With graduate transfers, the one-time transfer waiver, and the fifth year of eligibility due to coronavirus, the 2021-22 freshmen classes in Hockey East were difficult to decipher.
Many programs around the league, including Boston College and UMass, went heavy on grad transfers. Taking players with four years of college experience under their belts was a more concrete and definitive way to bring in talent that could impact the team in a positive way right from the start.
While some potential freshmen were pushed off a year, there are still quite a few marquee rookies in Hockey East. It is an interesting year in that Boston College didn’t bring in the blue-chippers that fans around the league have become accustomed to seeing.
It’s fascinating to look into all the decommits who will have success around the league this winter. A couple of players on my Preseason Hockey East All-Rookie Team had previously been committed to another school in the league.
While the Eagles didn’t have the recruiting class the program typically does, a couple of other programs stepped up. Vermont, under second-year head coach Todd Woodcroft, had its best recruiting class in quite a few years. UMass, Northeastern, Boston University and Providence also had stellar classes. UConn didn’t have a lot of quantity, but it made up for it with the quality of a couple of newcomers. Merrimack and New Hampshire also have some notable rookies who will make an impact over the coming years in North Andover and Durham, respectively.
Preseason All-Rookie Team
Tyler Boucher
Boston University, 1/16/03, RW, right shot, 6-1/205
NHL: Ottawa Senators (2021, 1st round, #10 overall)
Boucher’s draft stock shot up big time last season. I’ve always liked the Haddonfield, N.J., native for his physical play. He forechecks hard and with a purpose. He’ll deliver some big hits to disrupt the opposition’s breakout. Boucher, an NTDP alum, isn’t all about being a heavy hitter. He also possesses a strong north-south game where he’ll drive the net, protect pucks, and get scoring chances.
Andrei Buyalsky
Vermont, 8/18/00, C, left shot, 6-3/174
NHL: Colorado Avalanche (2021, 3rd round, #92 overall)
Buyalsky is the top freshman on a UVM roster that is much improved. The Kazakhstan native put up close to a point per game with Dubuque in the USHL last season, his first on this continent. The tall, playmaking center has age and experience on his side, as well as skill and vision. With Woodcroft’s staff looking to infuse talent into the roster, Buyalsky should get plenty of opportunities to carry the offense.
Matt Choupani
Northeastern, 1/2/02, C/RW, right shot, 5-11/185
I went a little off the board with this selection, but I like Choupani’s skill and think he could produce right away. He’ll have a lot of competition on the depth chart, but the Montreal, native put together two great seasons in Des Moines, including scoring 43 points in 48 USHL games in 2020-21. Choupani is skilled, crafty and will make plays for Jerry Keefe’s Huskies. Two fellow NU freshmen, Justin Hryckowian and Jack Hughes, and UMass’ Lucas Mercuri were the other three players I considered in this spot.
Guillaume Richard
Providence, 2/10/03, D, left shot, 6-2/176
NHL: Columbus Blue Jackets (2021, 4th round, #101 overall)
Richard is an elite, two-way defenseman who will be one of the best rookie blueliners in the country in 2021-22. The Quebec City, Quebec, native spent one season at Mount Saint Charles before moving onto the USHL’s Tri-City Storm. Richard has represented his country in international events, including the U18 World Championship. Richard is a great skater who has the hockey sense to make plays with the puck on his stick while defending well away from it. He’s rangy, gaps well, and uses his stick to defend.
Ryan Ufko
UMass, 5/7/03, D, right shot, 5-10/181
NHL: Nashville Predators (2021, 4th round, #115 overall)
Ufko isn’t the greatest skater in this class, but his hockey sense more than makes up for it. He’s akin to former Harvard standout Adam Fox, who is currently with the New York Rangers. Ufko’s vision allows him to make a great first pass, push the pace in transition, and make smart decisions with the puck in the attacking zone. He’ll take some time to adjust to the pace of Division 1 hockey, but he’s been prepared well by two seasons with Chicago in the USHL. He narrowly beat out BC’s Aidan Hreschuk and BU’s Braden Doyle for this spot.
