Top 10 prospects Mrtka, McQueen discussed on 'NHL Draft Class' podcast

The 2025 Upper Deck NHL Draft will be held June 27-28 at L.A. Live's Peacock Theater in Los Angeles. The first round will be held June 27 (7 p.m. ET; ESPN, ESPN+, SN, TVAS), with rounds 2-7 on June 28 (Noon ET; NHLN, ESPN+, SN, SN1). NHL.com is counting down to the draft with in-depth profiles on top prospects, podcasts and other features. Full draft coverage can be found here.

Radim Mrtka has proven from the time he arrived in North America that he has the ability to do a lot of good things as a big, rangy defenseman, according to John Williams of NHL Central Scouting.

"From when he got to Seattle (of the Western Hockey League) in November, he played all the time, every situation, because the team had some injuries there," Williams said on the latest "NHL Draft Class" podcast. "For a guy who's 6-foot-6, he moves very well, and he's got a little bit of bite in his game. He can jump up on the rush. I think he'd be a very good No. 2 (defenseman)-kind-of-guy who can play with a really good, skilled player.

"But he can also be on a power play, can kill penalties and just eat minutes."

Mrtka (6-foot-6, 207 pounds), No. 5 on NHL Central Scouting's final ranking of North American skaters eligible for the 2025 Upper Deck NHL Draft, had 35 points (three goals, 32 assists) in 43 regular-season games for Seattle after playing 10 games with Trinec in the top professional league in his native Czechia this season.

Along with Mrtka, Williams covered several other top prospects from the WHL, including Brandon center Roger McQueen (6-5, 197), who missed 51 games this season with a lingering back injury. McQueen is No. 8 on Central Scouting's final ranking of North American skaters.

"I think when we saw [McQueen] early in the year, the conversation right away was like, this guy's is in the conversation for No. 1, No. 2, or No. 3," Williams said. "He has the size everybody wants in a big center. He's a guy that can match up against other teams, a guy who can play all situations, whether it be on the power play, penalty kill and matching up 5-on-5.

"The medical people will determine the extent of his injury and what significance there is, if any, but I think all things being equal, if he's healthy, somebody's going to get a very good player."

During an in-depth discussion with co-hosts Adam Kimelman and Mike G. Morreale, Williams also provided his thoughts on Everett center Carter Bear (No. 10), Moose Jaw left wing Lynden Lakovic (No. 14) and the differences between Calgary center Benjamin Kindel (5-10, 176) and Victoria center Cole Reschny (5-10, 183). He also provided dark horse candidates in the 2025 draft from the WHL.

The podcast is free, and listeners can subscribe on all podcast platforms, including iTunes and Spotify. It also is available on NHL.com/multimedia/podcasts and the NHL app.