12 Exciting NHL Rookies to Know for 2023-24 Season
One of the most exciting things about the beginning of the NHL season is watching rookies make their mark across the league.
Regarding some young players, it was easy to predict that they'd make an instant impact and open eyes everywhere they play. Others sneaked up—not quite out of nowhere, but unexpectedly grabbed everyone's attention with how they've started their seasons.
There are a lot of really fun young players making their presence felt right now and, yeah, it's early, but that's when there's the most hope and excitement. We're taking a look at 12 rookies who have staked an early claim that they're here to stay and might just be contenders for the Calder Trophy at the end of the campaign.
Some of these players have already made big impacts and will stick around all season, and others may have to head back to their junior teams to develop more, but they've made it hard to ignore their early results so far.
Sure, it might feel like it's Connor Bedard's award to lose, but keep in mind, Connor McDavid (Artemi Panarin, 2015-16) and Sidney Crosby (Alexander Ovechkin, 2005-06) didn't win the Calder in their eligible seasons.
Players listed in alphabetical order.
Connor Bedard, Chicago Blackhawks
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If you weren't aware of Connor Bedard before this season, seriously, what have you been doing?
The 18-year-old was the No. 1 pick in the 2023 draft by the Chicago Blackhawks and immediately became the top player to watch this season, rookie or not. He's young and exciting and has the total package of speed and skill that makes everyone's jaws drop.
He thrilled and dazzled through the preseason and started his season with a bang, scoring his first goal in his second NHL game and registering points in his first three. What might make his first campaign a little more challenging is that he's already Chicago's best, most skilled forward, which has earned him the attention of the opposition's top defenders. It's a heck of a compliment to his abilities, and it'll be a ton of fun to watch how he handles it.
After a handful of years in the doldrums, Chicago is back in the limelight thanks to Bedard, and he'll look to lead the way for the next wave of championship teams. That's probably something fans of every other team in the league would rather not hear about, but with Bedard leading the way, there's no doubt Chicago's resurrection is nigh.
Leo Carlsson, Anaheim Ducks
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It was a somewhat controversial selection by the Anaheim Ducks when they took center Leo Carlsson with the No. 2 pick in the 2023 draft. Most thought it was going to be Adam Fantilli going second behind Bedard, but the Ducks went their own way, and it may well have been the best one for them.
The big Swede avoided a serious injury in the preseason, made his NHL debut last week and scored a goal in his first game. Not a bad start to a career, especially after getting a serious scare.
Adding Carlsson to a young Ducks lineup provides hope that things can turn around at The Pond. With Carlsson joining star forwards Trevor Zegras and Troy Terry while teaming up with other youngsters like Mason McTavish, Jamie Drysdale and Pavel Mintyukov, things are looking way up for Anaheim.
But for as good as Zegras and Terry are, it's Carlsson who figures to be the guy who will lead them into the future. Being a high-end center who can score and set up teammates on any given rush up the ice gives him the edge needed for the Ducks offense to explode one day.
Logan Cooley, Arizona Coyotes
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One of the biggest, most pleasant, surprises of the offseason for the Arizona Coyotes was Logan Cooley's decision to leave the University of Minnesota and sign his entry-level deal to head to the NHL. Boy has it ever been worth it, too.
Cooley's off to a hot start with four points in his first five games with the Coyotes while the team has gone 3-2-0. Along with Clayton Keller and Nick Schmaltz up front and Sean Durzi on defense, the Coyotes are making it hard to ignore them early on.
What makes Cooley a special player is his obscene amount of skill. From puck-handling to shooting to passing, he does it all at a very high level. Add in that he's a remarkably quick skater and agile on his blades, and it's easy to understand why Arizona was so excited to get him out of college and into the desert.
The Coyotes are slowly but surely building up a supply of high-end prospects who will have them getting back to the postseason eventually. Heck, the way they've played for coach André Tourigny has some of us around the internet wondering if maybe they can sneak into the playoffs this season. But the Coyotes are a better team right now because of Cooley's presence and how he's able to give them a new and different wrinkle to their attack.
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Brock Faber, Minnesota Wild
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The Minnesota Wild have plenty of reasons to be excited about what general manager Bill Guerin is putting together there, but it was a recent trade that helped them not only find a future star for the blue line but also brought a local guy into the fold in Brock Faber.
Faber, originally from Maple Grove, Minnesota, was drafted by the Los Angeles Kings in the second round in 2020 but wound up with the Wild in the trade that sent Kevin Fiala out west. After Faber finished his junior season at the University of Minnesota, he signed on with the Wild to join Jared Spurgeon, Jonas Brodin and Calen Addison on the blue line.
