Central Scouting Releases Final Rankings

There has been a stir caused by the NHL Central Scouting Bureau. The top of their final draft rankings has changed, with Tyler Seguin passing Taylor Hall for the No. 1 position among North American skaters.

You can read more about it on FanHouse. Meanwhile, here's a look at how players from Minnesota or with local ties line up among the top-ranked players.

Duluth native Derek Forbort, a defenseman with the U.S. National Team Development Program, comes in ninth. Forbort played through his junior season at Duluth East before moving to Ann Arbor. He's a North Dakota recruit.

Blaine's Nick Bjugstad ranks 13th. Bjugstad won Mr. Hockey this year, and he will play for the Gophers next year.

Minnesota State freshman Tyler Pitlick is 18th. There are rumors Pitlick will move on to major junior, but he's still a Maverick as of this writing.

Warroad star Brock Nelson, a North Dakota recruit, fell from 17th to 25th in the final rankings. He had a very good season for the Warriors, and I thought he played well in the state tournament, where Warroad finished third.

Here are some players who have been recruited to UMD.

Two 2010 UMD recruits fell to the mid-50s in the final rankings. No. 54 Joe Basaraba (Shattuck-St. Mary's) was 39th in the midterm, and No. 56 Justin Faulk (NTDP) was 40th.

2011 Caleb Herbert, a forward from Bloomington Jefferson, is 109th. Hill-Murray defenseman Chris Casto is No. 182.