The impact several rookies are making on the NHL is one of the major storylines of the 2024-25 season. Each week, NHL.com will examine topics related to this season's class in the Rookie Watch. This week, a look at the top six NHL teams with most games played by rookies (ranked by total games played by rookies):
1. San Jose Sharks
Total games played by rookies: 135 (nine players)
Players: Forwards Macklin Celebrini, Will Smith, Nikolai Kovalenko, Ethan Cardwell, Danil Gushchin, Collin Graf; defensemen Jack Thompson, Shakir Mukhamadullin; goalie Yaroslav Askarov
Rookies to watch: The Sharks are building an identity with fast and skilled forwards and Celebrini (6-feet, 190 pounds), the No. 1 pick in the 2024 NHL Draft, leads the way. The 18-year-old center has 29 points (13 goals, 16 assists, 0.88 points per game) in 33 games, is tied for third among first-year players in penalties drawn (12) and averages 19:46 of ice time. Smith (6-0, 181), selected No. 4 at the 2023 NHL Draft, has 14 points (six goals, eight assists) in 37 games. San Jose was excited to acquire Askarov (6-3, 178), the No. 11 pick in the 2020 NHL Draft, in a trade with the Nashville Predators on Aug. 23, 2024, and it's easy to see why; he’s 3-3-2 with a 2.39 goals-against average and .917 save percentage in eight games (all starts). Kovalenko (5-10, 180), whose father is former NHL forward Andrei Kovalenko, has six points (one goal, five assists) in 12 games since being acquired in a trade with the Colorado Avalanche on Dec. 9.
2. Dallas Stars
Total games played by rookies: 127 (seven players)
Players: Forwards Logan Stankoven, Oskar Bäck, Mavrik Bourque, Arttu Hyry, Matej Blumel, Justin Hryckowian; defenseman Lian Bichsel
Rookies to watch: Stankoven (5-8, 165), chosen in the second round (No. 47) of the 2021 NHL Draft, leads all Stars rookies in goals (four), assists (15) and points (19) in 39 games. He made quite an impression in the NHL last season, when he had eight points (five goals, three assists) in his first six regular-season games before getting eight points (three goals, five assists) in 19 Stanley Cup Playoff games. He's second among NHL rookies in penalties drawn (13) and Dallas has a 55.0 shot-attempts percentage at 5-on-5, and 54.2 on-ice goals for percentage 5-on-5 when Stankoven is on the ice. Bäck (6-4, 202), a third-round pick (No. 75) at the 2018 NHL Draft, has 10 points (two goals, eight assists) in 36 games, and Bourque (5-11, 181), selected No. 30 in the 2020 draft, has 10 points (three goals, seven assists) in 36 games.
3. (T) Montreal Canadiens
Total games played by rookies: 107 (six players)
Players: Forwards Emil Heineman, Oliver Kapanen, Joshua Roy; defensemen Lane Hutson, Logan Mailloux; goalie Jakub Dobes.
Rookies to watch: Hutson, 20, was named NHL Rookie of the Month for December after finishing with 13 points (two goals, 11 assists) in 14 games. A second-round pick (No. 62) in the 2022 NHL Draft, he leads all NHL rookies in assists (29), points (32) and average ice time (22:44) in 42 games. Heineman (6-2, 198), a second-round pick (No. 43) by the Florida Panthers in the 2020 draft, ranks second among rookies on the Canadiens with 17 points, and first with 10 goals and seven even-strength goals in 41 games. Dobes (6-4, 215), a fifth-round pick (No. 136) in the 2020 draft, has been the talk of the town of late, winning all three starts with a 0.97 GAA, one shutout and .959 save percentage. The 23-year-old of Ostrava, Czechia, became the fourth goalie in Canadiens history to have a shutout in his debut, a 34-save performance in a 4-0 win at the Florida Panthers on Dec. 28.
3. (T) Colorado Avalanche
Total games played by rookies: 107 (nine players)
Players: Forwards Ivan Ivan, Nikolai Kovalenko, Calum Ritchie, Matt Stienburg, Chase Bradley, Oskar Olausson, Nikita Prishchepov; goalies Justus Annunen, Trent Miner.
Rookies to watch: Ivan (6-0, 190) was undrafted and leads all Avalanche rookies in goals (five) and points (eight) in 37 games. Kovalenko played 24 games with Colorado before he was traded to San Jose last month. Annunen won six games in nine starts before he was sent to Nashville as part of the Scott Wedgewood trade on Nov. 30.
4. Nashville Predators
Total games played by rookies: 91 (6 players)
Players: Forwards Zachary L'Heureux, Fedor Svechkov, Ozzy Wiesblatt; defensemen Adam Wilsby, Marc Del Gaizo; goalie Justus Annunen.
Rookies to watch: L'Heureux (5-11, 197), chosen No. 27 in the 2021 NHL Draft, has nine points (four goals, five assists) and leads Nashville rookies with 109 hits in 34 games. Del Gaizo (5-11, 188), a fourth-round pick (No. 109) in the 2019 NHL Draft, has 35 hits, 28 blocked shots and 10 takeaways in 21 games. Wilsby (6-1, 188), selected in the fourth round (No. 101) of the 2020 draft, leads all Predators first-year players in average ice time (18:43). Annunen is 3-2-0 with a 2.28 GAA and .930 save percentage in six games (five starts) since being acquired from Colorado.
5. Philadelphia Flyers
Total games played by rookies: 86 (5 players)
Players: Forwards Matvei Michkov, Jett Luchanko; defensemen Emil Andrae, Helge Grans; goalie Aleksei Kolosov.
Rookies to watch: Michkov was named the NHL Rookie of the Month for October, then scored his third overtime goal Nov. 30 at the St. Louis Blues, tying for the most by a teenager in NHL history with Sidney Crosby, Rick Nash, and Ilya Kovalchuk. The 20-year-old (5-10, 172), chosen No. 7 in the 2023 draft, ranks second among NHL rookies with 30 points (13 goals, 17 assists) and first with six power-play goals while averaging 16:27 of ice time in 41 games. Andrae (5-9, 189), a second-round pick (No. 54) in the 2020 draft, leads all Flyers rookies in hits (22), blocked shots (28), takeaways (10) and average ice time (19:18) in 20 games. He has been with Lehigh Valley of the American Hockey League since Dec. 19.
