Drafting players out of the USHL, high school, prep school or Canadian Junior A leagues can be tough. A lot of the prospects coming out of these leagues are raw and require at least four or five years of development before they’re ready to make the jump to the NHL. It’s a slow cook in terms of development. You want to give these players as much time to develop and physically mature so that when the time comes, they’re ready for the NHL. The Hurricanes seem to take at least one NCAA-bound player in each draft, partially due to upside and partially because they can afford to let that player develop for four or five years before signing them to a contract.
Hurricanes Prospects in the NCAA
