By Jesse Michael

Forty of the best Canadian Hockey League players are set to descend into Western Canada, as the 17^th edition of the annual Home Hardware CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game takes place February 1 from Prospera Place in Kelowna, B.C.

These players will get their chance to stand out on the national stage in front of NHL General Mangers and hundreds of NHL team scouts, all with aspirations of moving up the NHL Draft board come June.

While some believe that the players chosen to participate are based solely on rankings, Chris Edwards of NHL Central Scouting described how they were selected to attend the two-day event which also includes a Skills Competition and three-on-three showcase on Tuesday January 31.

“All 30 NHL teams are given a ballot and GM’s submit twelve defenseman, four goaltenders and twenty-four forwards,” he explained.  “From there, the guys with the most votes are taken, and the secondary guys – the next number of total votes - are added in if injuries happen.” 

It’s then up to the members of Central Scouting, lead by Director Dan Marr, to continue the process.

“Once the teams are selected, we try and divide the players into two equal teams,” Edwards said.  “If you look at the scores the last few years you’d think we weren’t doing a good job of it because there haven’t been that many close games.”

Because of those lopsided outcomes, the selection process has come under a bit of scrutiny, but Edwards believes that it’s not for a lack of trying, and defended Central Scouting’s decisions.

“We put a lot of effort into it and attempt to make it even, i.e. Left shot vs. Right shot, or where they are in our rankings, but it really hasn’t worked out.  It’s really not from a lack of trying.”

Regardless, the game really solidifies the quality of players that are developing in the CHL, and also gives NHL GM’s who are typically very busy with their team schedules, a chance to watch all of these players under one roof.

It gets all of the guys in one place and gives them [GM’s] a chance to look at the players over two nights,” Edwards said.  “They’ll go over each guy they’re interested in with the team’s Director of Scouting and will be able to form an opinion on them.”

As well, Edwards believes that staging an event with this many high calibre players is another great opportunity to show the commitment that both leagues have with one another.

“There’s always been a strong relationship between the NHL and the CHL, even historically, going back to the days of NHL teams sponsoring CHL teams,” he explained.  “I still believe the vast majority of players are coming to the NHL from the CHL.”

There are a few noticeable absences from the game however, as top ranked players such as Alex Galchenyuk (Sarnia Sting) Morgan Rielly (Moose Jaw Warriors), and Slater Koekkoek (Peterborough Petes) will miss the game due to significant injuries that have kept them out of CHL lineups most of the season.

Edwards feels that although they are injured, their draft stock should not be affected.

“The GM’s aren’t going to see them this one time, but these guys have been seen a lot by their scouting departments, with the exception of Galchenyuk,” he said.  “In his [Galchenyuk] case, it makes the NHL combine that much more important. It won’t affect them that much as long as they get a clean bill of health and they’ll be back to 100%.”

And while players like Galchenyuk will be unable to play, the others competing will hope to solidify their positions as top ranked NHL prospects, and be one step closer to realizing their dream of being drafted on June 22^nd in Pittsburgh.

The 2012 Home Hardware CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game can be seen live across the country on Sportsnet and TVA Sports at 7:00 pm Pacific on February 1.