RINK Hockey Academy
Kelowna Blog

By Vinny Gillespie
Photos by Dylan Asmundson

Getting drafted to the NHL is every kid's dream, but fortunately for 5 former RHA student-athletes, that dream became reality. In the 1st round of the NHL Draft, one RHA alum heard his name called early on June 28th, while the other four heard their names called on June 29th anywhere from the 2nd to 6th round. The NHL Draft is something athletes across the world look forward to since it's one step in the right direction to their ultimate end goal of being an NHL player. Although getting drafted can provide a sense of accomplishment and motivatation to young players, it doesn't always guarantee success at getting to the next level. It's not about where you go in the draft, it's what you do after it which counts. To all RHA student-athletes who didn't hear their names called, their journey doesn't stop here. To all RHA players who did get drafted, no matter where you got drafted, the work starts now.

Tij Iginla // Utah Hockey Club

Tij Iginla played for the RINK Hockey Academy U18 Prep team in the 2021-22 season where he had an incredible 26 goals and 22 assists for 48 points in 32 games. In the 2021 WHL Draft, the Seattle Thunderbirds were proud to select Tij Iginla with the 9th overall pick. In both years that Iginla was in the Thunderbirds organization, they went to the finals in back-to-back years and won it all in the 2023 WHL playoffs alongside his future Utah Hockey Club teammate, Dylan Guenther. A few days after the Ed Chynoweth Cup celebrations, the Seattle Thunderbirds traded Iginla to the Kelowna Rockets where his role on the team was much more significant and had an absolute explosion in offensive production. In the 2023-24 season, Iginla was the top goal scorer on his team and managed to put up 47 goals and 37 assists for 84 points in 64 games. On June 28th, 2024, the Utah Hockey Club were very proud to select Tij Iginla with their first ever selection with the 6th overall pick in the 2024 NHL Draft in the Sphere in Las Vegas! 

Ryder Ritchie // Minnesota Wild

Ryder Ritchie started his journey with RINK Hockey Academy U15 Prep (previously known as Pursuit of Excellence) in the 2019-20 season where the young 13-year-old put up 12 goals and 18 assists for 30 points in 29 games. The following 2020-21 season with RHA U15 Prep team, Ritchie managed to somehow put up 10 goals and 18 assists for 28 points in 5 games. In the 2021-22 season, Ritchie made the jump to the RHA U18 Prep team where he put up 11 goals and 20 assists for 31 points in 23 games. In the 2021 WHL Draft, the Prince Albert Raiders were proud to select Ryder Ritchie with the 14th overall pick. In his first year in the WHL, Ritchie was named as the WHL Rookie of the Year after putting up an incredible 20 goals and 35 assists for 55 points in 61 games. In his second season with the Prince Albert Raiders, Ritchie managed to put up 19 goals and 25 assists for 44 points in 47 games on a still young, but fast-improving team. On June 29th, 2024, the Minnesota Wild were very proud to select Ryder Ritchie with the 45th overall pick in 2nd round of the 2024 NHL Draft! 

Evan Gardner // Columbus Blue Jackets

Evan Gardner started his RINK Hockey Academy journey back in the 2018-19 season with the RINK Hockey Academy Kelowna U15 team (formerly known as the Pursuit of Excellence U15 Varsity team) and played 20 games as a 12-year-old at that level. In the 2019-20 season, Gardner suited up in 16 games at the U15 Prep level as a 13-year-old. During the following 2020-21 season that was cut very short due to the pandemic, Gardner suited up in a couple of games for RHA Kelowna’s U15 Prep team where he had a 2.00 GAA and a .852 SV%. When the WHL Bantam Draft rolled around, the Saskatoon Blades didn’t hesitate to pick the young prodigy with the 53rd overall pick in the 3rd round of the WHL Bantam Draft. The following 2021-22 season, Gardner cracked the RHA U18 Prep team’s roster and had an absolute breakout year where he put up a 2.98 GAA and a .914 SV%. In the 2022-23 season with the RHA U18 Prep team, Evan Gardner had another very solid year of development and had a 3.16 GAA and a .926 SV% in 16 games. In his first season in the WHL, Gardner put up an incredible .927 SV% and 1.91 GAA in 30 games which were both the best in the league for the regular season as a young 17-year-old. In the playoffs, Gardner had an oustanding .910 SV% and a 2.33 GAA and played in 15 out of 16 games for the Saskatoon Blades where they made it all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals where they had a very entertaining 7 game series where 6 out of 7 games were decided by just 1 goal. On June 29th, 2024, the Columbus Blue Jackets were very proud to select Evan Gardner with the 60th overall pick in 2nd round of the 2024 NHL Draft! 

Clarke Caswell // Seattle Kraken

Clarke Caswell started his journey with RINK Hockey Academy U15 Prep (previously known as Pursuit of Excellence) in the 2019-20 season where he put up 14 goals and 18 assists for 32 points in 30 games. The following 2020-21 season with RHA U15 Prep team, Caswell managed to put up an astonishing 12 goals and 12 assists for 24 points in 5 games. In the 2021-22 season, Caswell had a solid year with the U18 AAA Brandon Wheat Kings. In the 2021 WHL Draft, the Swift Current Broncos were proud to select Clarke Caswell with the 6th overall pick. In his first full year in the WHL, Caswell put up 9 goals and 20 assists for 29 points in 63 games. In his second season with the Swift Current Broncos, Caswell had a breakout season where he managed to put up an incredible 26 goals and 51 assists for 77 points in 68 games. On June 29th, 2024, the Seattle Kraken were very proud to select Clarke Caswell with the 141st overall pick in 5th round of the 2024 NHL Draft! 

Hunter Laing // Calgary Flames

Prior to joining the RINK Hockey Academy, the Prince George Cougars selected Hunter Laing with the 33rd overall pick in the 2nd round of the 2021 WHL Draft. Hunter Laing played for the RHA U16 Prep team in the 2021-22 season where he put up 20 goals and 21 assists for 41 points in 30 games, and put up 2 goals and 7 assists for 9 points in 4 playoff games. The following 2022-23 season, Laing had a solid year playing for the U18 AAA Okanagan Rockets. During the 2023-24 season, Laing played his first full season with the Prince George Cougars where he put up 11 goals and 14 assists for 25 points in 66 games and went all the way to the WHL Western Conference Finals where they had a very exciting series against the Portland Winterhawks. On June 29th, 2024, the Calgary Flames were very proud to select Hunter Laing with the 170th overall pick in the 6th round of the 2024 NHL Draft at the Sphere in Las Vegas!