Color of Hockey: Lin compared to top NHL defensemen heading into 2026 Draft

William Douglas has been writing The Color of Hockey blog since 2012. Douglas joined NHL.com in 2019 and writes about people of color in the sport. Today, as part of NHL.com's celebration of Asian & Pacific Islander Heritage month, he profiles Ryan Lin, an 18-year-old defenseman for Vancouver of the Western Hockey League. He’s ranked No. 16 among North American Skaters by NHL Central Scouting ahead of the 2026 Upper Deck NHL Draft June 26-27 at KeyBank Center in Buffalo.

Ryan Lin wanted more.

The 18-year-old defenseman had a noteworthy rookie season with Vancouver of the Western Hockey League in 2024-25, with 53 points (five goals, 48 assists) in 60 games.

He became the second WHL defenseman aged 16 or younger with 50 points in a season since Scott Niedermayer with Kamloops in 1989-90, and was a Western Conference finalist for the league’s Rookie of the Year.

All good, Lin said, but…

“I think my first year I was more of a facilitator and maybe passed up on some opportunities to shoot the puck,” he said. “Going into the next year, that was a big focus of mine, just using my shot more and putting myself in better positions to use it and ultimately try to score some more goals and really facilitate the offense from the back end.”

The change paid dividends this season. Lin scored 14 goals and led Vancouver in points (57), assists (43) and power-play assists (21) in 53 games this season; he missed 15 games with a wrist injury.

He recorded his 100th career point in 100 games, making him the fastest WHL defenseman under 18 to accomplish the feat since Niedermayer in 1991.

Lin’s season helped placed him at No. 16 on NHL Central Scouting’s final rankings of North American Skaters for the 2026 Upper Deck NHL Draft June 26-27 at KeyBank Center in Buffalo. The first round is June 26 (7 p.m. ET; ESPN, ESPN+, Sportsnet, TVA Sports) with rounds 2-7 on June 27 (10 a.m. ET; NHL Network, ESPN+, Sportsnet).

“It was a little bit of an adjustment for me,” Lin said. “I'm not always thinking offense. I’ve got to be sound, defensively, as well. But I think I just kind of realized, with the skill set I have, I can have more of an impact on the game playing a certain way, playing aggressive and playing to my strengths.”

Vancouver assistant coach Wacey Rabbit calls Lin “a breakout machine” whose size (5-foot-11, 178 pounds), passing and skating abilities and hockey IQ draw comparisons to NHL blueliners Cale Makar of the Colorado Avalanche, Quinn Hughes of the Minnesota Wild and Lane Hutson of the Montreal Canadiens.

“Ryan’s no different from those guys,” Rabbit said. "He’s very elusive and his vision is elite. The consistency that he’s had in the WHL is remarkable. Having him this year as a 17-year-old, running our power play, being our top defenseman, arguably, I thought he was probably the best defenseman other than (Carson) Carels  (of Prince George) and (Landon) DuPont (of Everett) out in our western conference before he got injured.”

In addition to being Vancouver’s leading scorer, Lin became the team’s undisputed leader when he was named captain on Jan. 9. At 17 years and 267 days old, he became the second youngest captain in team history behind Tyler Benson, who was 17 years and 194 days old when he was named on Sept. 24, 2015.

“I think they really trusted that I was going to lead by example and set a good example for not only the guys younger than me on the team, but the older ones too,” Lin said. “I have a lot of respect in our room. I think it’s just how I go about my day with the mindset I have towards practice, towards the gym, towards the games, and then just how I treat everyone the same.”

Lin has also made an impact internationally representing Canada. The native of Richmond Hill, British Columbia, was tied for the 2026 IIHF U18 Men’s World Championship scoring lead among defenseman and tied for second on Team Canada with six points (one goal, five assists) in five games at the April 22-May 2 tournament in Trencin and Bratislava, Slovakia, April 22-May 2.

The right-shot defenseman had two points (one goal, one assist) in seven games to help Canada win the gold medal at the 2025 IIHF U18 worlds in Frisco and Allen, Texas, as one of the youngest players on its roster. 

He registered five points (two goals, three assists) in five games and won bronze at the 2025 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, an annual Under-18 tournament that was played in Czechia and Slovakia in August and led defensemen in points (five) and assists (four) in four games at the Gangwon 2024 Youth Winter Olympics in South Korea.

Rabbit said Lin’s offensive numbers obscure his defensive capabilities.

“I think one of the most underrated things for him, and I think it’s because of his size, is that he’s a very physical person,” Rabbit said. “He separates the man from the puck, and that it's very underrated skill. He’s a very good defender with his stick and the way he anticipates plays on the defensive side. If he’s 6-foot-2, he’s going up (in the draft), to be honest. But because of his stature, that’s the bias against him. But he’s a complete defenseman, he’s right there.”

The son of educators, Lin followed his older brother, Teo, into hockey. Teo was a forward and captain with Richmond of the Pacific Junior Hockey League this season.

“When my dad signed him up for hockey when he was 5, I tagged along,” Ryan said. “I wasn't on the ice, on his team or anything. But I started at a really early age, maybe 3 years old. Once I could join the team, I did.”

Lin said his father, Weily, a second generation Canadian who is half Japanese and Taiwanese, grew up playing soccer and didn’t play much hockey, but that didn’t stop him from getting on the ice with his kids.

“He really liked soccer and still follows it,” Ryan said. “But hockey kind of takes over everything.”

Lin said he’s looking forward to the NHL Draft in June and is excited about playing with the University of Denver next season. Denver defeated Wisconsin 2-1 on April 11 for its 11th NCAA Frozen Four championship.

“Yeah, that’s the experience I want,” Lin said. “Really good coaching staff, really good track record of producing high-end defensemen, and everything about it was so awesome.”