Most prospect leagues are getting close to the playoffs by now, which means draft lists and rankings are getting a bit longer. Some players are solidifying their hype over a full, strong season. Others are falling off from inconsistency, injuries, or lack of development. Then there are the late risers who took big leaps over the season, going from an unknown to someone who could be genuinely interesting.
We're looking again at potential third round players (or later). These will be guys who have flaws. They could any of the above sort of player – previously ranked higher but fallen off, injured players who just haven't been seen enough, and late risers who are now starting to put themselves on the map.
FORWARDS
Niklas Aaram-Olsen
I've seen a bit of Aaram-Olsen without him being on my watch list just from following Koblar's international games with Norway, and various prospects playing in Sweden's junior league. He's someone I liked but seems more likely to be a second rounder than a third. But I've seen some scouting outlets cooling on him a bit and including him as a late second/early third round guy, which could put him in Toronto's range.
Aaram-Olsen is a 6'1" left shot winger from Norway, he has an April birthday and he has been playing mostly in Sweden's junior league with 12 games in the SHL for Örebro. In junior he has been one of the best offensive players regardless of age, with the 14th best point per game pace (19 goals, 37 points in 26 games). For players in his age group, he'd be third. He's also played in the third most games in the SHL for U18 prospects, though his ice time has never gotten above 4 minutes in any game. Playing in the same tournaments for Norway as Koblar, he's matched or slightly bettered his goal and point production despite being a year younger.
Aaram-Olsen's biggest strengths as a player is his offensive versatility. He drives good transitions with his speed. He can win board battles down low with his size and protect the puck well on cycles. He is a very good goal scorer with a good shot (one timer and wrist shot), good puck deflection skills and good puck handling. Best of all, all of his offensive skills and habits seem to be pro-ready. He works hard and plays with high energy and pace. He forechecks aggressively, backchecks and throws himself in the way of shots to block them. It's not the kind of empty calorie offense you can see in junior where you can just skate fast in a straight line and beat goalies with an okay wrist shot from the top of the faceoff circle.
Now, the reason why Aaram-Olsen's hype has been cooling has to do with consistency. That hard work and energy I mentioned comes and goes – he can have stretches in games, even entire games, where he is almost invisible and just kind of hovering around plays instead of having a direct impact like he can. He also has some issues with consistent decision making, I've seen some brain farts or head scratching turnovers caused by forcing a pass or trying to do everything himself against multiple defenders. Again, his tools alone are worth swinging on him if he is available in the third round and are why he would be taken in the second. But these issues are why he could fall.
Jonah Sivertson
is a guy I've noticed that's really come on in the second half of the season, but unfortunately for all the reasons I've liked him is also why he probably won't be available in the third round. He's a 6'3" right winger, with a very late August 27th birthday making him one of the youngest players in the draft, and he's doubled his production in the second half of his games compared to the first – in the first 26 games this season, he had 15 points in 26 games. In the 25 games since then, he's had 30 points in 25 games. What makes it more remarkable is that he hasn't even been on their top powerplay, with only 7 of his 39 points coming with the man advantage.
The production coming on is a good sign that the things Sivertson was doing well earlier in the year. His tracking data looks exemplary for all those little things. His size is an advantage down low and along the boards, he plays a very smart game without the puck in terms of his positioning and routes, and he has shown flashes of a very intriguing power element. He can throw some big hits, and has been known to drop the gloves from time to time. He's just a machine at generating offense, and he isn't a slouch with transitions and on defense either – even if he winds up only being average in those regards.
The big question for Sivertson's projection is his skating. His footspeed and mechanics aren't great, and if there's one reason why he may wind up dropping into the third round it will probably be because of that. On the one hand, he has high level skills that have allowed that to not be much of an issue – in junior, at least. He's a good playmaker and puck handler and knows how to slow the game down with delays and cutbacks that help him find better passing lanes. He has that power element to his game that helps him protect the puck, as well as make plays off the boards, down low, and in front of the net fighting for rebounds or using his good hands to score some nice deflection goals. But it's definitely something that will have to be improved. He's young enough and so good at everything else that I'd absolutely take a swing on him with a third rounder, because if he figures it out his game reminds me a bit of Knies.
