Giants Defenceman Lin Named to Hockey Canada’s U-18 Team Selection Camp
Calgary, Alta. – Vancouver Giants defenceman Ryan Lin (Richmond, B.C.) is one of 40 players invited to Hockey Canada’s national men’s summer under-18 team selection camp, which will run July 29 to August 1 at the Sixteen Mile Sports Complex in Oakville, Ontario.
Following this camp, Canada will name its team for the 2025 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, which takes place August 11-16 in Brno, Czech Republic and Trenčín, Slovakia. This annual summer U18 tournament is the first opportunity for scouts to see NHL draft-eligible prospects in their draft year, 10 months ahead of the draft.
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Lin is already being labelled a top prospect for the 2026 NHL Draft and has represented his country multiple times on the international stage. He is one of six players named to this camp roster who won a Gold Medal playing as an underager at the 2025 IIHF U-18 World Championship in Texas. The right-shot defender recorded two points (1G-1A) and was +8 in seven games.
Lin also won Gold at the 2024 U17 World Hockey Challenge with Canada White and played for Canada at the 2024 Winter Youth Olympic Games.
The Richmond, B.C. product had one of the best 16-year-old seasons in Giants franchise history in 2024-25, recording 53 points and a +11 rating in 60 games, while leading the Giants in average ice-time and playing in all situations. 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 player selection process for the summer under-18 team selection camp was led by Alan Millar, general manager of the Program of Excellence, with support from Yanick Lemay (Drummondville, QC/Drummondville QMJHL), who serves as the U18 lead with the Program of Excellence management group, head scout Byron Bonora (Brooks, AB), Benoit Roy (Sudbury, ON), director of hockey operations, and Scott Salmond (Creston, BC), senior vice-president of high performance and hockey operations.
Canada will open the preliminary round at the 2025 Hlinka Gretzky Cup against Finland on Aug. 11. Canada will also face Switzerland and Czechia in the round robin.
