Ohio State men’s hockey saw four players drafted on Saturday in the 2026 NHL Draft.
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Will Ohio State Record-Breaker Bruce Thornton Be the Last of His Kind?
Indiana and Ohio State’s showdown Saturday has the makings of a seismic NCAA men’s tournament bubble clash, but there will also be a slice of individual history on the line.
Buckeyes guard Bruce Thornton is 11 points away from becoming the all-time leading scorer in the history of his program. That may not mean much outside of Columbus, but it is peculiar for three reasons—a) the fact that Thornton played all four years of his career at Ohio State, b) the fact that Thornton played only four years, and c) the fact that the record—held by guard Dennis Hopson, an All-American in 1987—has stood for around four decades.
All this is to say that Thornton may be one of the last of a dying breed: a four-year player at a big-name program who, through a combination of luck and skill, passes up NBA and transfer-portal riches to earn the title of a program’s all-time leading scorer.
How rare is Thornton’s achievement in modern times? Let’s unpack the question.
Here, in tabular form, we’ll list the 25 winningest programs in history (via College Basketball Reference), their all-time leading scorers, the most recent player to crack the top 10 on each school’s all-time list, and whether they were helped by extenuating circumstances (such as the COVID-19 pandemic) that provided an extra year of eligibility to boost their stats.
|
TEAM |
ALL-TIME LEADING SCORER |
MOST RECENT PLAYER TO REACH TOP 10 |
NOTES (IF APPLICABLE) |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Kansas |
Danny Manning (1985 to `88) |
Frank Mason (2014 to `17) |
|
|
Kentucky |
Dan Issel (1968 to `70) |
Keith Bogans (2000 to `03) |
|
|
North Carolina |
Tyler Hansbrough (2006 to `09) |
RJ Davis (2021 to `25) |
Played five full seasons due to COVID-19 pandemic |
|
Duke |
J.J. Redick (2003 to `06) |
Kyle Singler (2008 to `11) |
|
|
Syracuse |
Lawrence Moten (1992 to `95) |
Gerry McNamara (2003 to `06) |
|
|
UCLA |
Don MacLean (1989 to `92) |
Jaime Jaquez (2020 to `23) |
|
|
St. John’s |
Chris Mullin (1982 to `85) |
Shamorie Ponds (2017 to `19) |
|
|
Temple |
Mark Macon (1988 to `91) |
Quinton Rose (2017 to `20) |
|
|
Purdue |
Zach Edey (2021 to `24) |
Braden Smith (2023 to `26) |
|
|
Notre Dame |
Austin Carr (1969 to `71) |
Luke Harangody (2007 to `10) |
|
|
BYU |
Tyler Haws (2010 to `15) |
Yoeli Childs (2017 to `20) and TJ Haws (2017 to `20) |
|
|
Arizona |
Sean Elliott (1986 to `89) |
Hassan Adams (2003 to `06) |
|
|
Indiana |
Calbert Cheaney (1990 to `93) |
Trayce Jackson-Davis (2020 to `23) |
|
|
Louisville |
Darrell Griffith (1977 to `80) |
Russ Smith (2011 to `14) |
|
|
Illinois |
Deon Thomas (1991 to `94) |
Trent Frazier (2018 to `22) |
Played five full seasons due to COVID-19 pandemic |
|
Cincinnati |
Oscar Robertson (1958 to `60) |
Jarron Cumberland (2017 to `20) |
|
|
Texas |
Terrence Rencher (1992 to `95) |
Andrew Jones (2017 to `22) |
Played in parts of six seasons due to leukemia |
|
Villanova |
Eric Dixon (2021 to `25) |
Eric Dixon (2021 to `25) |
Played five full seasons due to COVID-19 pandemic |
|
Western Kentucky |
Courtney Lee (2005 to `08) and Jim McDaniels (1969 to `71) |
Taveion Hollingsworth (2018 to `21) |
|
|
Utah |
Keith Van Horn (1994 to `97) |
Branden Carlson (2020 to `24) |
Played five full seasons due to COVID-19 pandemic |
|
Ohio State |
Dennis Hopson (1984 to `87) |
Bruce Thornton (2023 to `26) |
|
|
Washington |
Chris Welp (1984 to `87) |
Noah Dickerson (2016 to `19) |
|
|
West Virginia |
Jerry West (1958 to `60) |
Jevon Carter (2015 to `18) |
|
|
Michigan State |
Shawn Respert (1991 to `95) |
Cassius Winston (2017 to `20) |
|
|
Penn |
AJ Brodeur (2017 to `20) |
Jordan Dingle (2020 to `23) |
2021 season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic; played 2024 season at St. John’s |
This table is a revealing one, and not just for its nostalgic value. A close reading reveals that there are only five players who have met the following four criteria: a) a career that took place entirely within the 2020s, b) a career that lasted only four seasons, c) a career spent entirely with one school, and d) a career that ended with the player in the top 10 of his school’s scoring list.
