Kelowna Rockets forward Tij Iginla is one of 100 prospects invited to participate in the 2024 NHL Scouting Combine at KeyBank Center and LECOM HarborCenter in Buffalo beginning Monday.
Iginla is ranked ninth among North American skaters on the NHL Central Scouting Bureau final rankings for the upcoming draft.
The Rockets 2024 MVP award winner finished second in scoring among all Rockets with 84 points (47G-37A) in 62 games. His 47 goals were tied for sixth among all WHL skaters. He was named to the Western Hockey League’s 2023-24 B.C. Division First All-Star Team.
“The NHL Combine is a rite of passage on a player’s path to the NHL and is an event that NHL clubs and prospects look forward to participating in,” NHL Central Scouting director Dan Marr said.
The combine, which will run June 3-8, gives the 32 NHL teams physical and medical assessments of the top prospects ahead of the 2024 draft.
“The NHL combine is the final showcase event before the NHL draft and it’s a week full of interviews, medicals and fitness testing where the players get to interact with NHL personnel and the NHL clubs get to learn as much as possible about the future stars of our game,” Marr said.
There will be 62 forwards, 35 defensemen, and three goalies attending the combine. All are listed in NHL Central Scouting’s final rankings of North American and International skaters and goaltenders.
NHL Central Scouting will again provide an app for all the attending prospects to download to their mobile device. It contains all the information they need to navigate the gamut of interviews with NHL teams, and medical and fitness testing.
Teams can have 1-on-1 interviews with prospects at KeyBank Center from June 3-7. The medical examinations will take place June 5, and seven of the 11 fitness tests will occur at HarborCenter on June 8 (standing height/wingspan, horizontal jump, force plate vertical jumps, bench press, pro agility test, pull ups, Wingate Cycle Ergometer test).
No player can test until clearing the medical screening.
Fellow Rockets forward Hiroki Gojsic, who is ranked 63rd among North American skaters, was not invited to attend the combine.
Both Iginla and Gojsic hope to hear their name’s called at the 2024 NHL Draft, which is set for June 28-29 at the Sphere in Las Vegas.