Is Boston College Men's Hockey Adding Star Finnish Forward Midseason?

The potential addition to the 2025-26 Eagles' roster is a projected first-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft.

Oscar Hemming (@oscar.hemming) via Instagram.

In the past 24 hours, the buzz around Boston College men’s hockey’s mid-year addition of Oscar Hemming, a 2008-born forward out of Vaasa, Finland — who is a projected first-round pick in the 2026 National Hockey League (NHL) Draft — has continued to grow in magnitude.

While the program has not officially released a statement confirming the report, and Fleming has not posted anything on social media about joining the program, either, Boston College Eagles On SI has confirmed that a student named Oscar Hemming has been added to the BC student directory. 

Oscar Hemming is in the Boston College student database (screen shot from @ChrisVogel26). pic.twitter.com/yiC3FoD4il

— Graham Dietz (@graham_dietz) December 19, 2025

Hemming is also listed on the Boston College Eagles’ roster on Elite Prospects, a reputable hockey-player database.

The Eagles (10-5-1, 7-3-0 Hockey East), ranked No. 12 in the latest USCHO NCAA Division I Men’s Poll, would gain a massive addition to their offensive ranks in Hemming, who has not played competitive hockey this season due to a dispute with the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) over the termination of his contract with Kiekko-Espoo, his former team in Finland.

The 6-foot-4, left-shot forward was expected to play for the Kitchener Rangers this year after he was drafted by the organization with the No. 56 overall pick in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) Import Draft.

But after he signed with Kitchener in August, Kiekko-Espoo blocked Hemming from transferring to the Canadien hockey ranks due to IIHF regulations.

According to Josh Brown of the Waterloo Region Record, Hemming would have faced a three-year ban from international play if he decided to suit up in either the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) or the OHL in 2025.

As a result, Hemming decided not to play, but reports continued to surface of a potential transfer to the NCAA.

Because NCAA teams are exempt from IIHF transfer agreements, Hemming would be free to start his collegiate hockey career and ultimately make his 2025-26 season debut for the Eagles after the mid-year transfer.

In August, prior to his disputes with the IIHF, Hemming played for Finland at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup, registering four goals and two assists across five games. 

In 2024-25, Hemming suited up for both the Kiekko-Espoo U-20 and U-18 squads, generating a combined 73 points (37 goals, 36 assists), including nine playoff points (3 goals, 6 assists) on the U-20 roster.

A week ago, Cory Pronman of The Athletic listed Hemming as the No. 31-best prospect for the upcoming 2026 NHL Draft, which is set to take place from June 26-27.

“Hemming’s on-ice tools are highly intriguing,” said Pronman in his draft profile of Hemming. “He’s a big winger with the speed and skill for the higher levels. He can make difficult plays with pace and has a good shot from range.”

Pronman added: “Hemming has yet to play this season due to an ongoing contract dispute with his team in Finland as he attempts to start his career in North America.”

BC has already been down two forwards in seniors Andre Gasseau and Oskar Jellvik due to injury this season despite amassing eight wins in their last nine games heading into winter break, when the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championships will commence.

With Hemming potentially on the roster heading into the new year — BC head coach Greg Brown is also hoping to return Gasseau and Jellvik sometime in January, according to a statement the made in his post-game press conference following the Eagles’ 3-1 takedown of UMass Lowell on Dec. 6 — the Eagles are shaping up to be a dark-horse contender for the 2026 NCAA men’s hockey postseason.

An official report on Hemming from the BC men's hockey program may come out soon.