Chilliwack Chiefs defenceman Vincent Desharnais is getting notice from the National Hockey League.
NHL Central Scouting released its 2014 ‘Preliminary Players to Watch’ list Wednesday.
Nine Canadian junior A players are on the radar, including five BCHLers.
Desharnais, Chilliwack’s towering rearguard and a junior A rookie, is joined by Carmine Buono (Powell River Kings), Brogan O’Brian (Prince George Spruce Kings), Marcus Vela (Langley Rivermen) and Stefan Wornig (Powell River).
Players on this list are identified with an A, B, C or LV rating. A indicates a first round candidate. B indicates a second or third round candidate and C indicates a fourth, fifth or sixth round candidate.
Desharnais and the other junior A skaters all received C grades, which means they’ve got some work to do.
The BCHL had more players listed than any other Canadian junior A league.
Ontario’s Central Canada Hockey League (CCHL) had three players with the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL) adding one.
Desharnais and his Chiefs play their home opener Saturday night, hosting the Surrey Eagles.
Puck drop is 7 p.m. at Prospera Centre.
