Headlines

Go To MLB Trade Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

NCAA

Predators’ Jack Ivankovic Commits To University Of Michigan

at CDT | by 1 Comment

5:00 p.m.: According to an announcement from the program, Ivankovic has officially committed to the University of Michigan. The expectation is that he’ll join the team as a true freshman for the 2025-26 campaign.

1:01 p.m.: The fifth-highest netminder drafted in the 2025 NHL Draft is expected to bring his talents to the Big Ten Conference for the 2025-26 season. According to Jeff Marek of the Daily Faceoff, goaltender Jack Ivankovic is expected to commit to the University of Michigan.

Ivankovic will join the Wolverines’ roster after a few successful years with the OHL’s Brampton Steelheads. In two years with the team, Ivankovic managed a 39-17-9 record in 68 games with a .907 SV% and 2.93 GAA. Despite a strong performance in the OHL, Ivankovic’s draft stock declined slightly due to concerns about his size. He was selected by the Nashville Predators with the 58th overall pick.

The Mississauga, Ontario native has additionally had a brief international career with Team Canada. Last season, largely playing for Team Canada’s U18 team for the U18 IIHF World Junior Championships, collecting a 6-0-0 record in six games with an impressive .961 SV% and 1.05 GAA. In one tournament contest with the U20 team, Ivankovic suffered an overtime loss to Team Latvia.

It’ll be an entirely new goaltending tandem for the Wolverines during the 2025-26 campaign. The team’s starting netminder from last season, Logan Stein, has graduated, while the team’s backup, Cameron Korpi, has transferred to Union College for the 2025-26 season.

Interestingly enough, the only other netminder on Michigan’s roster is Julian Molinaro, also a Mississauga native, and a recent transfer from Northern Michigan University. There’s an expectation that Ivankovic’s commitment is for the 2026-27 season. Still, head coach Brandon Naurato may already be in contact with the Predators’ front office about Ivankovic beginning his college career sooner rather than later.

Flyers’ Porter Martone Commits To Michigan State University

at CDT | by 5 Comments

4:32 p.m.: According to a post on Martone’s Instagram, he’s indeed taking his talents to East Lansing, Michigan, for his collegiate career if he doesn’t make the Flyers’ roster.

7:08 a.m.: Winger Porter Martone, taken No. 6 overall in this year’s draft by the Flyers, could be making the jump from the CHL to the NCAA this season. He’s expected to announce his commitment to Michigan State later today, reports Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet.

That’s assuming he doesn’t sign his entry-level contract and attend training camp with Philadelphia. A few weeks ago, that sounded like a more plausible outcome without a clear path for Martone to land a roster spot without an explosive preseason performance.

Now, however, there’s likely going to be an opportunity for one of the Flyers’ young wingers to capture a spot in their top-nine out of the gate. They’re still uncertain if Tyson Foerster will be ready to start the regular season after undergoing surgery to address an infection in his elbow.

There’s still no guarantee Martone would have won that battle ahead of some older names in Philadelphia’s prospect pool, namely internal favorite Alex Bump. Even if he did, it may not have been a full-season arrangement and could have resulted in Martone returning to his junior team, the OHL’s Brampton Steelheads, after playing nine games to avoid burning the first year of his entry-level contract.

If Martone, the Flyers, or both parties are convinced his development wouldn’t benefit from another season in the OHL, an NCAA commitment is the next best option. Since Martone was drafted from one of the CHL’s sub-leagues, he is ineligible to play for the Flyers’ AHL affiliate, the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, in 2025-26 aside from a conditioning stint or after Brampton’s season ends.

Since he’s somewhat of an elder statesman of the 2025 draft class thanks to his October 2006 birthday, Martone could be in line to have a dominant freshman season with the Spartans. His 6’3″, 205-lb frame already made him one of the most physically domineering forwards in the class, and he plays a power forward game that lends itself to his size being used as an advantage.

That should help him in his transition to playing against older, more physically built-out opponents in the Big 10 and NCAA at large, but it’s not as though offensive skill isn’t still among the primary calling cards of his game. The Ontario native remains a high-end puckhandler and shooter and led Brampton in scoring last season, posting a 37-61–98 line in 57 regular-season games.

There was some speculation that Martone may link up with surefire 2026 first overall pick Gavin McKenna at Penn State after the latter’s recent commitment, but it doesn’t appear to be coming to fruition. Instead, the two left-wingers will be conference opponents, with the Spartans landing a high-end consolation prize after finishing as the runner-up in the recruitment chase for McKenna.

Minor Transactions: 7/15/25

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

It has been a busy 24 hours transactions-wise around the NHL with several restricted free agents signing before their qualifying offers expire later today.  Meanwhile, there have been some other minor signings involving free agents which we’ll run through here.

