4. Matthew Wood (15th overall pick by Nashville Predators in 2023)
Matthew Wood has yet to play any games in the AHL for the Milwaukee Admirals. He played collegiately for the University of Minnesota in 2024-25 and then got a small taste of NHL action for six games while logging his first point in the NHL.
Wood is really sticking out in the preseason, including two assists in his most recent preseason outing against the Tampa Bay Lightning. He hasn't played in the last two preseason games, so I fully expect to see him in a prominent role in the preseason finale.
Before the two-assists game against Tampa Bay, Wood put up a goal and another two assists in a preseason win over the Panthers. So if you're keeping count, that's five points in just two preseason games.
They actually haven't played Wood all that much this preseason, which tells me they already feel pretty confident in him making the roster. And in the two games he has been in, he really left no doubt.
Wood's stock is soaring right now and honestly it would be a pretty big shock if he's not on a starting forward line against the Blue Jackets to open 2025-26. I like him somewhere in the bottom-six to begin and see how he takes off from there.