Braydon Buziak’s impressive start to his Western Hockey League career has garnered attention from the National Hockey League’s Central Scouting Bureau.
The Battleford product was given a ‘C’ rating on Tuesday in the preliminary players to watch list for the 2017 NHL Draft, which will take place in Chicago next June.
A ‘C’ rating means that a player is a candidate to be selected anywhere between the fourth and sixth round of the draft.
After signing with the Pats in September following a 19-point season with the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League’s Battlefords North Stars, Buziak has hit the ground running with four goals in his first four regular season games.
That puts him in a tie for third in the WHL heading into play Tuesday. He also shares the lead on the Pats with Anaheim Ducks prospect Sam Steel.
Buziak was one of five Pats players to make the list. Joining him were forwards Nick Henry, Jake Leschyshyn and Lane Zablocki, along with goaltender Jordan Hollett.
Leschyshyn, who is from Grasswood, was one of three Saskatchewan players to be given a ‘B’ rating and is projected to be a second or third round pick.
The other players were Cale Fleury of Carlyle (Kootenay Ice) and Kole Lind of Shaunavon (Kelowna Rockets).
No players from the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League made the list.
Nolan Patrick of the Brandon Wheat Kings is the odds-on-favourite to be the first overall pick.