  • After spending the last four seasons in Seattle’s system on an NHL deal, defenseman Gustav Olofsson will be staying there on a different contract. The Kraken’s AHL affiliate in Coachella Valley announced that they’ve signed the blueliner to a two-year minor-league deal.  Olofsson is a veteran of 63 NHL games but saw just four games with Seattle.  Last season, the 30-year-old played in 51 games with the Firebirds, picking up three goals and 14 assists.
  • Lehigh Valley, affiliate of the Flyers, announced the signings of wingers Zayde Wisdom and Garrett Wilson to one-year deals. Wisdom was a fourth-round pick by Philadelphia back in 2020 and had 32 points in 68 games with the Phantoms last season but wasn’t tendered a qualifying offer last month.  Wilson, meanwhile, is a veteran of 84 NHL games but last played at the top level in 2019.  He had 14 goals and 14 assists in Lehigh Valley last season in 63 games.
  • After spending last season on a two-way deal with San Jose, unrestricted free agent defenseman Joey Keane is heading back to Russia as he has signed a two-year deal with Spartak Moskva, per a team release. The 26-year-old originally started in Carolina’s system but went to Spartak once his entry-level deal ended, spending two years there before coming back to North America last season.  In 2024-25, Keane had 11 points in 38 games, a stat line identical to his second season with Spartak.
  • Bruins prospect Cole Chandler has committed to Northeastern, reports the Northeastern Hockey Blog (Twitter link). The forward was a fifth-round pick last month after putting up 32 points in 64 games with QMJHL Shawinigan during the regular season while adding a dozen more in 16 playoff outings.  He’ll return to the Cataractes for the upcoming season and then move to the NCAA starting in 2026-27.

Tennessee State To Add Division I NCAA Hockey For 2026-27 Season

at CDT | by 8 Comments

The top division of NCAA hockey is gaining a new face for the first time in a few years. After beginning a feasibility study four years ago, Tennessee State University reaffirmed that it’s sponsoring a Division I men’s hockey program, which will begin play in the 2026-27 season. That was the initial plan, although they’re reverting to it now after previously attempting to launch DI play for the 2025-26 campaign.

The school began to ice a club hockey team in 2024-25 and will presumably do so again this year instead of making the jump to the top flight. Unlike recent new DI programs like Augustana and Lindenwood, there is no history of ACHA – a collegiate hockey association roughly equivalent to NCAA DIII play – representation at TSU. In this case, the program is truly being built from scratch in a brief period.

Tennessee State, located in Nashville with a total enrollment of just 8,198, will be the first historically Black college or university (HBCU) to introduce a DI hockey program, either men’s or women’s. In today’s announcement, Assistant Athletic Director Nick Guerriero stated that they’ve received a $ 250,000 grant from the NHL and NHLPA’s Industry Growth Fund, in addition to continued consultancy and support from the Predators and College Hockey, Inc.

While the club’s playing roster for its inaugural season isn’t yet secured, it does have its head coach. They tapped Duanté Abercrombie for the role in April 2024. The 28-year-old Washington, D.C. native previously worked as a development coach with the Maple Leafs during the 2022-23 season and served as an assistant coach for Stevenson University’s Division III program in 2023-24.

Like Lindenwood, TSU is expected to begin its life as an independent program.

Blue Jackets To Let Aidan Hreschuk Reach Free Agency

at CDT | by 2 Comments

Despite owning his rights, the Columbus Blue Jackets are not expected to sign Boston College defenseman Aidan Hreschuk by the August 15 deadline, reports The Athletic’s Aaron Portzline.

Hreschuk, 22, was originally drafted in the third round (94th overall) in 2021 by the Carolina Hurricanes. The Hurricanes then traded Hreschuk’s rights to Columbus in a minor league deal that brought Tyler Inamoto to Carolina in 2022. However, it appears the 5’11”, 180-pound left-handed defenseman will be looking to break into the professional ranks with yet another organization.

In four seasons at Boston College, Hreschuk appeared in 146 games and posted 38 points and a plus-34 rating. Known for his physical presence, Hreschuk’s upside is within the defensive zone. At the time he was drafted, Elite Prospects had this to say about the defender in their 2021 draft guide:

“Hreschuk looks to jump into the rush, takes passes in motion from the point, and brings some defensive value. He’s a strong single variable defender, thanks to his mobility and physicality. He drives the play to the perimeter and throws the odd hit. Physicality translates across the defensive end.”

The Blue Jackets currently have a wealth of young defensive prospects on their roster or in their system — including first-round picks Denton Mateychuk (2022) and Jackson Smith (2025), as well as 2024 second-rounder Charlie Elick — making the decision to part with Hreschuk understandable.

If Columbus does not sign Hreschuk by August 15, the Long Beach, CA native will become a free agent.

