Liam Greentree continues to lead the way for the Windsor Spitfires.

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Liam Greentree continues to lead the way for the Windsor Spitfires.

On the day Greentree was named to Canada’s national under-18 team, the Spitfires’ captain was also the first of four players to appear on final NHL Central Scouting ranking list for June’s draft.

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A six-foot-two, 207-pound forward, Greentree tied for 11th in league scoring this season with 90 points and was tied for 16th in goals with 36. He has been on central scouting’s radar all season and sits 14th overall among North American skaters.

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“Obviously, it’s super cool and exciting, but I still have a lot to improve on,” the 18-year-old Greentree said.

Scouts will get a little longer to see him in action with Greentree named to Canada’s national under-18 for the world championships in Finland. Canada opens play next Friday against Czechia.

“It’s definitely super exciting, especially seeing all the guys again,” Greentree said.

It is Greentree’s second national team assignment with Canada this year. He was part of Canada’s gold-medal winning team at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup last August.

Two of Greentree’s teammates with the Spitfires continue to climb the rankings.

Forward A.J. Spellacy was ranked 125th in the mid-term rankings, but jumped to No. 72 in the final ranking.

The six-foot-two, 195-pound Spellacy went pointless in his first 11 games to start the season, but finished the season fifth in team scoring and potted 21 goals.

“It’s nice to be rated and be on the list, but it doesn’t change anything for me,” Spellacy said. “I have had a lot of growth in my game since the mid-term ranking and I’m still just focused on getting better and improving my game for next season.”

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Davis wasn’t even on the preliminary ranking list. He jumped in at No. 184 in the mid-term rankings and finished at No. 137 in the final rankings after tying for third among league rookies with 20 goals and sixth in rookie scoring with 41 points in 63 games.

“It feels great to be ranked 137 in all of North America,” the five-foot-10, 174-pound Davis said. “There’s obviously many great players to be considered, so it’s an amazing feeling being recognized for all the hard work I’ve put in. It wouldn’t be possible without my teammates and coaches.

“I feel my game grew as the season went on. I became more comfortable and confident as well as more productive. I’m just going to keep working this summer and comeback next season prepared.”

Defenceman Anthony Cristoforo, who was Windsor’s first-round pick in 2023, also made the list at No. 194.

“To be completely honest, the whole year I’ve never been a guy who looks at lists or anything like that,” the five-foot-11, 191-pound Cristoforo said. “I’ve gained experience from not really paying too much attention to the lists from my OHL Draft year.

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“Coming into the OHL, I was never a guy who was high on anyone’s list or mock drafts and I think just continuing to block out the outside noise and staying confident is what I’m going to keep on doing.”

The last time the Spitfires had four players taken in an NHL Draft was 2012 and the club record is five, which happened 2009 and 1997.

Spitfires’ general manager Bill Bowler believes that number could be equalled or bettered with defencemen Josef Eichler, who was on the mid-term rankings list, Carson Woodall and Conor Walton all heading into the NHL Draft for the first time.

“That’s central’s list and 32 NHL teams have their own list and you just never know what will happen until the draft,” Bowler said. “Teams are calling us all the team about our players and those three (unranked players) have been brought up as well.”

Three other players with local ties also made the final ranking list. Leamington Flyers defenceman Jason Davenport is No. 171 on the list while Sebastian Gatto is ranked No. 16 among North American goaltender.

Tecumseh’s Connor MacPherson, who played last season with the Flyers and spent this season in British Columbia with the Penticton Vees, is No. 195 on the list.

jpparker@postmedia.com

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