7. Michal Pradel, Tri-City (USHL)
NHL Central Scouting: No. 3 (North American goalies)
Pradel (6-4, 195) made his United States Hockey League debut Feb. 14, and was 9-4-0 with a 2.41 GAA, an .899 save percentage and one shutout in 14 games, after beginning the season playing in the junior league in his native Slovakia.
The 18-year-old finished his season going 3-3-0 with a 2.46 GAA, a .914 save percentage and two shutouts in seven games for Slovakia at the World U-18s, including 29 saves in a 4-3 overtime loss to the United States in the bronze-medal game.
“He’s got such a presence in the net,” Jensen said. “He started to wow me as I kept watching him. He looks like a potential starter in the NHL someday. He’s got the NHL presence. He moves extremely well already throughout the crease, he’s well-balanced, smart in challenging. He’s got that calmness and poise in the net. He doesn’t let any bad goals or bad games get him down; he just continues to play. I really see a huge upside.”
8. Aleksei Medvedev, London (OHL)
NHL Central Scouting: No. 6 (North American goalies)
Medvedev (6-3, 180) was 22-8-2 in 34 games as an OHL rookie. The 17-year-old was third in the league with a 2.79 GAA and a .912 save percentage and tied for third with three shutouts. He was the backup to Austin Elliott for London, which won the OHL championship and the Memorial Cup.
“I really like his upside,” Jensen said. “It’s not about now, it’s about the future with this kid. … He played 34 games as a rookie in London, and that’s impressive. Regardless of if he played on a good team or not, he still had to stop the puck, he still had to be in good position. He has that style to play on a good team like that because he’s patient. He’s not flashy, but his positional play is excellent.”
9. John Parsons, Chicago (USHL)
NHL Central Scouting: No. 10 (North American goalies)
After getting passed over in the 2024 NHL Draft, Parsons (6-3, 194) was 12-18-4 with a 3.49 GAA and a .903 save percentage in 35 games for a Chicago team that finished with the second-fewest points in the USHL.
The 19-year-old is committed to play at Providence College next season.
“He has improved a lot from his previous season,” Jensen said. “He started the season out strong and steadily improved throughout the year. Confidence was a huge factor as well. He’s got the NHL size and good structure in his game. He plays a good pro style game.”
10. Elijah Neuenschwander, Fribourg Jr. (SUI-JR)
NHL Central Scouting: No. 3 (International goalies)
Neuenschwander (6-4, 199) was 6-2-1 with a 2.67 GAA and a .909 save percentage in nine games with Chur in the Swiss League, the second-highest professional league in Switzerland. In 17 games in the Swiss junior league, the 18-year-old was 11-5-1 with a 2.24 GAA. He had an .817 save percentage in three games for Switzerland at the 2025 IIHF World Junior Championship.
“Elijah has an enormous stature and showed promise in several games during the season, displaying strong technical skills, good size and poise in the net,” Vuorinen said. “His butterfly technique and puck tracking were consistently solid, and he showed good lateral movement when focused. … His performances at the junior level suggest long-term upside, which was further strengthened by the men’s Swiss League games he played later in the season. Neuenschwander is considered one of the top Swiss goalie prospects and could rise further with improved consistency and skating.”
