But Because of New Landscape, That Number Could Rise
by Adam Wodon/Managing Editor (@chn-adam-wodon)
LOS ANGELES At this year’s NHL Draft, most of the NCAA-related talk has been about a player not even here.
Gavin McKenna — the projected No. 1 overall in next year’s draft — is not in Los Angeles, and no one’s yet sure if he’s going to play in the NCAA this coming season. But it’s presumed he will, and it’s presumed he will get some major money — relatively — to do so.
In the past, of course, it wouldn’t even have been an option. Unlike Macklin Celebrini, another highly-touted player who came to the NCAA in his draft year, McKenna chose to go to Major Junior first. For someone like Celebrini, just a couple years ago, that would’ve ruled out playing in the NCAA. Celebrini went on to have a standout season at Boston University, before getting drafted No. 1 by San Jose and playing in the NHL this past season.
But with the change in rules, opening the door for Major Junior players to then play in the NCAA, it’s not only within the realm of possiblity to play college hockey for McKenna, but it seems like something he’s actively seeking to do.
Combine that with the money now available for NCAA teams to directly pay their players, and it makes for a lot of interesting chatter. Where is he going to play? How much is he going to get? The answers are all over the map, though the consensus is that Michigan State is offering in the $200,000 range, while Penn State, the other likely landing spot, is offering more.
Meanwhile, there was a 2025 NHL Draft to deal with. On that score, current or incoming NCAA players did not make as big a splash as recent seasons.
Then again, who is an NCAA player? We don’t know. A handful of the players selected in the first round of what was a Major Junior-heavy night, could go to an NCAA school this coming year.
A player like Michael Misa, a projected top-three pick, has been reportedly interested in a number of schools, and perhaps also Penn State, after his brother committed there last month. However, at the draft, after being selected No. 2 overall by San Jose, Misa seemed to rule out playing NCAA hockey next year. “My goal is to make the NHL next season, so that’s where my head is at,” Misa said.
As for the ones who do know, James Hagens of Boston College, at one time thought of as a No. 1 overall pick, dropped to No. 7 overall to the Boston Bruins.
He is the only official NCAA player in the top 10, which is a dropoff for college hockey from recent years. Last season, Celebrini and Artyom Levshunov went 1-2 overall. In 2023, Adam Fantilli went No. 3, with Will Smith and Ryan Leonard also in the top 10. In 2022, Logan Cooley was No. 3, and in 2021, four of the top five NHL picks went to, or were already at, Michigan.
Still there were plenty of NCAA-connected players selected in the first round. In fact, with maybe others still pending, the final number was 10, which is the most since 2016. That number was boosted when the door to Major Junior players opened, with guys like Jackson Smith (Penn State) and Cole Reschny (North Dakota) among those committing to NCAA schools in the last couple months. Smith went No. 14 to Columbus and Reschny No. 18 to Calgary.
“It’s an incredible place and coaching staff. I’m excited to grow my game there and become a better player so I can help the Columbus Blue Jackets,” Smith said.
About the possibility of playing with McKenna this coming season in State College, Smith said, “You guys all know how incredible a player he is. To get him would be incredible, but I don’t know anything about it. We’ll have to see what happens here in the next couple weeks, but I have no clue what’s going to happen.”
Another Major Junior player, Justin Carbonneau, was selected No. 19. He hasn’t committed to an NCAA team yet, but there have been reports he’s considering Boston College. Carbonneau said Friday that he wanted to speak to the St. Louis Blues, the team that drafted him, first before making a final decision, but expects to know in the next few days.
Seven of the last 10 picks in the first round were current or incoming NCAA players, including a run of four straight from 23-26. Logan Hensler of Wisconsin went No. 23, followed by Michigan’s Will Horcoff, incoming Massachusetts recruit Vaclav Nestrasil, and Michigan State recruit Ryker Lee.
At No. 28, Boston University’s Sascha Boumedienne, who was the youngest player in college hockey last year, went to Winnipeg.
He was followed by another Michigan State recruit, Mason West, who is planning on playing a final year of football at Edina High School and the rest of the year at Fargo in the USHL, before coming to East Lansing in 2026. West said he’s all in on hockey, but just wants to finish football first, but some teams may have shied away because of that, as they did when another Edina native, Anders Lee, faced a similar situation in 2009. Lee slid all the way to the 6th round as a result, but went on to a standout career at Notre Dame and is still in the NHL.
“I wanted to trade back into the first round to take a grand-slam hack. I’m swinging for the fences,” Chicago Blackhawks GM Kyle Davidson told the Chicago Sun-Times about trading up to take West.
The final pick of the first round was Arizona State’s Cullen Potter.
All in all, like a lot of things in the NCAA right now, it’s the wild west. So hang in there.