skip navigation

MN NTDP invitees through the years

By YHH Staff, 05/20/21, 11:00AM CDT

Share

A look back through all of the Minnesotans invited to the National Development Team Development Program's tryout in comparison with their Division I-bound, non-invited counterparts.

Birth year with the most players drafted by NHL teams

The 1996 birth year yielded seven NHL draft picks, including three that opted for the NTDP’s Under-17 team after trying out. Those players included Holy Family Catholic product Shane Gersich, who was drafted by Washington in the fifth round, and Benilde-St. Margaret’s defenders Ryan Collins and Jack Glover. Collins was taken in the second round by Columbus, and Glover went to Winnipeg in the third round. 

Players invited to the NTDP tryout that chose the NCAA or Western Hockey League route included Crookston’s Paul Bittner (Columbus, 2015), Edina’s Tyler Nanne (New York Rangers, 2014), Andover’s Chase Perry (Detroit, 2014), and Edina’s Jack Walker (Toronto, 2016). 

Tied with the 1996 birth year are the 1998’s, which also had seven players invited to the NTDP tryout drafted. Those players were Joey Anderson, Kieffer Bellows, Matt Hellickson, Ryan Lindgren, Mitchell Mattson, Jake Oettinger, and Riley Tufte. Of the seven, Anderson, Lindgren, and Oettinger took the NTDP up on its offer to skate for the U-17 team. Bellows played one season with the NTDP’s U-18 squad. Mattson and Tufte returned to Grand Rapids and Blaine, respectively, and Tufte went on to win the 2016 Mr. Hockey Award.

1997 yielded the fewest draft picks of NTDP-invited players, with Tommy Novak the lone selection out of six invitees.


Mitchell Mattson was taken by the Calgary Flames in fifth round of the 2016 NHL Draft.

Birth Year with most accepted NTDP invitations

The birth years of 1998, 2000, and 2004 hold the distinction of the most players opting for the NTDP route, with each group sending five players to wear the red, white, and blue. 

We’ve already mentioned the ’98 group, featuring Joey Anderson (Hill-Murray), Kieffer Bellows (Edina), Matt Hellickson (Rogers), Ryan Lindgren (Shattuck-St. Mary’s), and Jake Oettinger (Lakeville North). 

The 2000s had the second-most invitees with 11, with Maple Grove’s Trevor Janice, St. Cloud Cathedral goaltender Keegan Karki, Minnetonka’s K’Andre Miller, and Hibbing netminder Ryan Ullan all making the jump. Grand Rapids product Gavin Hain joined the program for his Under-18 season. 

Last year’s group, the 2004s, also featured five players, but with a different flavor than previous years. Two of the players, Ryan Chesley and Cruz Lucius, never played Minnesota high school hockey, skating for Shattuck-St. Mary’s and the Gentry Galaxy, respectively. Rochester Mayo’s Maddox Fleming, Chaska’s Jimmy Snuggerud, and Rosemount’s Charlie Stramel joined Chesley and Lucius in Plymouth. 


Before suiting up for Shattuck-St. Mary's and the NTDP U-17 team, Maddox Fleming was a member of the Bantam Elite League's Great Plains squad.

Birth year with the most players invited

Are you tired of reading about the 1998 group yet? Buckle up, because it ain’t over. 

The ’98 birth year list of invitees is long and impressive, with 13 players soliciting invitations from the NTDP to try out in Michigan. Positionally, the Minnesota contingent included five forwards, five defensemen, and three goaltenders. 

To date, all 13 players have played for Division I programs, and five of those players (Joey Anderson, Kieffer Bellows, Matt Kiersted, Ryan Lindgren, and Jake Oettinger) have made appearances in the NHL. 

Of those five, New York Rangers defender Ryan Lindgren has spent the most time with the big club, seeing action in 54 games so far.

