Eight Boston College Eagles Named to The Hockey News Top 100 NCAA Players to Watch

Silayev is 6-foot-7, but he moves like he’s 6-foot-2, and he has shown great two-way play so far in the KHL. He scored six points in his first six games, but slowed down significantly, finishing the season with 11 points after 63 regular season games. There’s a very real chance that he ends up as the top defender in this class given the massive potential his frame and agility provide. The Montreal Canadiens were lucky to snag Lane Hutson near the end of the second round of the 2022 NHL Draft because many expected he’d be drafted much, much earlier. He battles well against larger players and his low center of gravity makes him harder to knock off the puck than you would expect.

Jonathan Huberdeau, LW, Calgary Flames

On a middle-of-the-pack team like the Blues, Thomas has been one of, if not the single brightest spot on the team and general manager Doug Armstrong is going to build around him on the forward group for a long time. After two 40-goal seasons with the Chicago Blackhawks, Alex DeBrincat has struggled to get back to that mark since being traded to the Senators and then the Red Wings. With 27 goals in each of his past two seasons, there is still a lot of hope that he will bounce back to his 40-goal self, and there is a good chance he does.

McDavid, MacKinnon lead top 10 players

But as the season begins and expectations are all over the place, rosters could be more malleable. This rookie class looks to be one of the best in recent memory, with plenty of young star power to wow fans. With all this talent ready to be debuted, the Calder Trophy race will be as enjoyable as ever. So, to kick the season off, here are ten rookies to keep an eye on (listed alphabetically).

Prospects #60-51

Nick Suzuki had one of the best offensive seasons by a Montreal Canadiens player since 2000, and not only was he producing at a great rate, but he is also an excellent defensive center. With Suzuki being the first-line center on a team that struggled as much as the Canadiens did defensively, what is even more impressive is that he earned Selke Trophy votes. There is so much potential for Cole Caufield to become one of the best goal-scorers in the NHL, and while he has yet to hit the 30-goal mark, he has a great release and plays well. There is hope that with an improved top-six, Caufield’s new teammates will help him reach his full potential and challenge for 50 goals someday. Regarded as one of the top two-way players in the entire league, Mark Stone is likely only this low because of his health.

• He is the cornerstone of the forward group for the Winnipeg Jets, and as the team’s weakest position is center, he is thrown into a lot of situations.
• He is one of the most underrated players in the game and has a huge impact on the team each night.
• He battles well against larger players and his low center of gravity makes him harder to knock off the puck than you would expect.
• He’s great at identifying the open lanes and attacking with force to take advantage of an opportunity.
• Noah Östlund is one of the best pure playmakers on this list as his ability to keep track of his teammates’ locations all over the ice leads to plenty of brilliant passes that nobody else seems to see coming.

Sergei Bobrovsky, G, Florida Panthers

He can pick apart opposing defenses with pin-point passes, creative dangles and sly fakes, and his effort level is admirable. Perreault was one of the most creative and intelligent players in the 2023 Draft and he is great at weaving his way out of trouble when defenders collapse around him, either with a pass or his lightning-quick hands. Perreault scored at an absurd rate in his draft year, with 132 points in 63 games, setting the single-season record in the NTDP, surpassing players like Matthews, Hughes, and Clayton Keller. He also managed to score a whopping 60 points in 36 NCAA games as a freshman last season, confirming that he has the potential to be an offensive gamebreaker.

Trevor Connelly, LW, Vegas Golden Knights

Augustine’s return gives MSU a high floor, because they can project to get very solid goaltending most nights from one of the more talented NHL goalie prospects in the world. Augustine was a huge piece of MSU’s success as I was not terribly high on the defense they played in front of him and returning the netminder is a coup. Losing Levshunov, who signed with the Blackhawks after being drafted (may spend the year in the AHL), was a big blow and will be the big challenge for Nightingale’s staff.

Leon Draisaitl, C, Oilers

On top of the offense, Barzal is one of the best skaters in the league and puts in good work defensively as well. Not many would have been able to predict Gustav Forsling to make this kind of list even just a few years ago. From being a throw-in in a trade and being waived, to now in the Top 50 for the best players in the league is remarkable. Forsling is a great shut-down defenseman and was given a heavy workload in the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs on the path to winning a Stanley Cup, and received eight third-place votes for the Conn Smythe.