OH JONAH. WHAT A FILTHY MOVE 🤢
— Western Hockey League (@TheWHL) November 29, 2025
Jonah Sivertson does it by himself and makes it 2-1.@PARaidersHockey pic.twitter.com/I8Pv0k31CX
Brody Pepoy
Pepoy is in a similar situation as Sivertson, but everything I mentioned above is turned down a bit. He's big, but not as tall (6'2"). His production has picked up a good deal in the second half but at a level below – 7 points in his first 26 games, and 15 points including 10 goals in the subsequent 26. A lot of that seems to come down to opportunity, as he's climbed up the second line of late where to start the year and is just now starting to get powerplay time (only 2 pp points all year). He's also on the younger side, but with a May birthday instead of August.
Stylistically, Pepoy also uses his size and an aggressive play style without the puck to make me think he has some potential defensively, albeit as a winger. He also has some skating issues that sound more mechanical, and also isn't as bad. Lastly, he is also a little things king, with strong tracking data for things like board play and physical play... just not as strong as Sivertson. That helps him play and succeed at a higher pace better, at least. I would say that Pepoy is also more of an aggressive straight line player, and he at least tries to make creative plays at higher speeds than trying to slow things down.
What's helped Pepoy in the second half is that all the creative things he was trying even earlier in the year just started working more. Or rather, he got better at refining his skill and execution so he could execute them successfully more often. He's still a bit too chaotic and wild with his level of play, though, but the better he gets at learning how to refine that chaos and play with a bit better control the better his impact and consistency can be.
When Pepoy pulls things off, and he tries to do something difficult a lot, it can be a thing of beauty. Right now, because of the inconsistency issue, the biggest benefit of his game is all those little things and power elements. But again, for a third round pick? I think the way he's been playing and improving in the second half would make him a good choice for that range. Especially if Toronto thinks their development coaching team are exactly the ones who can fix his skating and teach him to harness his chaotic style.
https://t.co/YjJpPT5m8F pic.twitter.com/WlOp5Nn2pY
— Saginaw Spirit (@SpiritHockey) February 7, 2026
Lars Steiner
Funny story. I've heard of Steiner going back to last year, because he's been one of Switzerland's top prospects in international play above his age level. He's also been playing in the QMJHL since last season, and I saw him at times watching prospects for last year's draft. Until I started working on what players to include for this article, I would have sworn to god that Steiner was like 6'3" or something and, knowing his type of game and the hype he's had since last season, he would be almost guaranteed to be gone before the third round. Turns out he's only 5'10", which I never realized despite seeing him at the Hlinka, World Juniors and in junior! Suddenly my assumptions of his draft range shifted down as far as my assumptions as his height.
Steiner is on the older side with a November birthday. He's got some bulk to go with his height at 177 lbs, which helps him a lot because he plays more of a power game than Sivertson and Pepoy despite being 4-5 inches shorter. He absolutely lays guys out in junior, on the forecheck and backcheck. He's a center, though he may not stick there with his size, and his biggest strength are his two-way/defensive play, and those same little things I mentioned for the other two.
I consider Steiner to play a style that's very pro-like, with solid habits and thinking on the forecheck, backcheck, positioning, and so on. Watching him, you can tell he has an advanced knowledge of how to succeed as a smaller player, physically speaking, against bigger defenders – he can get lower to help gain leverage, he is a good enough skater to be elusive and protect the puck, and he has enough strength and willingness to hold his own when he needs to engage directly to make a play.
I like him as a supporting forward, like a hybrid of Cowan and Holinka. He doesn't have the high level offense of Cowan, or the size advantage of either. But Steiner does have the kind of responsible, pro-ready habits of a similar nature as those two. The bigger issue with him will be he probably doesn't have the offensive skill of even Holinka. He makes up for it by just being smart and making simple but effective plays, and helping do little things with forechecking and backchecking to ensure his line stays on offense more often than not. The question is, with his size, can he have that same kind of impact at the pro-level? For a third round pick, I'd consider him, but his ceiling is more limited than others I've mentioned on this list.
DEFENSE
Brek Liske
Liske is a 6'2" right shot defenseman playing for Everett in the WHL. He was drafted by Everett 10th overall back in 2023. He's never been an elite offensive defenseman if you're looking for a point producer to quarterback a team's possessions and offense. His 18 points in 44 games doesn't look like a lot, but he's also playing behind two top level prospects in Tarin Smith, drafted 20th overall by Anaheim, and uber prospect Landon DuPont who was a point per game defenseman in the WHL as a 15 year old and the most recent exceptional status player in Canada.
