Windsor Spitfires Continue to Build for the Future at 2026 OHL Draft – The Hockey Writers – OHL

For much of June, the Windsor Spitfires have been focusing on the 2026-27 Ontario Hockey League (OHL) season. This weekend, though, the focus shifted more towards the organization’s long-term vision.

With the Spitfires in rebuild mode, general manager Bill Bowler knew it wasn’t going to be easy to replace several of his graduating veterans, including captain Liam Greentree (New York Rangers) and defenceman Carson Woodall (Boston College). Last week, among his activities, he signed forwards Ty Bergeron (2025 third-round OHL Draft) and Michal Svrcek (2025 first round Canadian Hockey League Import Draft), building towards 2026-27. On Friday and Saturday, he looked more at the future with the 2026 OHL Draft, which was held in Kingston. They were hoping to get some immediate help, but also plenty of long-term options.

Spitfires Select Whelan in First Round

It’s no secret that Bowler and head coach Greg Walters appreciate the 200-foot game; smart, defensive hockey with the ability to create offensively. They also want players who are good humans off the ice. They believe they found all of that with their first pick.

With the 16th overall pick, Bowler made no hesitation selecting forward Lauchlan Whelan out of the Quinte Red Devils U16 AAA.

The 5-foot-11, 156-pound Cobourg, ON native had an impressive 32 goals and 54 points in 34 games in 2025-26. Immediately following the selection, Whelan was interviewed by YourTV and thanked his family.

“It feels amazing,” he said. “I have my family up in the crowd to support me tonight and that means the world to me. They’ve done so much for me right from when I was a little kid. Without them, I wouldn’t be anywhere close to where I am today.”

He added that the experience was “nothing but a dream come true. Life’s better than ever right now.”

What can fans expect? In his OHL Draft Prospect Profile, he said he models his game after Colorado Avalanche star Nathan MacKinnon who has that “dog mentality.” In his post-selection interview with YourTV, he added that he loves playing all three zones and wants to get involved in the community.

“You’re going to get a 200-foot player who’s going to compete in all three zones on the ice, work consistently, have an insane compete effort, and give back to the community,” Whelan said.

In a press release, Bowler said Whelan is the kind of player and person they want.

“Lauchlan is a player our scouting staff identified early in the season as someone who embodies the type of player we want…,” Bowler said. “He is a highly competitive centre with excellent hockey IQ, strong habits away from the puck, and the ability to impact the game in a variety of ways.”

What do the scouts think of the newest Spitfire? J. Brad Johnston, an NHL and OHL Draft Scout for Hockey Prospect, said on X that Whelan “was a player I was high on all year. Great 200-foot player who loves to score goals. Whelan is electric on the rush and is great off the puck in the neutral zone. Whelan will bring Spitfires fans out of their seats next season.”

LaMontagne and Hanutke Lead Spitfires’ Saturday Selections

While the first round was held on Friday evening, Rounds 2 through 15 came on Saturday. However, thanks to the Jakub Fibigr (second round 2026) and Brett Harrison (third round 2026) deals since 2022-23, Bowler didn’t have a pick until the fourth round. Fortunately, he had two there and made the most of them.

With his first fourth-round pick, 69th overall from the Owen Sound Attack, Bowler selected defenceman Jake LaMontagne out of the Detroit Honeybaked 15s. At 6-foot-4, 198 pounds, he uses his size to play a smart game in his own end, while contributing offence. In 2025-26, he had three goals and 51 points in 71 games.

His second pick in the fourth round, 79th overall from the Ottawa 67’s, Bowler chose forward Ryan Hanutke out of Shattuck-St. Mary’s 15U. The 5-foot-8, 170-pound Chippewa Falls, WI native had 32 goals and 80 points in 50 games.

They had to wait until the seventh round before having two more selections. With the 126th overall pick, they took forward Cameron Jolicoeur out of the London Jr. Knights U16 AAA. He’s listed at 6-foot-3, 233 pounds and had 12 goals and 41 points in 30 games in 2025-26. Ryan Yessie, an OHL scout with HockeyProspect, talked about Jolicoeur’s potential on X:

Windsor takes Cameron Jolicoeur. This guy is interesting. He’s got a powerful shot, he’s known locally as a great boxer, if Windsor can get aggression out of this guy, watch out he’s a power forward in the making, playing mean just doesn’t come naturally to him. Interested to see

— Ryan Yessie (@RyanYessie) June 13, 2026

To finish off the seventh round, 137th overall, Bowler selected forward Jack Trupiano out of Detroit Little Caesars 15U. He’s 6-foot, 183 pounds and had 23 goals and 41 points in 20 games in 2025-26. However, he’s committed to the US National U17 team and could be a couple of seasons away from the OHL.

In total, the Spitfires made 15 picks during the 15-round draft and, for each of them, it’s an opportunity to take that next step. Even the late picks can make a serious impact. Former Spitfire Noah Morneau, chosen in the 15th round in 2020, became a point-per-game player before moving to the NCAA. If you work hard, you force the club’s hand. Their future now belongs to the prospects.