Ranking the 10 NCAA Men's Hockey Players to Watch Next Season

Student sections and their chants are nearly back, because somehow it's almost time for the college hockey season to start once more.

The landscape is pretty different this year; players like Ryan Leonard and Gabe Perreault have signed their entry-level contracts and moved on to the pro ranks, and quite a few players are arriving from the CHL's major-junior ranks. There are a lot of unknowns. How quickly will those players adjust? Will they succeed or will they struggle? If they succeed, will more players choose this as a development path? 

The fun part is watching the answers to these questions unfold. Here are the top players we'll be watching closely as they do.

10. Cayden Lindstrom - C, Michigan State University (Columbus Blue Jackets)

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Lindstrom is one of the many former major-junior players making their way to the NCAA this season, but he's got a few more question marks around him than most. He missed the entirety of the WHL regular season after back surgery (a minimally invasive microdiscectomy), though he did return to the Medicine Hat Tigers in the playoffs and nabbed four points in four games. Seems like he was quick to shake the rust off.

Lindstrom's style should serve him well in the NCAA. He's a fearless player with serious speed and a power forward kind of approach. Between his speed and size (he's 6'4" and 214 pounds), he's quite effective defensively, battling for pucks along the boards and excelling on the forecheck. That's not all he brings to the table; his offensive instincts are top-notch, due in no small part to his excellent vision, though he can force plays at times.

I'm looking forward to seeing whether his strength and never-quit motor get him off to a hot start with Michigan State.

9. Keaton Verhoeff - D, University of North Dakota (2026 NHL Draft-Eligible)

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Keaton Verhoeff has got size to spare, and as a 17-year-old defenseman in the NCAA, going up against more experienced players, he'll need it. Fortunately, size isn't his only asset. He's also got the skating necessary to keep up with the fast-moving game. 

Verhoeff, who won't turn 18 until shortly before the 2026 Draft, is moving from the Victoria Royals of the WHL to the University of North Dakota this fall, another of the players to move after the NCAA's recent rule changes. During his rookie season in Victoria, he netted 45 points in 63 games. That's not bad for a player who is known primarily for his defensive shutdown play.

The signs of offensive ability we see most from Verhoeff, supported by his skating, are his hands and his shot. Both are good omens for those offensive abilities translating to the NCAA, but a foundation of assertiveness and confidence will make those skills go much further.

8. Roger McQueen - C, Providence College (Anaheim Ducks)

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Providence, Rhode Island, is a long way from Disneyland and Saskatoon.

Roger McQueen will head there this season, leaving behind the Brandon Wheat Kings and an injury-plagued draft season to try his hand at college hockey. (Google Providence College's mascot while you're here. I can't suffer through seeing that alone.)

McQueen's numerous strengths include a nonstop motor, excellent offensive instincts and superb passing skills that allow him to stymie opponents and easily find teammates.

At Providence College, McQueen will reunite with former Wheat Kings teammate Quinn Mantei, as well as Hudson Malinoski, with whom he played on the Saskatoon Blazers U18 AAA team during the 2021-22 season.

I've always thought that the WHL was the major-junior league most like college hockey in terms of play style, but the gaps have closed as the game has become faster and more dynamic overall. Still, it will be interesting to see whether the WHL players have an easier time adjusting or vice versa.

7. Ryker Lee - RW, Michigan State University (Nashville Predators)

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Ryker Lee is headed to Michigan State to join Cayden Lindstrom and goalie Trey Augustine (a near addition to this list) after one season with the Madison Capitols of the USHL.

Last season and before it in his time at Shattuck St. Mary's, Lee proved time and time again that he's got what it takes to make opponents cry with his playmaking skills. His passing and handling skills are phenomenal, and his hockey sense allows him to cut through opponents' defense like butter.

Moving to the NCAA now rather than taking another season in the USHL is Lee betting on himself, and unlike some of the weirder parlays you see hockey fans making, his bet is going to pay off. The challenges he will face at Michigan State will sharpen parts of his game that need to be sharpened—his stiff skating potentially being one of them—to allow him to grow into the player the Predators saw him becoming when they selected him at the draft.

6. Michael Hage - C, University of Michigan (Montreal Canadiens)

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Michael Hage is such a dynamic forward, and while he finished his first NCAA season with just over a point per game (34 in 33), I'm hoping to see him make a bigger leap this season. He's had time to adjust to the difference in the USHL and the NCAA, and hopefully, this season, we'll see his offensive instincts shine. 

Hage, a product of the USHL powerhouse Chicago Steel, has high-end vision and passing skills to spare. He's at his best when he's in playmaking mode, attacking on the rush and seeking out weaknesses in his opponents' defense.

