The WHL will hold their annual Bantam Draft this Thursday in Edmonton. The WHL is a year ahead of the other CHL leagues, so they'll be drafting players born in 1994 this year.
There's a couple of Americans rated fairly highly for this draft. One interesting prospect is Seth Jones from Dallas, who is the son of former NBA center Popeye Jones. Jones will likely either sign in the WHL, or go to the NTDP in 2010.
There's also a fair amount of hype for Phoenix-area forward Henrik Samuelsson, the son of former NHLer Ulf Samuelsson. There were rumors and speculation that USA Hockey's decision to add Phillip Samuelsson to the US roster for the World U18 Championships was in order to help persuade his younger brother Henrik to also choose to play for the US over Sweden in international events.
Colorado Thunderbirds defenseman Matias Cleland is also rumored to be a potential first round draft pick.