NHL Central Scouting provides closer look at determining final rankings

NHL Central Scouting is giving fans a behind-the-scenes look at how the bureau determines its final list of North American and International skaters and goaltenders revealed today on NHL.com.

NHL Productions was on location with a five-man crew attending the second day of the final meetings at the League’s Montreal office the week of April 7 to capture the critical debates and decision-making process of 10 full-time scouts.

"This same interaction takes place with the 32 NHL clubs," Central Scouting vice president and director Dan Marr said. "The only difference is they have to draft the players, so they need to make a decision. We're asked to provide an educated opinion and rank the players in a 'range' for draft consideration and now, the fans get to see the scouts' knowledge, passion, and conviction for the players. The scouts love their jobs and that passion is evident in the discussions and debates that occur and I really respect the dedication of Central Scouting and club scouts for all the draft preparation they put into the rankings."

It marks the second time NHL Productions recorded portions of the bureau's selection process; it also filmed a six-minute video of the midterm rankings in January. 

Similarly to those meetings, left wing Gavin McKenna (Penn State University) was the unanimous choice as No. 1 on Central Scouting's ranking of North American skaters.

"He came into the Western Hockey League as a 14-year-old down the stretch with Medicine Hat (in 2022-23) and was at a point-per-game clip back then (18 points in 16 games)," Central Scouting's senior Western scout John Williams said while the cameras were rolling. "He makes plays that even us sitting up, well away from the ice can't even see, and he sees it. So, watching him create offense from all over the ice in all situations ... I was sad to see him go (from the WHL)."

The bottom line to all this is making sure Central Scouting provides the most accurate and detailed assessment of not just one, but the more than 425 skaters and goalies discussed over the five days. 

"I think doing this for as long as I have, it's nice for not so much recognition, but for teams and people to understand really what work goes into this and how much effort there is to not just put something out and hope it's OK, but to really want to make it right," NHL Central Scouting associate director David Gregory said. "Based on our discussions, you can see how it goes. Everybody had their opinion, but they respect each other and we get it right because of that."

Collin Kornfeind, NHL Productions senior producer, was happy to have an opportunity to give fans the story behind the rankings.

"I think with a lot of our productions, we get aspects of the NHL inner workings and how the sausage is made," Kornfeind said. "Just seeing the people behind the intricacies of the NHL operation that only we can get is fascinating because, even right now, they're ranking names of players that are going into the fourth and fifth round and stacked with information about those players.

"I think people watching the draft, if they do watch those rounds, are probably like, 'Who's this?' But Central Scouting knows everything about those players. The amount of research and frequent-flyer miles, conversations and meetings they have, to endless video they have to watch, it just kind of highlights a bit of the unsung heroes that make the draft happen."

In addition to the eight full-time scouts at the Montreal office, a video call was held with NHL Director of European Scouting J.P. Vuorinen and chief European scout Janne Vuorinen from Finland for further discussion on the top prospects on the International list.

"The integration between our (North America) team and our group in Europe really shows the body of work that we do on both sides," NHL vice president of scouting operations Luke McGoey said. "Looking at it as a group and talking about the hard decisions with the forwards and the defensemen on the North American and International lists highlight the point that teams are going to be the ones that have to make that decision on Draft Day of where this player slots in on their own list."

Gregory was glad to be able to gain valuable insight into the top international prospects.

"They're putting all kinds of work into it, they're passionate about what they do, and they're really smart hockey people," he said. "You hear the points and it's not just off-the-cuff comments about a hockey player; they really know those players. To hear their experience come through, hear them articulate that the information the teams are getting out of the International list is great and it's awfully fun to have them a part of it."

What was Kornfeind's favorite part?

"It's funny when you actually see people still talking about first-round picks," Kornfeind said. "I think when you're going into all of the talk with the draft and the commentary about who's going to go where, you think it's kind of like a foregone conclusion but it's not only subjective but also rooted in information. Like, there's no favoritism. It's a guy that plays in Europe with a different team, it's a different age rank, or a guy in the CHL versus the NCAA and the competition. 

"The differences between how fine the difference can be between a third overall pick versus a fourth overall pick, even in a room full of professionals, can still be debated until the end of the meeting."