CNATI: Cincinnati OH Sports Journalism

The first few days after college hockey season ends are like the hours following an earthquake.

The end-of-the-season loss rocks everyone's world, but the aftershock - this is, players leaving early for the pros - can happen at any time and be just as devastating.

Or it could not happen at all. But at the very least it raises a cloud of uneasiness around everyone involved during that period.

Obviously, that's what Miami fans are hoping for this off-season, and there is a good chance their wishes may be granted.

Miami will keep most of its players from its 2009-10 team, with the exceptions of stud forward Jarod Palmer, fourth-liner Brandon Smith, and part-timers Gary Steffes and Dane Hetland. For the remaining players to know how good next season's team will be has to factor into each player's decision.

And since four days have elapsed since the end of the RedHawks' season, and no one has left yet has to be considered a good sign.

It's a complicated issue that is not easy to analyze, and it must be looked at from each individual's standpoint, and the track record of the NHL team owning the player's rights has a major impact.

For example, the Los Angeles Kings tried to get Marty Guerin to leave after his freshman season, and they succeeded in getting Jeff Zatkoff and Alec Martinez to leave a season early. Former Michigan defenseman Jack Johnson is another player that came out before graduating to join the Kings' organization.

The excellent returning team, coach Enrico Blasi and the team's commitment to The Brotherhood and the situations of each of the players themselves are reasons I believe no one will depart early this off-season.

Plus, only two players have gone pro early in recent years, and both were Kings draft picks. Miami currently does not have a Kings draftee on its roster. And neither has made the NHL yet, which may also factor into current players' decisions.

So here's a look at drafted and undrafted players who could depart:

D Will Weber - It's been rumored the Blue Jackets' draftee wants to stay, and he still needs to develop offensively before he can be an impact player in the pro ranks.

D Cameron Schilling - It's not much of a secret that NHL teams are salivating over the sophomore. Schilling has made a ton of progress since the beginning of his freshman year, and he may be the biggest flight risk on the team.

D Chris Wideman - Wideman is a Senators pick who still needs work in his own end before he can help a pro team. He still gets pushed around too easily by big forwards, and hopefully he'll benefit from Matt Cady's outstanding strength and conditioning program.

D Joe Hartman - Hartman is undrafted, and he's an older freshman who could help a pro team right away. One knock on him is a supposed lack of speed, which is absurd for anyone who watches him regularly. He should stay, but after next season fans will be biting their nails.

Fs Curtis McKenzie and Reilly Smith - Both Dallas draft picks were true freshman last season, and will be only 19 in 2010-11. Players rarely go to the AHL at that age.

McKenzie had a solid year, but he still needs to become a more disciplined player and consistent scorer. Smith looked great in the second half before fading late.

F Justin Vaive - Vaive, an Anaheim draftee and son of former NHL 50-goal scorer Rick Vaive, obviously has the pedigree to go pro, but his development has been slow.

He played very well in Miami's last few games, but the problem is he will not play on one of the RedHawks' top two lines because the team is so loaded. The senior-to-be could look elsewhere for more ice time if a degree is not a priority.

F Trent Vogelhuber - Vogelhuber was all but invisible offensively the first year and a half of his career, but something clicked in February and the Blue Jackets draft pick started scoring regularly. His stickhandling and hitting also improved drastically. He still needs work and his development will benefit from continued ice time at Miami.

Also, coach Blasi likes him and gives his shifts on the power play and penalty kill.

F Tommy Wingels - Wingels is obviously good enough to play in the pros at this point, but the Sharks draftee is captain of the team, and probably would not have accepted or been offered captaincy if he was a flight risk.

Fs Carter Camper, Pat Cannone and Andy Miele - All undersized, undrafted junior forwards who could undoubtedly land pro jobs but probably will not because of the quality of the team coming back this fall.

For whatever reason, none are as highly regarded as Schilling in terms of free agent interest, so it would be wise for all to finish school. All three have the talent to play in the AHL some day if they choose.

G Connor Knapp - A Sabres draft pick, Knapp was a true freshman coming in and will only be 20 during his junior season this fall.

Like Vaive, the biggest risk factor for Knapp is his playing time. Miami should continue rotating goalies, which cannot please Buffalo. Knapp has only played 43 games in two seasons, and in the pros he could play 60 or more in one year.

But Knapp is an outstanding student, the Sabres should have Ryan Miller in net for a long time and Knapp should continue to play in a winning atmosphere.