As the USHL prepares for the 2025 Clark Cup Final to get underway May 9, another significant event is taking place early next week.
The league has partnered with Neutral Zone to host the 2025 Phase I Draft on Monday, May 5 at 5 p.m. CT/6 p.m. ET and the Phase II Draft on Tuesday, May 6 at 11 a.m. CT/12 p.m. ET.
The draft show will begin at 4 p.m. CT/5 p.m. ET on Monday and Phase II will begin 10 a.m. CT/11 a.m. ET on Tuesday.
Neutral Zone's Director of NHL Scouting Ian Moran, GM and Director of Scouting Brendan Collins, and Vice President and Director of U.S. Scouting Brian Murphy will join USHL Senior Director of Player Personnel Frank Butler to provide pick-by-pick analysis.
Players in the 16-year-old age category (2009 birth years) are eligible to be selected in the 2025 Phase I Draft, and players in the 17-year-old age category through the 20-year-old age category are eligible to be selected in the Phase II Draft (2005-2008 birth years).
Each team submitted an Initial Protected List (IPL) of affiliate players they chose to protect from the 2024-25 season, plus signed tendered players.
In the Phase I Draft, teams make fifteen (15) selections. In the Phase II Draft, teams make selections until they have filled a 50-man protected list of players from the IPL, Phase I, and Phase II Draft.
Draft selection order is determined by the regular season standings, with the lowest team during the 2024-25 season having the first overall selection and subsequently selecting first in each round.
On Friday, Neutral Zone released its 2025 USHL Phase 1 Draft Rankings Top 350, compiled by its scouting staff. The annual rankings are made up of both US players as well as Canadian players who played in the United States.
2025 USHL Draft Order
1. Omaha Lancers
2. Chicago Steel*
3. Des Moines Buccaneers*
4. Green Bay Gamblers*
5. Cedar Rapids RoughRiders*
6. Tri-City Storm*
7. Fargo Force
8. Sioux City Musketeers
9. Waterloo Black Hawks
10. Muskegon Lumberjacks*
11. Madison Capitols*
12. Sioux Falls Stampede
13. Dubuque Fighting Saints
14. Youngstown Phantoms*
15. Lincoln Stars
*The USHL tender process allowed teams to sign up to two players born in 2009 in exchange for their first- and second-round picks in the 2025 USHL Phase I Draft. Each tendered player will join their respective team's roster for the next season and play at least 55% of their regular-season games.
Tendered Players
Tri-City Storm: Oliver Ozogany (Cleveland Barons)
Des Moines Buccaneers: Ryland Rooney (Gentry Academy)
Green Bay Gamblers: Gunnar Conboy (Lakeville North)
Green Bay Gamblers: Oliver McKinney (Chicago Mission)
Madison Capitols: Stephen Cover (Mount St. Charles)
Madison Capitols: Michael Tang (Toronto Titans)
Cedar Rapids RoughRiders: Braiden Scuderi (Mount St. Charles)
Muskegon Lumberjacks: Ty Bergeron (Honeybaked)
Youngstown Phantoms: Logan Anderson (Florida Alliance South)
Chicago Steel: James Scantlebury (Bishop Kearney Selects)