Patrick Williams, TheAHL.com Features Writer
It’s straight from campus to the AHL for several young prospects as the collegiate season ends and pro careers begin.
Several AHL teams have beefed up their rosters lately by adding top-end college talent in the past month. The hockey business moves quickly as organizations line up to add draft picks and free agents alike who can bring considerable high-pressure experience.
A significant benefit to signing those players is the chance for them to compete for the Calder Cup. Last season, goaltender Jacob Fowler came out of Boston College to join the Laval Rocket and help them reach the Eastern Conference Finals.
That trend has continued this season. The Lehigh Valley Phantoms, for example, have been especially active in adding college talent, and they needed all of it in a crucial game Sunday against the Cleveland Monsters. Going without several regulars, the Phantoms earned a much-needed 4-3 shootout win thanks to Noah Powell (Arizona State) scoring in the third period and Cole Knuble (Notre Dame) tallying in the shootout.
The Detroit Red Wings have been active in getting NCAA talent to the Grand Rapids Griffins. Michigan State goaltender Trey Augustine, a second-round pick by Detroit in 2023, made his pro debut with the Griffins on Friday night; shortly after puck drop, he was announced by the NCAA as the winner of the Mike Richter Award as college hockey’s top goaltender after going 24-9-1 with a 2.11 goals-against average and a .929 save percentage for the Spartans.
Let’s review some other signees:
T.J. Hughes – Colorado Eagles
Already one of the league’s top offensive teams, the Eagles landed Hobey Baker Award finalist Hughes after he signed a free-agent deal with the Colorado Avalanche for 2026-27. The undrafted forward and University of Michigan captain wrapped up his final season by finishing second in the nation in scoring with 57 points (22 goals, 35 assists) in 40 games and helping the Wolverines reach the Frozen Four for the third time in his four seasons in Ann Arbor.
The subject of intense interest from several NHL organizations, Hughes could get a chance to don an Eagles jersey in short order. The Eagles, who are vying to wrap up second place in the Pacific Division, finish their regular-season slate with a home set against the Calgary Wranglers this Friday and Saturday before it’s onward to the Calder Cup Playoffs.
Kiernan Draper – Grand Rapids Griffins
The Red Wings stayed close to home in signing Draper, a 24-year-old forward, to a two-year AHL deal that activates next season. The new addition’s roots in the state of Michigan are deep; he played four seasons at the University of Michigan and his father, Kris, played 1,157 NHL games and won four Stanley Cups with Detroit, where he is now the Wings’ assistant general manager and director of amateur scouting.
In 40 games at Michigan this season, Draper had 18 points (five goals, 13 assists). Detroit took him in the seventh round of the 2020 NHL Draft.
Josh Eernisse – Cleveland Monsters
The Monsters are through to the Calder Cup Playoffs and will have added a Michigan product to their roster as well.
Eernisse, a forward, has a new one-year entry-level contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets for next season. For the meantime, though, he has joined the Monsters as they wind down their regular season and get ready for the postseason. Eernisse, who is also 24, had 19 points (11 goals, eight assists) in 38 games for Michigan. Like Hughes, he was also undrafted. However, the Blue Jackets got familiar with him and had him attend their development camp last summer.
Christian Fitzgerald – Texas Stars
One reason why it’s so important that AHL teams reach the Calder Cup Playoffs is the opportunity to extend the season for newly signed prospects like Fitzgerald, who is coming off a strong season at the University of Wisconsin with 31 points in 39 games and a trip to the national championship game. Fitzgerald, a 23-year-old forward, has joined Texas and will start a one-year entry-level contract with the Dallas Stars organization next season.
Dylan James – Grand Rapids Griffins
Another Frozen Four participant, James comes to the Griffins from the storied University of North Dakota program. Detroit’s second-round pick in 2022 signed a tryout with the Griffins along with a two-year entry-level deal with the Red Wings.
James is only 22 years old, but he comes to the AHL with four collegiate campaigns behind him and posted 32 points (21 goals, 11 assists) in 40 games this season.
Ben Strinden – Milwaukee Admirals
A seventh-round draft pick by Nashville in 2020, Strinden joins Milwaukee after four seasons at the University of North Dakota. He put up 35 points in 38 games for the Fighting Hawks this year. It was a bittersweet season for Strinden, who lost his father, Tom, to cancer in July 2025.
Strinden signed a two-year AHL contract with the Admirals that begins in 2026-27.
On the American Hockey League beat for two decades, TheAHL.com features writer Patrick Williams also currently covers the league for NHL.com and FloSports and is a regular contributor on SiriusXM NHL Network Radio. He was the recipient of the AHL’s James H. Ellery Memorial Award for his outstanding coverage of the league in 2016.