The Best NHL Players Of 2024, Ranked

He is still a bit of a raw prospect at this point, which means there’s a lot of room for growth. Levshunov was a poor defender in the USHL when he first arrived, but finished that season as a strong two-way player. His first NCAA mirrored that closely, with an increased defensive responsibility as the year wore on. It looks like Levshunov is set to make the jump to the pros next season, and while his defensive game may not be great right off the bat, he’s shown himself to be a quick study.

NHL legend Luongo subs for beer league hockey team

• Liam Greentree is a big winger who looks like he could be a great all-round player in the NHL someday if he can make some improvements to his speed and acceleration.
• I like him as a two-way defensive prospect and his right-handed shot and 6-foot-2 frame will help him out on draft day.
• The combination of speed, hands and stick handling makes him an offensive catalyst and he maintains offensive zone possession extremely well.
• Stephen Halliday led OSU in scoring in each of the last two years and he has now signed a contract with the Ottawa Senators.
• While he dealt with injuries throughout last season, this will be a big year for him as he tries to cement himself as a player who can score closer to 90 points or more every year, rather than 70.
• Glass, but certainly not least (especially with the other Sharks on this list), we have the newest addition to the Sharks in Yaroslav Askarov.

Early returns have been good as Mesar has had back-to-back great showings at the World Juniors over the past 12 months and has already shown a ton of improvement in two seasons in the OHL. Few OHL defenders are capable of slowing him down in transition where his quick weight shifts and deceptive posture can be incredibly difficult to read. Mesar will be a fascinating player to watch in the AHL next season as he moves back to the pro level. That’s been the case from the very beginning, as he came back season after season with some skill tweaked, some ability enhanced.

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Solberg doesn’t project to have a ton of NHL offense, but he can make a solid first pass and his mobility will help carry him to the next level. He wins tons of pucks with his stick and body, closing gaps confidently while defending in transition. Solberg has the potential to be a meaningful top-four defender in the NHL, complementing the offensive tilt of many of the Ducks’ young defenders. Liam Öhgren is a “jack of all trades, master of none” type of player who will excel in the NHL one day as a complementary winger. He is one of the hardest-working players on the ice every time he plays, and he can do just about anything asked of him. Öhgren has a great shot, good hands, legit playmaking skill, and the skating ability to put all those skills together.

Gustav Forsling, Florida Panthers

His performance in the playoffs en route to the Stanley Cup wasn’t as dominant, but with 10 goals, he certainly didn’t disappear. He was on Hart, Selke and Lady Byng ballots this year, and has earned votes for them in previous years, except for the Hart. A very disappointing year by Tage Thompson’s standards didn’t stop voters by much on this one. After posting 47 goals and 94 points two seasons ago, Thompson, along with most of the other Sabres players, took a big step back in production.

Goals Against Average

He is excellent offensively, posting a career-high of 90 points last season, he is exceptional defensively and can skate very well. At one point, he was looked at as a fairly good scoring center who was horrible defensively, but under Rick Tocchet, his game has become very well-rounded. He has hit over a point-per-game in each of the last three seasons, including two 99+ seasons. Offensively, he has been consistently around 50 points over the past three seasons, and on the defensive side, he has been very strong for the club. He has a strong physical presence, and over each of the past five seasons, has earned votes for the Norris Trophy. He is in every conversation for the best defensemen in the league, and if he can take a bigger step offensively, he will have a great chance of winning the Norris Trophy over the next few years.

After being selected eighth overall by the Red Wings back in the 2022 Draft, Marco Kasper returned to Sweden as a top-six center for Rögle BK (SHL) at age 18. It quickly became clear that he had more offense to give and all he needed was the opportunity to show it off. Without further ado, here is our ranking of the top 100 NHL prospects as well as a few honourable mentions. Nikita Kucherov – who came in at No. 8 last year – appears to be the only member of the Lightning with a chance to remain in the top 10. Centre Brayden Point checked in at No. 17 Thursday, improving his ranking from No. 26 a year ago.

