NCAA Notebook: Top 2027 NHL Draft prospect DuPont among players to watch

As good as NCAA hockey was a season ago, it's expected to be even better this season.

The number of high-end players and the caliber of play never has been higher thanks to the addition of former Canadian Hockey League players after a change in NCAA rules that granted CHL players college eligibility starting last season.

The 2026-27 season started last week and will finish with the NCAA Frozen Four championship game at Capital One Arena in Washington on April 10.

A record 326 NHL draft picks are expected to play college hockey this season, including 30 first-round selections, according to College Hockey, Inc. That’s an increase from 258 NHL picks and 18 first-rounders last season.

"No question. When you add that many (good) players to the player pool it changes everything," said University of  Maine coach Ben Barr.

Providence College coach Nate Leaman agreed: "NCAA hockey's never been better."

Here are 10 of the top players to watch this season.

Landon DuPont, D, University of Michigan

The dynamic 17-year-old freshman has replaced Gavin McKenna as the highest-profile NHL prospect playing NCAA hockey.

DuPont (5-foot-11, 192 pounds) is the favorite to be the No. 1 pick of the 2027 NHL Draft, one year after McKenna was selected by the Toronto Maple Leafs with the No. 1 pick of the 2026 NHL Draft after his freshman season at Penn State.

Dupont tied for fourth among Western Hockey League defensemen last season with 73 points (18 goals, 55 assists) in 63 games for the Everett, and his 23 points (five goals, 18 assists) in 23 WHL playoff games tied for fourth among all players to help Everett win the league championship. He had six points (two goals, four assists) in four games to help Everett reach the championship game at the 2026 Memorial Cup; he had had two assists in Everett's 6-2 loss to Kitchener.

He had two assists in a 7-2 win against Bowling Green in his NCAA debut Oct. 2.

His father, Micki DuPont, was drafted by the Calgary Flames in the ninth round (No. 270) in the 2000 NHL Draft.

Michael Hage, F, University of Michigan

A play-making center, the 20-year-old began his junior season with seven points (three goals, four assists) in Michigan's season-opening sweep of Bowling Green on Oct. 2-3.

Last season he led NCAA players with 39 assists and was tied for third with 52 points in 39 games. He also helped Canada win the bronze medal at the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship with a tournament-high 15 points (two goals, 13 assists) in seven games.

Hage (6-1, 187) was selected by the Montreal Canadiens in the first round (No. 21) in the 2024 NHL Draft.

Johnny Hicks, G, Denver University

At 5-foot-10, Hicks doesn’t fit the prototype for NHL goalie prospects, but that didn’t hold him back last season, when he led Denver to the NCAA championship as a freshman and was named Most Outstanding Player in the Frozen Four

Hicks was 16-0-1 with a 1.19 goals-against average, .957 save percentage and three shutouts in 21 games. That includes 29 saves in Denver’s 2-1 win against Wisconsin in the NCAA championship game.

The 21-year-old began this season with 14 saves in a season-opening 6-2 victory at Alaska-Anchorage on Oct. 2.

Hicks has not been drafted but attended development camp with the Edmonton Oilers during the offseason.

Dean Letourneau, F, Boston College

After he had three assists in 36 games as a freshman in 2024-25, Letourneau emerged as a top college player as a sophomore last season with 39 points (22 goals, 17 assists), including 10 power-play goals, in 36 games.

Letourneau (6-7, 210) had a hat trick in an exhibition game against the USA Hockey National Team Development Program Under-18 team on Oct. 3. Boston College opens the regular season against Alaska on Friday.

The 20-year-old center was selected by the Boston Bruins in the first round (No. 25) in the 2024 draft.

Caleb Malhotra, F, Boston University

The 18-year-old freshman center is expected to be a key player as BU aims to return to the NCAA Tournament after missing out last season.

Malhotra (6-2, 182) started his season well, scoring an empty-net goal to cap a 4-0 win against Alaska on Oct. 3.

Last season with Brantford of the Ontario Hockey League, Malhotra had 84 points (29 goals, 55 assists) in 67 games, and then led Brantford during the OHL playoffs 26 points (13 goals, 13 assists) in 15 games.

Malhotra was selected by the Vancouver Canucks with the No. 3 pick of the 2026 draft. His father, Manny Malhotra, is in his first season as Canucks coach.

Max Plante, F, University of Minnesota Duluth

With another standout season, the 20-year-old has a chance to be the first repeat winner of the Hobey Baker Award, which is given to the best player in NCAA hockey.

Plante (5-11, 170) tied for second among NCAA players last season with 25 goals and tied for third with 52 points in 40 games.

In Duluth's first two games this season, the junior lined up at right wing on a line with his brothers, Zam, a 22-year-old junior, at center and Victor, an 18-year-old freshman, at left wing.

Max Plante was selected by the Detroit Red Wings in the second round (No. 47) in the 2024 draft. In addition to his two hockey-playing brothers, each of whom has been selected in the NHL draft, their father, Derek Plante, played eight NHL seasons and won the Stanley Cup with the Dallas Stars in 1999. He currently is a pro scout for the Ottawa Senators.

Joshua Ravensbergen, G, Michigan State University

One of nine first-round picks on the Michigan State roster this season, Ravensbergen is expected to be the No. 1 goalie after Red Wings prospect Trey Augustine, the winner of the Mike Richter Award last season as college hockey’s best goalie, turned pro.

The 19-year-old freshman had 16 saves on 17 shots in 29:49 of ice time in a 5-2 win against Boston College in an exhibition game Oct. 2. The Spartans open the regular season at home against Northern Michigan on Friday.

Last season Ravensbergen (6-5, 190) was 32-13-0 with a 2.51 GAA, .919 save percentage and four shutouts in 46 games with Prince George of the WHL.

He was selected by the San Jose Sharks in the first round (No. 30) of the 2025 NHL Draft.

Cole Reschny, F, University of North Dakota

The 19-year-old sophomore center became the youngest captain in North Dakota history when he was given that role Sept. 15.

Reschny (5-11, 183) had 35 points (six goals, 29 assists) in 36 games last season and was named to the National Collegiate Hockey Conference All-Rookie Team. He also had five points (four goals, one assist) in seven games to help Canada win the bronze medal at the 2026 WJC.

He had 10 shots on goal and won 64.5 percent of his face-offs during two exhibition games. North Dakota opens the regular season at Bemidji State on Friday.

The Calgary Flames selected Reschny in the first round (No. 18) in the 2025 draft.

Hayden Stavroff, F, Dartmouth College

The 22-year-old junior forward is a pure scorer who shoots the puck like a pro.

"His shot comes off his stick the same way (Alex Ovechkin's) did," said Dartmouth coach Reid Cashman, a former Washington Capitals assistant coach.

Stavroff led NCAA players last season with 29 goals and his 48 points were tied for eighth in 35 games. He was named the Ivy League player of the year and was a top-10 finalist for the Hobey Baker Award. Dartmouth opens its season against Alaska on Oct. 31.

Undrafted, Stavroff attended development camp with the Los Angeles Kings during the offseason.

Ethan Wyttenbach, F, Quinnipiac University

Wyttenbach led NCAA players with 59 points (25 goals, 34 assists) in 40 games last season and won the Tim Taylor Award as the men's NCAA rookie of the year from the Hockey Commissioners Association.

The 19-year-old sophomore began this season with two goals and an assist in a 10-2 win against New Hampshire on Oct. 2.

The Flames selected Wyttenbach in the fifth round (No. 144) in the 2025 draft.