First-overall selection Rudolph signs WHL Scholarship & Development Agreement with Raiders

The Prince Albert Raiders have signed first-overall selection Daxon Rudolph to a WHL Scholarship and Development Agreement. Raiders GM Curtis Hunt made the announcement Monday morning.

Rudolph, hailing from Lacombe, Alta., was the top selection in the 2023 WHL Prospects Draft on Thursday, May 11.

“It feels great being selected (and signing) with such a great organization,” Rudolph said. “I’m really proud of myself, and I’m ready to get some work done in Prince Albert. They love winning and they’ve had some recent success, and I’m looking forward to being a part of it in the future.”

Rudolph had an outstanding 2022-23 campaign with the Northern Alberta Xtreme U15 Prep team, registering 50 points (17G-33A) in only 30 contests. He added another 12 points (5G-7A) in five playoff games as NAX claimed the CSSHL U15 championship.

“NAX was awesome for me, we had a really great group of guys,” Rudolph explained. “We worked hard all season. There was a lot of talent, a lot of hard workers and great coaches. We had a lot of success and ended up winning it all. Just a great group of guys, and I had fun playing with them all year.”

Rudolph represents the third player selected first overall in Prince Albert Raiders history, following the footsteps of Kaiden Guhle (2017) and Kyle Chipchura (2001).

Our first overall pick is signed!https://t.co/TJjk2bXHvL pic.twitter.com/w3xXN56wic

— Prince Albert Raiders (@PARaidersHockey) May 15, 2023