That said, he's also effective down low, supporting his teammates and jumping into puck battles. I'd love to see him refine his details more this season, particularly selecting plays better in the moment, and retain the improved defensive awareness we started to see last year.

He's got a high ceiling offensively; now we see if he can live up to that ceiling.

5. Jackson Smith - D, Penn State (Columbus Blue Jackets)

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As you may have seen in our 2025 Draft Coverage, we feel pretty strongly that Jackson Smith has the potential to be an incredibly special player.

Smith seems to think so, too, because he's taking a chance and putting himself in a new environment as a way to ensure he grows as a player. As a defenseman who thrives in all areas of the game, it would've been easy for Smith to stay in the WHL, probably see a significant scoring increase, and garner praise.

Smith knows that, despite thriving, he still needs to improve in his game. First on that list is puck management. If he doesn't improve his puck management in the NCAA, he'll get eaten alive. This is not to say he wouldn't continue to struggle with that area of his game in the WHL, but the difference is that Smith knows the WHL. He knows his opponents and he knows how to play against them to utilize his strengths and mask his flaws.

A new environment and style of play expose those; the Blue Jackets are going to love how this change sharpens his game.

4. Cole Hutson - D, Boston University (Washington Capitals)

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Cole, or the better Hutson, as we like to call him (this is a joke, Habs fans, don't come after me), is headed back to Boston University for his second season on the Terriers.

I swing wildly back and forth on whether watching Cole play is as stressful for me as watching Lane play, but one thing I don't waver on is the fact that Cole is a phenomenal talent who is going to make an excellent NHLer.

Hutson makes something happen every time he steps on the ice. He can be thrilling and frustrating in equal measure, but he's constantly driving play when he's out there. He sometimes picks the complicated plays when he should pick the simple ones; when you're such a dynamic and creative playmaker, you often have to learn to simplify your game when the simple choice is the better one. (Lane had—has?—this problem too.)

I would like to see his defensive skills develop more consistently; they're there, and they're good when he uses them. But he needs to use them.

3. Cole Eiserman - LW, Boston University (New York Islanders)

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Cole Eiserman fills me with stress, which is, of course, why I choose to watch every game he plays in that I can get my hands on. It's the life of a prospect writer.

Eiserman is one of those players where you can see what he is now, and you can see precisely what sort of player he's capable of becoming—but somehow you can't fully visualize the in-between. We're in the in-between right now.

It's part of why I despaired when he was drafted by the New York Islanders. They don't have a great track record of developing players of his style—high-scoring forwards with excellent shots, such as Oliver Wahlstrom and Kieffer Bellows (more Wahlstrom).

Still, from the start, Eiserman has felt more like a sure thing for me than either of those players, and I'm hoping that we see further evidence of that this year. A 25-goal freshman season is nothing to sneeze at, but along with the goal-scoring this season, I would love to see Eiserman improve the details of his game, including getting better at play selection rather than just shooting anything and everything.

2. James Hagens - C, Boston College (Boston Bruins)

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James Hagens went seventh overall in this year's draft, rather than first as many of us were predicting a year ago.

While the top two picks of the draft shook out exactly as they should, I've got a feeling that down the road, the Bruins are going to look like absolute geniuses for selecting Hagens at seventh. For that to happen, however, Hagens needs to ensure he's laying down a good foundation during his time in college hockey.

He's off to a great start, having finished his first NCAA season as a point-per-game player with 37 in 37. We didn't see the goal scoring we were expecting from Hagens, but that didn't surprise me for two reasons. One: he played on a line with and often deferred to notable goal-hound Ryan Leonard. And two: his intelligence and passing skills make him an excellent playmaker. But his playmaking wasn't at the level we'd come to expect.

For that reason, outside of choosing to shoot the puck more, there are two key things I want to see from Hagens this season: use those high-end playmaking skills rather than deferring to a support role, and improve his puck protection skills.

1. Gavin McKenna - LW, Penn State (2026 NHL-Draft-Eligible)

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Let's be honest—it's all eyes on McKenna this season.

Everyone will be watching him not only to witness this year's current first overall choice in action, but to see how he adjusts to leaping from major-junior hockey in the WHL to college hockey with Penn State. Leaving a team and a league where you're certain to dominate—in no small part because you have for the last two seasons—in your draft year to go to a league with older, more experienced opponents and an unknown play style is a bold move. 

It's also the right one. McKenna is taking a chance on himself and I have zero qualms with believing it is going to pay off in spades. Going to Penn State, where he'll play with other former CHLers such as Jackson Smith and Luke Misa (who very nearly made this list), was an interesting decision, but also one that will pay off.

There's not another player like McKenna on the Penn State roster; he'll have room to shine and he'll elevate his teammates in the process.