Brothers Emil and Oscar Hemming have reclaimed their games in whirlwind seasons

MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota – It’s been a whirlwind year for the Hemming brothers. 

Emil Hemming, a Dallas Stars first-round pick in 2024, started his season with a strong showing at training camp, prompting the NHL club to have him start the season in the AHL with the Texas Stars. 

Texas, however, was woefully bad. The Stars lost five straight games to open the season. Hemming was treading water early in his AHL career, averaging 12 minutes and 29 seconds of ice time, according to InStat. With six shots on net in those contests, he failed to register a point. 

That’s when the Stars brass made the decision to send Hemming back to the Barrie Colts in the OHL.

“It wasn’t going that good for the team [in the AHL], and we sat down with the coaching staff and they said it’s better for me to go to the OHL and play big minutes,” Hemming said. “Be on the puck more, play my style of game, and score a lot of goals.”

It’s felt like the right move. In 17 OHL games, Hemming has 28 points: eight goals and 20 assists. His ice time has surged to 21:35 per game, he’s averaging six shot attempts per game, and, most importantly, is brimming with confidence. 

“He’s not far [from being ready for the NHL], but it’s what was best for his development,” said Rich Peverley, the Stars Director of Player Personnel. “We don’t want to rush guys. They need to have success at the level they are at and dominate that level before moving up … for him he went down, and I was at his first game, and he was dominant against Brantford, who’s the best team in the OHL. That’s what he needs to do.”

“You watch him play and he has NHL attributes,” Peverley continued. “He’s big, he can shoot a puck, he can make plays. I think it’s the consistency in the all-around game to continue to work on that and he’s been confident with that.” 

Hemming has carried that confidence into the 2026 World Junior Championship, where Hemming is a goal-per-game player through three games, including a late game-tying goal that forced overtime in a 2-1 loss to Czechia on Monday. 

Oscar Hemming, Emil’s younger brother, has actually had a more chaotic – and publicly dramatic – season. 

Oscar was originally planning on playing for the Kitchener Rangers this season in the OHL, but ran into a problem after his Finnish club, Kiekko-Espoo, said he didn’t have the right to terminate his contract. 

It created a stalemate where Oscar was unable to play with Kitchener. Because the OHL is affiliated with Hockey Canada, the Rangers would violate IIHF rules if Hemming played. Eventually, to get him games, a plan was drawn out for Hemming to go to the BCHL – which isn’t affiliated with Hockey Canada and wouldn’t require a release – to play for the Sherwood Park Crusaders. 

That led to more threats toward the younger Hemming, with the IIHF reportedly threatening to ban him for three years if he stepped onto the ice with the Crusaders. 

According to Kitchener general manager Mike McKenzie, it’s a battle over money. Junior teams get $35,000 (USD) in a development payout from NHL teams if their player is taken in the first round. If a player is selected in the second through seventh round, teams receive $20,000. 

While this was happening, Hemming began working on fast-tracking another option: completing the high school credits to be eligible to play in the NCAA, which doesn’t require any release by IIHF regulations. 

And that’s what happened. Oscar got his credits in order and enrolled at Boston College for the second semester. He made his NCAA debut on Sunday against Western Michigan, around the same time his brother was scoring twice for Finland against Latvia. 

While Oscar never got to play for Kitchener, the Hemming family was highly appreciative of how he was treated by the OHL team throughout the stalemate.

"I'm super grateful for the Kitchener Rangers, and the way the teammates have handled him and taken care of him. Like, I just want to hug all of them to say thank you for how they've treated him,” Emil Hemming said. “And of course, you're always mad at the team back home and what they're trying to do my brother. You know, that's all about money and what they are trying to do. And now he gets to play, and I couldn't be happier."

Before Sunday's game, Oscar last played at the Hlinka Gretzky Cup in August. So for someone who hadn’t been able to play a game in months, he looked pretty good. Good enough, in fact, to impress our scouts, including lead scout David St-Louis, who filed the following scouting report on Hemming's NCAA debut: 

Oscar Hemming already looks like he belongs at this level. In his first shift, he sped down the wing, outpaced defenders, skated behind the net, and established possession for his team with a low-to-high pass. Then, later in that period, he caught the puck in a runway of space, picked up even more speed, and split the defence to take on the goalie. He landed a couple of hits, knocked other opponents down on the boards, and made a few passes. Most of his other shifts were spent away from the puck, hunting space in the offensive zone to load up his shot. He didn't get passes, but if he continues to skate open, teammates will find him and he will hammer some pucks past the goalie. His release is NCAA-calibre for sure. Of course, having been off the ice for months, his motor slowed down as the game went on and he stopped being as effective as a rush and forechecking threat. His teammates did more of the heavy lifting, but that's not a concern at the moment. He will also have to get used to his team's system, as he was part of a couple of defensive breakdowns. They weren't directly his fault. He will also have to get used to his teammates' tendencies and the quicker defensive close-outs. He sent a couple of passes right to the other team. We need to see more from him, but some elements of his game deserve a top-15 ranking on our board.

That top-15 ranking would be music to his older brother’s ears. 

“He has a good shot and he’s a pretty good skater for a long guy,” Emil said of Oscar. “I hope he goes higher in the draft than me. You always want the best for your brother. Even if you know he’ll rub it in a bit. But I’m just so happy he’s back playing, and showing everyone what he can do after he wasn’t allowed to for a bit.”

And that’s all the Hemmings have asked for this season: a chance to play their game. Finally, as Emil said, they are both getting that chance now.