LAS VEGAS – After three NCHC players had their name called in round one on Friday night, 15 more incoming or future National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) players were selected on day two of the 2024 NHL Draft on Saturday at the Sphere in Las Vegas. In all, a total of 18 current, incoming or future NCHC players were drafted in 2024, which leads all NCAA conferences.
 
Seven current NCHC teams, plus one future team, were represented in the 2024 NHL Draft. Denver led all NCHC teams with four draft picks taken on Saturday and five overall, which ranks second among all NCAA teams (Boston University with six). North Dakota saw two more incoming/future players drafted Saturday for four total on the weekend, which tied for third-most among NCAA teams. St. Cloud State saw three commits, including two incoming freshmen, selected on Saturday, while Minnesota Duluth had a pair of incoming freshmen picked in round two. Colorado College, Omaha and Western Michigan each saw one player drafted, as did future member St. Thomas, which joins the NCHC in 2026-27.
 
Among conferences, the 17 draft picks from current NCHC teams led all others, with the Big Ten second seeing 15 players chosen. Hockey East was third with 14, while ECAC was fourth with six. The CCHA had four draft picks, including St. Thomas, and Atlantic Hockey had one.
 
The Colorado Avalanche were the biggest investors in the NCHC, drafting two incoming Denver Pioneers and two future NCHC players. The Pittsburgh Penguins and Detroit Red Wings each drafted a pair of incoming NCHC players. The NCHC saw three players selected in rounds one, two, four and six, while four players, including one from St. Thomas, went in the seventh and final round.
 
The first two NCHC players to have their name called on Saturday were both incoming UMD freshmen in round two. Defenseman Adam Kleber (Chaska, Minn.) went at pick 42 overall to the Buffalo Sabres, while five selections later forward Max Plante (Hermantown, Minn.) was drafted by the Detroit Red Wings. Kleber skated for the Lincoln Stars of the USHL the past two seasons and finished second among USHL defensemen in 2023-24 with 125 shots and led all Stars defensemen with 26 points (5g, 21a). Plante played the last two seasons with the U.S. National Team Development Program and helped Team USA win a silver medal at the 2024 IIHF U-18 Men’s World Championship in April-May. Both were invited to represent the U.S. at the World Junior Summer Showcase in July. Plante’s older brother, Zam, a 2022 NHL Draft pick of the Penguins, will join Max as a freshman at UMD this season.
 
The third and final NCHC player selected in round two was incoming St. Cloud State freshman defenseman Colin Ralph (Maple Grove, Minn.), who was taken 48th overall by the St. Louis Blues. Ralph will join SCSU after two standout seasons with Shattuck St. Mary’s where he scored 10 goals and added 91 assists for 111 points in 111 games in the U.S. High School Prep league from 2022-2024. Like UMD’s draft picks, Ralph was also invited to the World Junior Summer Showcase in July by USA Hockey.
 
Future SCSU blue liner Tanner Henricks (Mission Viejo, Calif.), who played for the Lincoln Stars in the USHL this past season and is expected to join the Huskies in 2025-26, was taken in round four with pick 101 by the Columbus Blue Jackets. In round six, the Huskies third and final pick of the day was chosen as incoming forward Austin Burnevik (Ham Lake, Minn.) went with pick 182 to the Anaheim Ducks. Burnevik will join Ralph at the World Junior Summer Showcase after earning Third-Team All-USHL honors, while tallying 71 points (40g/31a) in 61 games with the Madison Capitols.
 
Denver saw two incoming freshman forwards selected in round four as Jake Fisher (Woodbury, Minn.) was drafted by the Colorado Avalanche 121st overall, while seven picks later Hagen Burrows (Orono, Minn.) was chosen by the Tampa Bay Lightning with pick 128. Fisher totaled 47 points (23g/24a) in 51 regular-season games this past year with the Fargo Force, while helping the Force win the USHL’s Anderson and Clark Cups. Burrows was named Mr. Hockey in Minnesota in 2023-24 after recording 59 points (19g/40a) in 28 prep games last season with Minnetonka High School. Burrows also split the campaign with the Sioux City Musketeers of the USHL.
 
