Three Seattle Thunderbird players drafted in 2026 NHL draft
Published 3:45 pm Monday, June 29, 2026
The Kent-based Seattle Thunderbirds had three players selected in the 2026 NHL Draft on June 26-27 in Buffalo, New York.
No Thunderbirds went in the first three rounds, but newly signed Jonas Kemps was the first Thunderbird player selected.
Kemps was picked 98th overall by the Florida Panthers with the second pick in the fourth round. The 6-foot-6 defenseman is from Sebastopol, California and was the first Seattle player drafted by the Panthers since Gracyn Sawchyn in 2023. Sawchyn played 2025-26 with the Charlotte Checkers in the American Hockey League (AHL), the Panthers affiliate.
Later in the fourth round Thunderbird goaltender Marek Sklenicka was selected 120th overall by the Philadelphia Flyers. He is the third goalie drafted from the Thunderbirds roster since 2023 when Scott Ratzlaff and Thomas Milic were taken in that year’s draft. Roddy Ross was the last Thunderbird player drafted by the Flyers, also a goaltender for the Thunderbirds who played 25 games in the 2018-19 season.
The third and final player taken in the draft was Noah Kosick who was selected with the last pick of the sixth round. Kosick was selected by the Anaheim Ducks with the 192nd pick in the draft. Nico Myatovic was the last player selected by the Ducks off the Thunderbird roster with a second-round pick in 2023.
All three players selected will return to T-Birds training camp in late August and prepare for the 2026-27 Western Hockey League season. Seattle plays its home games at the accesso ShoWare Center in Kent.