Faber is a smooth-skating defenseman and more than capable of moving the puck up the ice. In college, he was able to produce points and lead his Golden Gophers to the national championship game last season.
With the Wild, Faber will have plenty of veteran protection on defense, but it's not like he's going to really need it. He's averaging more than 23 minutes per game early on this year and has a goal and an assist in five games. Getting ice time and opportunities to shine won't be a problem, and at 21 years old, he figures to be a fixture in the Twin Cities for a long time.
Adam Fantilli, Columbus Blue Jackets
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The Columbus Blue Jackets have been in search of a No. 1 center since...always? Always sounds right. Anyway, when they drafted Adam Fantilli with the third pick at the 2023 draft, it may have been the one that ended that search.
Fantilli arrived in Columbus after a brilliant freshman season at the University of Michigan and with a boatload of hype surrounding his game. At 6'2", 195 pounds he's a big guy who skates fast and plays with a ton of skill.
In Fantilli, they've got someone who can help set up talented guys like Patrik Laine and Johnny Gaudreau to try to bring Columbus back from the depths of the standings.
The 19-year-old is part of a young core of forwards that also has Kent Johnson and Cole Sillinger, but it's Fantilli who comes with the big-time hype. If it wasn't for Bedard, the debate between Fantilli and Leo Carlsson at the top of last year's draft would've been fever-pitched. Ultimately, it was Carlsson who went second, but the Blue Jackets were absolutely giddy to select Fantilli.
Ridly Greig, Ottawa Senators
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The Ottawa Senators are off to a quick start this season, and one of the big reasons is rookie forward Ridly Greig.
Greig has four points in the first five games (one goal, three assists) for Ottawa. As Joshua Norris gets himself reacclimated to the lineup after missing most of last season with a shoulder injury, Greig has anchored their second line, playing mostly with Mathieu Joseph and Vladimir Tarasenko.
Greig was a late first-round pick by Ottawa in 2020 (28th overall) and was a big-time scorer for OHL Brandon two seasons ago (63 points in 39 games). Last season, he split time between Belleville in the AHL and Ottawa, playing 20 games in the NHL. He's still a rookie now, however, and the growth he had between last year and this one has been noticeable right away. He had nine points in those 20 games last season, so he's virtually halfway to his point total from a year ago in a quarter as many games.
What's worth watching here is how it'll work for Ottawa once Norris is fully back up to speed and if/when it gets restricted free agent Shane Pinto re-signed. If Greig continues to play like this, he's going to make it really difficult for the Senators to move him down in the lineup.
Luke Hughes, New Jersey Devils
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It's wild that with so many top rookies already making a splash this season that New Jersey Devils defenseman Luke Hughes is getting sort of lost in the mix.
Hughes' arrival from the University of Michigan last season was highly anticipated. That he joined a Devils team that was already one of the NHL's best made it seem almost unfair they were adding such a weapon to their arsenal.
This year, the expectations are again high for the 20-year-old fourth overall pick in the 2021 draft. Through four games, he's got one goal, but he's playing an average of just over 19 minutes per game and seeing plenty of time on the power play. With Damon Severson now in Columbus, Hughes figures to be the Devils' No. 2 puck-mover and offensive threat from the blue line behind Dougie Hamilton.
New Jersey boasts many capable defensemen with Hamilton, Jonas Siegenthaler and John Marino as part of their corps along with Hughes. But what Hughes' upside means to bring in the near future is a player who will be similar to his brother Quinn when it comes to puck moving and capability to pile up points.
While Hamilton is an outstanding all-around defenseman, Hughes can be the offensive weapon that helps break opposing defenses down by becoming the fourth attacker in the zone.
Hughes' ability to learn more of the game and get a better feel for what he can and can't get away with all over the ice will ultimately make the Devils that much more dangerous to handle.
David Jiříček, Columbus Blue Jackets
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Adam Fantilli isn't the only Blue Jackets rookie set to make a major impact this season. They've also got 2022 first-round pick David Jiříček showing that Columbus' blue line is about to get a lot stronger.
Jiříček spent last season with Cleveland in the AHL, the Blue Jackets' farm team, and was their leading scorer on defense with six goals and 32 assists. His 38 points were third-best on the team and set the table for him to potentially make an NHL impact this season.
