Each week, this column will highlight news for NHL prospects and 2019 draft-eligible players, with a close eye on U.S. men's college hockey, and share some thoughts from recent prospect viewings as we look ahead to June's 2019 NHL draft.
I spent the past two weekends in college hockey rinks getting a closer look at two of the very best prospects in college hockey -- Cale Makar of UMass and Quinn Hughes of Michigan. They are headlining what many are calling the "Year of the Defensemen" in the collegiate ranks.
You're going to be hearing a lot about both unique, offensive-minded blueliners in the coming weeks, especially as their college seasons end. Makar was selected fourth overall in 2017 by the Colorado Avalanche, and Hughes went seventh to the Vancouver Canucks last June. The NCAA tournament hopes of Hughes and the Wolverines are hanging by a thread, while Makar and the Minutemen are locks for the tournament. Both players are expected to sign after their seasons conclude.
Here's a deeper look at Makar, Hughes and other prospects all over the hockey world.
NCAA rankings | Prospect notes | Game to watch
Scouting notebook
Cale Makar, D, UMass (Hockey East)
Makar is the best player I've seen in college hockey this season and may be one of the best players not currently in the NHL. His maturation over the past year has been remarkable. I saw him against Providence just over a week ago. UMass suffered a rare loss, but Makar was dominant on the ice. He is an elite skater and has high-end puck skills, and he has built strength and improved his defensive game. And I love his anticipation and ability to jump passes and turn them into rushes the other way. He does this regularly.
Over this past weekend, Makar played a starring role in helping the Minutemen win their first Hockey East title in program history. He had two goals and an assist in a 4-2 comeback win over Merrimack to earn the hardware. He now has 40 points in 33 games this season, and I have a hard time seeing anyone else winning the Hobey Baker.
Quinn Hughes, D, Michigan (Big Ten)
I got to see one of the more entertaining college games I've been to in some time on Friday night. Unfortunately for Hughes and his Wolverines, they were on the wrong end of it. Hughes, however, is having a very strong post-draft season, and Canucks fans are already counting down the days until his NCAA season ends.
I thought he was excellent Friday. His ability to deceive oncoming forecheckers or defenders with his feet is relatively unique to him. That ability to escape pressure is arguably his best skill because it's tied to his best attribute: his skating. Hughes had an assist in the Friday game I was at, but created another tally with one of his patented rushes up ice where he mesmerizes the opposing defenders and allows things to open up for his teammates. While Hughes can be prone to the big mistake that leads to rushes against, he makes far more positive plays and is such a weapon with his style that you wouldn't want him to get much more conservative.
Jack Dugan, LW, Providence (Hockey East)
I got two looks at Providence and star freshman Jack Dugan last week, including a thrilling 3-2 win over UMass. After being drafted by the Vegas Golden Knights out of prep school, Dugan spent an extra year in the USHL before coming to the Friars. His development over these last two years has really taken off. Dugan has good puck skills, and he maximizes his abilities with a solid on-ice work ethic and some grit to fight for pucks. He gets up the ice quickly too. Dugan has 31 points in 34 games and is one of only four freshmen in the country averaging 0.9 points per game or better.
Ruslan Iskhakov, RW, UConn (Hockey East)
I was particularly looking forward to seeing this New York Islanders second-rounder from 2018 in his first season in North America. Until he committed to UConn toward the end of last season, few knew that he had interest in playing college hockey at all. Now the undersized dynamo is finding his way in the tough Hockey East conference, despite a very up-and-down season.
In the game I saw against Providence, I thought Iskhakov tried to do too much on his own and had very little success in the numerous times he tried to skate through the entire opposing team. Still, he has a lot of skill and creativity. He just needs to figure out when there are better, easier plays for him. The 18-year-old has 12 points over his past eight games.
Will Lockwood, RW, Michigan (Big Ten)
Will Lockwood is an under-the-radar prospect for the Canucks who dealt with injuries in each of the past two seasons. Now healthy, the junior winger is having a solid campaign, showcasing his mix of higher-end puck skills and a hard-nosed approach to the game that allows him to play bigger than his size. Lockwood has speed and tenacity, and there's a decent chance he signs with Vancouver after Michigan's season ends. I think he's still a few years away from making an NHL impact, but I see him as the kind of player who can eventually come in and make a difference in a depth role. He is second to Hughes with 30 points in 34 games this season for the Wolverines.