These players are: Edey, Jackson-Davis, Jaquez, Braden Smith and Thornton. Of that group, the only players to play their entire careers after the 2021 legalization of NIL earnings are Braden Smith and Thornton. Braden, far better known for his passing, is currently No. 10 on the Boilermakers’ scoring list. Thornton is about to become No. 1 on the Buckeyes’.
Thornton scored just three points in 24 minutes in his Ohio State debut—a 91–53 victory over Robert Morris back in Nov. 2022. However, his scoring gradually ticked upward, and he finished his freshman year a 10.6-point-per-game scorer. He averaged 15.7 in 2024, 17.7 in 2025, and 19.9 in 2026. His advanced metrics have similarly improved—he’s doubled his win shares per 40 minutes since his freshman season, and his 6.3 win shares lead the Big Ten.
Contrast this approach with Hopson’s—the Buckeye great Thornton is about to pass averaged five points per game his freshman year, only to level up and lead the Big Ten with 29 per game in `87. There’s more than one way to become a scoring champ.
“The biggest thing for me is a guy that was committed and dedicated to the Ohio State University for four years,” Hopson told Jack Berney of Spectrum News Tuesday. “With the way basketball and sports are now, kids don’t stay for four years. For a guy that’s never been to an NCAA tournament to stick it out and show his loyalty, I give him all the praise in the world.”
It’s tempting to view a statement like that cynically—the Buckeyes changed coaches smack in the middle of Thornton’s tenure, making a player exodus understandable.
That, however, makes Thornton a bit of a survivor. Everything Ohio State and the college basketball world have thrown at him have, for whatever reason, bounced off him. He’ll likely be rewarded with a trip to NCAA tournament, a hallowed Buckeye record, and membership in the last generation of college hoopers to aim directly at the “career” section of the school record book. He hasn’t missed.
More College Basketball on Sports Illustrated
Unlike the NFL and NBA Drafts where when a player is drafted they can no longer play at the college level, the NHL allows players to play college hockey and the team that drafts them retains their rights for a certain amount of time.
Then again, using the NBA Draft as an example to describe how college eligibility works might not be the smartest thing to do since we saw some strange rulings over the past year on players who were already drafted and wanted to return to college.
The Buckeyes finished the 2025-26 season with a 14-21-2 record, missing the NCAA Tournament after losing in the Big Ten Tournament Championship Game. All four of the players drafted on Saturday are incoming freshmen and are still scheduled to come to Columbus in the fall to don the scarlet and gray.
With these four additions to the roster, Ohio State could be in for a bounce-back season in 2026-27.
Ben Wilmott – 92nd overall pick – Las Vegas Golden Knights
The Las Vegas Golden Knights traded forward Pavel Dorofeyev on Friday to the New York Rangers for a number of draft picks. One of those picks Las Vegas received was the 92nd overall pick, which the Golden Knights used on Saturday to select Ben Wilmott, who will turn 20 years old in August.
The Seattle native split last season between the London Knights and Barrie Colts in the Ontario Hockey League. In 37 games with London, Wilmott scored 12 goals and dished out 22 assists in 37 games. Wilmott would then play in 27 regular season games for Barrie, netting 15 goals and 17 assists before adding 11 goals and 11 assists in 20 games in the playoffs.
What stood out about Wilmott during his time in the OHL is the work he does around the net. Wilmott is a bit of a late bloomer and needs to work on his speed and his play away from the puck. If Wilmott is able to build on what he did in the OHL last year, the rest of the Big Ten could be in trouble this season.
Evan Jardine – 121st overall pick – Columbus Blue Jackets
The most notable pick involving an Ohio State player on Saturday was the selection of Evan Jardine by the Columbus Blue Jackets with the 121st overall pick. The Blue Jackets traded down a couple times earlier in the fourth round, accumulating a few more picks before taking Jardine.
While Jardine was already committed to Ohio State, where he is playing his hockey in a few years could just be a few miles down the road from campus.
Jardine has played in the USHL with the Youngstown Phantoms since 2023-24. Last year Jardine not only scored 27 goals and recorded 34 assists, he showed a bit of a mean streak, racking up 70 penalty minutes in 53 games. Much like Wilmott, Jardine has the ability to get under the skin of his opponents.
Jardine has a great mix of skill and grit, which could lead to him being a fan favorite in Columbus for both the Buckeyes and the Blue Jackets.