Also, Liske has offensive skills that have put him in something like the third tier of point producers for his age group. What he is is more of a legitimate two-way defenseman who can drive offense by efficiently moving the puck. He has good rush defense to deny zone entries, and is just so good at retrieving dump ins and moving the puck out of his own zone effectively. He just looks and plays calm even in the face of aggressive pressure, and is a reliable penalty killer so far in junior. Without the puck, he plays at a good level of physicality without being over-aggressive and chasing hits.
Liske looks like one of those guys who can play at a high pace more through his ability to think and process the game than with his feet. He can anticipate play and make good, quick decisions – this shows in all three zones for him. In the offensive zone he's more of a facilitator than a finisher. He doesn't play passively without the puck, but will jump into the play from the blueline when he sees space and an opportunity to receive a pass for a dangerous scoring chance.
The issues with Liske as a prospect seems to come down to a lack of high level tools outside of his brain. He's a good skater but not very explosive or fast at top speeds. Offensively, he's effective because of efficiency than because of offensive skill. He's improved a lot this year in terms of adding more physicality and being able to play consistently at a high pace, but the reason why he isn't considered any higher than a second rounder is because of a concern with his projection to the pro-levels with his tools and skills. If he falls to the third round, that will be why.
AND A GAME WINNER FOR LISKE. HELLO!😍@WHLsilvertips | #NHLDraft pic.twitter.com/JyQOq7lYEv
— Western Hockey League (@TheWHL) December 14, 2025
Alofa Tunoa Ta'amu
Ta'amu is a 6'2" left shot defenseman playing on Edmonton in the WHL, so I've seen a fair bit of him while checking in on Holinka. He's a big boy at 238 lbs, and like Liske he's never been a top offensive defenseman. Unlike Liske, he's not necessarily an above average offensive producer. He's your classic defensive-defenseman – he is already very strong that can absolutely erase guys along the boards and clear them from the front of the net. He also has a good stick for deflecting or poking pucks away, and lifting or tying up opponent's sticks. While he does play very physical, he knows how to use it to have a consistently good impact rather than being a liability.
However, Ta'amu is more of what I'd like to call a 'new age' defensive-defenseman, meaning that he isn't just a guy who hits and shuts down offense, but he can also actually move the puck up the ice reliably. He has enough skill handling and passing the puck that he can reliably move the puck out of his end and into the neutral/offensive zone. He's also got some underrated shifty skating, with fakes or feints and quick cuts to evade forecheckers when he's chasing down a dump in.
That footwork, puck handling, and passing also gives Ta'amu some utility in the offensive zone, where he can help keep the puck moving and setting up teammates for decent chances. Not at a very high level, but he's not hopeless there either. This is an area where he seems to be improving the most over the course of this season. I've also seen him hit some long stretch passes to spring breakaways and odd man rushes, but so far not that often or that consistent.
The reason why Ta'amu hasn't been generating enough hype to be considered a borderline first rounder is because his projection even as a defensive specialist has question marks. This isn't Ben Danford who had elite skating and defensive instincts despite little offense. Ta'amu may be an elite defender in junior, but his all around skating may only wind up being average. He'll need to add better explosiveness and speed so he can deal with the much better skating he'd face in the AHL and NHL.
Behm picks it off, Andersen puts it in. Simple as that.@EdmOilKings pic.twitter.com/qszTS1hM0Q
— Western Hockey League (@TheWHL) November 11, 2025
Thanks for reading!
I put a lot of work into my prospect articles here, both for the draft and Toronto's prospects. I do it as a fun hobby for me, and I'd probably do it in some capacity even if PPP completely ceased to exist. But if you like reading my work, some support would go a long way! I pay for a few streaming services (CHL, NCAA, USHL, the occasional TSN options for international tournaments that are broadcast) to be able to reliably watch these prospects in good quality streams. I also pay for some prospect-specific resources, such as tracking data and scouting reports from outlets like Elite Prospects, Future Considerations, McKeen's Hockey, The Athletic, and more.
Being able to get paid for this helps me dedicate more time and resources to it, rather than to second/third jobs. And whatever money I make here, a lot of I reinvest back into my prospect work through in those streaming and scouting services. Like I said, I'd be doing whatever I can afford for this anyway, so any financial help I get through this is greatly appreciated!
