Ryder Cali is one of the 2026 NHL Draft’s most fascinating prospects

Jun 24, 2026, 10:30 EDTUpdated: Jun 24, 2026, 08:31 EDT

Ryder Cali is one of the 2026 NHL Draft’s most fascinating prospects

Credit: Ryder Cali (Terry Wilson/OHL Images)

When Ryder Cali switched from roller to ice hockey at seven years old, there was one fundamental he struggled with the most: stopping.

Anyone who has bounced between the two sports knows how difficult it is. Ice skates can easily catch hold of the ice, given that they are essentially knives strapped to a player’s foot. Wheels, however, are a different story.

“I wasn’t very good yet, but that’s just what I remember,” Cali said during the NHL Draft Combine. “Everyone thought I was stupid because I couldn’t stop. So that was interesting.”

Fast forward to this week, where the center is expected to go in the top 50 of the 2026 NHL Draft in Buffalo, New York. He’s one of the more fascinating power forwards in the class, and has even represented Canada at the U-18 World Championship and the World Junior A level.

Cali’s career to this point was anything but conventional. Born in Switzerland (his mother, Fiona McLeod, played there after finishing her NCAA career), he moved to the Cayman Islands at a young age. He quickly took up roller hockey and made it his primary sport until his family moved to Ontario when he was seven. The Penetanguishene resident was a slow riser – he didn’t even make the top level of rep hockey, AAA, until he was 14. By then, most other top prospects in the 2026 NHL Draft class had already spent around five years playing against high-level competition.

It didn’t take Cali long to figure things out, though. He was the top forward on the North Central Predators squad right away, which eventually caught the attention of the GTHL’s Markham Majors. The goal-scoring forward tallied 19 goals in 29 games at the U-16 level, leading the Soo Greyhounds to select him 18th overall in 2024.

Cali could have easily gone to the OHL, but he wanted to focus on his long-term development instead. That led to him signing with the OJHL’s Milton Menace, where he made a huge impact with 24 goals and 54 points in 51 games. It marked the fifth-best output by a 16-year-old over the past decade.

Some scouts wondered if the move was right for his development. Cali looked so advanced for his age, outplaying many older veterans with a boatload more experience. Could he have played in the OHL instead? Many scouts think so. But it was a move Cali thought was best for his development, and it’s hard to argue with that.

“I didn’t want to rush into the OHL or the USHL right away and be stuck in a third- or fourth-line role,” Cali said. “So I think going there and being able to play on the first power play the whole year and play 18 minutes a night was really big for my development. It was a big jump. Obviously, there are eight overagers on a team in the OJ, so it’s stronger for sure. But I think it was a great choice, and I would do it again for sure.”

In the end, it was absolutely massive for his development. Cali took on the OHL full-time this past season, scoring 16 goals and 36 points in 47 games with the North Bay Battalion. That was good for sixth in team scoring, which obviously isn’t anything to get too excited about.

But Cali’s game is about much more than generating offense. Instead, he made himself an absolute force of a human being every shift, absolutely obliterating opponents all over the ice without getting himself into too much trouble.

“I don’t like taking penalties,” Cali said, with a smile.

At 6-foot-2 and 214 pounds, Cali is hard to miss out there. He’s actually an excellent skater, despite his inability to stop when he was younger. But that also might play into the fact that he’s capable of hitting just about anyone, at any time. It’s not surprising that he fared well during the NHL Draft Combine testing – in particular, he tied Lincoln Kuehne for first in the right-hand grip strength test at 182 pounds.

“He’s one of the most damn competitive kids you’re going to find out there,” one scout recently said.

Cali can play a chaotic brand of hockey where he’s absolutely fearless. Other times, he has more of a penchant for finess. His playmaking has really come a long way in the past few years. It can be a bit inconsistent at times – his play-reading on the rush needs some work. But he’s more effective as a distributor now than he was, say, a year ago in the OJ. Scouts have always liked his shot, although it feels like he can get caught trying to release the puck from inopportune locations a bit too often.

So the next-level offensive part of his game is still raw, sure. That’s not uncommon in a late-bloomer. But to offset that, Cali prides himself on being effective at both ends of the ice.

“I see myself as a 200-foot centerman. I think that’s kind of what separates me: my reliability and D-zone awareness. So I take pride in it too, and that’s kind of the role I want in the NHL… I think as the year went on, I started to show my skill a little more – I have it in me. I think I’m a really skilled player, but I just have to keep working on building up my confidence and holding on to the puck more, and my production will come.”

Cali’s skating is fascinating. Nobody would mistake him for an absolute burner, but he actually has tremendous acceleration and can reach an impressive top speed. Mix that in with his brute force power, and it’s hard to deal with him when he’s coming at you like a runaway train. Cali dealt with a shoulder injury this past season, but seemed quicker right out of the gate, which allowed him to get back up to speed quickly – pun intended.

The Providence College commit has all the makings of an effective bottom-six forward. The floor here is quite impressive overall – but the ceiling? That’s where it could get interesting. Some scouts view Cali as a late first-round player who could find another gear offensively. Stylistically, it’s hard not to see Charlie Coyle in him. Coyle has developed into quite the offensive threat these days, too. That would be one heck of a development curve for Cali if he could pull it off.

It’s difficult not to like Cali. The Swiss-born, Cayman Islands-raised Canadian resident gives it his all every shift and scouts love him for it. He’s hard to play against, is smart and will do whatever you ask him to do at either end of the ice. Cali might not be flashy, but his well-rounded game should have no problem translating to the NHL.

And, hey, he’s still raw – and still developing. Who knows how high the ceiling might be?

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