In operation since 1973, the Merritt Centennials organization has long been seen by National Hockey League teams as a desirable franchise for development of players.

A total of 17 players who skated at least one game in Merritt have played in the NHL. The number is remarkable considering the Centennials play in a city of less than 8,000 and have operated for many seasons as a community-owned franchise. Six players have been chosen in the NHL Entry Draft directly from the Cents, the most recent being Dane Birks, who went in the sixth round in 2014 to the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Former Centennials who have played in the NHL

Name	Seasons Played in Merritt	Career NHL Games	NHL Teams
Fred Berry	1973-74	3
Paul Mulvey	1973-74	225
Jeff Bandura	1973-74	2
Glen Cochrane	1974-75	411
Tim Watters	1975-76	741
Ed Beers	1976-78	250
Don Nachbaur	1976-77	223
Ron Flockhart	1977-78	453
Alan Kerr	1980-81	391
Neil Eisenhut	1984-85	16
Paul Kruse	1986-88	423
Link Gaetz	1986-87	65
Steve Passmore	1989-90	93
Bill Muckalt	1991-94	256
Mike Brown	1994-95	34
Brad Thiessen	2005-06	5
Max Reinhart	2007-08	23

Former Centennials Drafted Directly from Merritt

Name	Seasons Played in Merritt	Draft Position	NHL Team
Greg Agar	1974-75	10th round, 162nd overall in 1975
Maco Balkovec	1989-91	5th round, 110th overall in 1991
Mike Hamilton	2001-03	6th round, 175th overall in 2003
Casey Pierro-Zabotel	2004-08	3rd round, 90th overall in 2007
Reece Willcox	2010-12	5th round, 141st overall in 2012
Dane Birks	2012-14	6th round, 164th overall in 2013

Former Centennials Drafted from the Western Hockey League

Name	Seasons Played in Merritt	Drafted From	Drafted By
Fred Berry	1973-74
Jeff Bandura	1973-74
Paul Mulvey	1973-74
Glen Cochrane	1974-75
Kevin Willison	1974-75
Don Nachbaur	1976-77
Pat Rabbitt	1976-78
Alan Kerr	1980-81
Troy Mick	1984-85
Cal McGowan	1986-88
Paul Kruse	1986-88
Brent Thurston	1987-88
Steve Passmore	1989-90
Mike Josephson	1991-92
Tyler Willis	1992-93
Mike Brown	1994-95
Max Reinhart	2007-08

Former Centennials Drafted from NCAA Hockey

Name	Seasons Played in Merritt	Drafted From	Drafted By
Tim Watters	1975-76	Michigan Tech
Rob Polman-Tuin	1977-79	Michigan Tech