At this point in the season, some college hockey coaches will tell you that they don’t necessarily look at freshmen as first-season players any longer.
Those players have had nearly five months to adjust to the pace of the NCAA game, as well as to their academic obligations, and that experience makes a difference as the better players separate from their peers.
In this year’s crop, there’s no Macklin Celebrini or Adam Fantilli, freshman winners of the previous two Hobey Baker Awards given to college hockey’s best player, but there are numerous first-year players who are making an impact.
Here are a dozen of them (in alphabetical order).
Sacha Boisvert, North Dakota
In his last game, the 18-year-old scored twice in a 6-1 win against Minnesota-Duluth on Saturday.
A physical center, he has 23 points (12 goals, 11 assists) in 30 games this season.
He was chosen by the Chicago Blackhawks with the No. 18 pick in the 2024 NHL Draft.
Austin Burnevik, St. Cloud State
In his previous game, the 20-year-old recorded a goal and an assist in a 4-2 win against Colorado College on Saturday.
The right wing is St. Cloud State's leading scorer with 25 points (13 goals, 12 assists) in 29 games.
Selected by the Anaheim Ducks in the sixth round (No. 182) of the 2024 draft, Burnevik was a member of the United States team that won the 2025 World Junior Championship.
Michael Hage, Michigan
The 18-year-old center is second on Michigan in scoring this season with 32 points (13 goals, 19 assists) in 29 games.
He was a first team United States Hockey League All-Star last season, when he had a team-leading 75 points (33 goals, 42 assists) in 54 games with Chicago and was fourth in the league in scoring.
Hage was chosen by the Montreal Canadiens with the No. 21 pick in the 2024 draft.
James Hagens, Boston College
The 18-year-old center is No. 2 among North American skaters on NHL Central Scouting's midterm rankings of eligible players for the 2025 NHL Draft, and is projected to be a high first-round selection.
A top-line player with for the U.S. at the World Junior Championships in January, he has 32 points (nine goals, 23 assists) in 31 games for Boston College this season.
Last season, he led USA Hockey’s National Team Development Program U-18 team with 102 points (39 goals, 63 assists) in 58 games.
Logan Hensler, Wisconsin
The 18-year-old is a mobile defenseman who is projected to be a first-round pick in the 2025 draft.
He has 12 points (two goals, 10 assists) in 29 games this season.
Trevor Hoskin, Niagara
A center who earned Canadian Junior Hockey League MVP honors with Cobourg of the Ontario Junior Hockey League last season as the league's leading scorer (100 points; 42 goals, 58 assists in 52 games), Hoskin is Niagara's top scorer this season with 37 points (12 goals, 25 assists) in 32 games, including 22 points (seven goals, 15 assists) in his past 13 games.
The 20-year-old was taken by the Calgary Flames in the fourth round (No. 106) of the 2024 draft.
Cole Hutson, Boston University
An offensive defenseman in the mold of his older brother, Canadiens rookie Lane Hutson, he was named to the All-Tournament team at the World Junior Championship in January, where he played for the gold-medal-winning U.S. team.
The younger Hutson scored the game-winning goal and added an assist in a 3-1 win at Northeastern on Saturday and is second on BU in scoring with 33 points (10 goals, 23 assists) in 31 games.
The 18-year-old was selected by the Washington Capitals in the second round (No. 43) of the 2024 draft.
Brian Nicholas, Brown
Nicholas leads his team in scoring with 25 points (11 goals, 14 assists) in 26 games.
The 19-year-old center is eligible for the 2025 NHL Draft.
Cullen Potter, Arizona State
The 18-year-old is the second-youngest player in college hockey. A dynamic skater, he is projected to be an early-round pick in the 2025 draft.
After scoring twice in a 4-3 overtime loss to Western Michigan on Saturday, he has 19 points (11 goals, eight assists) in 30 games.
His mother, Jenny Potter, was a highly decorated player who helped lead the U.S. to the first gold medal awarded for Olympic women’s hockey at the 1998 Nagano Olympics.
Teddy Stiga, Boston College
The 18-year-old scored the breakaway goal in overtime that clinched the gold medal for the United States at the World Junior Championship on Jan. 5.
The forward is fourth on BC in scoring with 27 points (11 goals, 16 assists) in 31 games.
Stiga was selected by the Nashville Predators in the second round (No. 55) of the 2024 draft.
Hampton Slukynsky, Western Michigan
In his last game, the 19-year-old goalie made 33 saves in a 4-3 overtime win at Arizona State on Saturday.
He is 8-4-1 with a 1.67 goals-against average, .939 save percentage and one shutout this season.
He was chosen by the Los Angeles Kings in the fourth round (No. 118) of the 2023 NHL Draft.
Mikhail Yegorov, Boston University
The 18-year-old has made a splash since taking over as BU's starting goalie last month after playing the first half of the season for Omaha of the USHL.
Yegorov stopped 43 of 44 shots to help power BU to a 4-1 victory against BC in the Beanpot championship game Feb. 10.
Born in St. Petersburg, Russia, he is 5-4-1 with a 1.97 GAA, .930 save percentage and one shutout in 10 NCAA games this season.
Yegorov was selected by the New Jersey Devils in the second round (No. 49) of the 2024 draft.