There is no denying that the Wild have become immensely more fun to watch since Kaprizov came over from Russia. The slippery winger dealt with injuries last year that kept him out of 15 games, but he still managed to record 40 goals and 75 points. Kaprizov has incredible vision and hands, and he https://gambibet.org/ has been the engine behind the Wild offense. There is very little that separates the three, so Isles fans, don’t read into it too much. Some will argue that Sorokin deserved the Vezina last year over Linus Ullmark, but it’s only a matter of when, not if, the New York goaltender earns the honor.

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Nugent-Hopkins has spent over a decade with the Oilers, and in that time he has been a very reliable two-way center and has spent a lot of time killing penalties and working hard on the forecheck. For anyone who hasn’t looked for college hockey content beyond MGoBlog, it is sparse. I would honestly venture that many of the opponent previews above are more detailed than what you can find from those programs’ own fanbases. Various museums report that a form of the game was also played by the Romans and Greeks, as well as the Aztecs.

He is one of the biggest bounce-back candidates moving forward and is very likely to move up the list. Through two seasons with the Edmonton Oilers, Mattias Ekholm has an outstanding 59 points and has a plus-minus rating of +72. Of course, offense comes a bit easier with the Oilers, but it is his defense that has been the biggest stand-out part of his game.

Fantasy hockey rankings, picks, 2024 season simulation

His greatest strength is his shot which looks like a quality NHL tool though his skill with the puck is noteworthy as well. The biggest barrier in the way of NHL success for Greentree at the moment is his skating. He’s got okay speed once he gets going, but his first few steps are sluggish and he could use some explosiveness to help him accelerate more quickly. He may not have the offensive skill to wow you, or the size/physicality to excite NHL GMs, but Lindstein has a steadiness and consistency that is so rare for a U20 player.

He’s headed to the University of North Dakota this Fall, a program that has a long track record of developing solid NHL talent. Grizzled veteran scorers who are more consistent and don’t make the mistakes that 18/19-year-old future NHLers do is a very valid way to win in college hockey. The Badgers were an excellent goal prevention outfit this season and that’s what you have to have alongside that forward corps.

If it hadn’t been for McDavid’s outrageous scoring pace, Barkov would have won the Conn Smythe Trophy as he received second-place votes on 15 out of the 17 ballots. A huge breakout year for Sam Reinhart propelled him up this list, and if he can replicate this kind of season and prove it isn’t a one-and-done kind of year, he will continue to shoot up the list. Scoring 57 goals has only been done by a handful of players currently active, and while many were on the powerplay, they all count the same.

• He’s dominant down low, he excels in the faceoff dot, he’s incredibly skilled offensively, and he is an absolute pain to play against defensively.
• His offensive game is unlikely to ever really pop in the NHL, but I could see him as a solid complimentary guy you gladly pair with your top offensive defender if all goes well over the next few seasons.
• Mikko Rantanen is the elite winger playing alongside MacKinnon, but where he truly shines is in the goal-scoring aspect.
• Part of the reason the Stars have materialized into legitimate Stanley Cup contenders in the Western Conference is due to Oettinger.
• Keller has been scoring nearly a point per game over three seasons, during which time the Coyotes have struggled a lot.
• Skinner can be somewhat volatile between the pipes, and that has led to questions about which version of him will show up against Florida.

Over the last three years, Stamkos has been one of the top point producers and had drug his team into battle every night. The Stars have taken a lot of pride in their defensive game as an entire team, but the biggest anchor for their success comes from Miro Heiskanen. He is one of the best two-way defenders in the game and has had great offensive numbers over the past two seasons. A big step back in production last season prevented Tim Stutzle from being higher on this list.

The Panthers star can stickhandle at an elite level, and has scored six goals throughout the 2024 postseason, while also having no problem setting up his teammates along the way. It won’t be a huge surprise if Barkov makes his presence known at many points during the series. One big reason the Oilers have gotten over the playoff hump this season is that the cast around McDavid and Draisaitl is shouldering more of the burden. In his ninth NHL season, Hyman broke out for 54 goals, which was 18 more than his previous career high.