Four WHL players in decade of invitees

Crookston’s Paul Bittner was the first, invited to the tryout as part of the 1996 group. The 6-foot-4, 205-pound power forward jumped to the WHL after recording 21 points for the Crookston Pirates, and spent four seasons with the Portland Winterhawks. Bittner’s numbers improved each season in Portland, with his best output coming in the 2014-2015 season, where Bittner racked up 38 goals and 83 points. Bittner was a second-round draft pick of the Columbus Blue Jackets, played four seasons with AHL’s Cleveland Monsters, and has spent the last two years in Sweden’s HockeyAllsvenskan.

Another big-bodied forward opted for the WHL in Spring Lake Park and 1997 age-group product Nick Heid, who made his way to the west coast after spending time with the Panthers and the Omaha Lancers 16U program. Heid played 17 games with the Portland Winterhawks, 60 with the Medicine Hat Tigers, and 63 with the Prince Albert Raiders. Heid totaled 18 points during his time in the WHL. 

2000-born Keegan Karki, a tantalizing blend of size and talent, spent a season with the NTDP’s U-17 team (where he teamed with Hibbing’s Ryan Ullan to form an all-Minnesotan goaltending room), then moved to the USHL for 43 games with the Muskegon Lumberjacks. After three NAHL games with Corpus Christi, Karki moved on to the WHL, playing in 17 games with the Everett Silvertips and the Prince Albert Raiders. Karki last played for the Vernon Vipers of the BCHL. 

Also from the 2000 birth year is Todd Scott, a well-traveled goaltender from Albertville, Minnesota. Scott bounced from the NAHL to the USHL, then spent 72 games in the WHL with the Vancouver Giants and the Edmonton Oil KIgs across three seasons. Scott is now with the Tri-City Storm in the USHL, where during the 2020-2021 season, he played in 42 games and posted a 2.37 goals-against-average and a .910 save percentage during the regular season.  


Keegan Karki spent a season with the NTDP's U-17 team before stops in the USHL and WHL.

First-Round Draft Picks (1995-2002 birth years)

Player Camp Invite NTDP Hometown Draft Slot Drafted By
Casey Mittelstadt No No Eden Prairie 8 Buffalo
Kieffer Bellows Yes Yes* Edina 19 New York Islanders
K'Andre Miller Yes Yes St. Paul 22 New York Rangers
Brock Boeser No No Burnsville 23 Vancouver
Ryan Poehling No No Lakeville 25 Montreal
Riley Tufte Yes No Blaine 25 Dallas
Jake Oettinger Yes Yes Farmington 26 Dallas
*U18 Season

St. Paul native and former Minnetonka standout K'Andre Miller was selected No. 22 overall by the New York Rangers in the 2018 NHL Draft.

By The Numbers

The following are a few numbers of note detailing data found from the 1995 to 2002 classes of players invited and not invited to tryout for the NTDP.

TOTAL # MN Invited - 66
AVG # MN Players Invited Per Year - 8.25
TOTAL # MN not Invited (Drafted/UFA) - 59
MN NTDP Players World Juniors U20 - 18
MN Non-NTDP Players World Juniors U20  - 12


