Columbus Blue Jackets’ Cayden Lindstrom Expected To Head To Michigan State University Next Season

With the NCAA opening the doors to CHL players in recent months, we have seen several players begin to commit to playing in the U.S. college ranks in the coming years. It’s opened up a new pathway for players to continue their development and obtain a good education while keeping a path to pro hockey open in a way that USports, Canadian university athletics, hasn’t in the past. 

To this point, we’ve seen plenty of good CHLers commit to colleges across the NCAA, such as Connor Levis and Marcus Nguyen out west or Pano Fimis and Kocha Delic in the OHL. We haven’t seen a true superstar or high-end NHL prospect decide to leave the CHL quite yet but that could be changing very soon as a report from Aaron Portzline of The Athletic stats that the 2024 fourth overall pick, Cayden Lindstrom, is set to attend Michigan State Univeristy in the fall to continue his development. 

Lindstrom heading to the NCAA could be the first of many dominoes to fall as premier CHL players move on to the NCAA in their final year or two of junior eligibility. The infusion of talent at the college level would be incredible. 

There have been plenty of rumors about high-end talent looking at the NCAA as an option. Top prospects for the 2025 NHL draft Michael Misa and Porter Martone have been loosely tied to NCAA programs. Gavin McKenna, the presumptive first overall pick in the 2026 NHL draft and one of the CHL’s best players, has had his name in rumors about going to the U.S. to play in college as early as next season for his draft year. 

All of those are rumors, and nothing has been confirmed, but the shift in the junior hockey landscape is going to be interesting if any of those players decide to follow in the footsteps of Cayden Lindstrom and head south of the border. 

Lindstrom’s decision is an interesting one. The Columbus Blue Jackets drafted him fourth overall last June, but he hasn’t played a competitive game of hockey since April 5, 2024, because of back surgery and injuries. By the time he suits up for Michigan State in the fall, the 6-foot-4, 215-pound forward will have gone 18 months between game action. 

It will surely be an adjustment, but the talent that Lindstrom has displayed in his time with Medicine Hat of the WHL would fit in nicely with the strong roster that Michigan State is sure to have in the fall. He plays a powerful game with a great shot and a mean streak. Although it will take some time to get back to game speed, Lindstrom should be able to handle the physicality that NCAA hockey brings. His speed and shot will be an asset offensively and could allow him to get rolling early in his college career. 

Lindstrom hasn’t signed an entry-level deal, which has kept his NCAA eligibility open. With no formal announcement from the player or the school, his arrival on campus is still a bit speculative. He could be waiting for MSU to officially announce their freshman class, usually reserved for the summer. 

Whether Lindstrom is the first of many or just a unique situation, time will tell. This could open the floodgates for more high-end CHLers to make the move to NCAA hockey.

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