No play; no problem.

Even though Matthew Schaefer broke his collarbone while playing for Canada at the World Junior Championship - undergoing surgery to repair it on Dec. 30 - and won’t play another game until April, if at all this season, he cruised to the No. 1 spot in TSN’s Mid-Season 2025 NHL Draft Rankings.

It wasn’t particularly close either.

The Erie Otter defenceman was a unanimous No. 1 selection in TSN’s survey of 10 NHL club team scouts. The survey was conducted between Jan. 7-14 - after the WJC but just prior to the Ontario Hockey League Top Prospects and USA Hockey Top Prospects Games on Jan. 15 and 16, respectively.

“As far as I’m concerned,” one NHL head scout said, “[Schaefer] is No. 1 and he’s staying there - even if he never plays another game this season.”

It was a common refrain.

Not only did Schaefer garner all 10 first-place votes, seven of the 10 scouts declared there is a “substantial” gap between the Stoney Creek, Ont., native and the rest of the 2025 draft class. Two others described the gap as “moderate,” but one said it was only “minuscule.”

“I suppose it’s possible [Schaefer] not playing and those other guys playing could close the gap,” another scout said. “And, who knows? Maybe on draft day (reportedly June 27 in Los Angeles) someone other than Schaefer will go No. 1, but I don’t think so. He’s in a class all by himself.”

Boston College freshman centre James Hagens, who was No. 1 on TSN’s pre-season list in September, is No. 2 on the mid-season rankings. Saginaw Spirit centre Michael Misa, who was No. 7 in September, is No. 3, followed by Brampton Steelheads right winger Porter Martone (No. 4 in September) at No. 4 and Swedish centre Anton Frondell (3) at No. 5.

“I obviously can’t speak for other [NHL] teams,” added a third scout, “but the only race I see now is for No. 2.”

The dissenting view goes to the scout who described the gap between Schaefer and the rest of the field as extremely narrow.

“With those two centres [Hagens and Misa] right behind him there, and with Schaefer not playing, it still could be a close call [on draft day] for someone,” the scout said.

But as long as there are no lingering issues with Schaefer’s surgically repaired collarbone, the conventional wisdom is that it will be really difficult for an NHL team picking first overall to go by a dynamic top-pair defenceman who could very well have every attribute you look for in a true No. 1 blueliner.

Schaefer is a marvelous skater who can move the puck up the ice quickly with his feet or his hands. His offensive instincts are top notch. He can make plays; he can score goals. He’s totally fearless — the broken collarbone happened while driving hard to the net — and he’s constantly looking to be in attack mode. He can run a power play; he can walk the blueline and get shots through from the point, and even if he’s caught deep in the offensive zone on offensive forays, he can swiftly race back into defensive position

Without the puck, he can defend physically or cerebrally. He has a great stick; his gap control is excellent. He’s a premier penalty killer and his game is suited to all situations in all zones.

Until he was injured in the second game of the WJC, against Latvia, he was Canada’s best and most noticeable player.

No one wants to saddle him with the burden of unrealistic expectations, but when the NHL scouts were asked to identify NHL players with similar playing styles, not to be confused with anyone saying he will be a Hall of Famer or Norris Trophy winner, the comparables were quite favourable.

Scott Niedermayer and Miro Heiskanen were mentioned on more than one occasion.

“Think a left-shot Cale Makar,” added another.

Others included

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