Prospects Draft: Wheat Kings Aim To Strike Gold Again In Familiar Range
Curiously, in the 33-year history of the WHL Prospects Draft, the Brandon Wheat Kings have never held the 14th overall pick before. Picks in that range, however, have been plentiful and the Wheat Kings have found some top talent when picking around the 14th slot.
From 2016 to 2023, the Wheat Kings have drafted in the 12th overall to 16th overall range five times, and all five of those players have gone on to be regulars in their lineup. Three of those players suited up for the Wheat Kings last season, and all three are eligible to return and expected to play big roles for the team in 2024-25.
Because draft lists vary from team to team, a player that might be listed 14th overall on some team’s lists might be much higher or lower on others. With that in mind, we’re looking at players that the Wheat Kings have selected that fall in the range (within two picks) of 14th overall that have panned out for the team in the past and who, in some cases, make up a substantial part of the team’s future.
QUINN MANTEI: 13th overall, 2020
In the last four years, Mantei is the closest thing the Wheat Kings have had to a 14th overall pick, and they can only hope they do as well with their selection this season as they did with Mantei in 2020.
An all-situations workhorse on the back end for the Wheat Kings, Mantei is the first Wheat Kings to win the Brad McCrimmon Award for Top Defenseman two seasons in a row since Braden Schneider (more on him later). He posted career numbers across the board last season with 34 points in 60 games, all while playing shutdown minutes against the other team’s best lines.
What makes Mantei’s run all the more impressive is that it’s only getting started. As a 2005-born player, he is eligible to return not only next season but potentially the season after. That’s assuming the pros don’t come calling, however. Last summer, Mantei was invited to the Calgary Flames development camp and parlayed that into an invitation to their main camp in September, so NHL eyes are on the Wheat Kings’ top blueliner.
Mantei also served as part of the team’s leadership group in 2023-24. So far, he has played 186 games as a member of the Wheat Kings.
JAKE CHIASSON: 15th Overall, 2018
On the other side of the 14th overall pick, the Wheat Kings selected Chiasson, and he delivered on his end of the bargain. Injuries may have limited his games played, but not only was he offensively effective in those games, his impact on the team is still developing.
As for the games Chiasson played, in 141 games in Black and Gold he put up 81 points. As a member of the Wheat Kings, Chiasson was drafted by the NHL’s Edmonton Oilers in 2021 and was a regular offensive contributor every time he was in the lineup. Already a successful pick in that right, Chiasson still had more to give to Brandon.
On January 10, 2023, the Wheat Kings traded Chiasson to the Saskatoon Blades for a first-round pick that same year, a second-round pick in 2025, and a conditional second in 2026. Brandon used that first-rounder in 2023 (19th overall) to select defenseman Giorgos Pantelas, who got into his first WHL game against the Regina Pats this past season. The remaining second-round pick is still to be determined, meaning Chiasson’s contributions to the Wheat Kings are not yet at an end.
RYLEN ROERSMA: 16th Overall, 2019
Joining the Wheat Kings for the first time during the bubble in Regina in 2021, Roersma’s steady progression in the years since has seen him become a go-to guy on both the power play and penalty kill, and a fixture in the team’s top-six forward group.
Roersma’s offensive totals have steadily grown throughout his WHL career, culminating in career highs last season with 58 points in 64 games and four points in four playoff games. In each of the two seasons prior, he brought reliable scoring as a 19-goal scorer, but reached the 20-goal mark for the first time this past season.
This season, Roersma served as an assistant captain with the team for the first time. He’s eligible to return as a 20-year-old in 2024-25 as well, which would make him a five-year Wheat King.
BRADEN SCHNEIDER: 12th Overall, 2016
Given how he panned out, it seems strange that Schneider was still on the board at 12th overall in his draft year, but the Wheat Kings are sure glad he was.
Over the course of 207 games with the Wheat Kings, Schneider did everything they could’ve asked of him. The punishing physical defenseman, known for laying out opponents with thunderous bodychecks, also brought more than his share of offense to the table. He had 115 points in 207 games, including finishing over a point per game in the Regina hub in his final season in Black and Gold.
Named an assistant captain in just his second season with the Wheat Kings, Schneider was also a fixture on the international stage. He represented Canada at the World Under-17s and Under-18s, the Hlinka Gretzky Cup, the World Juniors, and the Men’s World Championship.
In 2020, Schneider became a first-round pick for the second time, selected 19th overall by the New York Rangers. He has since played over 200 NHL games, and 31 Stanley Cup Playoff games.
JOBY BAUMULLER: 12th Overall, 2022
It’s too early in his WHL career to say for certain what Baumuller’s eventual impact on the Wheat Kings will be, but there are plenty of promising signs early.
After a slow start (not uncommon for a 16-year-old), Baumuller’s production picked up in the second half and he finished with five goals and 11 points in 52 games. Getting his feet wet in the postseason, he posted two assists in four games against the Moose Jaw Warriors.
Away from the WHL, Baumuller has already represented his country at the World Under-17s and come back with a gold medal, while earning a silver medal with Team Saskatchewan at the Canada Winter Games the season before (Saskatchewan’s first medal at the event in over 25 years). With as many as four years of eligibility left, there’s still plenty of time for Baumuller to build his legacy in Brandon.
The Wheat Kings own their original first, second, and third-round picks in the coming draft. They have two picks in each of rounds four, five, and six.