NCAA check-in
Both Providence and UMass have some players who look like locks to be selected in the draft during their second year of eligibility. Minutemen defenseman Marc Del Gaizo and right winger Tyce Thompson of the Friars stand out. Thompson, the younger brother of Buffalo Sabres forward Tage Thompson, has a good shot, solid hockey sense and superb vision. Del Gaizo is a solid two-way defenseman who will only get better as he gets stronger. Playing alongside Makar helps, but Del Gaizo is holding his own by putting up big numbers. I think both will be selected in the second half of the draft.
Quick hitters
The Dallas Stars signed undrafted free agent Tye Felhaber to a three-year entry-level deal. Felhaber has shined in his age-20 season with the red-hot Ottawa 67s. The older players who have big seasons in major junior are often taken with a grain of salt in the scouting community, but more teams are taking chances on guys who at least have a track record of producing.
The Tampa Bay Lightning have had remarkable success with signing undrafted free agents over the years (Tyler Johnson and Yanni Gourde). And they just nabbed another one this week, signing Jimmy Huntington out of the Rimouski Oceanic of the QMJHL. Huntington is second on the team behind 2020 top prospect Alexis Lafreniere and has seen his point total increase by nearly 30 points from the previous season.
New York Rangers goalie prospect Igor Shestyorkin was given the reins of SKA St. Petersburg's starting job for the Gagarin Cup playoffs in the KHL, and despite another stellar regular season, he has struggled early. His postseason took a bizarre turn Friday when he was given a game misconduct for tripping Spartak's Kaspars Daugavins, resulting in that player's hard crash into the boards and needing to be stretchered off the ice. SKA is in a 2-1 series hole and KHL.ru reports Shestyorkin is likely to face suspension. The Rangers pick is widely expected to be making the jump to North America after this season.
Nick Suzuki, acquired by the Montreal Canadiens in the Max Pacioretty trade this summer, is on quite a scoring tear for the Guelph Storm in the OHL. The former Golden Knights first-rounder has put up an astonishing 23 points over his current eight-game scoring streak. The 19-year-old has 86 points in 53 games, including 41 in 23 since being traded to Guelph.
Philadelphia Flyers first-rounder Joel Farabee has really taken off in the second half of the season. The first-rounder has 20 points in his past 17 games and has become Boston University's leading scorer with 31 points in 33 games. And he's been doing this kind of stuff late in the season.
Defenseman Libor Hajek made his NHL debut with the Rangers last week. He was one of the key prospects in the return for Ryan McDonagh and J.T. Miller in last season's blockbuster deal. Hajek played 17:35 against the Canadiens and registered two shots on goal. I saw Hajek just last weekend play against the Providence Bruins in the AHL, and he still has plenty of developing to do before he can be a regular. But the reviews coming out of that first NHL game were largely positive. Henrik Lundqvist told reporters that he loved Hajek's game and complimented his poise, smarts and skating.
Hamilton Bulldogs forward and 2019 NHL draft-eligible Arthur Kaliyev hit the 50-goal mark over the weekend. He joins an awfully exclusive group of players. According to EliteProspects.com
Consensus 2019 top prospect Jack Hughes became the U.S. National Team Development Program's all-time assists leader over the weekend. He passed up Toronto Maple Leafs prospect Jeremy Bracco. Others nearby on the all-time leaderboard include Clayton Keller, Auston Matthews and Patrick Kane.
Bowen Byram, the top defenseman for the 2019 draft, continues to produce at an alarming rate for the Vancouver Giants. He has 11 points over his past five games, which included the overtime game-winning goal Sunday against Kamloops. Byram has compiled 66 points over 62 games this season and boasts a 1.06 points-per-game rate, which ties him for second among U18 defensemen in the WHL over the past 20 years. His stock only continues to rise.
Prospect game of the week
Princeton at Brown
Friday, 7 p.m. ET
ESPN+
In the first round of the ECAC playoffs, Princeton will be looking to defend its conference postseason crown. The Tigers' roster boasts three unrestricted free agents who have received a lot of attention: forwards Max Veronneau and Ryan Kuffner, and defenseman Josh Teves. Should Princeton lose this series to Brown, all three would be available to sign as early as Sunday.