Frozen Four teams benefitted from arrival of CHL players

LAS VEGAS -- The changing face of NCAA hockey will be on full display during the 2026 NCAA Frozen Four.

In November, 2024, the NCAA passed a rule allowing players with previous experience in the three leagues that make up the Canadian Hockey League -- the Western Hockey League, Ontario Hockey League and Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League -- to make the jump to the college ranks.

Now, a handful of them will be on the ice at T-Mobile Arena on Thursday for the national semifinals, North Dakota against Wisconsin (5 p.m. ET, ESPN2, ESPN+) followed by Denver against Michigan (8:30 p.m. ET; ESPN2, ESPN+).

The winners will play in the NCAA championship game Saturday (5:30 p.m. ET; ESPN, ESPN+).

The coaches here didn't expect the impact of that rule change to be felt already, but here we are.

"As a coaching body, we probably thought it'd take two to three years to get, you know, the McKenna's of the world to come down," Denver coach David Carle said. "The fact that they're coming down to much fanfare and success. … It's a net benefit."

McKenna is Gavin McKenna, who made the jump from Medicine Hat of the WHL to Penn State last offseason. The expected No. 1 pick in the 2026 NHL Draft was looked upon as an outlier, but many of those who made the move from the CHL to the NCAA have made huge impacts for the teams still playing.

North Dakota freshman defenseman Keaton Verhoeff was No. 2 in NHL Central Scouting's midterm ranking of North American skaters for the 2026 draft, behind McKenna. He committed to North Dakota after playing with Victoria in the WHL.

"It kind of popped up right around Christmas time, and it was always in the back of guys' heads," Verhoeff said. "After the season, looking into it and learning more by going through the recruiting process, it was a lot. I sped up the recruiting process more than some other people. Within a week [of my visit], I was committed."

Verhoeff (6-foot-3, 208 pounds) had 20 points (six goals, 14 assists) in 35 games. He experienced firsthand the difference in physicality from junior hockey, where players mostly range in age from 16-20, to playing consistently against players who could be in their early to mid 20's.

"To kind of have this jump to play against harder, more physically mature guys was super huge for my development," Verhoeff said. "It's the biggest jump in my game."

Verhoeff's teammate, forward Cole Reschny, chose the NCAA route after playing the previous three seasons with Victoria. The 19-year-old had 35 points (six goals, 29 assists) in 35 games as a freshman. The Calgary Flames selected him in the first round (No. 18) in the 2025 NHL Draft.

"I have loved every minute of playing at North Dakota," Reschny (5-11, 183) said. "The biggest difference I have noticed is the size and speed of every player. You have to be so much more responsible with the puck in this league, and every player is just so much bigger and stronger than in the CHL. It creates so much more competitiveness each night."

How much has the rule change impacted this Frozen Four? All four freshman starting goalies took the CHL-to-NCAA path.

North Dakota's Jan Spunar spent two seasons (2022-24) with Portland of the WHL; Denver's Johnny Hicks played in Victoria last season; Wisconsin goalie Daniel Hauser spent the previous five seasons in the WHL with Winnipeg, Wenatchee and Calgary; and Michigan's Jack Ivankovic played two seasons with Mississauga/Brampton in the OHL.

Ivankovic, who was selected by the Nashville Predators in the second round (No. 58) of the 2025 draft, opted for college hockey to continue his development physically and mentally. He noted the players' maturity and the experience of playing in a regional hockey hotbed where sold-out rinks and big games are regular occurrences.

"I loved my two years of junior," he said. "I was thinking of [joining the NCAA] as the next step. This is where I want to be right now, and whenever I do turn pro, I want to play in the NHL for a long time. Coming to Michigan is going to be the best for me."

Carle expressed satisfaction with how the process has gone and added that the influx of talent has the potential to make a difference in the long run.

"You open the door to 60 new teams' worth of players that are recruitable," he said. "It's only going to make our sport better and hopefully attract more media, fans and attention. The long-term goal would be to attract more programs."