Gavin McKenna To Commit To Penn State

at CDT | by 25 Comments

According to multiple reports, Gavin McKenna — the projected first overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft — is expected to commit to Penn State University for the 2025-26 season. Cam Robinson of Elite Prospects first broke the news, which was later confirmed by Daily Faceoff’s Jeff Marek.

Consider one of the best prospects in recent memory, McKenna is undoubtedly the biggest get in Penn State program history and arguably the biggest prospect to commit to play in the NCAA. While it was previously believed that McKenna would commit to playing collegiately, it was unknown which program he would select. On his 32 Thoughts podcast, host Elliotte Friedman previously noted that McKenna completed interviews with Penn State, Michigan State University, the University of Michigan, and the University of Denver. In the end, it appears the upstart Penn State program won the sweepstakes for hockey’s most coveted prospect.

Although Penn State didn’t rejoin the NCAA until 2012, the program has made a meteoric rise in success, popularity, and its ability to attract top-end prospects. The Nittany Lions went 22-14-4 last season, but went on a tear to reach the school’s first-ever Frozen Four. Recent commits to the program include newly drafted prospects Jackson Smith and Luke Misa. Luke’s brother, Michael Misa, the 2025 second overall pick, could also join the program if he doesn’t make the San Jose Sharks out of training camp.

McKenna’s status as a surefire first overall pick is backed by his WHL stats from last season. In 56 games last season for the Medicine Hat Tigers, McKenna produced 41 goals and 129 points, and a plus-60 rating. He added another nine goals and 38 points in 16 postseason contests en route to a league championship. His 2.304 points per game were the third-highest total for a 17-year-old in league history, trailing only Conor Bedard (2022-23) and Rob Brown (1985-86). McKenna scored 244 points in 133 WHL games.

To put McKenna’s season into perspective, Connor McDavid scored 28 goals and 99 points in 56 games for the OHL’s Erie Otters in his age-17 season, with another four goals and 19 points in 14 postseason games.

College Notes: Howard, Hughes, Sumpf, Medvedev

at CDT | by 11 Comments

It felt like the draft might have been the right time for the Lightning to move prospect Isaac Howard after the 2022 first-rounder indicated that he wouldn’t sign with Tampa Bay.  However, GM Julien BriseBois indicated to reporters including Eduardo A. Encina of the Tampa Bay Times that they’re at a bit of a roadblock.  While there are teams offering up a strong enough return for his services, they haven’t been able to work out a deal with Howard.  Meanwhile, teams that Howard is willing to sign with haven’t offered up enough of a return yet.  As things stand, the 21-year-old is set to return to Michigan State for his senior year and if he ultimately becomes a free agent next year, Tampa Bay would receive the 31st pick of the second round (63rd overall) as compensation.

Other college hockey news:

  • The Kings are expected to sign prospect Jack Hughes to an entry-level contract, Mayor’s Manor reports. The 21-year-old (who has no relation to the New Jersey center with the same name) was a second-round pick by Los Angeles in 2022, going 51st overall.  Hughes had 25 points in 40 games in his senior year at Boston University and could have become an unrestricted free agent in mid-August if he waited a little longer to sign.  Instead, he’ll become the sixth player from the Kings’ 2022 class to sign a contract, assuming he puts pen to paper on a deal in the coming days.
  • Blackhawks draft pick Julius Sumpf is expected to play at Providence College next season, reports Mark Divver of the New England Hockey Journal (Twitter link). The 20-year-old was the 98th overall pick on Saturday following a solid season with QMJHL Moncton that saw him pick up 65 points in 58 games.  He also had seven points in five games for Germany at the World Juniors.
  • Canucks draft pick Alexei Medvedev has declined interest from several NCAA schools and will return to OHL London next season, relays Rick Dhaliwal of CHEK and The Athletic (Twitter link). The 17-year-old was a second-round pick on Saturday, going 47th overall following a solid rookie year with the Knights.  He put up a 2.79 GAA and a .912 SV% in 34 games during the regular season and with platoon partner and playoff starter Austin Elliott off to college next season, Medvedev should have a path to a much bigger role in 2025-26.

Snapshots: McKenna, Peterka, Dobson, Pacioretty

at CDT | by 13 Comments

Although the 2025 NHL Draft is only a few days away, the projected first overall pick of the 2026 NHL Draft is already making waves. The expectation is that Gavin McKenna, currently rostered with the WHL’s Medicine Hat Tigers, will play in the NCAA for the 2025-26 season.

In this week’s rendition of 32 Thoughts, podcast host Elliotte Friedman shared that McKenna has completed interviews with Penn State University, Michigan State University, the University of Michigan, and the University of Denver. Friedman lists the former two as the perceived favorites, but all four programs are expected to compete for a National Championship next season.

