Tuesday, April 8, 2014

95 Among Final Draft Rankings

Players and recruits representing more than 60% of Division I schools featured by NHL Central Scouting.

Thatcher Demko, who leads BC into the Frozen Four, also leads all North American goaltenders in the final rankings for the 2014 NHL Draft.
Thatcher Demko, who leads BC into the Frozen Four, also leads all North American goaltenders in the final rankings for the 2014 NHL Draft. (Photo: Rich Gagnon)

Ninety-five players and recruits representing 37 Division I programs are among the players featured in the final rankings for the 2014 NHL Draft from NHL Central Scouting, released Tuesday. Both of those figures represent increases from last year’s final rankings, which included 88 NCAA players representing 32 programs.

Sortable Rankings of NCAA Players/Recruits | Full Rankings on NHL.com

A pair of Boston College commits – Alex Tuch and Sonny Larkin – are the top NCAA players listed at 12 and 16, respectively, in the rankings of North American skaters. Eagles freshman goaltender Thatcher Demko is the top-ranked North American goaltender.

North Dakota leads all schools with seven recruits listed in the rankings. Boston College is one of three schools – with Boston University and Minnesota – to boast six players or recruits in the rankings.

In all, 37 schools from five conferences have at least one player featured, representing more than 60% of all Division I programs.

Demko is one of four current NCAA players highlighted in the rankings. His BC teammate, freshman defenseman Scott Savage, is another (No. 194 North American skater). St. Lawrence freshman defenseman Gavin Bayreuther ranks 48th among North American skaters, while Michigan freshman Zach Nagelvoort is the 22nd-ranked North American goaltender.

College hockey is also represented on the International Skaters list, with Minnesota recruit Leon Bristed of Linkoping (Sweden) ranked 22nd.

At least 60 NCAA or NCAA-bound players have been selected in each year of the NHL Draft since the current seven-round format was introduced in 2005. This year’s draft will take place June 27-28 at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, which is also the site of this week’s NCAA Frozen Four.