WHL Bantam Draft Profile: Hudson Thornton
The Prince George Cougars had nine picks in the 2018 WHL Bantam Draft and they used their third selection, 33rd overall, to select a highly touted defenseman in the draft.
Hudson Thornton, who hails from Winnipeg, Manitoba, was the second-highest scoring defenseman on the Rink Hockey Academy’s (RHA) Bantam Prep squad with 29 points (13-16-29) in 30 regular season games. He added three more points in five playoff games. Thornton was teammates with goaltender Tyler Brennan, the Cougars second selection, at RHA in Winnipeg. Thornton led the Canadian Sport School Hockey League in game-winning goals.
Thornton just recently finished playing at the World Selects Invitational Tournament in Philadelphia, which featured some of the top 2003-born players in the world. Thornton had a standout tournament, leading all defensemen in scoring and was named to the All-Tournament Team.
“Hudson is a defenceman we really coveted and we see him having the potential to drive offence from the back end and hopefully sometime become our power-play quarterback,” said Director of Scouting Bob Simmonds.
“His skill set and his skating and his ability to move the puck quickly to the forwards and be creative is exactly what we were looking for.”
Hudson Thornton Audio:
