Men's Ice Hockey | 10/26/2026 2:20:00 PM
Fifty-five players from the United States Hockey League (USHL) made NHL Central Scouting's Preliminary Players to Watch List for the 2027 NHL Draft, giving the League more players on the list per team than any development league in the world.
NHL Central Scouting's list identifies players based on the following criteria:
- A Rating -- Indicates a 1st round candidate
- B Rating -- Indicates a 2nd/3rd round candidate
- C Rating -- Indicates a 4th/5th round candidate
- W Rating -- Indicates a 6th/7th round candidate
- LV (Limited Viewing) -- Injured players who have not had sufficient viewings to be categorized.
In addition to the 55 active players, the list also included NCAA alumni such as Notre Dame's A-rated Sammy Nelson, who played the last two seasons with the NTDP before making the jump.
Green Bay Gamblers forward Gunnar Conboy (Minnesota), Cedar Rapids RoughRiders defenseman Matas Janulis (Northeastern) and Des Moines Buccaneers rookie goalie Jon Kavcic joined six members of the NTDP, including Nolan Fitzhenry (North Dakota), Diego Gutierrez (Notre Dame), and Finn Sears (Boston College), among nine USHL players to earn B-ratings.
| Rating |
Position |
Player Name |
USHL Team |
NCAA Commitment/Team |
Notes |
| A |
C |
Sammy Nelson |
NTDP |
Notre Dame |
Alumni |
| B |
D |
Matas Janulis |
CR |
Northeastern |
|
| B |
G |
Jon Kavcic |
DSM |
|
|
| B |
C |
Gunnar Conboy |
GB |
Minnesota |
|
| B |
C |
Nolan Fitzhenry |
NTDP |
North Dakota |
|
| B |
D |
Ben Geiger |
NTDP |
Minnesota |
|
| B |
D |
Diego Gutierrez |
NTDP |
Notre Dame |
|
| B |
C |
Sam Pandolfo |
NTDP |
Boston University |
|
| B |
C |
Freddie Schneider |
NTDP |
Minnesota |
|
| B |
LW |
Finn Sears |
NTDP |
Boston College |
|
| C |
D |
Becker Wenkus |
DSM |
|
|
| C |
LW |
Riley Zupfer |
DSM |
Notre Dame |
|
| C |
C |
Max Cullen |
FGO |
Minnesota Duluth |
|
| C |
C |
Maxim Simko |
MKG |
|
|
| C |
G |
Nate Chizik |
NTDP |
Notre Dame |
|
| C |
RW |
Braden Horton |
NTDP |
Penn State |
|
| C |
C |
Rocco Pelosi |
NTDP |
Boston College |
|
| C |
D |
Jake Prunty |
NTDP |
UMass |
|
| C |
D |
Carson Scott |
NTDP |
North Dakota |
|
| C |
G |
Eli Winters |
NTDP |
Wisconsin |
|
| C |
LW |
Adam Israilov |
OMA |
|
|
| C |
LW |
Daniil Butin |
SC |
|
|
| C |
C |
Brock Stevenson |
SC |
UMass |
|
| C |
C |
Pavel Martinu |
SF |
New Hampshire |
|
| C |
C |
Ryland Rooney |
SF |
Wisconsin |
|
| C |
C |
Jackson Smith |
TC |
|
|
| C |
LW |
Noa Nsonsa Kitala |
WAT |
|
|
| C |
LW |
Alexander Svitov |
YNG |
|
|
| LV |
C |
Hudson Salvador |
NTDP |
Harvard |
|
| W |
C |
Joe Erickson |
CHI |
|
|
| W |
RW |
David Bosco |
CR |
Harvard |
|
| W |
C |
Carter Ernst |
CR |
St. Thomas |
|
| W |
LW |
Lauri Kouhia |
FGO |
|
|
| W |
G |
Tomass Rutulis |
FGO |
Princeton |
|
| W |
C |
Oliver McKinney |
GB |
Michigan |
|
| W |
D |
Henry Steele |
LIN |
|
|
| W |
G |
Cash Cruitt |
MAD |
Quinnipiac |
|
| W |
D |
Nolen Geerdes |
MAD |
Western Michigan |
|
| W |
RW |
Strider Carhart |
MKG |
|
|
| W |
LW |
Gerry Dicunzolo |
NTDP |
Penn State |
|
| W |
D |
Brody Berard |
YNG |
Northeastern |
|
| W |
RW |
Jackson Hendricks |
NTDP |
|
|
| W |
D |
Easton Johnson |
NTDP |
Michigan |
|
| W |
D |
Charlie Mineman |
NTDP |
|
|
| W |
LW |
Caine Bickel |
OMA |
New Hampshire |
|
| W |
D |
Thaddeus McMahon |
OMA |
Quinnipiac |
|
| W |
C |
Juho Kuisma |
SC |
|
|
| W |
C |
Gavin Clark |
SF |
Merrimack |
|
| W |
G |
Ilja Nikitins |
SF |
Merrimack |
|
| W |
LW |
Vojtech Svancar |
SF |
|
|
| W |
LW |
Cooper Ernewein |
TC |
|
|
| W |
LW |
Aleksandr Sokolov |
TC |
Brown |
|
| W |
G |
Sebastian Charvat |
WAT |
|
|
| W |
C |
Logan Anderson |
YNG |
|
|
| W |
C |
Stephen Cover |
YNG |
Providence |
|
| W |
C |
Nikita Koltsov |
YNG |
|
|
| W |
LW |
Kade Stengrim |
YNG |
St. Thomas |
Alumni |
| A |
RW |
Jamie Glance |
GB |
Boston University |
Affiliate |
| C |
G |
Fabian Salasca Nääs |
FGO |
|
Affiliate |
| C |
LW |
Gavin Sattler |
MAD |
|
Affiliate |
| C |
C |
Cole Swanson |
SF |
Western Michigan |
Affiliate |
| C |
G |
Jakub Husar |
WAT |
North Dakota |
Affiliate |
| W |
G |
Graham Karlsen |
CHI |
|
Affiliate |
| W |
C |
Ethan Gingeleskie |
CR |
Yale |
Affiliate |
| W |
D |
Marshall Paul |
CR |
UConn |
Affiliate |
| W |
LW |
Rennick Hendrickson |
DBQ |
Minnesota Duluth |
Affiliate |
| W |
RW |
Max Aronson |
LIN |
|
Affiliate |
| W |
D |
Jannes Schreiber |
MAD |
|
Affiliate |
| W |
D |
Rylan Hanson |
MKG |
Wisconsin |
Affiliate |
| W |
C |
Jakub Simoncic |
MKG |
|
Affiliate |
| W |
G |
Alexander Woller |
OMA |
|
Affiliate |
| W |
G |
Nicko Zakk Havel |
TC |
|
Affiliate |
| W |
C |
Channing Goodwin |
WAT |
St. Thomas |
Affiliate |
About the USHL
The United States Hockey League (USHL) and its 16 teams are committed to being the world's leading junior hockey league. This season, 45% of NCAA Division I men's hockey players and 25% of NHL players have USHL experience. The USHL has developed more than 315 direct NHL Draft picks since 2020, and nine of the last 10 Hobey Baker Award winners, including Macklin Celebrini (Chicago Steel).
Elevated through the recently announced Declaration of Excellence with the NHL and USA Hockey, the league's player-first approach, including a 2:1 practice-to-game ratio and a schedule with 90% of games played on weekends, provides its players with the optimal environment for athletic and personal growth, creating pathways for the next generation of stars like Jack Hughes (NTDP), Jeremy Swayman (Sioux Falls Stampede), and Johnny Gaudreau (Dubuque Fighting Saints).