Blues’ Jimmy Snuggerud, Blackhawks’ Oliver Moore among Minnesota prospects expected to turn pro soon

The roster in the Twin Cities might be looking a lot different next season…and not the NHL one.

The Minnesota Golden Gophers were shockingly eliminated from the NCAA Men’s Hockey Tournament on Thursday night when they squandered a two-goal lead in the third period to Massachusetts, ultimately losing in overtime to the Minutemen.

With the sour ending to the season, which saw the Golden Gophers lose four of their final six games dating back to the regular season, a number of big-time players might be moving on to the next level.

On a team with 16 players drafted by NHL teams, several could be putting pen to paper on NHL contracts. Daily Faceoff inside Frank Seravalli put out a list of players that might be on their way out of Minneapolis for the big-time, headlined by St. Louis Blues prospect Jimmy Snuggerud.

Other names that could potentially be moving on include Chicago Blackhawks prospects Sam Rinzel and Oliver Moore, Ryan Chesley (Washington Capitals), Matthew Wood (Nashville Predators) and Brody Lamb (New York Rangers). Each of which has at least one more year of eligibility.

Snuggerud has been one of the most talented players in college hockey throughout his tenure with the Gophers. After bursting onto the scene with 50 points in 40 games during his freshman campaign, in which Minnesota made it all the way to the national championship game, the 23rd overall pick in the 2022 NHL Draft posted a career-high 51 points this season. He ended up second among Big Ten skaters in scoring, earning a spot as a top-10 finalist for the Hobey Baker Award.

The Chaska, Minnesota native also helped the U.S. win gold at the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship.

The Blues are so high on Snuggerud that general manager Doug Armstrong and his eventual successor, Alex Steen, flew up to Fargo on Thursday to see Snuggerud in action. There is growing suspicion that St. Louis might sign the 20-year-old soon and have him join the team in its quest to clinch a spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The Blues currently hold the second Wild Card spot and are scheduled to visit the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday afternoon. The team returns home to host the Detroit Red Wings on Tuesday.

Moore and Wood would certainly have ended their college careers on respective highs. Wood, who didn’t crack the Canadian National Junior Team roster this year after being on the team in 2024, finished tied for second on the Gophers in scoring with 39 points in 39 games.

Moore finished behind both of them with 33 points. Like Snuggerud, the Mounds View, Minnesota native has had a fruitful international career, winning gold with Snuggerud and the Americans in Sweden last year, taking home the WJC title this past year in Ottawa as well.

Rinzel and Lamb also had good performances with Minnesota, finishing fifth and sixth in points with 32 and 26, respectively. Captain Chesley registered a career-high 20 points in 40 games from the back end.