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3 WHL 2027 NHL Draft prospects for Canucks fans to keep an eye on this season

Photo credit: © @SeattleTbirds on Twitter/X

By Jacob Fraser

Aug 16, 2026, 10:00 EDTUpdated: Aug 15, 2026, 12:43 EDT

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Fresh off the Hlinka Gretzky, the buzz has already started around some of the 2027 NHL draft prospects. The obvious top names this year begin with Landon DuPont, who’s headed for the University of Michigan, as well as Russian forward Nazar Privalov and Canadian centreman Alexis Joseph, who will be returning to the QMJHL this season.

While it’s fun to discuss the top names in this year’s draft, some near the top will be playing close to home for Vancouver Canucks fans living in and around the city of Vancouver.

We don’t often get a chance to watch many of these top prospects live. With the Vancouver Giants near the middle of both Vancouver and Abbotsford, playing out of the Langley Events Centre, there’s a good opportunity for fellow draft junkies to catch some of the upcoming draft class’s top prospects live.

Today we’re going to focus on three players to be on the lookout for when their teams come to Vancouver, and at the end we’ll also dive into a few honourable mentions.

Brock England

Brock England is the first name to be on the watch for this season. If you caught the Hlinka Gretzky tournament, you’ll likely be familiar with this name already.

Returning to the Seattle Thunderbirds this season, England already excelled as a 16-year-old in the WHL. Last season, the Red Deer, Alberta native finished with a 21-goal, 30-assist campaign, totalling 51 points in 64 games.

He’s a 5’11”, 174-pound centreman who plays with a ton of speed. His skating is his biggest strength, and he uses it to be very effective in transition, jumping on pucks, creating turnovers, and immediately turning defence into offence.

England is very dangerous off the rush, gaining the offensive zone with control and attacking defenders with both his speed and playmaking ability to create give-and-go chances. On top of his skating and playmaking ability, England possesses a very dangerous shot. He has a quick release that can beat goaltenders clean and is a big-time scoring threat in the middle of the ice.

There is still some rounding out to his game that needs to happen; England needs to get bigger and stronger, while also showing he can consistently drive a line for him to play down the middle at the next level. That being said, when the Thunderbirds come to town to take on the Giants on October 10 and January 29, this kid is a must-watch prospect.

Jaxon Jacobson

Born in December 2008, Jaxon Jacobson was a few months late from being draft eligible this past year in 2026. Had he been born just three months earlier, we probably would have been talking about him as a top 10 pick already.

The Brandon, Manitoba native has been lighting it up for his hometown Wheat Kings the past two seasons. Last season, Jacobson finished the year with 25 goals and 60 assists for a whopping 85-point total in 63 games. He’s on the smaller side at 5’10” and 183 pounds so that he may project as a winger in the NHL, but with Brandon he’s shown the ability to dominate down the middle.

Some concerns with an older prospect are that they’ve had an extra season; of course, they’re going to be a step up from the, in this case, 2009-born players. However, in Jacobson’s first season in Brandon, he still managed to put up 44 points in 51 games despite being just 15 years old for a third of the year.

Jacobson’s bread and butter is his playmaking ability. He plays with a ton of pace, using his edgework to slip by defenders and his elite vision to find teammates and make plays. He’s a very high-IQ, offensive-minded forward who can manipulate play and produce a lot of points.

There are still some kinks in his game that need to be worked out; strength and overall explosiveness are still a work in progress. But given his size, that’s understandable at this point. Brandon will only be coming to visit the Giants at home once this season, so on October 6, if you get the chance to catch this kid live, it would certainly be worth your time.

Brock Cripps

After DuPont, there’s seemingly a fairly significant drop-off in top-end defencemen in the 2027 draft class. That being said, the next tier of defenceman is likely going to be headlined by the second Brock on this list, Brock Cripps.

The Victoria, B.C. born defenceman is headed back to Prince Albert for his second season with the Raiders. Last season, the team made it all the way to the WHL finals, where they fell to the Everett Silvertips. During the regular season, Cripps tallied 37 points in 62 games, mostly playing on the team’s second pairing behind fourth overall pick in 2026 Daxon Rudolph. In the playoffs, however, Cripps took his game to another level. Cripps was a feature on the team’s top power play unit, which featured the likes of Rudolph and Canucks prospect Braeden Cootes, and totalled 21 points in 20 playoff games.

Since then, Cripps showcased his talent even further, playing on Team Canada’s second pairing and secondary power play unit behind DuPont and added six points through the five tournament games.

Cripps is a very solid two-way puck-moving defenceman who can be heavily relied upon at both ends of the ice. He’s very poised with the puck on his stick and typically doesn’t hold on to it too long, reading the play and moving the puck before the opposition can close in on him. He’s great at retrieving pucks in his own zone, moving the play forward and jumping into the rush when the right opportunities present themselves.

With Rudolph making his way to the NCAA, Cripps is going to be taking on an increased role in Prince Albert. If this season goes anything like his playoff run did last season, we could be hearing Cripps’ name very early on in the 2027 draft.

Like Brandon, Prince Albert will only visit Vancouver once this season, so mark down February 3 on your calendars, because Cripps is an exciting player to watch.

Honourable mentions

If the three headliners weren’t enough to pique your interest, we have a few honourable mentions that are worth keeping an eye on this season.

The American-born duo, Noah Davidson and Shaeffer Gordon-Carroll, are going to be back with the Medicine Hat Tigers this season. We’ve seen a lot of talent come out of the Tigers program in recent years with the likes of Cayden Lindstrom, Liam and Markus Ruck, as well as number one overall pick Gavin McKenna. Although Davidson and Gordon-Carroll aren’t as highly regarded as McKenna or Lindstrom, the pair have a serious chance of being selected in the first round of the 2027 draft.

Davidson had a very good first season, in what was a very good Tigers team, scoring 30 goals and adding 22 assists for a 52-point total in 67 games. He’s a centreman with a lot of size and a heavy shot, and is definitely someone to watch for this year if he continues to develop.

Gordon-Carroll’s first season was arguably just as impressive as Davidson’s, totalling 37 points in 41 games. He isn’t the same calibre of goal scorer, but he plays a heavy 200-foot game and has the skill to produce offensively at the junior hockey level. His ability to play down the middle paired with his high motor should make for a late first-round pick if he can take another step this season.

Our last honourable mention is Wenatchee Wild defenceman Boston Tait. The Saskatchewan native is a physical defenceman who has some edge to his game. He put up 23 points in 65 games in his rookie season and showed his heavy shot and his ability to play with poise and pace. There’s still some work to do for him defensively; while he does play a physical brand of hockey, he needs to develop his overall defensive zone decision-making. That being said, there’s a lot to like with Tait; his skating ability, physicality and his shot make for an exciting player to be on the lookout for this season.

What do you think, Canucks fans? Which draft-eligible prospects are you most excited to watch in the WHL this season? Let us know in the comments below!

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