The college hockey recruiting season is a 12-months-a-year endeavor for the coaches of the 60 Division I men’s hockey programs.
While the Boston Bruins continue their quest for the Stanley Cup, the rest of the area teams have shut down for the off-season. However, there’s no shortage of showcases and festivals to occupy the time for college hockey coaches.
That, along with programs needing to fill voids to replace early departures, has led to several area players as well as local programs making moves on the recruiting trail over the last couple of weeks.
The most notable local recruit to commit to a college since our last update on May 6 is Hingham, Mass., native Jake Higgins. After a stellar four-year varsity career for Tony Messina at Hingham High School, Higgins has verbally committed to play college hockey in Atlantic Hockey for Holy Cross.
The right-shot, 2001-born defenseman notched seven goals and added 22 assists as the perennially strong Harbormen advanced to the Super 8. Prior to matriculating to Holy Cross, Higgins will play a post-grad season at Deerfield.
Kent rising senior Aidan Cobb of Ridgefield, Conn. committed to Cornell after a breakout season with the the Lions. He was on the top line as the team won the NEPSAC Large School Championship with a victory over Cushing in the final. Cobb had 11 goals and 13 assists in 27 games for coach Dale Reinhardt’s team.
Mike Souza and New Hampshire picked up a local commit in the form of big, ’02, left-shot defenseman Alex Gagne. The 6-foot-3, Bedford, N.H., native played the past three seasons with the New Hampshire Avalanche. His seven goals and 42 assists in 49 games this past season were good for a point per game clip from the blue line. A USHL Phase II Draft selection of the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders, Gagne will head to Tabor Academy for the 2019-20 season.
Sacred Heart added former Springfield Cathedral star and Northeastern commit Danny Petrick. The ’99 defenseman has played in 99 USHL games between the Madison Capitols, his current team, the Omaha Lancers and Des Moines Buccaneers. In addition, he played 85 games in the NAHL with the Austin Bruins. Suffice to say, it’s a nice pickup for CJ Marottolo and his staff.
West Kingston, R.I., native Chris Konin, who spent two seasons at Kimball Union prior to his family moving to Minnesota, committed to Army. The ’00 forward had 17 goals and 22 helpers in 64 games with the NAHL’s Minnesota Magicians this past winter.
Boston College added a couple of players to their pipeline, one for next season and one for the season after. Mitch Andres, a ’98 left-shot defenseman from Brainerd, Minn., will be joining the Eagles for the 2019-20 season after playing in the BCHL the past two seasons. He had four goals and 18 assists in 70 combined games between the Vernon Vipers and Chilliwack Chiefs during the 2018-19 regular season and playoffs. Prior to his time north of the border, Andres played for Brainerd High School.
Jerry York and his staff also kept an eye on the future with a commitment from ’01 right-shot defenseman Jack Agnew of St. Andrew’s College. Agnew, hailing from Oakville, Ontario, is a smooth, puck-moving defender who makes plays. He was previously committed to St. Lawrence.
Providence has added two players to its roster for the 2019-20 season following a myriad of off-season departures, some expected and some unexpected.
After potting 13 goals and adding nine helpers for the Lincoln Stars in his second USHL season, ‘99 Caleb Rule committed to the Friars for the upcoming season. The Lansing, Mich., native and Shattuck St. Mary’s product is a smart, high-compete forward who will likely vie for a bottom-six role.
’00 left-shot center Jamie Engelbert of Whitby, Ontario also pledged to the Friars after solid second season with the Cobourg Cougars in the OJHL. He found the back of the net 20 times and added 24 assists in 47 games.
It’s been a quiet commit for a while, but news finally began to leak last week that Shattuck St. Mary’s left-shot center Artem Shlaine had committed to Boston University. The Moscow, Russia, native who spent some of his youth in Florida is a big get for the Terriers. He posted 34 goals and 56 assists in 56 games for the Faribault, Minn., prep school this past winter. Shlaine will play for the USHL’s Sioux Falls Stampede this upcoming season.
Finally, Maine added two recruits on Tuesday after losing several players to pro hockey this off-season. ’99 right-shot defenseman Perry Winfree of Cary, N.C., committed to the Black Bears after finishing out the season with the Jersey Hitmen in the USPHL NCDC. Prior to that, he played in the BCHL. Winfree has good size and upside, but his compete has always been an area of concern holding him back.
Jersey Hitmen teammate Remy Parker, a ’98 forward from Montclair, N.J., also committed to the Black Bears. The Albany Academy alum had 18 goals and 35 assists in 50 games during his second USPHL NCDC season playing for Toby Harris.
