NHL Central Scouting Sees a lot of Grade-A Talent in Colleges: Puck Drop
Penn State freshman left wing Gavin McKenna and North Dakota freshman defensemen Keaton Verhoeff highlighted the group of 27 players receiving an ‘A’ rating from NHL Central Scouting's preliminary watch list for the 2026 NHL Draft that was released on Monday.
An A rating means they’re rated to be potential first-round selections, which for them really wasn’t in doubt as the 17-year-olds could potentially go first and second overall.
"When it comes to thoughts on Gavin McKenna, 'impressive' is always part of the response," Central Scouting director Dan Marr said per NHL.com. "He's ultra-focused and prepared for the new experiences and challenges he'll face at the NCAA level. Immediately, his elite smarts and skills have stood out. He's only going to impact more as the season progresses and as he navigates fine-tuning his game."
There were eight players listed as A-level prospects who have committed to college hockey programs as part of the next two signings classes:
J.P. Hurlbert, LW, Michigan, 2026
Nikita Klepov, RW, Michigan State, 2027
Tynan Lawrence, C, Boston University, 2027
Caleb Mahlhotra, C, Boston University, 2026
Chase Reid, D, Michigan State, 2027
Brooks Rogowski, C, Michigan State, 2027
Luke Schairer, D, Boston University, 2026
Egor Shilov, C, Boston University, 2026
Among those receiving ‘B’ grades, which corresponds to second- or third-round prospects, were five players committed to Denver, two for Arizona State, Michigan State, Minnesota Duluth and Providence, and a player each for Boston College, Boston University, Harvard, Massachusetts, Miami, North Dakota, Notre Dame, Penn State and Western Michigan.
The most surprising grade may have gone to Michigan forward Adam Valentini, who rubbed some the wrong way by making a last-minute commitment switch from the OHL’s Kitchener Rangers to join the Wolverines this season. He landed a ‘W’ grade, meaning sixth- or seventh-round talent.
SEE ALSO: NHL Central Scouting's preliminary watch list
- Puck Drop: Tuesday, October 21, 2025
- Monday's Scores
- Tuesday's Games
- Did You Notice?
- On This Date in Hockey History:
- Hockey Quote of the Day
- We'll Leave You With This ...
Puck Drop: Tuesday, October 21, 2025
Games between ranked opponents are bolded. All times ET.
Monday's Scores
No Games Scheduled
Tuesday's Games
MEN
Non-Conference
Quinnipiac at Holy Cross, 7 p.m.
SEE: This Week's College Hockey Rankings
Did You Notice?
• USA Hockey announced its roster, which includes numerous college players, for the 2025 Rivalry Series against Canada, with two games in each country. The U.S. sites will be Rocket Arena in Cleveland on Nov. 6, and KeyBank Center in Buffalo on Nov. 8.
Introducing Team USA's 2025 #RivalrySeries roster, presented by @Discover 🇺🇸
— USA Hockey (@usahockey) October 20, 2025
The U.S. opens the series on Nov. 6 in Cleveland, Ohio, followed by a game on Nov. 8 in Buffalo, N.Y., and concludes the series on Dec. 10 and 13 in Edmonton.
More info and 🎟️: https://t.co/FypwMPRvJk pic.twitter.com/ikU0RpSwoJ
• BC Men's Hockey Forward Dean Letourneau Solved his Scoring Bug: What Changed?
• Former UMD defenseman Carson Soucy came off the injured reserve and the New York Rangers returned former UMass defenseman Scott Morrow back to the AHL affiliate Hartford Wolf Pack.
• By the way, this is for the women's teams and the suspensions were handed out by the WCHA : Brawl erupts at end of Minnesota-Ohio State game; suspensions issued
• Declan Farmer scored an overtime game-winning goal to lift the U.S. National Sled team to a 2-1 victory over Canada in the opening preliminary-round contest of the 2025 IPH Cup at Ostravar Arena in Czechnia.
On This Date in Hockey History:
October 21, 1897: Frenchy Lacroix, the first American-born goaltender in the NHL, and helped lead Team USA to the silver media in the 1924 Olympic Games, was born in Newton, Mass.
October 21, 1934: Hall of Fame center Brian Kilrea was born in Ottawa, Ontario.
October 21, 1967: Metropolitan Sports Center opened in Bloomington, Minn, with a 3-1 victory for the Minnesota North Stars over the Oakland Seals. The home team was credited with 53 shots and Bill Goldsworthy had the first goal. The announced attendance was 12,951.
October 21, 1972: Nassau Coliseum hosted the first-ever meeting between the New York Islanders and the Rangers, who won 2-1.
October 21, 1973: Colorado College goaltender Ryan Bach was born in Sherwood, Park, Alberta.
October 21, 1978: The U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame announced the additions of Donald Clark, Herbert Nelson and Peter Bessone.
October 21, 1978: Forrer Wisconsin center Mike Eaves announced his retirement at age 28 after suffering a head injury. As an assistant coach with the Calgary Flames he briefly came out of retirement to help the depleted lineup during the 1986 Stanley Cup playoffs.
October 21, 1998: Former Hamilton College goaltender Guy Hebert notched the first shutout for the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim with a 3-0 victory over the visiting Boston Bruins. Former Minnesota defenseman Mike Crowley had three assists.
October 21, 2003: Boston University center Ryan Greene was born in Paradise, Newfoundland and Labrador.
October 21, 2023: Former Michigan center Adam Fantilli scored his first NHL goal with the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Hockey Quote of the Day
“We're masked in shoulder pads, and you never see the feminine side of our game. People would be surprised at how feminine our team is.”Cammi Granato
We'll Leave You With This ...
Tempting fate? Toronto fans were a little on edge when Blue Jays star Vladimir Guerrero Jr. showed up for Game 7 of the American League Championship Series in an Auston Mathews Maple Leafs jersey. Considering the hockey team's history with Game 7s, "Might as well walk past a black cat and under a ladder at this point," wrote one fan on X. The Blue Jays won 4-3 to advance to the World Series agains the Los Angeles Dodgers.
DAAAAAAAAAAAA MVP!!! @BlueJays pic.twitter.com/Y2VkYsEV2e
— Toronto Maple Leafs (@MapleLeafs) October 21, 2025
Christopher Walsh is the founder and publisher of Alabama Crimson Tide On SI, which first published as BamaCentral in 2018, and is also the publisher of the Boston College, Missouri and Vanderbilt sites . He's covered the Crimson Tide since 2004 and is the author of 27 books including “100 Things Crimson Tide Fans Should Know and Do Before They Die” and “Nick Saban vs. College Football.” He's an eight-time honoree of Football Writers Association of America awards and three-time winner of the Herby Kirby Memorial Award, the Alabama Sports Writers Association’s highest writing honor for story of the year. In 2022, he was named one of the 50 Legends of the ASWA. Previous beats include the Green Bay Packers, Arizona Cardinals and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, along with Major League Baseball’s Arizona Diamondbacks. Originally from Minnesota and a graduate of the University of New Hampshire, he currently resides in Tuscaloosa.
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