Plante leaning on brothers for advice at NHL Scouting Combine

The 2026 NHL Scouting Combine presented by Fanatics is taking place this week at KeyBank Center and LECOM HarborCenter in Buffalo. The combine will allow NHL teams an opportunity to conduct interviews and provide physical and medical assessments of the top prospects eligible for the 2026 Upper Deck NHL Draft. NHL.com will bring you all the sights and stories.

BUFFALO -- Victor Plante of USA Hockey's National Team Development Program Under-18 team might be the one player at the NHL Scouting Combine with the resources necessary to get the upper hand on the competition.

That's because Plante has two older brothers who have already been through the event's gauntlet of interviews and tests.

Zam Plante attended the 2022 combine and was selected in the fifth round (No. 150) by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the 2022 NHL Draft. Max Plante attended the 2024 combine and was chosen in the second round (No. 47) by the Detroit Red Wings in the 2024 NHL Draft.

Their father, Derek Plante, was picked by the Buffalo Sabres in the eighth round (No. 161) of the 1989 NHL Draft, which was pre-NHL Combine. The first formal combine event was held in 1994. 

"The first thing I asked them was what kind of clothes I should wear, and they just said to keep it classy, keep it casual," Victor said. "Then I'm like, 'How should I be in the interviews?' and they said to just be yourself and be honest. I mean, you're one of 90 guys here that get to do this, so just have fun with it."

Victor (No. 42 on NHL Central Scouting's final ranking of North American skaters) will join brothers Max and Zam at The University of Minnesota Duluth in the fall where the three were promised they'd get to play at least one game on the same line together. 

"It's going to be awesome," Victor said. "I mean, I never got to play with those two. They've always been able to play with each other. But I'm so excited. It should be so much fun."

Max Plante underwent two cardiac ablations last off-season to correct an irregular heartbeat caused by Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome. He fully recovered in time for his sophomore season at Minnesota Duluth and won the 2026 Hobey Baker Award as the best NCAA Division I men's hockey player. 

"I mean, going into this year ... he had heart surgery in the summer so no one really could have (seen) that coming," Victor said. "The amount of work he put in is so cool. Just to see him win it ... it just paid off. I'm so proud to be his little brother. It was awesome."

Teen wolves

Chase Reid and Carson Carels, the two top defensemen on NHL Central Scouting's final ranking of North American skaters, are roommates this week at the scouting combine.

Reid, a right-handed shot with Sault Ste. Marie of the Ontario Hockey League, is No. 2 on Central Scouting's list. He's headed to Michigan State in 2026-27. Carels, a left-handed shot with Prince George of the Western Hockey League, is No. 3. He's headed to North Dakota.

"He's a great roommate," Carels, who represented Canada at the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship, said. "Chase has control of the TV remote right now and he picked a really good show to watch, actually. I don't know if anyone would know it ... it's called "Teen Wolf." He got into it and I guess I'm locked in too. It's a good change of pace for me."

Carels' family runs a farm with approximately 500 cattle. Carson is expecting to watch the 2026 draft from that farm in Brandon, Manitoba.

"In between interviews, we rush back, watch a show and try and hang out as much as we can," Reid, who represented the United States at the 2026 WJC, said. "But we get along really well and we're having a blast in that room. There's never a dull moment."

Twin engines

Liam and Markus Ruck, the hockey-playing twins with Medicine Hat in the WHL, have played on the same team together since they were 5 years old.

They each hope to be chosen within the opening two rounds of the 2026 Draft. The last time twins were selected that early was in the 1999 NHL Draft when Daniel and Henrik Sedin were chosen by the Vancouver Canucks No. 2 and No. 3, respectively.

The Rucks are holding out hope they'll be picked by the same NHL team, too, but understand those odds are slim.

"I wouldn't be disappointed at all if it didn't happen," Markus said. "We do for sure want to get drafted together. It'd be quite special to be with an NHL organization with your twin brother, but to be picked by any organization with or without him, it'd be a huge honor."

Said Liam: "It's not easy to pull off, so whatever team does hopefully select us, if it's together or separate, we're just super honored to get that opportunity."

Liam, No. 20 on NHL Central Scouting's final ranking of North American skaters, finished second in the WHL with 104 points (45 goals, 59 assists) and Markus, No. 23, was first with 108 points (21 goals, 87 assists).

Soaring Eagle

Oscar Hemming is just glad to be playing hockey again.

The Boston College left wing (6-foot-3, 193 pounds) was sidelined from competitive hockey for four months until finally moving to Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, to join the Eagles in December for 19 games.

"It was pretty easy to get into the team; they had great players, great coaches there," Hemming said. "I mean, when you're not playing for four months because somebody else doesn't want you to play, I think that kind of helped me play even harder."

The 17-year-old planned to move to North America and play for Kitchener of the Ontario Hockey League after they chose him No. 54 in the 2025 CHL import draft. His Finland-based team, Kiekko-Espoo, refused to release him and despite the family's claim the contract was invalid because he was a minor, the team rejected that notion. Hemming then attempted to join the British Columbia Hockey League but was warned by the IIHF that playing there would make him ineligible to represent Finland in international events for three years. As a result, he was stuck in limbo, able to skate with Kitchener but not permitted to play in games, causing the missed ice time.

"There was a great coaching staff in Kitchener, great teammates, and Finnish coach (Jussi Ahokas) was there and he was kind of like a father-figure for me so that helped," Hemming said. "And my brother (Emil) played in Barrie (OHL), so he was only an hour-and-a-half away. I saw him a couple times, so that was nice too."

Kitchener won the 2026 Memorial Cup, the four-team championship series of the Canadian Hockey League.

Hemming, considered one of the better power-forwards of the 2026 draft and No. 11 on NHL Central Scouting's final ranking of North American skaters, joined Boston College on Dec. 26 and became the youngest player in NCAA Division I men's hockey. He had two assists in his second game against Lake Superior State on Dec. 29, and finished the season with eight points (one goal, seven assists).