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June 27, 2025

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To Know How College Hockey Does Today, We Need to Know Who’s Playing in the NCAA

by Adam Wodon/Managing Editor (@chn-adam-wodon)

LOS ANGELES — As this year’s NHL Draft begins in Los Angeles, most of the NCAA-related talk in relation has been about a player not even here.

Gavin McKenna — the projected No. 1 overall in next year’s draft — is not in Los Angeles, and no one’s yet sure if he’s going to play in the NCAA this coming season. But it’s presumed he will, and it’s presumed he will get some major money — relatively — to do so.

In the past, of course, it wouldn’t even have been an option. Unlike Macklin Celebrini, another highly-touted player who came to the NCAA in his draft year, McKenna chose to go to Major Junior first. For someone like Celebrini, just a couple years ago, that would’ve ruled out playing in the NCAA. Celebrini went on to have a standout season at Boston University, before getting drafted No. 1 by San Jose and playing in the NHL this past season.

But with the change in rules, opening the door for Major Junior players to then play in the NCAA, it’s not only within the realm of possiblity to play college hockey for McKenna, but it seems like something he’s actively seeking to do.

Combine that with the money now available for NCAA teams to directly pay their players, and it makes for a lot of interesting chatter. Where is he going to play? How much is he going to get? The answers are all over the map, though the consensus is that Michigan State is offering in the $200,000 range, while Penn State, the other likely landing spot, is offering more.

Meanwhile, there’s a 2025 NHL Draft to deal with. On that score, current or incoming NCAA players are not expected to make as big of a splash as some of the recent years. 

Then again, who is an NCAA player? We don’t know. As many as five current Major Junior players projected to be first-round picks tonight, could go to an NCAA school this coming year. A player like Michael Misa, a projected top-three pick, has been reportedly interested in a number of schools, and perhaps also Penn State, after his brother committed there last month. However, at the draft, after being selected No. 2 overall by San Jose, Misa seemed to rule out playing NCAA hockey next year. “My goal is to make the NHL next season, so that’s where my head is at,” Misa said.

As for the ones who do know, James Hagens of Boston College was at one time thought of as a No. 1 overall pick. His draft status has slipped a bit, but he still figures to go in the Top 10.

If he winds up being the only one, however, that would be a dropoff from recent drafts. Last season, Celebrini and Artyom Levshunov went 1-2 overall. In 2023, Adam Fantilli went No. 3, with Will Smith and Ryan Leonard also in the top 10. In 2022, Logan Cooley was No. 3, and in 2021, four of the top five NHL picks went to, or were already at, Michigan.

Still there are plenty of NCAA-connected players projected to go in the first round. That number has increased since the door to Major Junior players opened, with guys like Jackson Smith (Penn State) and Cole Reschny (North Dakota) among the Canadian Major Junior players to commit to NCAA schools in the last couple months.

All in all, like a lot of things in the NCAA right now, it’s the wild west. So hang in there.

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EAU CLAIRE, Wis. – Three University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire seniors have been named UW-Eau Claire’s Male Athletes of the Year for 2024-25. Nathan Donovan (Sr. – Hazel Green, Wis./Wahlert Catholic), Yakob Ekoue (Sr. – Hopkins, Minn.) and Jared Stricker (Sr. – High Bridge, Wis./Ashland) all finished their careers as some of the best in Division III history in their respective sports, earning them a three-way tie for this year’s award.

Donovan starred for the men’s soccer team, Ekoue was a national champion for the men’s track and field team, and Stricker won another national crown with the wrestling team.

Donovan became the first player in program history to earn United Soccer Coaches Division III National Player of the Year honors last fall. The two-time All-American led all of NCAA men’s college soccer — regardless of Division — in scoring with 26 goals this fall. He also had a team-high 15 assists for a total of 67 points. His goal and points totals both set new UW-Eau Claire single-season records. He was the United Soccer Coaches National Scholar Player of the Year, Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) Kwik Trip Offensive Player of the Year as well as the Max Sparger Scholar-Athlete this season.

