It’s getting to be that time of year. September is right around the corner. Junior teams in North America and Europe are reassembling for camp and preseason contests. The first draft showcase event, the Hlinka Gretzky Cup, is already in the books.

For prospect watchers, it means we’re officially on to the 2027 NHL Draft. A few analysts have already put out short preseason lists giving you a handful of high-end players to watch. Today, we’re digging deeper, getting you a list of 200 first-time eligible and 100 re-entry candidates for you to follow as the season progresses.

The “Data Score” approach

This is not a traditional scouting assessment of prospects. Instead, we built our watchlist using quantifiable data only. Think of it as a supplement to the scouting and analytical work on prospects being published by other sources like Elite Prospects. It can be revealing in its areas of agreement or disagreement with the work of traditional scouting services.

What does our data-only analysis involve? As I have done in years past when looking at NHL Draft prospects (or NHL-affiliated prospects), I have organized this player list by “Data Score”—a rough metric we came up with here at Sound Of Hockey. Data Score begins with the bedrock of an NHL equivalency (“NHLe”). NHLe is a method to compare the scoring proficiency of players in the various professional and junior leagues across the globe. I used Thibaud Chatel’s model, which is the most up-to-date public research in the area. Check out Chatel’s Substack for an in-depth discussion of NHLe. For this project, I used Chatel’s newest model, which has been updated to account for 2025-26 season data.

Before last season, I looked at only a one-year sample to create this list. Continuing my practice from last year, I applied this NHLe to multiple years of scoring data for these prospects—specifically the 2024-25 and 2025-26 seasons. More recent play is given more weight. I believe this is an important upgrade to the approach.

From there, as before, I make adjustments based on factors known to be linked to prospect success rates: (1) position, (2) height, (3) age, and (4) re-draft status. I also make a modest upward adjustment to the NHLe for low-scoring draft-eligible players playing in high-level professional leagues. (This is based on public research by Chace McCallum that was taken down when he started working for an NHL team.)

I also adjusted the underlying point-rate totals used in the process to give less weight to assists relative to goals. This is based on public research suggesting goal scoring is more predictive of future point production than assist totals, even primary assists.

The full watchlist will be made available to Sound Of Hockey Patreon members shortly.

The 2027 NHL Draft watchlist

It’s reassuring when I reach the end of this cumbersome data project and find out that the player who will be displayed atop the watchlist is a household name.

Landon DuPont is the consensus No. 1 overall prospect in the 2027 NHL Draft among draft analysts, and he lands at No. 1 on the watchlist too. The exceptional-status defenseman brings high-end transition and offensive-zone play, very strong zone-denial skills, and enough work ethic and physicality to contribute in the defensive zone too. He may profile a half step below the NHL’s premier sub-6-foot defensemen, Cale Makar and Quinn Hughes, but his 5-foot-11 frame shouldn’t limit him. I like the Miro Heiskanen comparison I’ve heard.

The statistical gulf between DuPont and the field is not nearly as wide as we saw last season at this time with Gavin McKenna, though. McKenna’s case is also a reminder that scouting opinions evolve quickly during the draft season. While McKenna ultimately did go No. 1 overall at the 2026 NHL Draft, there were times last season when public analysts wavered on him. If DuPont struggles in his transition to college hockey this season, could others get into the mix for No. 1 overall? Absolutely. (That said, personally, I think DuPont will find his feet quickly in the NCAA ranks.)

After DuPont, the blue-line class looks a bit thin right now. Levi Harper, Jake Prunty, Brock Cripps, and Kohyn Eshkawkogan have all been productive but measure at 5-foot-10 or 5-foot-11, which tends to ding a defense prospect lacking DuPont’s high-end profile. It’s possible some could end up as first-round picks in the Ryan Lin mold, but it’s difficult to confidently project any of them into the top half of the first round right now. At the other end of the spectrum, the defensemen who bring more size and physicality, like Mark L’Italien, have not shown anything resembling first-round scoring production.

In contrast, there is an intriguing blend of size, styles, and nationalities among the forward prospects. Nazar Privalov is a 6-foot-4 forward from Russia who draws raves for his offensive talent level. Jonah Neuenschwander is a 6-foot-3 Swiss forward who played more games in the Swiss National League than any 17-year-old ever has. Alexis Joseph is a 6-foot-5 QMJHL forward who could have as much skill as any forward in the draft if he can add the necessary compete level and skating. If not Joseph, maybe 6-foot-2 Swedish center Milan Sundström brings the most skill.

