Rangers prospects knocked out
Rangers prospects Malcolm Spence and EJ Emery were eliminated from NCAA championship contention when their teams lost in the Frozen Four round, a development noted by prospect watchers and Forever Blueshirts. That exit removes two names from the pro draft‑watch list as the college season wraps. (foreverblueshirts.com)
The New York Rangers had two prospects alive in college hockey’s final weekend, and both were out by Thursday night. Malcolm Spence’s Michigan team lost 4-3 to Denver in double overtime, and EJ Emery’s North Dakota team lost 2-1 to Wisconsin in the national semifinals of the Frozen Four in Las Vegas. (usatoday.com) (timesunion.com) That ended the college season for two Rangers picks from back-to-back drafts. Emery is a right-shot defenseman the Rangers took 30th overall in 2024, and Spence is a winger they took 43rd overall in 2025. (fightinghawks.com) (mgoblue.com) Spence was the more productive of the two this year because he arrived at Michigan after three Ontario Hockey League seasons with Erie and stepped straight into a scoring role. Michigan lists him at 6-foot-1 and 192 pounds, and his freshman bio credits him with goals against Wisconsin, Ohio State, Harvard, Michigan State, Notre Dame, and Minnesota. (mgoblue.com) Before college, Spence had already built a long résumé for a 19-year-old. Michigan’s roster page says he scored 73 points in 65 games for Erie in 2024-25, went second overall in the 2022 Ontario Hockey League draft, and won gold with Canada at both the 2024 Under-18 World Championship and the 2024 Hlinka Gretzky Cup. (mgoblue.com) Emery’s path is different because his value starts with defending, not scoring. North Dakota lists the 6-foot-3 sophomore defenseman with 31 games, one point, a plus-3 rating, and 29 blocked shots as a freshman in 2024-25 after he arrived from the United States National Team Development Program. (fightinghawks.com) When the Rangers drafted Emery, their scouts sold him as a shutdown player with size and reach. National Hockey League dot com quoted Rangers scouting director John Lilley calling Emery “an elite defender,” and the same story said Emery models his game after Rangers defenseman K’Andre Miller. (nhl.com) The Frozen Four mattered because it put both prospects on the same stage scouts use as a final college checkpoint before spring decisions. Instead of one more game on Saturday, both now shift into the usual prospect questions: return to school, add strength, and wait for the Rangers to decide when a pro contract makes sense. (reviewjournal.com) (nhl.com) For Rangers fans, this was less about a championship run ending and more about a progress report arriving all at once. Spence leaves his first Michigan season with offense already visible, and Emery leaves North Dakota still looking like the longer-build prospect whose case rests on stopping plays before they start. (mgoblue.com) (fightinghawks.com)
