Tanner Molendyk

Tanner Molendyk (born February 3, 2005) is a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman for the Milwaukee Admirals in the American Hockey League (AHL) while under contract as a prospect to the Nashville Predators of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was drafted in the first round, 24th overall, by the Predators in the 2023 NHL entry draft.

Playing career During the 2022–23 season, Molendyk recorded nine goals and 28 assists in 67 games for the Saskatoon Blades. During the playoffs, he recorded three goals and five assists in 18 games, and helped the Blades advance to the Eastern Conference finals. He shared the lead for goals and finished second in points and assists among WHL defencemen in the playoffs.

On July 6, 2023, Molendyk was signed to a three-year, entry-level contract with the Nashville Predators.

On January 6, 2025, Molendyk, along with Misha Volotovskii, was traded to the Medicine Hat Tigers in exchange for two players and five draft picks. He immediately assumed a major role in Medicine Hat's defence corps in the regular season, and continuing into their deep run in the playoffs. The team ultimately reached the WHL Finals, where they defeated the Spokane Chiefs to claim the Ed Chynoweth Cup as league champions. While playing with the Tigers, Molendyk had 5 goals and 21 assists in 28 regular season games and 4 goals and 16 assists in 18 postseason games.

International play

Molendyk first represented Canada at the 2022 Hlinka Gretzky Cup, where he recorded one goal and three assists in five games and won a gold medal. In 2023, he was named to Team Canada's roster for the 2024 World Junior Championship; however, he sustained a wrist injury in a pre-tournament game that ultimately held him out of the tournament. He was later able to join Team Canada for the 2025 edition, and was named an alternate captain.

Career statistics Regular season and playoffs Regular season Playoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 2020–21 Saskatoon Blades WHL 17 0 2 2 2 — — — — — 2021–22 Saskatoon Blades WHL 55 3 15 18 16 5 0 3 3 0 2022–23 Saskatoon Blades WHL 67 9 28 37 37 18 3 5 8 0 2023–24 Saskatoon Blades WHL 50 10 46 56 18 16 3 7 10 10 2024–25 Saskatoon Blades WHL 21 4 17 21 10 — — — — — 2024–25 Medicine Hat Tigers WHL 28 5 21 26 8 18 4 16 20 4 2025–26 Milwaukee Admirals AHL 60 4 19 23 14 3 0 1 1 0AHL totals 60 4 19 23 14 3 0 1 1 0

International Year Team Event Result GP G A Pts PIM 2022 Canada HG18 5 1 3 4 0 2025 Canada WJC 5th 5 0 2 2 4Junior totals 10 1 5 6 4

Awards and honours Award Year RefCHLMemorial Cup All-Star Team2025 WHL Ed Chynoweth Cup champion 2025