This was the first full season played since the CHL ruling, which dropped in November 2024 and allowed prospects to play in the CHL and still be eligible for NCAA Division 1 hockey.
One thing hasn't changed: the USHL Phase 1 and Phase 2 Drafts are still huge deals.
The Phase 1 draft was for 2010-born players. In all, 25 New Englanders were taken, with the earliest coming when Cushing forward Owen Frick (Holden, Mass.) was taken in the fourth round by the Omaha Lancers.
Phase 2 was for everyone else, with players from the 2007-09 birth years taken. Sixteen New Englanders were picked, and Lawrence Academy defenseman Matas Janulis (Lincoln, Mass.) was the first local snagged, going in the first round to the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders.
As always, there were snubs in Phase 1. And in Phase 2, there were some great value picks later in the draft.
But a huge storyline to watch: How did teams balance players they think are CHL-bound?
Let's dive in.
Phase 1
1. Mount St. Charles star forward Thomas Boisvert went 200th overall (14th round) to the Green Bay Gamblers. It's not that he wasn't worthy of being picked earlier — far from it. But the Trois-Rivières, Quebec, native is thought to be headed for the QMJHL, which is why he's a candidate to go No. 1 in that league's June draft. So the Gamblers took a late-round flier on Boisvert just in case things don't work out north of the border.
Some locals fell pretty far in the draft. Could that be teams not evaluating them as high as I do? Maybe. But it is likely also due to their fears that they'll pick the QMJHL a year from now. I was surprised to see Phillips Andover forward Michael Barrett not picked until the 10th round. St. Sebastian's defenseman Brendan Martin (Dedham, Mass.) wasn't taken until the 11th round, and St. George's defenseman Jake Donatelli (Barrington, R.I.) went in the 13th. I was stunned it took until the 15th round for North Jersey Avalanche forward Joey St. Laurent (Greenland, N.H.) to be selected.
Even someone like Tyler Poti (Sandwich, Mass.), who is far from a finished product but a 6-foot-3 defenseman with potential, didn't go until the 15th round.
Again, maybe that's teams genuinely not thinking highly enough of those players to take them in the top half of the draft. But I'm assuming a lot of it has to do with fearing they might go the QMJHL route.
2. In terms of snubs, I can't think of a bigger one than Cam Daigle (East Greenwich, R.I.). The St. George's forward put up 33 points in 25 games in prep this winter, and while a team can question his size (5-foot-7), his skating, skill and ability to drive the middle of the ice more than make up for it. That one was baffling. I was also shocked that Winchendon forward Drew Short (Lunenberg, Mass.) wasn't taken. He proved to be a strong, play-driving center on a stacked Winchendon team this winter. On defense, I was surprised that BK Selects defenseman Mason Wohlers (Somers, Conn.) wasn't taken. He's physical, which is a perfect trait for the USHL, and can chip in offensively quite a bit.
If I'm a QMJHL team, I'm jumping all over these guys.
BEHIND THE NUMBERS:Â How many players drafted out of prep make the NHL, AHL?Â
3. I hate to pour cold water on this, but there isn't one local taken who I think should jump to the USHL next season. Does that mean that if one does, they will automatically fail? Of course not. But development is a numbers game, and in my opinion, the 25 players taken on Monday have a better shot at panning out by going back to their prep or 16U teams than by jumping into the USHL as a 16-year-old.
4. Four more locals went in Phase 1 this year than last year, which hits at a developing take: While the '09s have the advantage in terms of high-end players, the '10s are a deeper birth year.
5. I didn't have Frick as my first local off the board, but it's not crazy. His playstyle — a high-tempo physical pest who can generate offense — sounds like a future perfect fit for the USHL.
6. Rivers forward Carter Felt (Natick, Mass.) makes a whole lot of sense for Cedar Rapids down the road. He's a scoring power forward, which sounds exactly like the kind of player that hard-nosed head coach Mark Carlson will love. That should be a perfect fit.
7. I didn't have Dexter defenseman Ryan Porter (Hanover, Mass.) on my initial Phase 1 defenders to watch list. He shoved that in my face by being taken in the seventh round by the Sioux Falls Stampede. He played limited minutes for Dexter this winter, but should be one of the top breakout defensemen in the region next season for a Dexter team that graduated a whole bunch of its roster.
