2026 WHL Prospects Draft Lottery results to be unveiled Thursday on Victory+
Calgary, Alta. – The Western Hockey League announced today details for the 2026 WHL Prospects Draft Lottery, with results set to be unveiled Thursday, March 26 at 7 p.m. MT, streaming FREE on Victory+.
The 2026 WHL Prospects Draft Lottery will involve the seven non-playoff Clubs from the 2025-26 WHL Regular Season – Lethbridge, Swift Current, Vancouver, Wenatchee, Moose Jaw, Tri-City, and Victoria. A Club may only move up a maximum of two positions in the WHL Prospects Draft.
The WHL Prospects Draft Lottery will use a total of 28 balls, the allotment of which is as follows:
- Kelowna (traded from Lethbridge) – Seven balls
- Wenatchee (traded from Swift Current) – Six balls
- Vancouver – Five balls
- Vancouver (traded from Wenatchee) – Four balls
- Victoria (traded from Moose Jaw) – Three balls
- Tri-City – Two balls
- Victoria – One ball
The lottery applies to the first round of the 2026 WHL Prospects Draft. Starting with the second round, all WHL Clubs shall draft based on the inverse order of the final standings from the 2025-26 WHL Regular Season.
2026 WHL Prospects Draft
The first round of the 2026 WHL Prospects Draft will be held Wednesday, May 6. The remainder of the 2026 WHL Prospects Draft will be held Thursday, May 7.
Players born in the United States will be eligible for the 2026 WHL Prospects Draft. Previously, U.S. born players have been selected by WHL Clubs primarily through the WHL U.S. Priority Draft. The WHL will only host the WHL Prospects Draft in 2026.
Since 2000, numerous impactful players have heard their names called with the first-overall pick in the WHL Prospects Draft, including Landon DuPont (Everett Silvertips, 2024), Daxon Rudolph (Prince Albert Raiders, 2023), Gavin McKenna (Medicine Hat Tigers, 2022), Berkly Catton (Spokane Chiefs, 2021), and Connor Bedard (Regina Pats, 2020).
Players eligible for the 2026 WHL Prospects Draft are 2011-born players who reside in Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Northwest Territories, Yukon, Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.
Players not selected in the 2026 WHL Prospects Draft will remain eligible to be listed by WHL Clubs at any time thereafter.
For complete coverage of the 2026 WHL Prospects Draft and the 2026 WHL Playoffs presented by Nutrien, please visit WHL.ca.
About the Western Hockey League
Regarded as the world’s finest development league for junior hockey players, the Western Hockey League (WHL) head office is based in Calgary, Alberta. The WHL consists of 23 member Clubs with 17 located in Western Canada and six in the U.S. Pacific Northwest. A member of the Canadian Hockey League, the WHL has been a leading supplier of talent for the National Hockey League for over 50 years. The WHL is also the leading provider of hockey scholarships with over 375 graduates each year receiving WHL Scholarships to pursue a post-secondary education of their choice. Each season, WHL players also form the nucleus of Canada’s National Junior Hockey Team.
