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GRAND FORKS The ultimate judge of college hockey recruiting is game results from October to April.
But if you want any indicators of how it's going, there's this: UND's staff, in 15 months under head coach Dane Jackson and general manager Bryn Chyzyk, have committed 12 NHL Draft-eligible players.
Ten have been selected.
And Jack Kernan is one who wasn't.
ADVERTISEMENT Jackson and Chyzyk were both in Buffalo, N.Y., this weekend watching their recruits fly off the board in a way a UND coaching staff has not seen since 1984.
On Friday, UND defenseman Keaton Verhoeff, incoming freshman defenseman signee Carson Carels and 2027 forward signee Liam Ruck were selected in the first round.
Then, five more committed UND recruits were selected between Rounds 2 and 5 on Saturday.
Markus Ruck went in the second round, No.
39 overall, to the Pittsburgh Penguins, joining his twin brother.
Incoming freshman defenseman Ethan MacKenzie went in the third round, No.
69 overall, to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Defenseman Brayden Klimpke, a 2027 recruit, went in the fourth round, No.
117 overall, to the Montreal Canadiens.
Incoming freshman forward Connor Davis went in the fifth round, No.
129, to the Vancouver Canucks.
And Cooper Williams, a 2027 forward recruit, went in the fifth round, No.
158, to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
"Obviously, it's exciting for our future to be able to get high-end, good players," Jackson said.
"We put a lot of value on blue-collar, hard-working, two-way players, but you need guys with special ability, who can be difference-makers.
We think a lot of those guys are coming." UND has only had three first-round picks in a single draft class once the 2005 class of Brian Lee, T.J.
Oshie, and Joe Finley.
ADVERTISEMENT Eight total picks hasn't been done since 1984, when nine UND players were selected.
"It speaks to the outstanding job Bryn Chyzyk has done, working hard, along with the rest of our staff, to identify guys, then recruit them to North Dakota," Jackson said.
Only Michigan State (nine) had more players/recruits selected.
Boston University, UMass and Penn State also had eight.
UND is slated to have 14 NHL Draft picks on its 2026-27 roster, the most since 2014-15, when it also had 14.
Now, of course, there's a process to get them all to campus.
Verhoeff, the No.
9 overall pick by the San Jose Sharks, has already spent a year on campus.
He tallied six goals and 20 points as a 17-year-old rookie, the second-youngest defenseman to play college hockey in the last 25 years.
ADVERTISEMENT "There's so much presence to that young man," Jackson said.
"He handles things with so much poise and presence.
The way he thinks about others and his maturity are really impressive.
It's not just today, but I was talking with him about how he handled the whole season.
It's not an easy 12 months to go through for him, but I'm so impressed with the way he handles everything and I'm so happy for him." Next up is Carels, the No.
6 overall pick by the Calgary Flames.
The left-handed defenseman from Manitoba spoke to Sportsnet 960 in Calgary about UND on Saturday.
"It's going to be a great step," Carels said.
"Obviously, it's a great league and it's a great place to be.
That's kind of why I chose it, just because all those guys are loving it down there.
It's going to be amazing.
PG (Prince George) to North Dakota is a good step to make, so I can make another step in the future.
That's kind of how it's looking lately, but we'll see how it all goes." Jackson considers Calgary a good destination for Carels.
UND has some ties with the organization.
The Flames used a first-round pick to draft Cole Reschny last summer.
Reschny then turned in a successful freshman season at UND, winning the National Collegiate Hockey Conference's Rookie of the Year honor.
"Carson has a lot of leadership and a strong two-way game," Jackson said.
"He's highly competitive.
NHL guys are drawn to his tough, solid, mature game.
There's just so much there.
You knew it was quite likely he was going to go high.
It's nice to have him go to a place like Calgary, where we have relationships.
They've been happy with the development they've seen and what we've got going on at North Dakota.
Hopefully, that's a positive as well." ADVERTISEMENT Two more picks are scheduled to come this fall MacKenzie, a defenseman, and Davis, a forward.
MacKenzie was a fast riser on NHL Draft boards after a terrific season with the Edmonton Oil Kings in the Western Hockey League.
"He took such a big step," Jackson said.
"He has shown he has lots of game both offensively and has a good, two-way defender.
He's a competitive guy.
They seem to be looking for big bodies in the NHL these days, but he has special compete and skating ability.
We think he's going to be a heck of a college hockey player and has a chance to be a good pro as well." Davis wasn't on many mock draft boards, but UND suspected he could go.
"We've had some scouts talk to us about him," Jackson said.
"We thought he was regarded higher than Central Scouting had him.
We see a big, strong, solid player with a lot of tools.
We thought he was a great fit for our program.
We weren't surprised to see him go a little higher than some of the rankings had him." Vancouver Canucks director of amateur scouting Todd Harvey said his team's scouts liked Davis, who had a breakout season with the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders in the United States Hockey League.
"He has a great path, going to North Dakota," Harvey said.
"They've been able to produce a lot of players out of that arena.
Our guys were excited and everything matched up analytically." ADVERTISEMENT The other four drafted players the Ruck twins, Klimpke and Williams are scheduled to come to campus in 2027.
Klimpke and Williams have not signed grant-in-aid packages yet, so school representatives cannot comment on them.
They will be teammates with the Saskatoon Blades in the WHL this season.
The Rucks, who were both selected by Pittsburgh, have signed.
They'll play for Medicine Hat in the WHL.
"The reality is we need to keep accruing talented people," Pittsburgh director of player personnel Wes Clarke said.
"I think we were able to accomplish that with both of them." Round 1, No.
6 Carson Carels, D, Calgary ('26) Round 1, No.
9 Keaton Verhoeff, D, San Jose Round 1, No.
22 Liam Ruck, F, Pittsburgh ('27) Round 2, No.
39 Markus Ruck, F, Pittsburgh ('27) Round 3, No.
69 Ethan MacKenzie, D, Toronto ('26) Round 4, No.
117 Brayden Klimpke, D, Montreal ('27) Round 5, No.
129 Connor Davis, F, Vancouver ('26) Round 5, No.
158 Cooper Williams, F, Toronto ('27).