The final two Pioneers drafted on Saturday were incoming freshman defenseman Tory Pitner (Greenwich, Conn.) and incoming freshman forward James Reeder (Glenview, Ill.). Pitner, who has played the last two seasons with the Youngstown Phantoms in the USHL, was another Avalanche draft pick, going 185th overall in the sixth round, joining Fisher in the Avs organization. Reeder, who has played with the Dubuque Fighting Saints in the USHL the last two years, was chosen by the Los Angeles Kings in round seven with pick 198. Fisher, Pitner and Reeder were all invited to the World Junior Summer Showcase by USA Hockey, as well.
 
The lone NCHC player taken in round three was future North Dakota forward Will Zellers (Maple Grove, Minn.), who is expected to join the Fighting Hawks in 2025-26. He was taken by the Avalanche with pick 76 after he potted 57 goals and 111 points in only 54 games for Shattuck St. Mary’s this past season. Incoming UND freshman forward Mac Swanson (Anchorage, Alaska) was the other Fighting Hawk drafted Saturday and fourth on the weekend, including third incoming freshman. The 2023-24 USHL Player and Forward of the Year went to the Pittsburgh Penguins in round 7 with pick 207. Swanson led the Fargo Force to the Anderson and Clark Cups with 77 points (26g/51a) in 55 regular-season games and 17 more points in 12 playoff games.
 
Future Omaha goaltender Louka Cloutier (Sherbrooke, Quebec), who played with the Chicago Steel this past season, was another Avalanche draft pick. The expected Mavericks netminder in 2025-26 was taken in round five with pick 132. In round six, Western Michigan incoming defenseman Joona Väisänen (Espoo, Finland) was drafted by the Penguins with pick 175 overall. He helped Dubuque to the Clark Cup Finals, while producing 40 points (9g/31a) in 53 regular-season games.
 
The final two NCHC-related picks in the 2024 NHL Draft were Colorado College incoming freshman defenseman Fisher Scott (Carbondale, Colo.) and future St. Thomas defenseman Bauer Berry (Grand Forks, N.D.), both of which were selected in round seven. Scott went 208th overall to the Detroit Red Wings after spending the last two seasons with Dubuque in the USHL. He tallied 33 points in 61 regular-season games this past year. Berry, the son of North Dakota head coach Brad Berry, was taken with pick 218 by the Edmonton Oilers. Berry played for Muskegon in the USHL this past year and is slated to join the Tommies in 2025-26, one year before they join the NCHC.
 
On Friday night in round one of the NHL Draft, Denver rising sophomore defenseman and reigning NCHC Rookie of the Year Zeev Buium was selected 12th overall by the Minnesota Wild, becoming the third-highest draft pick in NCHC history. In addition, North Dakota incoming freshmen forward Sacha Boisvert (No. 18 to Chicago Blackhawks) and defenseman EJ Emery (No. 30 to New York Rangers) were drafted in the first round last night.
 
NCHC PLAYERS SELECTED IN 2024 NHL DRAFT

Rd.	Pick	Player	NCHC Team	Pos.	NHL Team
1	12	Zeev Buium	Denver	D	Minnesota
1	18	Sacha Boisvert	North Dakota	F	Chicago
1	30	EJ Emery	North Dakota	D	N.Y. Rangers
2	42	Adam Kleber	Minnesota Duluth	D	Buffalo
2	47	Max Plante	Minnesota Duluth	F	Detroit
2	48	Colin Ralph	St. Cloud State	D	St. Louis
3	76	Will Zellers	North Dakota (’25)	F	Colorado
4	101	Tanner Henricks	St. Cloud State (’25)	D	Columbus
4	121	Jake Fisher	Denver	F	Colorado
4	128	Hagen Burrows	Denver	F	Tampa Bay
5	132	Louka Cloutier	Omaha (’25)	G	Colorado
6	175	Joona Väisänen	Western Michigan	D	Pittsburgh
6	182	Austin Burnevik	St. Cloud State	F	Anaheim
6	185	Tory Pitner	Denver	D	Colorado
7	198	James Reeder	Denver	F	Los Angeles
7	207	Mac Swanson	North Dakota	F	Pittsburgh
7	208	Fisher Scott	Colorado College	D	Detroit
7	218	Bauer Berry	St. Thomas (’25)	D	Edmonton