The Florida Panthers selected burgeoning power forward Shea Busch in the fourth round (128th overall) of the 2025 NHL Entry Draft at Peacock Theatre in Los Angeles.
During his draft season, Busch split his time between the Vernon Vipers of the BJHL, where he played the year prior, and the WHL’s Everett Silvertips. In 22 games with the Vipers, Busch totaled 12 goals and five assists. His numbers in Everett were a respectable 11 goals and eight assists in 39 games.
It was his performance in the postseason that really caught the interest of the scouting community as Busch produced six goals and 11 points in 13 games as the Silvertips dispatched the Seattle Thunderbirds in six, he scored five times in that series, before falling to the Portland Winterhawks in seven.
As is customary, Busch attended Florida’s annual development camp after being drafted and returned to South Florida to be part of the club’s 2025 NHL Prospect Tournament roster in Wesley Chapel, FL in September.
Busch started his second turn in the WHL on a absolute heater that included netting his first career hat trick on October 4 against the Victoria Royals. He was leading the league with 13 goals in 12 games when he suffered an upper-body injury (wrist) on October 29 that required surgery and cost him the remainder of the regular season slate.
Following an arduous recovery process, Busch finally returned to the ice in time for Game 3 of Everett’s first round series against Portland and struck for a third period goal. He would finish the WHL playoffs with seven goals and six assists in 16 games played as the powerful Silvertips went on to win the Ed Chynoweth Cup for the first time in franchise history.
He didn’t fare as well at the subsequent Memorial Cup, where he was held to one assist in five games as Everett advanced to the final and got waxed 6-2 by the OHL’s Kitchener Rangers. His lone helper came in the 5-1 semifinal win over the Chicoutimi Saguenéens. Whether this was a case of Busch hitting the wall after returning from a long absence or difficulty with the level of competition in a tournament of champions remains to be seen.
Busch put in a second appearance at development camp this summer, where he was singled out by his teammates for his leadership qualities, and will play the upcoming season in the Big Ten Conference at Penn State. While the long-term injury held his game total down, Busch’s stint in the WHL saw him produce a total of 24 goals and 13 assists in 51 regular season tilts. His postseason numbers of 13 goals and 11 assists in 29 games are even more impressive, and he leaves Major Junior for the NCAA with a championship in his back pocket.
Size matters, and at age 19, Busch already boasts a man’s frame. He stands 6’3″ and weighs almost 220-pounds and uses that to his advantage, battling hard to get to the net. Busch displays some sneaky skill around the crease, but he’s not going to dangle opponents off the rush. He can rip a wrister and is capable of getting it off in traffic. Busch will need to work on his skating and agility to play in the NHL and going to Penn State should help smooth out the rough edges in his game. He’s another one in the Panthers pipeline of forward prospects that likely tops out in the middle six of an NHL lineup as his highest ceiling point.