College hockey is getting closer, and there are some clear favourites on the must-watch teams list. These three teams have high-end talent, interesting storylines, and big names on their rosters.
There are always a few teams that you can point to every season and say, “That team is going to be so fun to watch”. This college hockey year is no different, and when you look at certain teams on paper, you can see high-end NHL draft picks, highly skilled players, and overall high offensive talent- and who doesn’t like offensively talented teams?
This is my 2026-27 must watch teams for this college hockey season, but what do these teams have that make them a must watch team? They have talent, NHL draft picks that are exciting, and overall high-end talent players and storylines.
The University of Michigan
It isn’t exactly a hot take to say that Michigan is a very elite team, but they have so many players and storylines that make them must-see TV.
Firstly, there’s Landon DuPont, the projected first-overall pick in 2027 and one heck of a player. He dominated in the WHL for the Everett Silvertips, and, similar to last year with Gavin McKenna, he’s going to have a microscope on his game, especially early on.
Knowing that Michael Hage could have been fighting for a roster spot on the Montreal Canadiens this year makes him more intriguing as well: how good is he going to look, and can he win the Hobey Baker Award this time around?
When you look at this roster, you just see so many fun players: Jack Ivankovic is one of, if not the most electric goalie in college; there’s freshman J.P. Hurlbert, who lit it up in the WHL last season, sophomore’s Malcolm Spence, and Adam Valentini who are going to have larger roles after both having solid freshman year’s.
Overall, this team will be one of the best in the sport all year, but they’re also going to be one of the most entertaining teams to just sit down on the couch and watch.
Michigan State University
Michigan State is bringing in the most first-round freshmen in the country this year, and that in itself is exciting, but the specific players make it so much better.
Starting on the blueline are 2026 first-round picks, Chase Reid and Tommy Bleyl, who are two very talented offensive players. Both players finished above a point-per-game pace in their respective leagues; Reid was with the Soo Greyhounds in the OHL, while Bleyl was with the Moncton Wildcats in the QMJHL. These two will likely be the guys running the two power-play units and will be a treat to watch all season.
Up front, there’s 2026 first-round pick Ethan Belchetz, a six-foot-five power winger who’s a solid passer and can show flashes of really high-end skill. There’s Jack Hextall, who will be able to play a very solid bottom-six role early on, but he has a solid one-timer and really nice offensive tools, and will give Michigan State a player who can play up and down the lineup and go against any team’s lines.
You add in the fact that they still have Cayden Lindstrom, who’s looking for a bounce-back year, Cullen Potter coming over from Arizona State, and the Predators' first-round pick Ryker Lee, who’s coming off a 15-goal season.
Similar to Michigan, this team has a lot of talent and will be a top-end team this year, but with all the new blood and highly skilled players, they’re going to have me glued to the TV every weekend.
Boston University
The Terriers are in a bit of a different spot from these teams because they finished sixth in the Hockey East last season, in what was considered a failure of a season for the program's standards.
What BU has though, is a lot of talent coming back and coming into the program. To start, Tynan Lawrence joined the team for the second academic semester and had to learn a bottom-six role, but once he found his footing towards the end, he started to look more like the player that everyone expected, and with a full year with the team, his role and expectations are sky-high.
You then go to Caleb Malhotra, who I expect to be either the team’s first-line center or second-line; I’d be quite shocked if he were below that. He’s a cerebral playmaker and has some of the best hockey IQ I’ve ever seen from a teenager. When you add in his scoring touch, he has the makings of a Hobey Baker candidate as a freshman.
The team up and down has a lot of intriguing players, including Chicago Blackhawks second-round pick from this past June, Xavier Villeneuve, who is going to get some comparisons to former Terriers Cole and Lane Hutson. Not much else to say there; he’s a great talent.
With a much-improved team, the real intrigue to me comes from how good the team actually is, and if they’re a legit title contender, they’re going to be must-see TV every single weekend.