Chart: Peter Odney


Average Draft Position: Chart --> Peter Odney

NTDP TRYOUT INVITEES - 1995

Invite NTDP Player High School NHL Draft College Team U-20 WJ NHL GP AHL GP
Yes Yes Gage Ausmus East Grand Forks SJS - '13 North Dakota No 0 0
Yes No Taylor Cammarata Shattuck-St. Mary's NYI - '13 Minnesota No 0 0
Yes Yes Hudson Fasching Apple Valley LAK - '13 Minnesota 2014, 2015 27 257
Yes No Jordan Gross Maple Grove UFA (ARI) Notre Dame No 9 118
Yes Yes Clint Lewis Shattuck St. Mary's N/A Minnesota State No 0 0
Yes Yes Hunter Miska North Branch UFA (COL) Minnesota Duluth No 6 96
Yes No Willie Raskob Shattuck-St. Mary's N/A Minnesota Duluth No 0 1
Yes Yes Luke Voltin Hill-Murray N/A Northern Michigan No 0 0
No No Michael Brodzinski Blaine SJS - '13 Minnesota No 0 64
No No Blake Heinrich Hill-Murray WAS - '13 WHL No 0 0
No No Connor Hurley Edina BUF - '13 Notre Dame No 0 0
No No Teemu Kivihalme Burnsville NAS - '13 Colorado College No 0 74
No No Karson Kuhlman Cloquet UFA (BOS) Minnesota Duluth No 69 75
No No Vinni Lettieri Minnetonka UFA (ANA) Minnesota No 51 189
No No Avery Peterson Grand Rapids MIN - '13 Nebraska Omaha/Minneota Duluth No 0 0
No No Neal Pionk Hermantown UFA (WPG) Minnesota Duluth No 225 48
No No Colton Poolman East Grand Forks UFA (CGY) North Dakota No 0 21
No No Jack Ramsey Minnetonka CHI - '14 Minnesota No 0 0
No No Jimmy Schuldt Minnetonka UFA (VGK) St. Cloud State No 1 88
No No Tyler Sheehy Burnsville UFA (MIN) Minnesota No 0 21
No No Hunter Shepard Grand Rapids UFA (WAS) Minnesota Duluth No 0 2
No No Cole Smith Brainerd UFA (NSH) North Dakota No 1 23
No No Luc Snuggerud Eden Prairie CHI - '14 Omaha No 0 65
No No Steven Spinner Eden Prairie WSH - '14 Omaha No 0 1
No No Tommy Vannelli Minnetonka STL - '13 WHL No 0 19

NTDP TRYOUT INVITEES - 1996

Invite NTDP Player High School/Hometown NHL Draft College Team World Juniors NHL GP AHL GP
Yes No Paul Bittner Crookston CBJ - '15 WHL No 0 150
Yes Yes Ryan Collins Benilde-St. Margaret's CBJ - '14 Minnesota 2015 0 133
Yes Yes Shane Gersich Holy Family Catholic WAS - '14 North Dakota No 5 160
Yes Yes Jack Glover Benilde-St. Margaret's WPG - '14 Minnesota No 0 1
Yes No Tyler Nanne Edina NYR - '14 Minnesota No 0 2
Yes No Chase Perry Andover DET - '14 Colorado College/RPI No 0 0
Yes No Jack Walker Edina TOR - '16 WHL No 0 3
No No Will Borgen Moorhead BUF - '15 St. Cloud State 2016 14 143
No No Jack Dougherty St. Thomas Academy NAS - '14 Wisconsin No 0 280
No No Blake Hillman Elk River CHI - '15 Denver No 4 66
No No Miguel Fidler Edina FLA - '14 Ohio State No 0 0

To date, Moorhead product Will Borgen has played in 14 games for the Buffalo Sabres.

NTDP TRYOUT INVITEES - 1997

Invite NTDP Player High School/Hometown NHL Draft College Team World Juniors NHL GP AHL GP
Yes No Tye Ausmus East Grand Forks N/A N/A No 0 0
Yes No Colin Gallgher Henry Sibley N/A St. Olaf No 0 0
Yes No Nick Heid Spring Lake Park N/A WHL No 0 0
Yes No Ben Newhouse Benilde-St. Margaret's N/A Union/Northern Michigan No 0 0
Yes No Tommy Novak St. Thomas Academy NAS - '15 Minnesota No 0 87
Yes No Tanner Tweten East Grand Forks N/A N/A No 0 0
No No Jack Ahcan Burnsville UFA (BOS) St. Cloud State 2017 2 19
No No Jack Becker Mahtomedi BOS - '15 Michigan/Arizona State No 0 0
No No Brock Boeser Burnsville VAN - '15 North Dakota 2016 247 0
No No Jackson Cates Stillwater UFA (PHI) Minnesota Duluth No 4 0
No No Blake Lizotte Chisago Lakes UFA (LA) St. Cloud State No 107 0
No No Rem Pitlick Shattuck-St. Mary's NAS - '16 Minnesota No 11 71
No No Jack Sadek Lakeville North MIN - '15 Minnesota No 0 5
No No Nick Swaney Lakeville South MIN - '17 Minnesota Duluth No 0 6
No No Peter Thome Minneapolis CBJ - '16 North Dakota/St. Thomas No 0 0
No No Odeen Tufto St. Thomas Academy UFA (TB) Quinnipiac No 0 4
No No Max Zimmer Wayzata CAR - '16 Wisconsin No 0 1
No No Ryan Zuhlsdorf Edina TB - '15 Minnesota No 0 0

