In 2022, six players were picked by NHL teams straight from New England prep hockey.
St. Mark's defenseman Michael Fisher (Westboro, Mass.) was the first to go, taken in the third round by the San Jose Sharks. Ben MacDonald (Weston, Mass.) was picked shortly after, as the Seattle Kraken nabbed the Nobles forward late in the third round.
St. Sebastian's forward Michael Callow (Boston, Mass.) was taken by the Anaheim Ducks in the fifth round. The Colorado Avalanche took Milton Academy defenseman Chris Romaine (Boston, Mass.) late in the sixth round. The Columbus Blue Jackets took a chance on Belmont Hill forward James Fisher (Burlington, Mass.) in the seventh. The Detroit Red Wings did the same for Avon Old Farms forward Brennan Ali as the draft wrapped up.
Since then, only three players in two years have been plucked from prep. Dexter Southfield defenseman Sean Keohane (Milton, Mass.) and Taft goalie Rudy Guimond were snatched up in the sixth round of the 2023 NHL Draft. Ben Merrill (Hingham, Mass.) followed in their footsteps in 2024, being taken in the sixth round, too.
So, what's the deal with prep hockey and NHL Draft prospects?
There's been a big change in the last few years: More prospects are opting to play their first year of NHL Draft eligibility in junior hockey. This often leaves late-blooming players as the remaining NHL Draft prospects in prep.
This year's NHL Draft will get underway this Friday, beginning with the first round. Rounds 2-7 will be on Saturday, which is when prep hockey fans should keep their eyes open.
I made a ranking of the top 10 NHL Draft prospects from prep hockey shortly after the season ended. From talking to NHL scouts since then, it's clear that only three of those 10 have a legitimate chance of being picked.
AWARDS:Â Handing out the boys and girls prep awards from this past winter
We published our ranking of New Englanders on Monday and will have storylines to watch for the draft later in the week.
For now, let's look at the chances these three prep players have of being selected on Saturday.
1. Everett Baldwin
St. George’s, 1/17/2007, D, right shot, 6-0/185
Hometown: East Providence, R.I.
NCAA: ProvidenceÂ
Probability: I'd be stunned if he wasn't taken.
It's hard to pin any player projected to be picked after Round 2 as a legitimate guarantee, but Baldwin is close. The reason why the St. George's defender will likely be the first prep player picked before the sixth round since 2022 is because of his skating. His skating isn't just elite for prep — it's elite among other NHL Draft prospects. His first step is explosive, he's shifty and his stride is effortless. He also never seems to get tired. What helped his stock was his showing at the All-American Prospects Game in January, as well as some time spent with the U.S. National Team Development Program's U18 team and the USHL's Cedar Rapids RoughRiders.
Two things hurt his stock. The first is that he wasn't as productive in prep as he could've been — 10 goals and 20 points in 22 games doesn't jump off the page for an offensive defenseman hoping to be drafted out of prep. The second is that there are questions about his hockey IQ. I had a college coach once mention to me that he backchecked like a forward, given all of his offensive rushes. Both of those can be countered with this: He was almost always the best player on the ice (by far) in prep.
So, where does that leave him? It's hard to say.
McKeen's Hockey had him going at No. 61 in its June 19 mock draft and Elite Prospects has him at No. 70. In the other direction, NHL Central Scouting ranked him No. 118 among North American Skaters and in The Athletic's mock draft on June 17, he went 147th.
The best-case scenario projection is that he's Seattle Kraken defenseman Brandon Montour. The worst-case scenario is that the critiques of his hockey IQ end up being true and he's just an incredible skater. Could he end up being former Boston Bruins defenseman and current Buffalo Sabre Connor Clifton, which would be somewhere after Montour, but still a terrific way to pan out? Maybe.
From talking to scouts, the popular thought on Baldwin is that he could go anywhere in the middle rounds, especially Rounds 4-6. It wouldn't be a shock that if he is picked in the third or fourth round, it's by a team with multiple picks. Teams with multiple picks in the third round are the New York Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Detroit Red Wings, and Montreal Canadiens, while the Chicago Blackhawks, Buffalo Sabres, Anaheim Ducks, New Jersey Devils, San Jose Sharks, Florida Panthers and Canadiens have multiple picks in the fourth round.
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It's impossible to project the middle rounds, but the Canadiens have five picks between the third and fourth rounds. I wouldn't be shocked if he was one of those five picks.
2. Connor Davis
Salisbury, 11/9/2006, F, right shot, 6-1/175
Hometown: Vaudreuil, Quebec
NCAA: NortheasternÂ
Probability:Â There's a chance.
Davis had a strong year as a senior at Salisbury this past season, scoring 21 goals and finishing with 44 points in 31 games. He has the production part down. He also has pretty good size at 6-foot-1. The issue he runs into is one past prep draft prospects have faced: Does he have one high-end quality that can be projected to higher levels? I'm not so sure. If there's one thing, however, it's his compete, which is why he projects as a solid, bottom-six forward in the NHL or AHL someday.
One comparison might be a former Salisbury standout in Lucas Mercuri, who was picked by the Carolina Hurricanes straight out of Salisbury in 2020. The sixth-round pick steadily improved and became a big-impact player at UMass by his senior year. He recently signed with the AHL's Syracuse Crunch.
3. Grayden Robertson-Palmer
Phillips Andover, 8/29/2007, F, left shot, 5-11/190
Hometown: St. Andrews, New Brunswick
NCAA: DartmouthÂ
Probability: There's a chance.
Robertson-Palmer had a fantastic final year at Andover, scoring 16 goals and finishing with 39 points in 30 games. He has a pro shot and has phenomenal speed. Skating isn't his issue. One thing that hurts him is his size, as he's just shy of the vaunted 6-foot mark. Another question one scout raised was about his creativity with the puck and finding ways to get around defenders that isn't just speeding past them. Robertson-Palmer feels like a player that NHL teams will want to see have success at higher levels.
READ MORE: Our final top 10 New Englanders to be picked in the 2025 NHL Draft
Still, Robertson-Palmer is strong and can play a physical game. It wouldn't shock me at all if he's someday a reliable, bottom-six center somewhere in professional hockey.
