The New York Times' hockey blog Slap Shot isn't exactly the most respected hockey source, but Jesus, it's still the New York freakin' Times. You'd think they would be better than this:

In last June’s N.H.L. entry draft, N.C.A.A. players comprised only 3.3 percent of all players selected, as opposed to 21.3 percent from the Ontario Hockey League alone. Ten years earlier, N.C.A.A. players made up 13.2 percent of the league’s draftees.

Bolded even! The truth is, 62 players who have played, or will play NCAA hockey were taken in last year's NHL Draft which comprised 29.3 percent of all players selected.

Ten years earlier, the rules regarding age for the draft were vastly different than they are today. Under the current rules, a player basically has to be a year ahead of his normal age group in school in order to be playing NCAA hockey during his first year eligible for the draft. There are a total of four players in the NCAA this year that haven't already been eligible for the NHL Draft, while there are dozens who have already been drafted. To imply there has been a drop for any other reason than not counting players already drafted prior to playing in the NCAA is absurd, especially when the number of former college players in the NHL--nearly 300 played at least a game in the NHL last, almost a third of all NHL players--has increased over that period of time.