Edmonton Oilers select C William Nicholl 196th overall at the NHL Draft

With the 196th overall pick at the 2024 draft, the Edmonton Oilers selected centre William Nicholl from the OHL’s London Knights.

Standing at 6’0, 184 lbs., Nicholl was a teammate of Sam O’Reilly, who the Oilers traded up to select 32nd overall on Friday night.

Nicholl, who the Oilers used their first of two seventh-round picks on, appeared in 65 games this season scoring six goals and 20 points in his rookie OHL season, but had a nice run in the playoffs enroute to London winning the championship, scoring a goal and eight points in 18 games. He wouldn’t score a point in their four Memorial Cup games, however.

“Will stepped up for us numerous times throughout the season,” London Knights head coach Dale Hunter said. “He played a big role for our team when we dealt with injuries and suspensions throughout the season.”

He was ranked as the 134th prospect by Elite Prospects in their draft guide, who described Nicholl as a “depth forward turned playoff standout thanks to unrelenting pace, textbook details, and flashes of high-level offence.”

Nicholl, they added, stood out in a depth role and his playoff success came in thanks to an elevated role.

“He was a wrecking ball, taking big runs at opponents, colliding with them along the boards, and launching himself into battles,” Elite Prospects Dir. of North American scouting Mitchell Brown wrote in April. “Wins body positioning on everyone in every situation: Net front, along the boards, on the backcheck, on random opponents in open ice.”

Their draft guide also said that with a lot of London’s top players graduating out of the Major Juniors this year, there’s a top-six role waiting for Nicholl.

“If he seizes it, he could be the breakout star of the 2024-25 season.”

On Twitter Saturday, Oilersnation prospect writer Bruce Curlock said he loved the selection of Nicholl.

Much like with his teammate and fellow Oilers draftee Sam O’Reilly, Nicholl spent the 2022-23 season in the GOJHL, Ontario’s Jr. A league, where he put up big points, scoring 20 goals and 64 points in 43 games played.

Earlier Saturday, the Oilers used their second-round pick, 64th overall, to draft goaltender Eemil Vinni and their 160th pick in the fifth round to select LW Connor Clattenburg.

In the sixth round, Edmonton drafted Swedish right-shot defenceman Albin Sundin, and another OHL centre in the North Bay Battalion’s Dalyn Wakely, who scored 39 goals and 104 points in 66 games this year.

Zach Laing is the Nation Network’s news director and senior columnist. He can be followed on Twitter at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach@thenationnetwork.com.