8. As I mentioned earlier, the players who went late are all big gets for those teams. But another sleeper is Milton Academy forward T.J. Petropoulos (Brockton, Mass.), who was picked by Cedar Rapids in the 11th round. His motor, compete and overall skill could be a great fit for the RoughRiders down the road. Also, the Dubuque Fighting Saints getting Mount St. Charles defenseman Mason Stonacek (Stamford, Conn.) could be another big steal.
9. Rivers goalie Will Torres (Framingham, Mass.) was the only goalie taken, going in the 15th round to the Sioux City Musketeers. It shows how USHL teams would rather wait on goalies since it's often still too early to tell at 15 and 16 years old.
10. This is purely a me thing, but very cool to see Framingham (Mass.) High School's Colin Walsh be the third local taken, going in the fourth round to the Chicago Steel. I was talking about this with longtime Framingham High School hockey coach Paul Spear on Tuesday, but he's probably the best hockey player to come out of Framingham High since former Dexter Southfield assistant Will Ortiz. And me, of course.
READ MORE:Â 9 takeaways from college hockey recruiting over the last month
Phase 2
1. Last year, 32 New Englanders were taken in Phase 2 compared to only 16 in this draft. That's a steep drop-off, but I don't think it's an indictment on the talent here. Nineteen locals were picked in each of the 2023 and 2024 Phase 2 Drafts. Some of it could be teams weary of taking '06-'09 players, knowing they're going to the QMJHL. But it was likely just a down year for local high school seniors and juniors being picked in Phase 2.
2. Janulis is an '08, but was a junior at Lawrence Academy this winter. As of now, he's not slated to return to Lawrence Academy, and with Cedar Rapids picking him 11th in the first round, (this next part is just speculation) it sure looks like the RoughRiders want him for next season. He's the kind of stable, two-way defender that typically does well in Cedar Rapids.
3. Jamie Glance getting picked in the second round (32nd pick) by the Green Bay Gamblers made me raise my eyebrows. The Stratham, N.H., native had a fantastic breakout season with the U.S. National Team Development Program's U18 team, scoring 23 goals and posting 56 points in 62 games. He's committed to Boston University, and the Saint John Sea Dogs own his QMJHL rights after they took him in the sixth round in 2024. He's someone to keep an eye on this spring.
4. Avon Old Farms had a strong showing with five players taken. Defenseman Marshall Paul, who has gained considerable hype over the last six months, was taken by Cedar Rapids in the second round. Grover Henderson and Nico Ciardiello (Guilford, Conn.) followed in the fourth round before Jacob Jett was snagged in the fifth. Forward Daniel Peate was taken in the eighth round by Omaha. While Jett and Peate were seniors this past year, Henderson and Ciardiello were juniors, while Paul was a sophomore. It will be interesting to see what they do next.
5. I didn't watch any of Nick Evans (Malden, Mass.) with the NAHL's Corpus Christi IceRays this season, but I was always a fan of his game at Kimball Union. The '07 was taken in the fifth round by Omaha. At 6-foot-2, his steady defensive game should make him a good draft pick.
6. A great sleeper is Winchendon forward Jackson Smail (Milton, Vt.) in the seventh round to the Madison Capitols. The Vermont commit is a lethal scorer who put up 30 goals and 62 points riding shotgun with Cornell commit Charlie Puglisi this winter. If Smail chooses Madison, that's a nice get for the Capitols.
7. A bold move by the Lincoln Stars to take Choate forward Greg Najda with the fourth pick. The Yale commit is from Ontario and played a game for the OHL's Sudbury Wolves this season. This is purely speculation based on how they took him, but they must feel they can get Najda to come to them next season.
8. Dubuque getting Phillips Andover defenseman Jack O'Dell in the second round is a steal. He's slated to return to Andover for his junior year next season and be one of the top 2027 NHL Draft prospects in prep. If the Fighting Saints can get him to come to them, that's a big get, given how much of a dynamic, do-it-all threat O'Dell is.
READ MORE: 25 locals picked in Phase 1 | 16 locals picked in Phase 2
9. Cole Sabourin (Cumberland, R.I.) is a really interesting player to study. The dynamic wing was one of Mount's top 16U players in 2024-25 and probably could've gone to juniors this past season. But the UNH commit stuck around and notched 25 goals and 60 points in 48 games for Mount's 18U team. He was rewarded by getting taken in the third round by Sioux City.
10. The RoughRiders took the most locals/local connections at six. Three of those six came in the first three rounds: Janulis, Paul and Thayer forward Tommy Wilkinson (Duxbury, Mass.).
