Seattle Kraken select Berkly Catton No. 8 overall in 2024 NHL Draft

Just a good ol’ Saskatchewan kid that more than one or two or two dozen prospect analysts, including Daily Faceoff’s own Steven Ellis, thought would go in the top 10 in this year’s draft. 

What Seattle gets from Catton is a highly-skilled center whose talents project to be a top-line forward in the NHL, capable of creating offense at both even strength and the power play. 

After a rookie 2022-23 season with the WHL’s Spokane Chiefs that saw him score 23 goals and 55 points, the left-handed forward improved his production dramatically, potting 54 goals and leading all draft-eligible WHL players with 116 points. Catton and over-age teammate Conner Roulette led the offense for their team, both clearing their closest highest-scoring teammate by at least 37 points.

The Saskatoon native worked on his craft in the offseason before the 2023-24 season, doing what some may call the antithesis of “modern training.”

“I lived in my backyard shooting pucks,” Catton said at the NHL Draft Combine earlier this month. “I knew as a 16-year-old that I thought I had a decent season, but I wasn’t scoring as I liked. I attributed it to being where it should be, so I knew I had to work on it in the summer. Ultimately, I did.”

Catton also captained Team Canada to a gold medal at the 2023 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, scoring eight goals and two assists for 10 points in five games.

Some teams that passed on him might have been scared by the lack of size, currently listed at 5-foot-11, but considering he came into the WHL at 160 pounds (allegedly) and weighed in at 175 at the Combine, there’s room to grow. Literally. 

Ellis wrote that Catton might be the most underrated top prospect in this year’s draft, and that there may be a disconnect between the average fan and NHL scouts. While the size might play against him, the amount of talent he possesses won’t.

“That’s something teams will be willing to bet on,” Ellis said.