2025 WHL Draft Preview: Vancouver Giants
Ladner, B.C. — The Western Hockey League will hold their annual drafts this week, with the first round of the 2025 WHL Prospects Draft taking place on Wednesday, May 7 at 4 p.m. PT.
The Vancouver Giants own two first round picks – sixth and 13th overall – which was announced on April 10 following the annual draft lottery.
The U.S. Priority Draft will begin on Thursday, May 8 at 8 a.m. PT and the second round of the WHL Prospects Draft will commence following the completion of the U.S. Priority Draft. The Giants own the fifth overall pick in the U.S. Priority Draft.
Additionally, the Penticton Vees’ selections from the 2025 WHL Expansion Draft will be revealed on Wednesday, May 7, prior to Round 1 of the Prospects Draft.
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Fans can stream the first round of the WHL Prospects Draft on May 7 for free on Victory+. Real-time results from all drafts will be available at WHL.ca, as well as right here at vancouvergiants.com.
Below are all the Giants selections for both drafts:
2025 WHL Prospects Draft
| ROUND | OVERALL | TEAM | FROM |
| 1 | 6 | Vancouver | Wenatchee |
| 1 | 13 | Vancouver | |
| 5 | 101 | Vancouver | Tri-City via Spokane |
| 5 | 103 | Vancouver | |
| 8 | 172 | Vancouver | |
| 9 | 195 | Vancouver | |
| 10 | 218 | Vancouver | |
| 11 | 241 | Vancouver | |
| 12 | 264 | Vancouver |
2025 U.S. Priority Draft
| ROUND | OVERALL |
| 1 | 5 |
| 2 | 43 |
The Last Time Vancouver Picked 6th Overall…
It has only been two years since the Giants held the sixth overall selection in the prospects draft. In 2023, they drafted Ryan Lin with the sixth pick, which has already turned into a home run selection.
The recently turned 17-year-old defenceman recorded 53 points (5G-48A) last season and was named a Western Conference finalist for WHL Rookie of the Year. He became just the second rookie WHL defenceman aged 16 or younger to hit the 50-point mark in 35 years, joining Everett’s Landon Dupont as the only two to accomplish the feat since Hockey Hall of Famer and Kamloops Blazers legend Scott Niedermayer in 1989-90.
The Richmond, B.C. product also had a +11 plus-minus rating, which was tied for the second-best on the Giants. Lin just won a gold medal with Hockey Canada over the weekend at the U18 World Hockey Championship (playing as an underager) and also won gold with Hockey Canada at the World U17 Hockey Challenge in November of 2024.
The Giants have never held the 13th overall pick in the Prospects Draft, so that will be a first for the organization.
Looking Back at the 2024 WHL Prospects Draft
| ROUND | OVR | PLAYER | POS | HT | WT | HOMETOWN | 2024-25 TEAM |
| 1 | 10 | *Blake Chorney | C | 5-11 | 170 | Nipawin, SK | Saskatoon Blazers U18 AAA |
| 3 | 55 | *Landon Horiachka | LW | 6-2 | 186 | Sherwood Park, AB | Sherwood Park Kings U18 AAA |
| 4 | 70 | *Dylan Hurren | RD | 6-0 | 157 | Maple Ridge, BC | Delta Hockey Academy U17 Prep |
| 5 | 94 | Riley Charlton | F | 6-2 | 168 | Chilliwack, BC | Fraser Valley Thunderbirds U18 AAA |
| 6 | 121 | Brock Dingman | RD | 6-1 | 194 | Carstairs, AB | Red Deer Chiefs U18 AAA |
| 7 | 143 | Richard Wonyeneh | LW | 6-0 | 184 | Langley, BC | Burnaby Winter Club U18 Prep |
| 9 | 187 | Braeden Malenchak | LD | 6-2 | 179 | Rocky View, AB | Northern Alberta Xtreme U17 |
| 10 | 209 | Sam Rishaug | LW | 6-0 | 175 | Calgary, AB | Calgary Northstars U18 AAA |
| 11 | 231 | David Lu | RD | 6-0 | 174 | Edmonton, AB | SSAC Bulldogs U17 AAA |
| 12 | 253 | Oliver Bryks | G | 6-0 | 162 | Edmonton, AB | Edmonton Jr. Oilers U18 AAA |
* Denotes player is signed to a WHL Scholarship & Development Agreement
*Blake Chorney (F) – 1st Round – 10th Overall – Saskatoon Blazers U18 AAA (SMAAAHL)
41 GP: 29G – 38A – 67 Points | 5-foot-11, 180 lbs.
Chorney was named a second-team SMAAAHL all-star in his rookie year in the league, finishing fifth in league scoring in the regular season with 67 points. The Nipawin, Sask. native added nine points in seven playoff games and dressed in three games with the Giants as a call-up, making his WHL debut on November 9 in Prince George against the Cougars. Chorney also had a very strong showing at the 2024 WHL Cup, leading the tournament with 11 points in five games, on seven goals and four assists.
