Everett Silvertips standout touted as future top NHL draft pick
Nov 23, 2024, 5:15 PM
Most 15 year olds aren’t being touted as future No. 1 draft picks, but most 15 year olds aren’t Everett Silvertips defenseman Landon DuPont.
Despite being the age of high school sophomore, DuPont is already considered to be a generational talent and one of hockey’s future stars.
The Calgary, Alberta, native earlier this year became just the second player in Western Hockey League history to be granted Exceptional Player Status and enter the league at 15. The other is Chicago Blackhawks defenseman Connor Bedard, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NHL Draft and last season’s Calder Cup winner as the league’s rookie of the year. Players typically aren’t eligible to play in the WHL until their 16th birthday.
DuPont is thought to be the same kind of talent as Bedard. Eliteprosepcts.com ranks him as the No. 1 prospect for the 2027 NHL Entry Draft.
For now, those talents are on display just north of Seattle with one of the WHL’s most consistently successful franchise’s.
DuPont is off to a strong start in Everett, too. He has 19 points (five goals, 14 assists) in 18 games for the Western Conference-leading Silvertips. As the league’s youngest player, he’s first in assists and second in points among rookies, as well as 10th among all defenseman in points.
DuPont notched a point in each of his first seven games, logged his first multi-point outing in his second game and scored his first WHL goal in his fourth game.
DuPont, the son of former NHL defenseman Micki DuPont, landed with the Silvertips as the No. 1 pick in the WHL Prospects Draft in May. Everett had just finished up its 19th straight run to the WHL playoffs, but had the No. 1 pick thanks to a massive trade it swung during the 2022-23 season that netted four players and 10 draft picks from the Kamloops Blazers, which included their 2024 first-rounder.
Before arriving in Everett, DuPont at just 14 years old set a U18 Prep Division record for defenseman with 62 points while playing for the Edge School of the Canadian Sports School Hockey League.
The 5-foot-11, 179-pound defenseman is the ninth overall player in Canadian Hockey League history granted exceptional status. The CHL oversees the WHL, Ontario Hockey League and Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League. Other players to be granted exceptional stats included former No. 1 overall picks Connor McDavid and John Tavares and Seattle Kraken center Shane Wright, a No. 4 overall selection.
It will be another couple years before Dupont becomes draft eligible, so hockey fans in the Pacific Northwest should have plenty of chances to catch a glimpse of the potential future star.
Generational hockey talent picked by WHL’s Everett Silvertips