Alongside those first-off-the-bus prototypes, there are tenacious, bulldog forwards like Dima Zhiklin and skilled, playmaking centers like Jaxon Jacobson. With no consensus “top player” at this point, it has the makings of a very fun forward group to follow.

The U.S. National Team Development Program has gone through a few lean years, and the U18 Team could struggle again this season following the early exit of some key players. That said, the draft could see a handful of prospects with Program pedigree go early. Forwards Jamie Glance, Sammy Nelson, Carter Meyer, and Nolan Fitzhenry all sit within the top 15 on this preseason watchlist.

If there is a player group the watchlist has overrated in recent years, it is Russians playing in the MHL. I suspect there are a variety of explanations, but that’s probably a separate article. Regardless, it is fair to wonder if players like Andrei Pustovoy or Sergei Skvortsov may ultimately be drafted lower than their watchlist status suggests.

I also have my eye on Prunty, who is joining the U.S. National Team Development Program this season. He has not shown up on draft lists (yet), and it’s not hard to understand why (he’s listed at 5-foot-10, 154 pounds). That said, I’m curious to see what it looks like at the Program, particularly if he earns first-unit power-play time. The odds say he will be drafted far lower than his watchlist position.

Revisiting the 2026 NHL Draft preseason list

How much can you learn about a player’s draft projection from looking at biometric and scoring data from seasons before the draft year in question? As you might expect, it’s not perfect. Players—particularly first-time draft-eligible players—often take a very large statistical leap in their draft seasons as they continue to mature.

For example, the No. 3 overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft, Caleb Malhotra, averaged just 0.6 points per game in the BCHL during his draft-minus-one season. He then proceeded to amaze scouts during the 2025-26 season by doubling his scoring output (1.25 points per game) after stepping up to the OHL level. Matthew Schaefer had a similar statistical leap the year prior before being selected No. 1 overall in the 2025 NHL Draft.

Could another elite player emerge from lower in these preseason rankings? It’s certainly possible. And there are always going to be players that teams and scouts “like” (or “dislike”) more than their scoring data would suggest.

That said, it is amazing how much you can learn even from scoring data predating the draft year. Looking back at the top of our 2026 NHL Draft preseason watchlist, draftniks will see a lot of familiar names. 13 of the top 15 on the preseason watchlist were ultimately drafted in the top 50, including the No. 1, 2, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 11 overall picks. 13 of the preseason top 32 were selected in the first round, and all but two were ultimately drafted. (The two exceptions were Russian players, which, as mentioned, have proven hard to project of late.)

If you rewind to our 2025 NHL Draft preseason watchlist, it’s a similar story. Nine of the top 11 draft picks and 15 total first-round picks were within the preseason watchlist top 32. If you look to our 2024 NHL Draft preseason watchlist, you’ll find that four of the top five picks in the 2024 NHL Draft were in our preseason top 32, as well as 15 first-round picks overall.

These results almost replicate the success rate of source-consulting prospect analysts evaluating the landscape at this time of year. For example, in fall 2024, Corey Pronman—who is as well-sourced as any prospect analyst currently working—correctly predicted 19 first-round skaters on his initial 2025 draft first-round board.

The accuracy of the watchlist as a predictive tool declines the deeper you go into it, but the success rate at the top of the list gives me confidence that the Data Score approach can serve its purpose as a guide to tracking players who could end up being high draft picks.

Local connections

While DuPont will play his draft season at the University of Michigan rather than in Everett, Wash., there are still a number of local prospects worth following from a draft perspective. Most notably, Brock England, a center for the Seattle Thunderbirds, projects as a potential first-round pick. England is a relatively young draft-eligible player and has already topped 50 points in the WHL.

Elsewhere, Boston Tait, a 6-foot-2 defenseman for the Wenatchee Wild; Rhett Sather, a 5-foot-11 defenseman for the Spokane Chiefs; and Crew Martinson, a 6-foot-2 forward for the Tri-City Americans, are three other Washington-based players checking in within the top 75 on this preseason watchlist.

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Do you have any questions? Reach out to us in the comments below or on Twitter/X @deepseahockey or @sound_hockey or on BlueSky at @deepseahockey or @soundofhockey.com.

Header photo of Landon DuPont taken by Evan Morud, courtesy Everett Silvertips.