Tobias Tvrznik – 126th overall pick – Colorado Avalanche
This season we saw Jakub Dobeš take over as the starting goaltender in Montreal, helping the Canadiens reach the Eastern Conference Finals before they were eventually eliminated by the Carolina Hurricanes, who went on to win the Stanley Cup.
Tobias Tvrznik hopes to find success in the NHL in the future after he was drafted by the Colorado Avalanche on Saturday in the fourth round.
The Czechia product will have a few years before he reaches the NHL, as he won’t even turn 19 until the end of July. Before committing to Ohio State, Tvrznik appeared in 39 games for the Wenatchee Wild of the Western Hockey League, posting a 3.10 goals against average and .913 save percentage.
While the goals against average is a little high, Tvrznik’s save percentage is impressive. With a pretty crowded pipeline at goalie, Tvrznik can afford to spend some time in Columbus to develop.
Will Tomko – 204th overall pick – Seattle Kraken
The final future Buckeye selected on Saturday was Will Tomko, who was drafted by the Seattle Kraken in the seventh round with the 204th overall pick.
There are a lot of similarities between Tomko and Evan Jardine, who was taken in the fourth round by Columbus. Tomko and Jardine are similar in size, standing at six-feet tall and weighing about 185 pounds.
In 59 games with the Sioux City Musketeers, Tomko scored 24 goals and handed out 36 assists. Tomko also spent a lot time in the penalty box, racking up 115 minutes in the sin bin last season. If his play with Sioux City is any indication of what he brings to the table, expect to see Tomko all over the ice during his time as a Buckeye.
There are several sign posts on the way to the start of the college football season and the ability to see Ohio State on the banks of the Olentangy again, and one of them is when single-game tickets go on sale. In that case, you rejoice a little because the ability to purchase tickets to a game of your choice is now available.
Ohio State welcomes Ball State, Kent State, Illinois, Maryland, Oregon, Northwestern, and Michigan to Ohio Stadium this year, and you can now try to score tickets by going to the Ohio State football section of Ticketmaster and selecting the game you want to attend.
A quick search shows that tickets are still available for any home date if you are willing to buy resale tickets in most cases, though “The Game” against the Wolverines is much steeper in price than others. There’s a good bet that those tickets will disappear along with others, or become more expensive as the days go by, so if you were planning on trying to make that a day to remember, you might want to jump on things quickly.
The link to Ticketmaster also has the links to away games if that’s something you are interested in. The Buckeyes will travel to play at Texas, Iowa, Indiana, USC, and Nebraska. Likewise, some are resale tickets and will set you back much more significantly, but there are tickets available if you want to spend the money.
Ohio State has a daunting schedule this year both at home and with away games and it’s almost a sure bet that some of these games will be hard-fought fourth quarter affairs.
Contact/Follow us @BuckeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes, and opinion. Follow Phil Harrison on X.
Having lived with Donald Trump’s infamous and baseless insult against them — “they’re eating the dogs … they’re eating the cats” — Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, are bracing for a far bigger injury.
More than 10,000 Haitians across Ohio and hundreds of thousands more around the country who had Temporary Protected Status now face the imminent prospect of deportation. The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the Trump administration can halt those legal protections for Haitians and Syrians and resume forcing them to leave.
Justice Samuel Alito’s opinion for the court’s Republican-appointed majority curbed the power of courts to review government decisions to terminate protections under the TPS program.
“They side with him on everything that he says or everything that he does, which means there is no check and balance,” said Viles Dorsainvil, a Haitian TPS holder and executive director of the Haitian Support Center in Springfield, a town Trump catapulted into a maelstrom of misinformation about immigrants when he was running to retake the White House in 2024.
“The president has that freeway in front of him to do whatever he wants to do, unfortunately, and most of the time to a minority group of people,” added Dorsainvil, who has lived in the United States since 2020.
In a country rife with political and economic instability, Haitians returning from the U.S. are in danger of being killed or kidnapped, said Dorsainvil’s colleague at the Haitian Support Center, Rose Thamar Joseph.
“There is this perception in Haiti that if you are living here in the United States, you have money, so you are living your good life, so sending people back to Haiti will put them in real danger,” Joseph said.
Staying in the U.S. without legal status creates a different crisis.
“We received calls this morning from people saying that, unfortunately, starting on July 1, they won’t be able to go to work anymore,” Joseph said Friday.
Joseph predicted that families would be separated during the deportation process.
“We know that there will be separation,” she said. “A lot of those parents with TPS … they have kids who were born in the United States, so we know that it will happen, not for everybody, not for all the families, but it will happen,” she said.
The oncoming nightmare for the Haitian community in Springfield was, in many ways, predictable after Trump notoriously targeted them on the debate stage against then-Vice President Kamala Harris in the fall of 2024.
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