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Chase Reid leads the pack with an ‘A’ rating, joined by four teammates recognized ahead of next year’s NHL draft
Published Oct 21, 2025  • 3 minute read
Soo Greyhounds defenceman Chase Reid (25) looks on during OHL action against the Windsor Spitfires on Oct. 11, 2025 at GFL Memorial Gardens in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont. Photo by JANSON DUENCH/The Sault StarArticle content
Top 2026 NHL draft prospect Chase Reid leads five Soo Greyhounds players to be ranked in NHL Central Scouting’s ‘Players to Watch’ list announced Monday morning.
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The rearguard is joined by fellow defencemen Callum Croskery, Harris Pangretitsch, and Hunter Solomon. Centre Quinn McKenzie was the lone forward to make the cut for the preliminary list ahead of the 2026 NHL Entry Draft next June.
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Reid received an ‘A’ rating, meaning he is considered a potential first-round selection. Croskery, who has yet to play an OHL game after being sidelined with a wrist injury in pre-season, was assigned a ‘C’ rating for a potential fourth- or fifth-round pick, while Pangretitsch, Solomon, and McKenzie each earned a ‘W’ rating as potential sixth- or seventh-round choices.
The five Hounds are among 78 OHL skaters (54 forwards and 24 defencemen) and 14 goaltenders listed, part of a group of 233 from across the CHL.
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The projections, however, do not include European players when considering where players might be selected in the upcoming draft.
This June, four Greyhounds — Brady Martin, Travis Hayes, Jordan Charron, and Marco Mignosa — were selected in the 2025 NHL Entry Draft.
Players become first-time eligible for the NHL draft in the year they turn 18, unless their birthday falls on or after Sept. 16, in which case their eligibility is deferred to the following year.
Reid was a seventh-round pick by the Greyhounds in the 2023 OHL Priority Selection from Victory Honda AAA in Michigan. Committed to playing NCAA hockey, Reid joined the USHL’s Waterloo Black Hawks last fall but didn’t stick, bouncing to the NAHL’s Bismarck Bobcats instead. Following the NCAA rule change in November 2024, the Michigan State commit was suddenly able to join the Greyhounds without dashing his college plans.
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He immediately made an impact in the OHL, scoring 40 points in 39 games to become the Hounds’ de facto No. 1 blueliner in short order. This season, he’s picked up where he left off, recording 13 points in as many games and appearing on many draft rankings as a potential top-10 NHL pick. The Chesterfield, Mich. product turns 18 on Dec. 30.
Like Reid, Croskery was a Greyhounds selection (second round, 2024) set on pursuing the college route before the NCAA rule change. The offensive blueliner and Boston College commit was also ranked by many as a possible first- or second-round NHL pick this summer, but not playing any regular-season games due to injury hasn’t done him any favours with the scouts. He’ll celebrate his 18th birthday on Jan. 29.
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An alumnus of the Oakville Rangers U16 AAA program, Croskery put up 10 points in 54 appearances with the USHL’s Chicago Steel, and he was a genuine difference-maker in the few games he played for the Soo in September pre-season action. Head coach John Dean has described his injury timeline as month-to-month.
McKenzie, a North Potomac, Md. resident and Penn State commit, was signed by the Greyhounds as a free agent in September. The 5-foot-10 centre has been an early offensive catalyst for the team, putting up four goals and 10 points in 13 games in a first-line role. McKenzie was a high-flying scorer for Shattuck St. Mary’s 18U Prep program last season, netting 28 goals and 93 points in 58 games last season. He’ll turn 18 on Nov. 28.
Pangretitsch, a 2024 fourth-rounder out of the Toronto Marlboros U16 AAA program, joined the Greyhounds this season and has one assist and a minus-one rating in 13 games. The Toronto, Ont. resident turns 18 on March 29.
Solomon, who was just recently sidelined by an upper-body injury, was another fourth-round Greyhounds selection in the 2023 draft. The Guelph, Ont. product and Waterloo Wolves U16 AAA alumnus has two assists in 10 games this season following 13 points in a full 68-game rookie campaign. He turns 18 on Dec. 4.
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