Button’s six players to watch in final Craig’s List of the season

With just over a week to go until the 2026 NHL Draft in Buffalo, TSN Director of Scouting Craig Button admits he struggled with the exact placement of six players in his final draft ranking.

“Those six guys are all the players I asked myself this question: Have I ranked them high enough?” said Button. “Because they all have abilities that are really, really high end.”

One of those players is Soo Greyhounds defenceman Chase Reid, who finishes the season at No. 5 on Button’s June list.

While an upper-body injury cost him all of February and half of March, Reid averaged more than a point per game last season with the Soo, scoring 18 goals with 48 points in 45 games.

“It wouldn’t surprise me one bit if Chase Reid turned out to be the best player in this draft,” said Button.

The other five players Button has identified are ranked in the No. 16 through 22 range, and he believes they are all future NHL players.

Forward Markus Ruck comes in at No. 16 after leading the Western Hockey League in scoring as a 17-year-old with the Medicine Hat Tigers.

Ruck had 108 points, including 87 assists. He finished four points ahead of teammate and twin brother Liam, who is the No. 10 player on Button’s list.

“The whole is greater than the sum of the parts,” said Button of Markus. “He makes it happen out there.”

At No. 18 is Victoriaville Tigres centre Egor Shilov, who scored 32 goals with 82 points in 63 games in his first QMJHL season.

“Shilov is just a smart, two-way player,” said Button. “A centre’s job, to me, is to help his wingers be better, to drive the play, be the spine of a line. I know the game has changed with respect to how you play and maneuver, but to me, Shilov has that classic two-way game.

“If there’s a play where he says, ‘I got to take advantage and I got to put it on my shoulders,’ he will.”

Shilov led all rookies in scoring last season and took home the Michel Bergeron Trophy as QMJHL offensive rookie of the year.

Two spots after Shilov is Saginaw Spirit winger Nikita Klepov at No. 20, who Button sees as a Kyle Connor-type player.

Like Markus Ruck, Klepov led the Ontario Hockey League in scoring as a 17-year-old with 97 points in 67 games.

“He’s so smart,” said Button of Klepov. “He moves into the right spots at the right times. Really good puck skills, really good understanding of how to take advantage of openings.”

After starting the season outside of Button’s top 64, United States National Team Development Program winger Wyatt Cullen rose throughout the year and lands at No. 21 in the final ranking.

The 17-year-old scored 16 goals with 45 points in 40 games with the USNTDP U18 team last season. He also had three goals with nine points in five games at the U18s for the Americans.

Cullen is the only player from this year’s USNTDP team to be ranked in Button’s top 32.

“Wyatt is a really good player,” Button said of Cullen. “He’s talented and competitive. He fits that same kind of mould as Klepov. They’re wiry and quick, and they’re quick in their hands, feet and heads. And he competes. He might be more Jake Guentzel like.”

Rounding out Button’s six-player list is Moncton Wildcats defenceman Tommy Bleyl.

Bleyl rose from No. 39 in January to inside the first round at No. 27 on May’s ranking. He now finishes the season at No. 22.

After spending the 2024-25 season split between U18 AAA hockey and U.S. prep school, the 18-year-old made the jump to the Canadian Hockey League this past season and exploded for 13 goals and 81 points in 63 games.

Bleyl took home both QMJHL Defenceman and Rookie of the Year awards and ended the campaign with 28 points in 21 playoff games as he helped the Wildcats reach the QMJHL Championship Series.

“That guy is unbelievably dynamic,” said Button of Bleyl.

TSN’s consensus draft ranking will be released on Monday.

Final Craig’s List - June 17