The oddest moment of the offseason came very recently, when it was announced that Rhett Pitlick, a longtime Gopher who tied for the team lead in scoring last season, is transferring to rival Minnesota State… I frankly have no clue what’s going on with that, other than that Pitlick tried to sign with NHL teams over the summer but it never happened. I also am not sure how he’s eligible to play for Mankato right away, but apparently he is. It’s a tough blow for Minnesota’s roster, which was looking pretty darn good with Pitlick but now will look less good, but still solid. After having two elite seasons at Boston University, Lane Hudson looks to finally make the jump to the NHL for the Montréal Canadiens on their blue line.

Over the last two seasons, Martin Necas has emerged as a goal-scoring and point-scoring winger. He had hopes of playing at center, but it doesn’t look like he will be making that transition. He is still very effective and plays a versatile enough game that he can fit in with any center and make offense happen. Drew Doughty fought back after a downward trend in his career, and over the last few seasons, has proven he still has lots left in the tank. He is a physical, smart, and strong defensive defenseman who can chip in with good offensive numbers.

He’s strong in breakout/entry situations, has some clever stretch passes in his toolkit, and walks the blueline with confidence. Ryan Leonard is a high energy winger who never takes his foot off the gas in terms of both speed and effort. He uses his speed and skill to blow by defenders in the neutral zone and pressure in-zone defenders who struggle to anticipate his next move.

Here, in the twilight of his career, he’s still doing it, altering his game to keep up with a league that seems to be running a hundred miles-per-hour faster than it did when he was in his prime. Whether that’s enough to pull the team around him back into playoff relevancy remains unclear. But coming off another summer of roster tweaks, with a new young linemate to mold into an ideal wingman, it would be foolish to count Crosby out. Aleksander Barkov has taken over as the top two-way center in the NHL now that Patrice Bergeron has retired, and on top of that, has found strong offensive consistency over the past three seasons. During the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Barkov had some of the toughest matchups possible and did an excellent job shutting down the top players on all of the teams he faced on the path to winning the Stanley Cup.

The Edmonton Oilers and Florida Panthers both have plenty of star power, and those marquee names will go toe-to-toe for hockey’s ultimate prize. Back during the Oilers’ dynasty in the 1980s, those Wayne Gretzky clubs had the great Paul Coffey. There’s a clear path for Celebrini to become an excellent first-line center in the NHL and the San Jose Sharks are counting the days until he can show what he’s made of at their training camp in a few short days.

However, other nations – such as Argentina, Germany, Spain, France and reigning Olympic men’s champion Belgium – have now made their way into the top international rankings, making the sport truly global. Athletes use a hook-shaped stick, with which they drive, control, and hit a hard ball. Except for goalkeepers, players are not allowed to touch the ball with their hands or feet. Over the next four to seven games, key players on both sides of this matchup will make big plays to determine the NHL’s next champion. Former NHL winger Justin Williams was referred to as “Mr. Game 7” due to his ability to come through in the clutch. Dating back to last season, the Florida winger has displayed a knack for scoring in key moments and is a key reason for a number of Panthers wins.

Previously he worked for NBC Sports on their national news desk reporting on breaking news for the NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL, in addition to covering the 2020 and 2022 Olympic Games. A graduate of Quinnipiac University, he spent time in college as a beat reporter covering the men’s ice hockey team. Part of the reason the Stars have materialized into legitimate Stanley Cup contenders in the Western Conference is due to Oettinger. The Dallas goaltender wasted no time adjusting to the NHL level when he made the jump from the NCAA in 2020. The 24-year-old is one of the most promising young goaltenders, coming off a season where he posted a 2.42 GAA and a .916 SV%. McDavid picked up all 20 first-place votes last season despite having finished second in Hart Trophy voting to Auston Matthews just a few months earlier.

Updated hourly, with analysis, commentary and features from hundreds writers worldwide, our articles are read over 5 million times every month. The Minnesota Wild have clearly identified Faber as their top defenseman, and moving forward they will be happy to have him there and build around him. Faber was acquired by the Wild in a trade that sent Fiala to the Kings, and since then, Faber’s development has been fantastic. While the Senators try to leave their rebuilding years, the defense has been one of the biggest issues of the roster.