As it turns out, Jiříček was ready to go. Through his first four games, he has a goal and an assist and has been paired with Ivan Provorov. Although Columbus has been measured with his ice time the past couple of games, his advanced stats have been quite good. Playing defense in the NHL at his age (19 years old) is exceedingly difficult, but after the success he had in the AHL, he's primed to have a strong first season in the NHL.
Considering what the Blue Jackets are building with Fantilli, Kent Johnson and Cole Sillinger (among others), having Jiříček on the blue line with Zach Werenski should help them improve quickly.
Kevin Korchinski, Chicago Blackhawks
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We're going to hear a lot about high-end prospects in Chicago in the coming seasons, and while this year's discussion is (justifiably) dominated by Bedard, the team has got another first-round pick making his own name in the NHL in defenseman Kevin Korchinski.
The Blackhawks drafted Korchinski with the seventh pick in 2022 to be their next cornerstone blue liner to follow in the footsteps of Duncan Keith and Brent Seabrook. While those are some seriously big skates to fill, Korchinski arrived in Chicago this year after he put up huge numbers the past two seasons with Seattle in the WHL (138 points in 121 games).
At 6'3", 185 pounds, Korchinski is a wiry and lithe skater with the ability to move the puck and control the game from the point. His smooth hands allow him to weave through all zones and make forecheckers regret trying to take the puck off his stick on the rush.
With the kind of ability he has, Korchinski figures to be the point man for years to come on the Chicago power play, where he'll feed pucks endlessly to Bedard and Lukas Reichel, among others.
How Korchinski settles into his first season in the NHL will be fun to watch and not just because of Bedard. He'll have plenty of opportunities to show what he can do as well on a Chicago blue line that very much needs a player with his kind of skill.
Devon Levi, Buffalo Sabres
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The Buffalo Sabres entered this season with high hopes of returning to the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time since 2011. While they've got boatloads of skill and talent throughout the lineup, perhaps the most important player to factor into all of this is rookie goalie Devon Levi.
The 21-year-old gave the Sabres a taste of what was to come late last year when he arrived after his junior season at Northeastern University and dazzled with his highlight-reel saves, lightning-quick feet and his overall maturity at the position. He impressed the team so much, so fast, that he started every game down the stretch as it pursued a spot in the postseason in the final weeks.
This season, Levi started Buffalo's first four games, which gave a clear indication that he's going to be the Sabres' No. 1 guy until someone else can take the job (or more starts) away from him.
His rise from being a seventh-round pick by the Florida Panthers in 2020 to being included in the Sam Reinhart trade and ultimately being the top goalie in the Sabres system and on their depth chart in general is beyond impressive.
Who knows where Levi would be had fellow Montreal native Roberto Luongo not gone to bat for him during the draft. Right now, the Sabres are glad he did and that they were able to pluck him away in a franchise-altering deal.
Matthew Poitras, Boston Bruins
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Remember when everyone thought the Boston Bruins were in big trouble when Patrice Bergeron and David Krejčí each announced their retirement and we all wondered just how they would replace talent like that without any cap space?
How silly we were, because 2022 second-round pick Matthew Poitras showed up in training camp this year and locked up a spot in the Bruins lineup.
Poitras has found a home on a line with Brad Marchand in Boston, and since that's where Bergeron used to play, that's a sizable compliment to how the rookie has fit into the Bruins' attack.
At 5'11" and 180 pounds with quick feet and hands, he's provided the exact kind of skill and touch the Bruins desperately needed after losing their top two centers. If he can keep up the solid play, he'll give Boston the kind of depth up the middle with Pavel Zacha and Charlie Coyle it wasn't 100 percent sure it would have this year.
Marco Rossi, Minnesota Wild
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If it feels like we've been waiting a long time for Marco Rossi to arrive in the NHL, it's probably because of how warped our sense of time is these days.
Rossi was Minnesota's first-round pick in 2020, ninth overall. While other players from his draft class have exploded onto the scene the past couple of years, his road to the NHL was a lot more difficult thanks to a bout with COVID late in 2020 in which he developed myocarditis, a heart ailment.
Since then, he's worked his way back slowly and spent most of the past two seasons with Iowa in the AHL. Now that he's at last arrived in St. Paul with the Wild, we're seeing why he was such a highly touted prospect out of Austria.
He plays a tenacious game and has sky-high offensive ability. The thought of him teaming up with Kirill Kaprizov and Matthew Boldy should tickle fans in Minnesota endlessly. It will be fun to watch how he adapts to the NHL and shows the hockey world what he's capable of doing now that he's back and as strong as ever.
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