Jack Becker will transfer to Arizona State after spending the last four seasons at Michigan. Photo: Jon Knight/Knight Photography

NTDP TRYOUT INVITEES - 1998

Invite NTDP Player High School/Hometown NHL Draft College Team World Juniors NHL GP AHL GP
Yes Yes Joey Anderson Hill-Murray NJ - '16 Minnesota Duluth 2017, 2018 53 77
Yes Yes * (1 year) Kieffer Bellows Edina NYI - '16 Boston Univiersity 2017, 2018 22 129
Yes No Ryan Edquist Lakeville North N/A Boston College/Minnesota State No 0 0
Yes Yes Matt Hellickson Rogers NJ - '17 Notre Dame No 0 3
Yes No Matt Kiersted Elk River UFA (FLA) North Dakota No 7 0
Yes Yes Ryan Lindgren Minneapolis BOS - '16 Minnesota 2017, 2018 54 84
Yes No Mitchell Mattson Grand Rapids CGY - '16 Michigan State No 0 0
Yes Yes Jake Oettinger Lakeville North DAL - '17 Boston University 2017, 2018 31 44
Yes No Dayton Rasmussen Holy Family Catholic N/A Denver No 0 0
Yes No Sam Rossini Burnsville N/A Minnesota No 0 0
Yes No Hank Sorensen Wayzata N/A Northern Michigan No 0 0
Yes No Riley Tufte Blaine DAL - '16 Minnesota Duluth 2018 0 86
Yes No Garrett Wait Edina N/A Minnesota/Massachusetts No 0 0
No No Cole Koepke Hermantown TB - '18 Minnesota Duluth No 0 9
No No Nick Leivermann Eden Prairie COL - '17 Notre Dame No 0 0
No No Casey Mittelstadt Eden Prairie BUF - '17 Minnesota 2018 155 36
No No Nick Perbix Elk River TB - '17 St. Cloud State No 0 0
No No Scott Perunovich Hibbing STL - '18 Minnesota Duluth 2018 0 0
No No Casey Staum Hill-Murray MTL - '16 Colorado College No 0 0
No No Robbie Stucker St. Thomas Academy CBJ - '17 Minnesota/Vermont No 0 0

Former St. Thomas Academy defender Robbie Stucker will transfer from the University of Minnesota to Vermont for the 2021-2022 season.

NTDP TRYOUT INVITEES - 1999

Invite NTDP Player High School/Hometown NHL Draft College Team World Juniors NHL GP AHL GP
Yes Yes Mikey Anderson Hill-Murray LA - '17 Minnesota Duluth 2018, 2019 58 53
Yes No Jake Begley Hill-Murray N/A Colorado College No 0 0
Yes Yes Nate Knoepke Lakeville South N/A Minnesota/Nebraska Omaha No 0 0
Yes No Connor Mayer Benilde-St.Margaret's N/A Colorado College No 0 0
Yes Yes Grant Mismash Shattuck-St. Mary's NAS - '17 North Dakota No 0 0
Yes No Austin Pratt Shattuck-St. Mary's N/A WHL No 0 0
Yes Yes Scott Reedy Shattuck-St. Mary's SJ - '17 Minnesota No 0 16
Yes No Marko Reifenberger Hill-Murray N/A Mercyhurst No 0 0
Yes No Baron Thompson Achiever Academy/Omaha Lancers AAA N/A N/A No 0 0
No No Noah Cates Stillwater PHI - '17 Minnesota Duluth 2019 0 0
No No Josh Ess Lakeville South CHI - '17 Wisconsin No 0 0
No No Sam Hentges Totino-Grace MIN - '18 St. Cloud State No 0 0
No No Jared Moe Holy Family Catholic WPG - '17 Minnesota/Wisconsin No 0 0
No No Clayton Phillips Edina PIT - '17 Minnesota/Penn St No 0 0
No No Ryan Poehling Lakeville North MTL - '17 St. Cloud State 2018, 2019 28 64
No No Dylan Samberg Hermantown WPG - '17 Minnesota Duluth 2018, 2019 0 28
No No Sammy Walker Edina TB - '17 Minnesota No 0 0

