once again went back to Manitoba and selected goal scorer Mason Mykichuk. The East St. Paul, Manitoba native has developed a reputation of being a pure goal scorer with his play in recent years, including 41 goals and 77 points (41-36-77) in his WHL Draft year with the U15 Winnipeg Thrashers. He continued his torrid scoring pace in the playoffs with 21 points (13-8-21) in just seven games, being named the Winnipeg U15 AAA Forward of the Year.
Advancing to the U18 level didn’t do much to slow Mykichuk’s offensive production as he finished tied for second in the Manitoba U18 League for scoring among 2008-born players with 53 points (28-25-53) in 41 games. He added an additional seven points (3-4-7) in nine playoff games. Mykichuk was teammates with Carter Kingerski with Team Manitoba for the WHL Cup, helping them win the gold medal with two assists in five games.
He has signed a Scholarship and Development Agreement with the Americans but is yet to make his WHL debut.
Team | GP | G | A | Pts |
Winnipeg Thrashers U18 | 41 | 28 | 23 | 51 |
Brock Heidecker – Defenseman – 101st Overall
After no picks in the fourth round, the Americans broke their streak of drafting four straight forwards when they selected defenseman Brock Heidecker 101st overall in the fifth round. Heidecker has spent the past few years playing in the Okanagan, including his WHL Draft year with the Rink Hockey Academy Kelowna U15 team in which he posted 20 points (7-13-20) in 28 games. He then added four points (1-3-4) in five playoff games.
Heidecker spent the majority of the 2023-24 season playing with the RHA Kelowna U17 team and scored 16 points (7-9-16) in 29 games before adding another goal and two assists in three playoff games. He also suited up for four games with RHA Kelowna’s U18 team posting two assists.
Team | GP | G | A | Pts |
RHA Kelowna U17 | 29 | 7 | 9 | 16 |
RHA Kelowna U18 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
Ryler Gates – Goaltender – 107th Overall
Tri-City drafted one goaltender in the 2023 Draft, selecting Ryler Gates of Carman, Manitoba 107th overall. With the Pembina Valley Hawks U15 team in 2022-23 Gates posted a record of 8-9-0 with a .924 save percentage and 2.99 goals against average. He had an additional 14 appearances in the playoffs, going 5-5 with a .910 save percentage and 3.36 GAA.
Gates moved up to the Hawks U18 team in 2023-24, appearing in 18 games with a 6-7-2-3 record, 3.09 GAA and .910 save percentage.
Team | GP | Rec. | Save % | GAA |
Pembina Valley Hawks U18 | 18 | 6-7-2-3 | .910 | 3.09 |
Barrett Berger – Defenseman – 123rd Overall
The Americans looked to the province of Saskatchewan for the first time with their sixth-round pick by drafting Barrett Berger 123rd overall. The Saskatoon native played for the Saskatoon Stallions U15 team in 2022-23, recording 35 points (12-23-35) in 22 games before adding six assists in four playoff games.
Berger was a member of the U18 Saskatoon Contacts this past year, dressing in all 44 games while posting 11 points (3-8-11).
Team | GP | G | A | Pts |
Saskatoon Contacts U18 | 44 | 3 | 8 | 11 |
Nipawin Hawks SJHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
David Byrne – Defenseman – 144th Overall
Tri-City drafted another defenseman in the seventh round by taking David Byrne out of Calgary. Playing for the U15 Calgary Royals in 2022-23, Byrne scored 20 points (6-14-20) in 34 games, while also picking up three assists in five games with the U17 Calgary Royals.
Byrne made the jump to the CSSHL ranks in 2023-24, playing for Edge School Prep’s U17 team, posting 24 points (7-17-24) in 30 games.
The Americans signed Byrne to a Scholarship and Development Agreement late in the season and Byrne skated in three games with the Americans, making a strong first impression with his steady style of play.
Team | GP | G | A | Pts |
Edge School Prep U17 | 30 | 7 | 17 | 24 |
Kylen Martens – Defenseman – 189th Overall
Tri-City drafted a third straight defenseman with Kelowna native Kylen Martens 189th overall. Martens played the 2022-23 season with the Okanagan Rockets U15 team, scoring 22 points (8-14-22) in 30 games. He also added two goals and two assists in seven playoff games. He was named to the BCEHL U15 All-Star Team for his efforts.
Martens adjusted nicely to the U18 level against older competition as he recorded 15 points (2-13-15) in 33 games with the Okanagan Rockets U18 team in 2023-24.
Team | GP | G | A | Pts |
Okanagan Rockets U18 | 33 | 2 | 13 | 15 |
Hayden Laing – Forward – 191st Overall
The Americans didn’t have to look far for their next selection, drafting Martens’s teammate Hayden Laing two picks later. In 28 games with the U15 Okanagan Rockets, Laing posted 24 points (6-18-24) before scoring three goals and two assists in seven playoff games.
Laing had a smooth transition to U18 as he posted nearly as many points as he did at the U15 level with 22 (7-15-22) in 34 games in 2023-24 with the U18 Okanagan Rockets.
Team | GP | G | A | Pts |
Okanagan Rockets U18 | 34 | 7 | 15 | 22 |
Ryan Gibbs – Forward – 211th Overall
Another Saskatchewan product, the Americans drafted Gibbs in the 10th round after he scored 63 points (37-26-63) in 29 games with the U15 Moose Jaw Warriors in 2022-23. He also dressed in four games at the U18 level as a 14-year-old, scoring two goals.
Playing full time for the U18 Moose Jaw Warriors in 2023-24, Gibbs turned into more of a playmaker with five goals and 20 assists in 44 games.
Team | GP | G | A | Pts |
Moose Jaw Warriors U18 | 44 | 5 | 20 | 25 |
Wyatt Kelman – Defenseman – 233rd Overall
With their final pick of the 2023 WHL Prospects Draft the Americans selected Manitoba’s Wyatt Kelman out of the Rink Hockey Academy’s U15 program. In 30 games he scored four goals and 11 assists.
Kelman’s transition to the U17 level in 2023-24 was about as smooth as could be as he picked up 24 points (8-16-24) in 30 games. He then scored twice and added one assist in four playoff games.
Team | GP | G | A | Pts |
RHA Winnipeg U17 | 30 | 8 | 16 | 24 |