There have been fewer NHL Draft prospects picked out of prep in recent seasons.
In 2023, it was Dexter Southfield defenseman Sean Keohane (Milton, Mass.) and Taft goalie Rudy Guimond. St. Sebastian's forward Ben Merrill (Hingham, Mass.) was the only one picked last year. All three were sixth-round picks.
This is largely due to NHL Draft-eligible talent foregoing junior and senior seasons in prep for junior hockey. Prep has gotten younger because of that. Last season, Kimball Union senior forward and UNH commit Jack Sadowski totaled 87 points. If that were to happen 10 years ago, he'd likely be at least a mid-round pick. Last June, however, he went undrafted.
That doesn't mean there aren't prospects that NHL teams are watching in prep. There are.
I would label only one of the 10 players in this story as more than likely to be drafted. Still, all it takes is one team to like what they see and pull the trigger come June.
Let's dive in.
