A Look at Every Oilers Prospect Playing NCAA Hockey in 2026-27

The 2026-27 NCAA Division 1 men’s hockey opened on Friday (Oct. 2). For the next several months, teams will compete with their sights set on reaching the Frozen Four in Washington in April.

Edmonton Oilers fans will be following the action stateside closely this season, as there are seven Oilers prospects on D1 college hockey rosters. Here’s a look at those players:           

Asher Barnett (Michigan)

Defenceman Asher Barnett is beginning his sophomore season at the University of Michigan, where he has been named an alternate captain for the perennial powerhouse Wolverines.

Barnett, whom the Oilers selected with the 131^st pick at the 2025 NHL Entry Draft, totalled 18 points in 40 games while helping Michigan reach the Final Four last season. His plus/minus rating of plus-27 ranked fifth among all NCAA D1 blueliners in 2025-26.

The 19-year-old from Glencoe, Ill., is expected to represent his country at the 2027 IIHF World Junior Championship in Alberta. He appeared in five games for Team USA at World Juniors last winter.

Bauer Berry (St. Thomas)

Defenceman Bauer Berry is beginning his second season with the St. Thomas University men’s hockey team, which is starting its first season of play in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) after moving from the Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA).

As a freshman in 2025-26, Berry notched three goals and 11 assists with a plus/minus rating of plus-7 over 37 games, helping the Tommies set a D1 program record with 21 wins.

A native of Grand Forks, N.D., Berry was drafted 218th overall by the Oilers at the 2024 NHL Entry Draft. He turns 21 on Halloween.

Paul Fischer (Notre Dame)

Paul Fischer is now in his senior year at the University of Notre Dame, where the 6-foot-1 blueliner will serve as an alternate captain of the men’s hockey team for a second consecutive season.

Since beginning his NCAA career in 2023-24, Fischer has suited up for 103 games with the Fighting Irish, totalling 10 goals and 50 assists. He was a Hobey Baker Memorial Award nominee in 2026 and received Academic All-Big Ten honours each of the last two seasons.

Fischer was drafted 138^th overall by the St. Louis Blues in 2023 before being traded to Edmonton the following year. He possesses a sound game that should transition well to the pro ranks if and when that opportunity arises next season.

Tommy Lafreniere (Western Michigan)

Winger Tommy Lafreniere is starting his freshman year at Western Michigan University, following a breakout season that started with the Kamloops Blazers of the Western Hockey League (WHL).

Lafreniere, whom the Oilers selected 83^rd overall at the 2025 NHL Draft, ranked sixth in the WHL in 2025-26 with 41 goals, including a league-leading four shorthanded tallies. He then joined Edmonton’s American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Bakersfield Condors, on an amateur tryout, suiting up for five regular-season games and three playoff contests.

During the offseason, the Whistler, B.C., product was invited by Hockey Canada to take part in the 2026 World Junior Summer Showcase. While he’s likely a long shot, Lafreniere could find his way onto Canada’s World Juniors roster.

Aidan Park (Michigan)

Alongside fellow Oilers prospect Barnett, 20-year-old forward Aidan Park is starting his sophomore year at the University of Michigan.

In his first season of NCAA D1 hockey, the Playa Vista, Calif., product accumulated eight goals and eight assists in 36 games, while registering a plus/minus of plus-7. He had a season-high three points twice.

Edmonton selected Park with the second-to-last pick, 223^rd overall, at the 2025 NHL Draft in his hometown of Los Angeles.

Zack Sharp (Western Michigan)

Zack Sharp is a relatively new addition to Edmonton’s prospect pool, having been acquired along with Shakir Mukhamadullin from the San Jose Sharks in exchange for Darnell Nurse on July 1. San Jose had drafted Sharp with the 124^th pick in 2025.

The 21-year-old defenceman is starting his junior year at Western Michigan University, where his new teammates on the Broncos this season include fellow Oilers prospect Lafreniere.

Sharp totalled 19 points in 2025-26, more than doubling the offensive output from his freshman year, when he recorded five goals and four assists.

Dalyn Wakely (Massachusetts Lowell)

A 22-year-old centre from Port Hope, Ont., Dalyn Wakely is headed into his second year at the University of Massachusetts Lowell.

Wakely was drafted 192^nd overall by Edmonton in 2024, following a monster season that saw the forward score 39 goals and dish out 65 assists in 66 games with the North Bay Battalion to finish third in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) points race.

Wakely hasn’t quite reached those offensive heights since. After amassing 58 points over 55 games with the OHL’s Barrie Colts in 2024-25, Wakely recorded seven goals and 12 assists in 35 games in his first season of NCAA hockey last season. He was named the UMass-Lowell men’s hockey Rookie of the Year.

Barnett and Park were the first of Edmonton’s NCAA prospects to play meaningful games this fall, as Michigan defeated Bowling Green in a pair of games on Friday and Saturday (Oct. 3). Fischer will be the next to see action, as the Fighting Irish host Niagara in their season opener on Thursday (Oct. 8).