Brantford picks 'largest hockey player on the planet' in Canadian Hockey League import draft, team says

The Associated Press

· Posted: Jul 03, 2025 8:49 AM EDT | Last Updated: 3 hours ago

The Brantford Bulldogs selected seven-foot, 273-pound defenceman Alexander Karmanov with the 172nd prime successful the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) import draught connected Wednesday.

The Ontario Hockey League club, successful a societal media station announcing the choice, called the 17-year-old the "largest hockey subordinate connected the planet." Karmanov would beryllium the tallest inferior subordinate successful the CHL, and, according to Elite Prospects, helium is the tallest progressive registered hockey subordinate successful the world.

Recently elected Hall of Famer Zdeno Chara is the tallest subordinate successful NHL past astatine six feet 9 inches. New York Rangers enforcer Matt Rempe, besides listed astatine 6-9, is the tallest presently successful the league.

Karmanov played past play for the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Knights and had 34 points successful 36 games astatine aggregate levels of their program. Last summer, astatine property 16, helium committed to play assemblage hockey astatine Penn State successful 2027.

Karmanov first Moldovan to play successful OHL

The Bulldogs besides added forward Adam Benak and defenceman Vladimir Dravecky, some from Czechia. 

Karmanov is the archetypal subordinate from Moldova selected successful the CHL Import Draft and would go the archetypal to play for the Bulldogs and successful the OHL.

In a quality merchandise issued Wednesday, the squad said "Benak dominated the Czech strategy going backmost to the 2021-22 play astatine the U17 level posting 64 points successful 34 games." He was drafted by the NHL's Minnesota Wild successful precocious June.

The squad says it is "extremely arrogant to invited Adam, Vladimir & Alexander to the Bulldogs household and look guardant to seeing each 3 person the accidental to correspond the enactment and turn into large pro's connected and disconnected the crystal successful the Bell city."

The CHL Import Draft allows teams to prime players from extracurricular of North America. The league includes the Western Hockey League, the Ontario Hockey League and the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.