*Landon Horiachka (F) – 3rd Round – 55th Overall – Sherwood Park Kings U18 AAA (AEHL)
28 GP: 13G – 19A – 32 Points | 6-foot-3, 188 lbs.
Horiachka missed some time at the beginning of the year, but still finished third on his team with 32 points in 28 games. He had a strong end to his rookie year, with 11 points in his final five games (6G-5A). The Sherwood Park, Alta. product dressed in four games with the Giants, making his WHL debut on February 26 against Spokane.
*Dylan Hurren (D) – 4th Round – 70th Overall – Delta Hockey Academy U17 Prep (CSSHL)
32 GP: 4G – 27A – 31 Points | 6-foot-1, 160 lbs.
Hurren led all DHA U17 defencemen with 31 points and was named a second team B.C. Division all-star in the U17 Prep division in the CSSHL. He had a very strong playoff, producing eight points in three games (3G-5A). The Maple Ridge native dressed in four games with the Giants as a call-up, making his WHL debut on January 25 against Kelowna.
Riley Charlton (F) – 5th Round – 94th Overall – Fraser Valley Thunderbirds U18 AAA (BCEHL)
34 GP: 0G – 9A – 9 Points | 6-foot-2, 166 lbs.
Charlton recorded nine points in his rookie season at the U18 level and is currently competing at the 2025 Telus Cup in Chilliwack. He also represented Team B.C. at the 2024 WHL Cup in October.
Brock Dingman (D) – 6th Round – 121st Overall – Red Deer Chiefs U18 AAA (AEHL)
38 GP: 1G – 2A – 3 Points | 6-foot-2, 205 lbs.
Dingman made the jump from U15 to U18 this season, dressing in all 38 regular season games for the Chiefs, who just missed the playoffs.
Richard Wonyeneh (F) – 7th Round – 143rd Overall – Burnaby Winter Club U18 Prep (CSSHL)
35 GP: 6G – 14A – 20 Points | 6-foot-0, 184 lbs.
Wonyeneh had 20 points in his rookie season at the U18 prep level. He finished his first year with nine points in his final 10 games (4G-5A) and added one goal in three games at the U18 Prep Western Championships.
Braeden Malenchak (D) – 9th Round – 187th Overall – Northern Alberta Xtreme U17 (CSSHL)
30 GP: 10G – 23A – 33 Points | 6-foot-3, 195 lbs.
Malenchak was named a second team Prairie Division all-star in the CSSHL this season, after producing 33 points, which was tied for fourth in the U17 division for points by a defenceman.
Sam Rishaug (F) – 10th Round – 209th Overall – Calgary Northstars U18 AAA (AEHL)
38 GP: 5G – 19A – 24 Points | 6-foot-0, 178 lbs.
Rishaug led all Northstars rookies with 24 points, which ranked fifth on the team overall.
David Lu (D) – 11th Round – 231st Overall – SSAC Bulldogs U17 AAA (AEHL)
32 GP: 2G – 14A – 16 Points | 6-foot-2, 183 lbs.
Lu led all Bulldog blueliners in scoring with 16 points this past season, adding three points in five playoff games. He also had one assist in a two-game call-up with the Jr. Oilers at the U18 level.
Oliver Bryks (G) – 12th Round – 253rd Overall – Edmonton Jr. Oilers U18 AAA (AEHL)
21 GP: 10-7-1 – 2.66 GAA – .916 SV% | 6-foot-1, 165 lbs.
Bryks was top-10 in the U18 division of the AEHL in both save percentage and goals-against average in his rookie season.
Looking Back at the 2024 U.S. Priority Draft
| ROUND | OVR | PLAYER | POS | HT | WT | HOMETOWN | 2024-25 TEAM |
| 1 | 10 | Boone Chartier | RW | 5-10 | 164 | Minnetonka, MN | Shattuck-St. Mary’s 15U AAA |
| 2 | 32 | Luke Storr | D | 5-11 | 205 | Sherwood Park, AB | Anaheim Jr. Ducks 15U AAA |
Boone Chartier (F) – 1st Round – 10th Overall – Shattuck St. Mary’s 15U AAA
56 GP: 26G – 28A – 54 Points | 5-foot-11, 165 lbs.
Chartier was just under a point-per-game for the 15U Shattuck St. Mary’s Sabres and added two goals in four games at the 2025 nationals.
Luke Storr (D) – 2nd Round, 32nd Overall – Anaheim Jr. Ducks 15U AAA
56 GP: 4G – 26A – 30 Points | 6-foot-0, 185 lbs.
Storr was among the defensive leaders in points on the Jr. Ducks and added one point in three games at the 2025 nationals.
