Michigan State hockey getting 4 NHL draft prospects back for 2024-25 season
Adam Nightingale just led Michigan State hockey to its most successful season in decades. The second-year head coach started the rapid turnaround in 2022-23 and nearly completed the mission this past season, falling one win short of a Frozen Four.
The Spartans owned the rival Wolverines all season long but Michigan ended Michigan State's season one round before the Frozen Four. The current players aren't happy about that.
The Spartans are so angry, in fact, that four players have turned down NHL contracts to return to Michigan State for next season. That's right, winning the Big Ten regular season and tournament titles and making a trip to the third round of the NCAA Tournament wasn't enough.
Adam Nightingale spoke on The Drive With Jack about his returning stars.
Coach Adam Nightingale announces that four Spartan NHL Draft Picks, including Forward Issac Howard & Goalie Trey Augustine will be back for the 2024 MSU Hockey season 🔊 @drivewithjack pic.twitter.com/7B4w1M0Kic
— John (@FromEastLansing) June 20, 2024
Although Nightingale didn't say who the four players were other than Trey Augustine and Isaac Howard, it does give fans an opportunity to speculate. I don't think Artyom Levshunov is included in the four returning stars because he's expected to be drafted early in the 2024 NHL Draft next week in Las Vegas. He will have a tough decision to make, but I doubt he's come close to making it yet.
Augustine, however, is a huge returnee as one of the best goalies in college hockey and Howard is an elite forward. These two returning just drastically raised the ceiling for the 2024-25 squad.
It sounds like this team is hungry to not only repeat as Big Ten champs but to also bring home a national title for the first time in nearly 20 years.