Hitmen add eight prospects in 2026 WHL Draft

CALGARY — The Calgary Hitmen added eight new prospects Thursday during the 2026 WHL Prospects Draft, selecting players from across Canada and the United States as the organization continued building toward its next core group.

Calgary opened its draft by trading up in the second round to select goaltender Owen Ryan 36th overall. The 6-foot-2 netminder from White Bear Lake, Minnesota posted a .949 save percentage and 1.34 goals-against average in 23 games with St. Thomas Academy HS Cadets during the 2024-25 season.

The Hitmen later selected centre Easton Mattersdorfer 43rd overall after the Lethbridge Golden Hawks U15 AAA forward recorded 88 points in 34 games.

Charlie Fox followed at 53rd overall after producing 95 points in 59 games with Mount St. Charles Academy 14U.

Calgary added another centre in the fifth round with Koen Braunberger, who collected 93 points in 30 games for the Winnipeg Bruins U15 AAA Black squad.

Defenceman Nash Tomchuk went 104th overall after posting 27 points in 26 games with the Regina Monarchs U15 AA program.

The Hitmen selected defenceman Stephen Belde in the sixth round before adding winger Joey Stewart in the seventh and centre Theodore Kim in the eighth round.

“We’re thrilled with the quality of prospects we have added to our organization at all positions,” Hitmen director of scouting Gary Michalick said in a release.

“Despite not owning a first-round pick, we were able to add talented prospects from both Canada and U.S. that were very high on our draft board.”

The Hitmen selected five forwards, two defencemen and one goaltender in total.

Players eligible for the 2026 WHL Prospects Draft were born in 2011 and reside within WHL recruiting regions across Western Canada and several U.S. states.