University of Minnesota forward Sammy Walker was named Honorable Mention All-Big 10 for the 2020-2021 season.

NTDP TRYOUT INVITEES - 2000

Invite NTDP Player High School/Hometown NHL Draft College Team World Juniors NHL GP AHL GP
Yes No Ben Brinkman Edina DAL - '19 Minnesota No 0 0
Yes Yes * (1 yr) Gavin Hain Grand Rapids PHI - '18 North Dakota No 0 0
Yes Yes Trevor Janicke Maple Grove ANA - '19 Notre Dame No 0 0
Yes No Jack Jensen Eden Prairie N/A Arizona State No 0 0
Yes Yes Keegan Karki St. Cloud Cathedral N/A WHL No 0 0
Yes No Blake McLaughlin Grand Rapids ANA - '18 Minnesota No 0 0
Yes Yes K'Andre Miller Minnetonka NYR - '18 Wisconsin 2019, 2020 53 0
Yes No Jaxon Nelson Luverne N/A Minnesota No 0 0
Yes No Jack Perbix Elk River ANA - '18 Minnesota No 0 0
Yes No Todd Scott Omaha Lancers 16U N/A WHL No 0 0
Yes Yes Ryan Ullan Hibbing N/A Northern Michigan No 0 0
No No Bryce Brodzinski Blaine PHI - '19 Minnesota No 0 0
No No Will Francis Centennial ANA - '19 Minnesota Duluth No 0 0
No No Luke Loheit Minnetonka OTT - '18 Minnesota Duluth No 0 0

Jack Jensen will suit up next season for Arizona State.

NTDP TRYOUT INVITEES - 2001

Invite NTDP Player High School/Hometown NHL Draft College Team World Juniors NHL GP AHL GP
Yes No Kaden Bohlsen Shattuck-St.Mary's N/A Nebraska-Omaha No 0 0
Yes No Jake Boltmann Edina CGY - '20 Notre Dame No 0 0
Yes No Jake Hale Minneapolis N/A Uncommitted No 0 0
Yes Yes Drew Helleson Shattuck-St.Mary's COL - '19 Boston College 2021 0 0
Yes No Mike Koster Chaska TOR - '19 Minnesota No 0 0
No No Bobby Brink Minnetonka PHI - '19 Denver 2021 0 0
No No Ethan Haider Maple Grove NAS - '19 Clarkson (commit) No 0 0
No No Aaron Huglen Roseau BUF - '19 Minnesota (comm) No 0 0
No No Jackson LaCombe Eden Prairie ANA - '19 Minnesota 2021 0 0
No No Rhett Pitlick Chaska MTL - '19 Minnesota No 0 0

Jake Boltmann appeared in 19 games this season for Notre Dame.

NTDP TRYOUT INVITEES - 2002

Invite NTDP Player High School/Hometown NHL Draft College Team World Juniors NHL GP AHL GP
Yes No Cameron Berg Omaha Lancers 16U N/A Nebraska Omaha No 0 0
Yes No Blake Biondi Hermantown MTL - '20 Minnesota Duluth No 0 0
Yes Yes Brock Faber Maple Grove LA - '20 Minnesota 2021 0 0
Yes Yes Connor Kelley Maple Grove N/A Minnesota Duluth No 0 0
Yes No Zach Michaelis Elk River N/A Nebraska Omaha (committed) No 0 0
Yes No Jack Smith St. Cloud Cathedral MTL - '20 Minnesota Duluth (committed) No 0 0
Yes No Noah Tussey Stillwater N/A Minnesota (committed) No 0 0
No No Jackson Hallum St. Thomas Academy VGK - '20 Michigan (committed) No 0 0
No No Wyatt Kaiser Andover CHI - '20 Minnesota Duluth No 0 0
No No Joe Miller Blake TOR - '20 Minnesota (committed) No 0 0

Andover product Wyatt Kaiser was a third round draft pick of the Chicago Blackhawks in 2020.

