The Frozen Four is set as regionals wrapped up this weekend. Four teams — Michigan, Minnesota State, Denver and Minnesota — will fight for the NCAA hockey national title.
With that, college hockey careers for seniors and graduate students are coming to an end and NHL teams are signing drafted players and undrafted free agents.
Since the NCAA regular season ended at the beginning of March, a number of players have inked deals with NHL clubs and as more and more teams have been eliminated from conference and NCAA tournaments, more players are taking the next step in their hockey career.
Jake Sanderson and Nick Abruzzese, two of the biggest names in college hockey, signed their contracts with their respective NHL clubs. Sanderson inked his deal with the Senators, who drafted him No. 5 overall in 2020. Abruzzese signed with the Maple Leafs, who took him in the fourth round of the 2019 draft.
Here is a look at all the college players that have signed NHL entry-level contracts.
MORE: NCAA Frozen Four 2022: Dates, time, TV channel, players to watch
College hockey free agent signing tracker
A number of athletes are headed to the professional level. There have been multiple college hockey players who are signing deals with NHL, AHL, ECHL or SPHL teams.
Most are players who finished up their last season of eligibility in the NCAA, looking to continue their hockey career elsewhere.
However, some are top prospects who are electing to waive the rest of their NCAA eligibility and sign with the NHL club that drafted them. First and second-round draft picks that have signed an entry-level deal are Sanderson, Drew Helleson and Vladislav Firstov.
| PLAYER | POSITION | SCHOOL | NHL TEAM |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sam Hentges | Forward | St. Cloud State | Minnesota Wild |
| Ronnie Attard | Defenseman | Western Michigan | Philadelphia Flyers |
| Andre Lee | Forward | UMass Lowell | Los Angeles Kings |
| David Hrenak | Goalie | St. Cloud State | Los Angeles Kings |
| Ryan Fanti | Goalie | Minnesota Duluth | Edmonton Oilers |
| Clay Stevenson | Goalie | Dartmouth | Washington Capitals |
| Colin Swoyer | Defenseman | Michigan Tech | Pittsburgh Penguins |
| Matt Kessel | Defenseman | UMass | St. Louis Blues |
| Brian Halonen | Forward | Michigan Tech | New Jersey Devils |
| Josh Lupina | Forward | UMass | Anaheim Ducks |
| Noah Cates | Forward | Minnesota Duluth | Philadelphia Flyers |
| Jake Sanderson | Defenseman | North Dakota | Ottawa Senators |
| Nick Abruzzese | Forward | Harvard | Toronto Maple Leafs |
| Jaxson Stauber | Goalie | Providence | Chicago Blackhawks |
| Jordan Harris | Defenseman | Northeastern | Montreal Canadiens |
| Jack McBain | Forward | Boston College | Arizona Coyotes |
| Jachym Kondelik | Forward | UConn | Nashville Predators |
| Taylor Ward | Forward | Omaha | Los Angeles Kings |
| Vladislav Firstov | Forward | UConn | Minnesota Wild |
| Brandon Scanlin | Defenseman | Omaha | New York Rangers |
| Isaiah Saville | Goalie | Omaha | Vegas Golden Knights |
| Declan Carlile | Defenseman | Merrimack | Tampa Bay Lightning |
| Zach Uens | Defenseman | Merrimack | Florida Panthers |
| Drew Helleson | Defenseman | Boston College | Anaheim Ducks |
| Alex Vlasic | Defenseman | Boston University | Chicago Blackhawks |
| Marc McLaughlin | Forward | Boston College | Boston Bruins |
| Michael Callahan | Defenseman | Providence | Boston Bruins |
| Corey Andonovski | Forward | Princeton | Pittsburgh Penguins |
| Dennis Cesana | Defenseman | Michigan State | Florida Panthers |