Donovan’s success was the Blugolds’ success. With Donovan leading the line, UW-Eau Claire won WIAC regular season and tournament championships and qualified for the NCAA Tournament for the third consecutive season. The Blugolds won 17 games this season and spent the entire year nationally ranked.

The senior forward’s career goes down as one of the best in the history of Division III men’s soccer. He ranks third in DIII history with 229 career points and fourth with 94 career goals.

Ekoue, like Donovan, was also the national athlete of the year in his sport. He was the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association’s NCAA Division III Field Athlete of the Year this spring, earning the honor for the second time in his career.

Ekoue won a second consecutive national championship in discus at the NCAA Division III Outdoor National Championships this season, setting a facility record in the process. He also placed third in both shot put and hammer throw to earn All-America honors in both events. He scored 22 team points for the Blugolds, helping the squad finish as national runner-up.

His efforts at nationals earned him Most Outstanding Field Performer of the Championships honors. It was his second time receiving that distinction.

Earlier in the season, Ekoue won a WIAC title in discus. He holds school records in both discus and hammer throw. He finished his Blugold career with 13 All-America honors and four national championships. He joined an elite group of athletes in Division III history to earn 10-plus All-America honors.

This marks the second consecutive year Stricker earned UW-Eau Claire Male Athlete of the Year honors. He became the first two-time national champion in the history of Blugold wrestling this winter. He went unbeaten at 43-0, posting the most victories by a Division III wrestler this season, as he clinched another 174-pound crown.

Stricker was named WIAC Wrestler of the Year for the second consecutive season and was named Most Outstanding Wrestler of the NCAA Championships. He finished his career with 169 victories, which is believed to rank in or near the top five in the history of Division III. There is no official leaderboard for career victories in Division III.

This season, Stricker became the WIAC’s all-time leader in career wins and also broke UW-Eau Claire’s career pins record with 75. He ended his career on a 71-match win streak, the longest in program history. He was a three-time All-American and four-time WIAC champion.

Off the mat, Stricker was named a National Wrestling Coaches Association Scholar All-American this season.

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Prodigy, it typically describes a young person with exceptional skills. Being driven is someone with internal motivation, put those two together and you get Rylee McLanahan.

She started playing soccer around three years old, and from day one she has loved it.

“I just love the game. I feel like I fell in love with the process of getting better and just grinding,” said Edmond North Soccer standout Rylee McLanahan.

And grind is truly what she does.

“I play for a club team in Dallas called Solar, and so I commute to practice there twice a week, I leave school and I get there around 6 pm, we get done around 9 or 9:30, we come home, I wake I go train with my trainer Alex around 6 am,” said McLanahan.

That all happens during the school year, while maintaining her 4.2 GPA.

“I’m like ranked in the top one or two percent,” said McLanahan.

Her hard work and dedication are paying off in the classroom and on the field.

“This year I scored 43 goals and fifteen assist. I broke the 6A state single season record, and then over three seasons, I think it was forty-five games I had one hundred seven total goals,” said McLanahan.

Earning the Edmond North senior to be some pretty high honors.

“Gatorade player of the year twice, Jim thorp award, I’ve been named that twice, High school sports award for the Oklahoma City metro, and like, All-city, all district, and then conference player of the year, twice,” said McLanahan.

“She’s technically sound, very tactically aware,” said Randall Robinson director of player personal with the Oklahoma City FC.

This summer Rylee is playing with the Oklahoma City FC team, the Oklahoma City team in the Women’s premier soccer league

“It is literally, the premier league in the summer for women’s soccer. It is the biggest women’s soccer league in the world,” said Robinson.

The summer league is primarily made up of elite division one college soccer players and only the best of the best high school players, and of course Rylee isa standout on the team.

“She’s just a great team player, even with all of her talent, she’s very selfless,” said Robinson.

McLanahan has already committed to playing her college soccer at the University of Florida, she will graduate in December and enroll for the Spring semester. You can see her in the WPSL league. The team has already qualified for post-season play; all those games will be played in Stillwater. Game schedules can be seen at www.wpslsoccer.com/schedule