Maple Leafs prospect checkpoint: How has Nick Moldenhauer fared through 5 months of 2025-26?
At the time of the 2022 National Hockey League Entry Draft, Moldenhauer was coming off a season with the Chicago Steel of the United States Hockey League where the forward recorded 18 goals and 25 assists through 41 games. Moldenhauer returned to the Steel for the 2022-23 season and totalled 30 goals and 45 assists, leading the team in assists and trailing only 2024 first overall pick Macklin Celebrini in points.
After wrapping up the 2022-23 season with the Steel, Moldenhauer took his talents to Michigan, where he appeared in 41 games as a freshman, recording eight goals and 13 assists, the eighth-most points among Wolverine skaters. His sophomore year was more of a struggle for the forward, as he appeared in only 29 games and managed just three goals and seven assists, a step back from the playing ability showcased in his first year at Michigan.
On The Leafs Nation’s summer 2025 prospect rankings, Moldenhauer found himself at 16th, slipping from his previous rank of 11 during the 2024 edition. The Leafs Nation’s Arun Srinivasan wrote:
The season outlook for Moldenhauer entering the 2025-26 campaign is pretty simple: Moldenhauer needs to simply produce more consistently during his third season at the NCAA level, while working to improve his game away from the puck. If Moldenhauer doesn’t score prolifically, the rest of the improvements to his game may not matter as much. He’s playing on a loaded Michigan team that ought to contend for the NCAA title, which would also work wonders for his confidence. Moldenhauer is one of the Leafs’ most exciting prospects when he’s at the top of his game, but it’s been two years since he lit up the USHL, and we need to see his scoring touch come alive again.
Moldenhauer has answered the bell. Through 30 games played this year, the 21-year-old has scored 12 goals, added 13 assists, good for 25 points, the fifth-most points among all Wolverine skaters. As Michigan sits first in the Big Ten with a record of 24-5-1, the Wolverines have their sights set on claiming their tenth National Title in school history. Moldenhauer will be tasked with playing big minutes and providing offence amidst a strong Wolverine team.
Whenever Moldenhauer’s season wraps up with the Wolverines, the Maple Leafs and his camp will likely get together with the hopes of signing him to an entry-level contract. A jump to the American Hockey League’s Toronto Marlies next year makes sense for Moldenhauer, who will be 22 years old in May. Listed at 5-foot-10, 180 pounds, Moldenhauer’s game will have to keep evolving as he reaches professional levels against bigger and stronger competition.