Any program that lands McKenna will have successfully recruited a generational talent. McKenna scored 41 goals and 129 points in 56 games for the Tigers this season, with another nine goals and 38 points in 16 postseason contests en route to a Memorial Cup Final finish. To put McKenna’s season into perspective, Connor McDavid scored 28 goals and 99 points in 56 games for the OHL’s Erie Otters in his age-17 season, with another four goals and 19 points in 14 postseason games.

Other snapshots:

  • According to Frank Seravalli in the DFO Rundown podcast, the Buffalo Sabres and New York Islanders have had loose trade negotiations regarding forward JJ Peterka and defenseman Noah Dobson. A one-for-one swap would fill an area of need for both organizations, with the Sabres prioritizing a right-handed defenseman and the Islanders looking to jumpstart a lethargic offense. Still, both teams are continuing to gauge the market for each player, and a trade isn’t considered imminent.
  • Nick Alberga of The Leafs Nation reports that the Toronto Maple Leafs remain interested in re-signing winger Max Pacioretty for next season. Despite a solid postseason performance, Pacioretty should warrant a relatively cheaper contract, given he missed more than half of the season due to injury. Still, Alberga notes that Pacioretty is prioritizing remaining close to his family in Michigan, meaning his desired employer will come down to the Maple Leafs and the Detroit Red Wings.

Jackson Smith Commits To Penn State University

at CDT | by 5 Comments

One of the projected top 10 selections for the 2025 NHL Draft has found a new home in the NCAA’s Big Ten Conference. According to Scott Wheeler of The Athletic, defenseman Jackson Smith has committed to Penn State University for the 2025-26 NCAA season.

Smith isn’t a consensus top 10 prospect in the upcoming draft, as he’s ranked as high as sixth by Elite Prospects, and as low as 13th among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting. Still, he’s widely recognized as the third or second-best North American defenseman behind Matthew Schaefer and likely behind Radim Mrtka, who’s coming from Czechia, but plays in the Western Hockey League (WHL).

Like Mrtka, Smith is coming from the WHL; however, he played with the Tri-City Americans instead of the Seattle Thunderbirds. Smith recently completed his sophomore campaign with the Americans, scoring 11 goals and 54 points in 68 games with a +2 rating.

Smith projects as an offensive-oriented defenseman at the NHL level. He has demonstrated strong skating and stick-handling skills from the point, but he needs to mature in the defensive zone. The NCAA, and the Big Ten Conference specifically, should help tremendously with the latter.

Although the Nittany Lions finished fifth in the Big Ten Conference, and 13th in the entire NCAA during the 2024-25 season, they made some noise in the National Tournament. After knocking out the University of Maine, and stunning the University of Connecticut in overtime, Penn State reached the Frozen Four for the first time in program history.

Smith will have plenty of expectations and competition on a highly competitive Nittany Lions’ roster. Playing in a top-ranked conference should help grow his offensive and defensive talents.

Blue Jackets’ Cayden Lindstrom Commits To Michigan State

at CDT | by Leave a Comment

June 5: Lindstrom confirmed to Portzline he’ll play for the Spartans next season (article link). Lindstrom returned to play four games for Medicine Hat in the WHL finals en route to a championship, recording two goals and two assists, but went pointless in three Memorial Cup games for the Tigers.

March 29: Things haven’t gone as planned for Blue Jackets prospect Cayden Lindstrom this season.  Felled by a back injury dating back to before the draft last year, he has yet to suit up in 2024-25 and isn’t expected to.  But instead of remaining with WHL Medicine Hat for 2025-26, it appears he’ll be on the move, as Aaron Portzline of The Athletic reports (Twitter link) that Lindstrom is likely to play at Michigan State next season.

Lindstrom was the fourth overall pick back in June and while many high draft picks sign their entry-level deals in the days and weeks after that, he was a notable exception.  As a result, he remains eligible to play in the NCAA next season.

It’s a decision that might seem a bit surprising at first, but given his injury history, it does make some sense.  Major junior teams play 68 games per season and after missing all of this year, more game volume might seem like the way to go.  Meanwhile, the NCAA regular season is only 34 games long which will allow Lindstrom more time for off-ice workouts and time with the training staff to try to limit or prevent any possible recurrence of this back trouble.

Last season, Lindstrom played well in limited duty, notching 27 goals and 19 assists in just 32 games for the Tigers which helped make him one of the first players off the board despite the injury concerns.  While that’s not necessarily enough to say that he has nothing left to prove at that level, that type of dominance suggests that he might be better suited playing against older competition which he’ll get at MSU should he officially join them.  He can’t do so until at least August 1st.

Portzline notes that several other schools, including Ohio State, also pursued Lindstrom’s services.  Columbus likely would have preferred that he landed there to keep him closer to the team but instead, Lindstrom will join a Spartans program that had eight NHL-drafted prospects on it this season, some of which could soon be making the jump to the pros.

Pro Hockey Rumors is not affiliated with National Hockey League, NHL or NHL.com

Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

scroll to top