NTDP TRYOUT INVITEES - 2003

Invite NTDP Player High School/Hometown College Verbal Commitment Years College World Juniors
Yes No Carter Batchelder Eden Prairie Colorado College 0 No
Yes No Jackson Borst Edina N/A 0 No
Yes Yes Justin Janicke Maple Grove Notre Dame 0 No
Yes Yes Chaz Lucius Gentry Galaxy 15U Minnesota 0 No
Yes No Bennett Schimek Gentry Galaxy 16U Providence 0 No
Yes No Jake Martin Gentry Galaxy 15U Wisconsin 0 No
Yes No Luke Mittelstadt Eden Prairie Minnesota 0 No
Yes No Henry Nelson Maple Grove Notre Dame 0 No
Yes No Jack Peart Grand Rapids St. Cloud State 0 No
No No Chase Beacom Bloomington Kennedy St. Cloud State 0 No
No No Jackson Blake Eden Prairie North Dakota 0 No
No No Max Burkholder Chaska Colorado College 0 No
No No Anton Castro Gentry Galaxy 15U Boston University 0 No
No No Trey Fechko Holy Family Arizona State 0 No
No No Jack Harvey Gentry Galaxy 16U Boston University 0 No
No No Hobie Hedquist Heron Lake North Dakota 0 No
No No Connor Kurth Gentry Galaxy 16U Minnesota 0 No
No No Brody Lamb Dodge County Minnesota 0 No
No No Charlie Lurie Shattuck St. Mary's Nebraska Omaha 0 No
No No Griffin Ludtke Lakeville South Nebraska Omaha 0 No
No No Joe Palodichuk Hill-Murray Wisconsin 0 No
No No Brandon Reller Maple Grove WHL 0 No
No No Jack Stark Chaska Yale 0 No
No No Cal Thomas Maple Grove Vermont 0 No

Former Gentry Galaxy standout Connor Kurth tallied 15 goals and 41 points for the Dubuque Fighting Saints of the USHL.

NTDP TRYOUT INVITEES - 2004

Invite NTDP Player High School/HT College Commitment World Juniors
Yes Yes Ryan Chesley Shattuck St. Mary's Minnesota No
Yes No Jimmy Clark Edina N/A No
Yes Yes Maddox Fleming Rochester Mayo Notre Dame No
Yes No Casy Laylin STMA N/A No
Yes Yes Cruz Lucius Blaine Minnesota No
Yes No Nick Pierre Hill-Murray Wisconsin No
Yes Yes Jimmy Snuggerud Chaska Minnesota No
Yes Yes Charlie Stramel Rosemount Wisconsin No
No No Trey Ausmus East Grand Forks North Dakota No
No No Dylan Godbout Hill-Murray Wisconsin No
No No Jaksen Panzer East Grand Forks North Dakota No
No No Zam Plante Hermantown N/A No

Charlie Stramel recorded six goals and 21 points in his lone season with the Rosemount varsity.

Recent MN YHH News

  • Something no one can take away

  • By Peter Odney 04/17/2024, 12:30pm CDT
  • Originally from Grand Rapids, Justin Kerr found his confidence - and Division I interest - first on the outskirts of St. Louis and then in the North American Hockey League.
  • Read More

  • 2024 AHCA Awards

  • By Peter Odney 04/12/2024, 2:15pm CDT
  • Bennett Morgan, Roger Godin, and Keith Hendrickson were honored in St. Paul by the American Hockey Coaches Association for their contributions to the sport.
  • Read More
View All |

Tag(s): Home  News  High School  Archive  Peter Odney  2020-2021 

Share