College hockey’s talent pool keeps deepening, and this year’s freshman class is a big reason why — many of the nation’s top players this season will be first-years. Part of that growth comes from an increasingly international game: of the 20 players on this list, only four grew up in New England, and only five...
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College hockey’s talent pool keeps deepening, and this year’s freshman class is a big reason why — many of the nation’s top players this season will be first-years.
Part of that growth comes from an increasingly international game: of the 20 players on this list, only four grew up in New England, and only five were born in the United States.
Even so, Hockey East — along with Harvard and Quinnipiac — is loaded with college hockey’s best rookies.
Here’s who to keep an eye on.
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Niklas Aaram-Olsen
Boston University, 4/19/2008, LW, left shot, 6-0/187 Hometown: Oslo, Norway NHL: Vancouver Canucks
In June, Aaram-Olsen was selected 41st by the Canucks — the third-highest draft slot ever for a Norwegian-born player. He spent last season in Sweden with Örebro HK, recording 20 goals and 20 assists in 40 games for the U20 squad. Aaram-Olsen is a goal-scorer with good feet and is poised to fill a Cole Eiserman-like role for the Terriers.
Samu Alalauri
UMass, 5/31/2008, D, right shot, 6-2/220 Hometown: Lahti, Finland NHL: Chicago Blackhawks
Alalauri, who was nabbed by the Blackhawks 66th overall in June, played last season in his native Finland for the Lahti Pelicans. He tallied 25 points in 40 games at the U20 level. Alalauri should be able to impose his size on Hockey East opponents.
Curran proved he could produce in the WHL, recording 41 points in 31 games for the Edmonton Oil Kings before undergoing season-ending surgery in January. Now fully healthy ahead of his freshman season with the Minutemen, Curran thinks the game at a high level and loves to dish pucks to open shooters. Once he settles in, he should produce.
Jan Golicic
Quinnipiac, 6/30/2006, D, left shot, 6-5/201 Hometown: Jesenice, Slovenia NHL: Tampa Bay Lightning
A fourth-round pick of the Lightning in 2024, Golicic split time between the Gatineau Olympiques and the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada in the QMJHL last season, posting a combined 44 points in 57 games. A true stay-at-home blueliner, Golicic will have his hands full shutting down the best the ECAC has to offer.
After tearing up prep hockey at Rivers for two seasons, Graf moved to the USHL last season, suiting up for the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders, where he posted 23 goals and 32 assists in 52 games. His point-per-game USHL season earned him a fourth-round selection by the Predators in June’s draft. Graf’s a well-rounded player with a nose for making the right play.
Boston College, 4/29/2007, G, catches left, 6-1/165 Hometown: Bratislava, Slovakia NHL: Boston Bruins
Henriquez is lightning in a bottle, which is rare for a goalie. He posted a USHL-best .921 save percentage for the Green Bay Gamblers last season. There’s plenty of competition for the Eagles’ crease, with now-sophomore Louka Cloutier assuming most of the net last season for Boston College, but Henriquez will compete for starts.
Quinnipiac, 6/18/2006, G, catches left, 6-4/209 Hometown: Basel, Switzerland NHL: San Jose Sharks
Kirsch backstopped the Kitcher Rangers to the Memorial Cup crown this past season, posting a .952 save percentage and a shutout in four Memorial Cup games. The Bobcats goalie room is wide-open, and Kirsch could be poised to snatch the No. 1 job. If that’s how it shakes out, Kirsch has a high ceiling given his size and athleticism.
Carter Klippenstein
Providence, 11/25/2006, C, left shot, 6-3/185 Hometown: Lethbridge, Alberta NHL: Minnesota Wild
Klippenstein was a fourth-round pick of the Wild in 2025 and joins the Friars after 164 WHL games with the Brandon Wheat Kings. This past season, he recorded 28 points in 38 games, although his season was cut short due to shoulder surgery. He needs to bulk up, but he brings a big frame to the reigning Hockey East regular-season champions.
Alex Kostov
Quinnipiac, 6/3/2006, RW, right shot, 6-4/207 Hometown: Mississauga, Ontario NHL: Los Angeles Kings
In four OHL seasons between the Soo Greyhounds and the Flint Firebirds, Kostov improved each year, capping off his junior career with 55 points in 47 games for the Firebirds last season. His boots aren’t anything special, but Kostov makes up for it with his ability to read the ice.
