Schaefer, top Draft prospects discussed on 'NHL @TheRink' podcast

LOS ANGELES -- The draft takes centerstage on this week's on-location episode of the "NHL @TheRink" podcast presented by SKIP.

Mike G. Morreale of NHL.com and the "NHL Draft Class" podcast joins co-hosts Dan Rosen and Shawn P. Roarke and drops all kinds of knowledge about the 2025 Upper Deck NHL Draft, which begins with Round 1 at Peacock Theater on Friday (7 p.m. ET; ESPN, ESPN+, SN, TVAS).

Morreale predicts, as many have, that 17-year-old defenseman Matthew Schaefer from Erie of the Ontario Hockey League will go to the New York Islanders with the No. 1 pick.

But Morreale goes way beyond just the prediction, backing it up with facts and information about Schaefer, including how he got to be the consensus No. 1 despite playing only 17 games this season.

Morreale also discusses with Rosen and Roarke many of the other top prospects, including Michael Misa of Saginaw in the OHL, James Hagens of Boston College, Porter Martone of Brampton in the OHL, and Anton Frondell and Victor Eklund of Djurgarden in Sweden.

Where could they go in the first round? What are their upsides?

Morreale answers it all, including naming some of his sleeper picks and rating the entirety of the 2025 draft class.

In addition, Rosen and Roarke breakdown the widely reported four-year extension of the Collective Bargaining Agreement and how the NHL and NHL Players' Association got to this point with such a strong working relationship.

They discuss some of the moves we've already seen, including the Utah Mammoth acquiring forward JJ Peterka from the Buffalo Sabres for defenseman Michael Kesselring and forward Josh Doan, and forward Evander Kane being traded from the Edmonton Oilers to the Vancouver Canucks.

Did those moves make sense? If so, why? If not, why? Rosen and Roarke break it all down.

They close the show talking about the eight-member Hockey Hall of Fame Class of 2025 that was voted in Tuesday, highlighting the inclusion, finally, of Alexander Mogilny after nearly two decades of being passed over.

Roarke defends Mogilny's Hall of Fame resume and Rosen doubles down in his agreement.

The "NHL @TheRink" podcast presented by SKIP is free and listeners can subscribe on all podcast platforms. It is also available on NHL.com/multimedia/podcasts and the NHL app.