Champions who are choosing to stay
The headline is that rising junior forward Michael Hage is returning. He will be one of the best college hockey players next season and will be Michigan's top-line center. Hage is elite and should score 50+ points again. Before NIL, he would’ve signed with the Montreal Canadiens and have to toil in the AHL. Instead, at Michigan next year, he will be playing for a similar amount of money but fewer games (less chances of injury).
Rising senior forward Jayden Perron will be another guy who should score 50+ points, which is if he does not sign with the Carolina Hurricanes, who like the Canadiens and Hage, do not have a spot on their roster. Unlike Hage, Perron doesn't have prototypical NHL size and only has one year of high-end production in the NCAA, so look for him to spurn the AHL too and skate again at Yost.
Another star returning is forward Will Horcoff. Technically, a rising junior, he has played only 1.5 years of college hockey. What’s keeping him from joining the Pittsburgh Penguins is his play in the second half of last season. Unlike the first half when he led the nation in goals, he was ineffective and seemed lost. Another year will be important for his development.
The defense is returning senior Ben Robertson and injured Henry Mews, who was approaching his vast potential when he was injured by Notre Dame. The defense will be deep, returning junior Dakoda Rheume-Mullen and sophomores Asher Barnett and Drew Schock.
The goaltender position will be just as talented with rising sophomore Jack Ivankovic, who will play every minute he is healthy. Interestingly, Stephen Peck is not hitting the transfer portal. Given his excellent play for Ivankovic when Notre Dame injured him too, his staying would mean Michigan has the best tandem in the NCAA.
But wait! There are top level newbies coming in, too!
This is when the riches get embarrassing, given how excellent the returning roster is. Let’s add two first round picks in last year’s NHL draft in forward Jack Nesbitt, the 12th overall pick by the Philadelphia Flyers and defenseman Cameron Reid, the 21st overall pick by the Nashville Predators. Nesbitt is 6’ 4” whose defensive abilities on the forecheck generate scoring chances. Reid’s explosive skating allows him to retrieve pucks then turn defense to offense by shaking forechecking pressure.
Add forward Kieran Dervin, a 2025 3rd round pick by the Vancouver Canucks, switching his commitment to Michigan from Penn State. Another forward who committed to Michigan is JP Hurlbert who is expected to be a mid-first round pick for this June’s NHL Draft.
These four commits will soften the blow should Perron, Horcoff, and Robertson decide to leave over the summer. Regardless of who comes and goes, Michigan hockey will be atop the polls next year and the leader of the Big Ten.
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