Caleb Malhotra
Boston University, 6/2/2008, C, left shot, 6-2/185 Hometown: Toronto, Ontario NHL: Vancouver Canucks
Malhotra broke out last season in the OHL for the Brantford Bulldogs, tallying 84 points in 67 games after recording just 26 points in 44 BCHL games for the Chilliwack Chiefs the season prior. Malhotra was selected third by the Canucks in June and will no doubt slot into the Terriers’ top-six and play in all situations from the get-go. He should put up points as a freshman in Hockey East, while providing value as a defender.
Boston College, 7/5/2008, RW, right shot, 6-3/203 Hometown: Norwell, Mass. NHL: Seattle Kraken
The former St. Sebastian’s standout captained the U.S. National Team Development Program’s U-18 team last season, posting 46 points in 62 games. Mutryn heard his name called early (38th overall) on Day 2 of June’s draft. He’s a proven leader, physical grinder with a good feel for making the right play. If he stays in school long enough, he’ll eventually be captaining the Eagles.
Teddy Mutryn
Boston College, 2/16/2007, C, right shot, 6-1/209 Hometown: Norwell, Mass. NHL: San Jose Sharks
Mutryn, Casey’s older brother, spent last season with the Moncton Wildcats in the QMJHL, tallying 31 goals and 37 assists in 54 games. A power forward with a strong shot, Mutryn isn’t afraid to bring the physicality. There’s upside in the older Mutryn once he gets comfortable with the higher pace of play.
Melvin Novotny
UMass, 4/3/2007, LW, left shot, 6-2/198 Hometown: Taby, Sweden NHL: Buffalo Sabres
Novotny made the move stateside this past season to play in the USHL for the Muskegon Lumberjacks, where he finished with 57 points in 48 regular-season games. A seventh-round pick of the Sabres in 2025, Novotny is a high-IQ playmaker.
Alex Pelletier
Boston College, 6/1/2005, LW, left shot, 5-10/190 Hometown: Granby, Conn.
Pelletier led the USHL in scoring last season with 85 points (48 goals and 37 assists) in 59 games for the Lincoln Stars. A former prep standout for Avon Old Farms, Pelletier will be 21 years old at the start of his freshman year.
Picked 42nd, Trejbal was the first netminder selected in June’s draft after a strong season for the USHL’s Youngstown Phantoms, posting a .916 save percentage and three shutouts in 42 appearances. He’ll be battling senior Jackson Irving (Newbury, Mass.) for playing time, but the caliber of the previous second-round Czech goaltender the Minutemen had — Michael Hrabal — speaks for itself.
Xavier Villeneuve
Boston University, 9/29/2007, D, left shot, 5-11/163 Hometown: Laval, Quebec NHL: Chicago Blackhawks
Villeneuve had an up-and-down draft season with the QMJHL’s Blainville-Boisbriand Armada due to a lingering hip injury, recording 38 points in just 37 regular-season games. He’s an extremely gifted offensive defenseman and will likely fill the role that Lane Hutson and Cole Hutson played for the Terriers. There will be growing pains for Villeneuve, whose subpar defending and lack of size will be exposed early. There is an elite player in there, though.
Boston University, 7/27/2007, D, left shot, 6-5/223 Hometown: Beijing, China NHL: San Jose Sharks
Wang was selected 33rd overall by the Sharks in June, becoming the highest-ever drafted Chinese-born player. In 57 OHL games between the Oshawa Generals and Niagara IceDogs last season, Wang posted six goals and 26 points. Out of anyone on this list, Wang is the biggest project, but his size and mobility can’t be ignored.
Blake Zielinski
Providence, 3/5/2008, C, right shot, 6-0/187 Hometown: Berlin, N.J. NHL: Los Angeles Kings
Zielinski recorded 55 points in 53 games for the USHL’s Des Moines Buccaneers in his draft season and was selected 80th by the Kings in June. Despite not boasting great size, Zielinski loves to muck it up in front of the net or in the corners, which fits right in with how Friars head coach Nate Leaman likes to play.
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