Prince George Cougars right winger Terik Parascak has been talking to NHL scouts for months now.
So he probably wasn’t too shocked to learn he’s near the top of the list of the 60 WHL players included on NHL Central Scouting’s midterm rankings for the 2024 NHL draft.
The 17-year-old rookie sensation from Lethbridge is the 14th-ranked North American skater on that list. With 26 goals and 60 points in 40 games this season, Parascak is the only first-year player in the top-20 in WHL scoring, ranked eighth in the point parade.
Two other Cougars made the top-60 list.
Forward Ondrej Becher, 19, who helped Czechia win bronze at the world junior championship a week ago in Sweden, is the 84th-ranked North American skater and Cougar forward Hunter Laing is ranked 108th. Becher has 16 goals and 45 points in 30 games, while Laing has six goals and seven assists through 40 games.
Forward Cayden Lindstrom of Chetwynd is considered the third-best North American skater available for the June draft in Las Vegas. Listed at six-foot-four, 215 pounds, he has 19 goals and 36 points in his first WHL season with the Medicine Hat Tigers.
Prince George minor hockey product Migues Marques, who leads the Lethbridge Hurricanes in scoring with 45 points in 38 games, is ranked 33rd.
Kelowna Rockets centre Tij Iginla is ranked 11th on the draft list, while Kelowna winger Gojsic Hiroki is the 94th-ranked North American skater.
