Welcome to The Hockey News' Minnesota Wild's top 15 prospects list. The list will be split into three posts where Dylan Loucks and Aaron Heckmann will give their thoughts and analysis on each prospect. The lists were created by a points-based system. Each player is assessed a point from both Aaron and Dylan, which resulted in the final rankings. An example of this is how Dylan had Jack Peart ranked at No. 11 and Aaron had Peart ranked at No. 9. So, in the final ranking, Peart landed at No. 10.
This post will be on prospects 12-15 with some honorable mentions.
The Minnesota Wild arguably have the best prospect pool in the NHL right now even after both Matt Boldy and Calen Addison graduated. The Wild not only feature the best prospect pool, but the organization's prospect pipeline is balanced. You’ll see why here shortly.
Honorable Mentions
Kyle Masters, RHD
The 2021 fourth-round pick quickly turned the heads of many Wild fans after his 65-point season in 66 games with the Kamloops Blazers of the WHL. Masters only recorded three goals and 24 points in 85 career games with the Red Deer Rebels across two seasons. But after being traded along with a first-round pick for Mats Lindgren, Masters had a very impressive offensive season.
Masters exits the zone very well with his speed being a big part of that as well. He can jump up in the rush and has shown his offensive ability. At the time of writing this, Masters was just released from the Hospital following a dangerous lower-body injury he suffered in the Memorial Cup with the Blazers. If Masters can get back to his level of play next season, he should be a prospect to keep an eye on.
Rieger Lorenz, RW/LW
The Wild drafted Lorenz last year with the 56th overall pick after he played for the Okotoks Oilers of the AJHL where he recorded 38 goals and 85 points in 60 games during his draft year.
Lorenz is a physical forward who notched two goals and nine points in 38 games for the University of Denver last season. The 6-foot-2 left winger creates space with his size and strength, but he also shows some occasional flashes of offensive creativity.
Pavel Novák, RW
It was hard not to leave Novak off the list based on the player he is. In June of 2022, Novak announced that he was diagnosed with cancer but in October of 2022, Novak announced he had beaten Hodgkin’s lymphoma, which was the type of cancer he had.
Two seasons ago, Novak put up 29 goals and 72 points in 62 games with the Kelowna Rockets of the WHL. He followed that up with an impressive six-goal and 13-point WJC with team Czechia. He didn’t play last year for Iowa, but when he returns to playing again, he will be on everyone’s radar shortly. An awesome story and an awesome player.
The List
No. 15 — Hunter Haight, C/RW
Haight is a very interesting prospect for me. He currently is tracking to become a similar player of Anthony Cirelli of the Tampa Bay Lightning. The 2022 second-round draft pick reminds me a little bit of Freddy Gaudreau.
He skates well with offensive upside, plus he’s good defensively. Haight’s puck-handling skills are probably his best attribute, which resulted in him putting up 18 goals and 51 points in 42 games with the Saginaw Spirit. Haight will be an interesting player to keep an eye on when he starts playing in Iowa.
No. 14 — Ryan O’ Rourke, LHD
The 2020 second-round pick is one of many defensemen on the list. O’Rourke plays a very defensive style of hockey which fits well with his six-foot-two frame. During his draft year, O’Rourke looked a bit like Erik Cernak of the Tampa Bay Lightning. O’Rourke has continued to play a similar style with a little less physicality.
The Bowmanville, ON native projects to be a bottom-pair defender in the NHL if or when he gets his shot. With the expiring contracts of Jon Merrill and Alex Goligoski coming up, O’Rourke could slide into a similar role those two were recently in. That's especially true with the Wild being at the cap for the next couple of years.
No. 13 — Servác Petrovský, C
Petrovský might be one of my favorite prospects alongside another center we will touch on later. Petrovský is an intelligent two-way center with offensive skill. He moves the puck well but just displays great vision for the game. He knows where he needs to be with and without the puck and is dangerous in all three zones.
It is very rare to hit on six-round picks but the Wild may have found a future second-line center in Servác Petrovský. The 5-foot-10 forward put up 24 goals and 55 points in 62 games with the Owen Sound Attack of the OHL. He also put up two goals and three points in five games with team Slovakia in the 2022-23 World Juniors where he ranked second on the team in xGF behind Libor Nemec.
No. 12 — Caeden Bankier, C/LW
Bankier continues to look more and more like he will be a pretty effective NHL player sooner than later. The 6-foot-2 center is coming off a career-high 37-goal season with the Kamloops Blazers with 85 points in 57 games. While being teammates with Masters, Bankier has posted seven goals and 18 points in 14 playoff games.
Although he may not be a star producer in the NHL, Bankier will be a pretty good NHLer and someone Wild fans can certainly look forward to watching very soon.
Make sure to stick around for part two and three and find out who grabs the top spot as the Minnesota Wild's top prospect!
General Stats via Eliteprospects, analytics on World Juniors via Dylan Loucks, and Photos via USA Today.