The Hlinka-Gretzky is a tournament that generally doesn't have any players on the U.S. National Team Development Program, but the tournament still has a lot of college commits, and that number should be going up year by year; this year is dominated by a few schools while some are left out.
The Hlinka-Gretzky Cup is the start of the scouting cycle for scouts and executives around the NHL, and for fans, it’s a lot of their first viewings of these prospects. With the NCAA having more high-end players than ever, a lot of players at this tournament now are heading into their draft years and plan to head to college hockey after that.
So who are those names and where are they committed to play?
Despite the presence of many European players in North America this coming season, none are committed to an NCAA school yet, so the roster will be limited to players from Canada and the United States. As expected, the U.S. leads the pack with 15 out of the 18 NCAA players or commits, and there was no school dominating the field, but some big brands were completely left out.
The University of North Dakota, the University of Minnesota, and the University of Wisconsin were tied for the lead, with each program having three players on the U.S. roster. For North Dakota, they have Brooks DeMars joining the program in 2027; Colin Grubb and Beck Thoreson are listed for the 2028 season. Grubb is the only one in this group with multiple points after their first three games.
Wisconsin has three 2028 commits with Luke Pietila, Ryland Rooney, who has three points in three games, and defenseman Charlie Mineman.
Minnesota has the brother of incoming freshman Wyatt Cullen, Joey Cullen, who became the first underage player ever on the U.S. Hlinka team and is set to join the program in the 2027 season along with forward Gunnar Conboy; Nash Roed is set to join the Golden Gophers in 2028.
There was a three-way tie for second with Penn State, Michigan, and Michigan State, who all have two commits at the tournament. Michigan State has 2027 commits Gavin Burcar and Charlie Murata. Burcar is currently leading the U.S. in goals and is tied for second in the entire tournament with four goals. Murata has two assists so far for Canada, where he’s in a bottom-six checking role.
Penn State has Nolan Snyder, who was point-per-game after his first three matches, and they also have the U.S. points leader with Gerry DiCunzolo, who has six points after the group stage. Both players are committed for the 2028-29 season.
Michigan has no American players at the tournament, but instead, they have the only player who will be in college next season, with projected 2027 first-overall pick Landon DuPont joining this season. DuPont was named the captain for the Canadians. They also have Ryerson Edgar, who was in the top five in rookie scoring last season in the OHL, and after three games he has three goals and five points. Edgar is committed for the 2028-29 season.
Harvard University and the University of Massachusetts are the only schools on the list with a maximum of one player. U-Mass has defenseman Jake Prunty, who leads all U.S. defensemen in points with four. Harvard has Michael Tang, who has one point so far but has shown his very elusive and quick skating stride.
