Recently I prepared an article detailing this spring’s top free agents coming from college hockey (and Europe). Attached is a link to that article. In addition to those discussed in that article (five in all, including forward & top dog Tyson Gross of St. Cloud State), add to that the players profiled below.
Besides Gross, a name on seemingly everone’s lips is 22-year-old center Hank Cleaves of Dartmouth College. Cleaves has 35 points (14G 21A) in 30 games this season. Perhaps more importantly, he is a 6’4″ pivot who is very mobile. Scouts slot him in as a soon-to-be bottom 6 player.
A player lacking in size but no less productive than Cleaves is 5’10” winger Dylan Hyrckowian of Northeastern University. So far this season, Hyrckowian has 37 points (15G 22A) in 29 games for the Huskies, and has been a point-per-game player throughout his three-year tenure at the school. Although lack of size has been a concern in the eyes of others, he plays with such a high motor that teams looking for a pure scorer may very well find a diamond in the rough with Hyrckowian.
Hyrkowian’s teammate at Northeastern University, Lawton Zacher, has been nothing short of spectacular between the pipes for the Huskies. Five of his 15 victories have come via the shutout (including two against top 10 opponents Denver & Boston College), and he sports a .931 save percentage. He has good size at 6’2″, and the athleticism to match. Lawton’s efforts this year have made him a semifinalist for The Mike Richter Award (college hockey’s best goaltender).
In my last article I discussed big right-winger Joshua Ernisse of the University of Michigan as a free agent drawing plenty of interest. However, he is not the only free agent Wolverine on the NHL radar, as 24-year center TJ Hughes joins him there. Hughes has totaled 48 points (18G 30A) in 35 games this season on his way to a Hobey Baker Award nomination. His intensity and quickness, coupled with his maturity level, really could assist teams down the stretch in a depth role.