EXETER, N.H. — The River Rats Jamboree took place Monday and Tuesday at various rinks across southern New Hampshire. The Rinks at Exeter, Salem Icenter, Cyclones Arena, Tri-Town Arena and the IceDen were the primary locations of the games.
With many of the top ’05s in New England playing up at the 16-U division, the 15-U division is a little watered down in the region. That being said, there are still some very good players competing on the split-season and full-season teams at the level.
While there are some good local players who shined on Monday and Tuesday, I wanted to focus in on some players from outside the region who are new to prep hockey or one of the full-season academy teams.
Below is a look at a few players hailing from outside of New England who impressed in the 15-U division at the 2020 River Rats Jamboree:
Tanner Adams
Mount Saint Charles, 9/2/05, C, right shot, 5-10/155
NCAA commit: Providence
Adams played previously for the Long Island Royals and has been around New England rinks quite a bit. He’s got good speed and wins a lot of battles for loose pucks. He’s skilled and can find the back of the net as he did at least a couple of times over the course of the two days.
Griffin Erdman
Cape Cod Whalers, 2/10/05, LW, left shot, 5-8/155
Erdman was the best player in this division at the River Rats Jamboree. He shoots it hard, skated well and was heavy on pucks. In his game against the River Rats on Monday, he was the best player on the ice. Erdman, who played for Philadelphia Hockey Club 14-U last season, is expected to play prep hockey at Deerfield this winter.
Spencer Hirsch
Boston Hockey Academy, 1/7/05, LW, left shot, 6-3/180
Hirsch is a big power forward who can score goals. He’s got great size and can shoot a puck hard. His skating, especially his first two steps, needs to get better, but there’s potential upside. Hirsch played for South Florida Hockey Academy last season.
Teddy Merrill
Mount Saint Charles, 5/8/05, RW, right shot, 5-10/155
Merrill is a solid prospect out of Phoenix Junior Coyotes. He’s one of those players who gives an honest effort each shift. He competes and shoots it hard. His skating and hockey sense could both use some work, but I expect him to get better at both of those as he develops and learns the game at Mount Saint Charles.
Nico Pasquale
River Rats, 5/1/05, D, right shot, 5-7/135
Pasquale is a mobile, offensive-minded defenseman. He made one of the best passes I saw when he found a wide-open teammate at the back door from his position at the right point. There are a couple finer points for him to improve upon defensively, but he’s got a future as a puck-moving defenseman. Pasquale is heading to Berkshire School after playing for Team Illinois.
Chris Pelosi
Mount Saint Charles, 3/6/05, LW, left shot, 6-0/167
Pelosi is an intriguing power forward with an explosive stride. He can finish by driving the net and with his hard shot. He should be one of the top two point producers for Mount Saint Charles all season. Pelosi comes to Mount after playing for Philadelphia Hockey Club in 2019-20.
Zephyr Tangri
Mount Saint Charles, 1/12/05, D, left shot, 6-2/175
Tangri is a good-sized defender who can make life difficult for opposing forwards. He has length and a physical side to his game for defending. His skating has been an issue at times, but it looked to have taken a step in the right direction with his play here. He jumped into the rush and activated to push puck possession. Tangri played previously for the Los Angeles Junior Kings.
Joey Zheng
River Rats, 9/8/05, RW, right shot, 5-10/150
Zheng played in the region last winter at Phillips Andover and for the River Rats 14-U team. I’m including him here because he didn’t get a lot of ice time and he’s still somewhat of an under-the-radar prospect. That won’t be for long as several college coaches were talking about him after watching the games on LiveBarn. Zheng is an Illinois native originally.
