Two Incoming Wolverines Selected in the First Round of NHL Draft

Two future Michigan hockey players were selected in the first round of the 2022 NHL draft and here’s a breakdown of the future Wolverines. 

Get excited Michigan hockey fans The NHL draft has arrived and two of our incoming Wolverines have been drafted in the first round.

Frank Nazar and Rutger McGroarty will be joining the Michigan Hockey team this upcoming fall and are sure to be fan favorites on team 101. Let’s learn a little about them!

Frank Nazar

A Michigan native, Nazar was drafted at 13th overall by the Chicago Blackhawks. In 80 games with the US National Development Program on the U18 team, Nazar totaled 105 points (43G, 62A).

Nazar is a natural goal scorer and has great strength at creating plays with scoring opportunities. He will have huge shoes to step in for with the absence of Kent Johnson, Brendan Brisson, and Matty Beniers from the team.

Frank Nazar is going to be a huge impact player for Michigan hockey next year.

Rutger McGroarty 

Growing up in Lincoln, Nebraska, McGroarty is the first-ever Nebraska-born player to be selected in the first round of the NHL draft. He was selected directly after teammate Frank Nazar, and went 14th overall to the Winnipeg Jets.

Many expected McGroarty to go much later in the first round, but he is a well-rounded and extremely talented player, and that talent did not go unnoticed with the Jets.

McGroarty also played with the US NTDP and in his entire time with them, he tallied 110 points (55G, 55A) in 107 games. McGroarty is a physical forward who forces turnovers all while creating goal-scoring opportunities. He isn’t afraid to take a shot on the net, but also will give his teammates a perfect setup to score.

Both Nazar and McGroarty are going to be standouts on this Michigan Hockey team for the next few years and Michigan hockey fans should be excited (I know I am!)

The draft continues with day two on July 8th, and will be broadcasted at 11 am EST on NHL Network and ESPN+.