NHL.com exclusive: CSS lists revealed

Good morning prospect junkies!

Does it get any better than this? Saturday night, I learned my 16-year-old daughter, who has her learner's permit, traversed and survived the New Jersey Turnpike en route to Port Elizabeth -- not easy. Then again, I learned a long time ago that any female en route to a mall will find a way to get there somehow, even if it meant walking in 8-feet of snow some 5 miles.

And here I am on Sunday, back at the Conn Smythe Board Room at the NHL offices. The scouts are currently 80 players deep and into the heart of the third round. Time to find those diamonds in the rough boys!

Now, as promised, the lists you've been waiting for.

All the players within each league were voted into the top 10 of that particular league and, according to Central Scouting, were exceptional among their peers. In an effort to keep these lists somewhat confidential, I have listed the players in alphabetical order instead of in the numeric fashion they were assigned by Central Scouting. Keep in mind, this is the closest thing you'll get to a finalized list until the actual 'Big Chart' is released April 12. The numeral in (parenthesis) beside each league represents the number of potential first-round picks within that league's top 10.

Have some fun with this kids. Try and predict what the actual top 10 for each league might look like.

Western Hockey League (6 potential first-rounders)
Of note: Four players from Portland Winterhawks among top 10
Sven Baertschi, Portland
Myles Bell, Regina
Joel Edmundson, Moose Jaw
Mark McNeill, Prince Albert
Joe Morrow, Portland
David Musil, Vancouver
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Red Deer
Ty Rattie, Portland
Duncan Siemens, Saskatoon
Tyler Wotherspoon, Portland

Ontario Hockey League (10)
Of note: Kitchener, Niagara and Oshawa each have two players in the top 10
Dougie Hamilton, Niagara
Boone Jenner, Oshawa
Nicklas Jensen, Oshawa
Gabriel Landeskog, Kitchener
Ryan Murphy, Kitchener
Vladislav Namestnikov, London
Shane Prince, Ottawa
Brandon Saad, Saginaw
Mark Scheifele, Barrie
Ryan Strome, Niagara
 
Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (6)
Of note: Six players from high-powered Saint John are in the top 10
Nathan Beaulieu, Saint John
Sean Couturier, Drummondville
Phillip Danault, Victoriaville
Jonathan Huberdeau, Saint John
Tomas Jurco, Saint John
Scott Oke, Saint John
Xavier Ouellet, Montreal
Zack Phillips, Saint John
Logan Shaw, Cape Breton
Ryan Tesink, Saint John

USA East (1)
Of note: Six high school players are in the top 10
Adam Clendening, Boston University
Philippe Hudon, Choate-Rosemary
Matt Killian, Delbarton
Patrick Koudys, RPI
Stephen Miller, Noble High School
Matt Nieto, Boston University
Rob O'Gara, Milton Academy
Jamieson Oleksiak, Northeastern
Petr Placek, Hotchkiss Academy
Colin Sullivan, Avon Old Farms

USA West (7)
Of note: Two players (Ambroz and Lucia) were born in 2011 Draft state host Minnesota
Seth Ambroz, Omaha
Tyler Biggs, USNTDP
Rocco Grimaldi, USNTDP
Sean Kuraly, Indiana
Joe Labate, Holy Angels
Mario Lucia, Wayzata
Scott Mayfield, Youngstown
J.T. Miller, USNTDP
Connor Murphy, USNTDP
Andy Welinski, Green Bay

Canadian Juniors/Midgets (0)
Joey Baker
Brian Bunnett
Michael King
Joel Lowry
Mark Luzar
Sam Mellor
Ryan Renz
Brennan Serville
Destry Straight
Kevin Tansey