With the Stanley Cup playoffs just wrapping up, hockey fans will now shift their focus towards the 2026 NHL Draft being held in Buffalo, N.Y., beginning on Friday.
As usual, the Terriers will have representation in this year’s draft class. Of all the players declared, nine of them are committed to play for Boston University. Of those nine prospects, four of them expect to hear their names called in the first round.
Below is a list of those draft-eligible prospects in the 2026 draft class. Each player’s intangibles including position, their 2025-26 team and their placement in NHL Central Scouting’s final rankings are noted.
Caleb Malhotra | C | Brantford Bulldogs | 6th
The top projected center to be picked in the draft is walking in the footsteps of his father, Manny Malhotra, who was drafted seventh overall in the 1998 draft. Manny played for the Vancouver Canucks for three of his 16 seasons in the NHL, making himself known as an intelligent defense-minded center. Now appointed as the newest head coach of the Canucks, he has the chance to draft his son with the third overall pick.
Caleb’s draft stock surpassed fellow Terrier Tynan Lawrence’s after an impressive 84 point (25 goals, 59 assists) regular season with the Brantford Bulldogs. His seamless end-to-end transitions, smooth puck handling and patient playmaking abilities are all key aspects of his game that will prove beneficial to any line he leads. It’ll be interesting to see how fellow former NHL player turned head coach Jay Pandolfo will prepare Caleb for what lies ahead.
Tynan Lawrence | C | Boston University | 7th
Coming off a 2025 Clark Cup MVP and captain of the Muskegon Lumberjacks, the 17-year-old center looked to restore some hope to BU’s underwhelming season. While his seven point performance (two goals, five assists) across 18 games wasn’t enough to turn things around, Lawrence’s presence lit a hopeful spark in BU’s offense.
The team that selects him – likely in the early half of the first round – is getting a natural skater whose presence can be felt across all 200 feet of the ice. He’s got a great hockey IQ, a strong drive to win puck battles and a sneaky good shot. It’ll be worth watching how he sharpens his game as he’s set to play a full sophomore season.
Xavier Villeneuve | LD | Blainville-Boisbriand Armada | 18th
If there’s a defenseman that’s going to carry the torch left behind by the Hutsons, it’s going to be Xavier Villeneuve. In fact, scouts have been comparing Villeneuve’s game to Lane’s for quite some time – and for good reason.
While his 5-foot-11, sub-170 pound build will lack physical presence on the blue line, he can compensate with his impressive playmaking vision and offensive-zone manipulation. There’s no wonder he’s been able to average a point per game during the last two regular seasons with the Armada. He’ll hope to replicate this talent, as BU will try to restore some lost magic from Hutson’s departure.
Niklas Aaram-Olson | LW / RW | Orebro Jr. HK | 15th (EU)
Set to be the first Norwegian player in BU program history, Aaram-Olson is regarded as one of the best goal scorers in the draft class. His ability to identify weaknesses in the goaltender’s position, laterally pass in front of the goaltender’s crease and unleash a quick accurate wrister makes him a dynamic playmaker.
Where the Oslo native shines, however, is on the man advantage, and for a BU team that ranked 50th on the man advantage last year, Aaram-Olson will look to provide some much needed help on special teams.
Luke Schairer | RD | US NTDP | 45th
Standing at 6-foot-3 and weighing just over 200 pounds, Schairer already has the frame of an NHL defenseman. Scouts have also praised him for his impressive skating abilities at his size and his intelligence in the defensive zone.
However, he still has room to find his true identity on the ice, especially on offense. Most of his 22 point season for the NTDP (one goal, 21 assists) came from far point snipes that found a deflecting stick guiding the puck to where it should be. He could use the time between now and when he arrives at BU in 2027 to work on his transitional play and finding breakout pass opportunities that can offer some utility.
Brady Knowling | G | US NTDP | 1st (NA Goalies)
With Max Lacroix entering his senior year and Mikhail Yegorov having a New Jersey Devils selection in his back pocket, the draft’s top projected goaltender is expected to be ready in net for BU during the 2027-28 season.
At 6-foot-5, Knowling already has the height and the movement to protect the net. He also had some exposure against NCAA competition playing for the NTDP, which is valuable. However, he still has work to do, having posted a 3.56 GAA across 33 games last season. He’s set to play in the OHL for the Saginaw Spirit this fall, where he’ll look to continue refining his game.
Rian Chudzinski | RW | Moncton Wildcats | 63rd
After playing high school hockey for St. Sebastian’s and Dexter Southfield, the Needham, Mass. native made the move to the QMJHL, where he broke out with a 17 point performance (six goals, 11 assists) across 21 playoff games for the Moncton Wildcats.
Chudzinski’s willingness to skate into traffic and disrupt the defense are notable strengths in his game. He’ll hope to reinforce a strong physical presence in the o-zone as the Terriers look to add some grit into their offense.
Braidy Wassilyn | C/LW | London Knights | 105th
Initially selected fourth overall in the 2024 OHL Draft, Wassilyn’s eight goal, 39 point performance across 62 games for the Niagara Ice Dogs didn’t necessarily live up to expectations. He then got traded to the London Knights, where he doubled his goal count across 56 games, proving he’s stepping in the right direction.
The 5-foot-11 left winger comes to BU with a useful toolkit: good end-to-end speed, great spatial awareness and a quick release of a shot. However, there’s a lot of room for development, especially his physicality, so it’ll be a matter of time to see how he adapts to NCAA hockey this fall.
Shawn Carrier | LW | Halifax Mooseheads | 178th
Similar to Wassilyn, the Trois-Rivieres, Quebec, native couldn’t find his footing when he was selected by the Moncton Wildcats sixth overall in the 2023 QMJHL draft. But with a little change of scenery, Carrier broke out tremendously with the Halifax Mooseheads, where he tallied 65 points (37 goals, 28 assists) across 61 regular season games this past season.
The 19-year-old winger isn’t due to arrive in Boston until the 2027-28 season, but he is going to be a player to keep an eye out for as he hopes to finish off his QMJHL development on a high note.
While it’ll be interesting to see which NHL logo some of these players will see next to their name on the line chart, it’ll also be worth watching how they perform at the NCAA level. Overall, this is a promising talent pool coming to BU starting this fall.