This is Part II of a two-part series looking at the best players at each position group for every team in the WHL’s U.S. Division. Part I looked at the goalies. In Part II, we are coupling forwards and defensemen, as teams gear up for playoff pushes.

This is not a ranking of players, nor how they project as NHLers, rather which players are helping to lead their respective teams this season. We’ve listed them in order of their team’s place in the standings simply to point out which individuals you should keep an eye on down the stretch.

Forwards

Portland Winterhawks: Gabe Klassen

55 GP: 31 G – 61 A — 91 PTS, 1.67 PTS/G

Portland is stacked at almost every position, especially in the forward corps, which is lush with players who have the knack to score almost at will. But this season, Gabe Klassen has shown that he is the most seasoned of the bunch. Klassen, at 61 assists, is second among all overagers, but he can also shoot from almost anywhere in the attacking zone. And frequently, his shots find twine, as he sports an above-average 14.0 shooting percentage.

Honorable mention: James Stefan

Everett Silvertips: Ben Hemmerling

57 GP: 26 G – 52 A — 78 PTS, 1.37 PTS/G

The Everett Silvertips are no strangers to finding goals this year themselves, being are tied for second for total goals scored at 254 on the year. Contributing to over 30 percent of their goals this season has been center Ben Hemmerling.

Vegas was lucky to grab Hemmerling in the third round of the 2022 NHL Draft, a player with as much skill in open ice as any player in the Western Hockey League. Despite only having 26 goals on the year, he shoots like crazy, leading the entire WHL in shots on goal with 283. Hemmerling signed an entry-level contract with Vegas early this season.

HM: Dominik Rymon

Wenatchee Wild: Kenta Isogai

52 GP: 25 G – 49 A — 74 PTS, 1.42 PTS/G

With Conor Geekie and Matthew Savoie gone (traded at the WHL trade deadline), Kenta Isogai is left to help pick up the pieces and carry the Wild towards the playoffs. He groups together speed, quick hands, and shot accuracy to make up for his size (5-foot-10, 158 pounds). He has taken games into his own hands with his offensive prowess and currently leads Wenatchee forwards in goals, assists, and points.

HM: Briley Wood

Spokane Chiefs: Berkly Catton

54 GP: 41 G – 48 A — 89 PTS, 1.65 PTS/G

A larger feature on Berkly Catton was done last week, but to sum it up, he’s been sensational for the Chiefs this season. Catton will be eligible for selection at the 2024 NHL Draft.

HM: Connor Roulette

Tri-City Americans: Jordan Gavin

56 GP: 21 G – 35 A — 56 PTS, 1.00 PTS/G

Jordan Gavin has solid awareness of his surroundings and creates space by using his quick feet, and more often than not makes the correct decision on whether to pass or shoot. At just 17 years old, Gavin leads all Tri-City forwards with 36 assists on the year. He will be NHL Draft eligible in the summer of 2025.

HM: Jake Sloan (24-32–56)

Seattle Thunderbirds: Eric Alarie

51 GP: 16 G – 21 A — 37 PTS, 0.73 PTS/G

There aren’t too many currently outstanding forwards to choose from, given the status of the rebuilding Thunderbirds. So we’ll go with 20-year-old Eric Alarie here, who despite the slowed offensive production from his team all around, has put together a solid season to cap off his time in the WHL. Alarie, acquired from Moose Jaw in a trade on Oct. 4, 2023, leads T-Birds forwards in goals, assists, and points.

Defensemen

Portland: Lucas Cagnoni (SJS)

58 GP: 13 G – 58 A — 71 PTS, 1.34 PTS/G

Lucas Cagnoni is an excellent defender that can be an assist machine on the blue line for the Winterhawks, and he leads all WHL defensemen in helpers with 58. He leads all D-men in points, as well, with 71. Cagnoni makes the right reads at the right times and finds guys open in high-danger areas of the ice. Cagnoni was selected in the fourth round by the San Jose Sharks in the 2023 NHL Draft.

Everett: Parker Berge

58 GP: 12 G – 43 A — 55 PTS, 0.95 PTS/G

Acquired before the trade deadline from the Regina Pats, Parker Berge helped to beef up the Silvertips on the back end. As much as the Silvertips were getting scoring from their forwards, they needed more scoring from their defensemen, and adding a veteran leader like Berge was too good of a fit to pass up. Playing a disciplined game at only 18 penalty minutes on the season, the overager already leads the Silvertips in points by a defenseman at 56.

Wenatchee: Graham Sward (NSH)

54 GP: 13 G – 53 A — 66 PTS, 1.22 PTS/G

Graham Sward has been a consistent force within the Wild organization for the past few seasons. Captaining the Wild in their inaugural campaign, Sward serves as a role model for some of the younger guys on Wenatchee currently. He uses his size to his advantage, as Sward, over his 239-game WHL career, has collected 168 points. He was selected by the Nashville Predators in the fifth round of the 2022 NHL Draft.

Spokane: Saige Weinstein (COL)

51 GP: 8 G – 14 A — 22 PTS, 0.43 PTS/G

This might be more of a projection pick as opposed to current production, but Saige Weinstein could be ready to take the next step into becoming a really solid No. 1 D-man next season. Despite being smaller in size for defensemen at 6-foot-0, 190lbs, 18-year-old Weinstein makes up for it with his defensive positioning and isn’t afraid of the dirtier areas of the ice. It would not surprise me if Spokane eventually names him captain.

Weinstein shared with me what he does to make up for his smaller stature at a defenseman. “I don’t really let my size bring me down,” Weinstein, who has 231 penalty minutes across 173 career WHL games, said. “I play like I’m 6-foot-4. I’m pretty physical, and that’s just my game that I look to bring to the table every night for this team.”

Weinstein signed a three-year entry-level contract with the Colorado Avalanche in October, 2023.

Tri-City: Lukas Dragicevic (SEA)

53 GP: 12 G – 29 A — 41 PTS, 0.77 PTS/G

We’ve already said quite a bit about Lukas Dragicevic and what he could mean for the Seattle Kraken one day, selected in the third round of the 2023 NHL Draft. But right now, he means a lot to the blue line of the Americans, as they vie for one of the final wild card spots in the Western Conference.

Dragicevic has elite offensive awareness that he uses to his advantage when the Americans go on the man advantage. He is in the top 10 in power-play assists by league defensemen with 16. We will have more on him in the weeks ahead.

Seattle: Jeremy Hanzel (COL)

52 GP: 11 G – 36 A — 47 PTS, 0.90 PTS/G

Jeremy Hanzel has arguably been the Thunderbirds’ best skater during this campaign, a returning member of the team that won the WHL championship in 2022-23 and made it all the way to the Memorial Cup Finals. Hanzel learned from graduated T-Birds on what it takes to succeed at this level. With 47 points currently, he will soon pass his 48-point total from last season. This is quite impressive considering the Thunderbirds offense ranks last in the entire WHL in goals for at 144 on the year. Hanzel was selected in the sixth round of the 2023 NHL Draft by the Colorado Avalanche.

Header photo: Kenta Isogai battles for a puck with Jordan Gustafson. (Photo/Brian Liesse, Seattle Thunderbirds).