Luke Pavicich
UMass, 3/21/02, G, catches left, 6-3/174
I wrestled with this selection for a while. I could have gone with Merrimack’s Hugo Ollas or UConn’s Logan Terness. I eventually settled on Pavicich, due to a couple of factors. I think he’ll get eased in slowly with veteran Matt Murray back for the Minutemen. Pavicich is a good goaltender who I’ve seen for a while with the Buffalo Junior Sabres. He put up impressive numbers in the NAHL last season for Kenai River. The NAHL has proven to be a solid training ground for goalies, including former UMass Lowell star Connor Hellebuyck. The big goaltender with experience on the international stage will have a solid supporting cast in front of him and put up solid numbers.
Team by team analysis
The Eagles lost a number of underclassmen early and opted to go the route of graduate transfers to replace them for the short term. While this isn’t a star-studded group that Jerry York and his staff usually bring to The Heights, there are three notable freshmen. Aidan Hreschuk, a third-round pick of the Carolina Hurricanes, is a two-way defenseman who has long been thought of as one of the top defensemen in the '03 birth year. Air Force decommit Michael Posma will bring a lot of energy and grit to the lineup. The Kent School alum spent last year in the USHL with Omaha. Notre Dame decommit Matt Argentina will bring two years of experience with the USHL’s Waterloo Black Hawks. He’s a hard-nosed winger who brings a physical element.
Boucher obviously highlights this freshman class, but there are quite a few other intriguing names that will come out of the home tunnel at Agganis Arena this winter. Braden Doyle (Lynnfield, Mass.) is a skilled offensive defenseman who played prep at Lawrence Academy. The Los Angeles Kings draft pick has spent the last two years honing his game in the USHL with the Dubuque Fighting Saints. NTDP alum and Bruins draft pick Ty Gallagher decommitted from Notre Dame and will add a good shot to a blue line already oozing with offensive talent.
North Andover, Mass., native Brian Carrabes learned some grit to go along with his speed and skill in two years in the USHL with Sioux City and Sioux Falls. He skated at St. John’s Prep and Kimball Union. Thayer alum Tristan Amonte is a familiar name to local hockey fans. He’ll join his brother Ty in following in the footsteps of their dad, Tony.
UConn is no stranger to welcoming other programs’ decommits. Mike Cavanaugh and his staff have succeeded over the years in doing so, including with Max Letunov and Artem Shlaine. This year, UConn’s top two recruits are decommits from Northeastern. Power forward Chase Bradley, a seventh-round pick of the Detroit Red Wings, is a goal scorer who plays a north-south game. North Attleboro, Mass., native Sasha Teleguine is a skilled, slick-skating forward who possesses the ability to change the tune of a game with a highlight reel offensive play. Teleguine spent 2020-21 in the BCHL after skating for Thayer Academy and the Junior Eagles.
Center Nolan Renwick is one of just three rookies that Ben Barr and his staff have brought to Orono for the 2021-22 season. The Milestone, Saskatchewan, native played the past two seasons for the Omaha Lancers. He’s a smart, 200-foot player who took a big jump from his first to second season in the USHL. After scoring just 10 points in his rookie season in the league, he notched 22 goals and 19 assists for 41 points in 2020-21.
With two freshmen on my preseason All-Rookie Team, UMass is certainly doing well on the recruiting trail. Greg Carvel and his staff do a good job of bringing in some high-end players while also insisting on most of them to get seasoned in the USHL. Center Ryan Lautenbach brings 173 games of junior hockey experience, including 103 in the USHL with Omaha. Another center, Lucas Mercuri, who prepped at Salisbury, will bring his high-end hockey sense to the roster. The 2020 Carolina Hurricanes pick will have to catch up with the pace, but he’ll make plays and be heavy on pucks. Yet another center Taylor Makar, the younger brother of former Hobey winner and Colorado Avalanche star Cale, comes to the Minutemen from Brooks Bandits in the AJHL. The other big-time addition is Shattuck-St. Mary’s alum Scott Morrow, a defenseman from Darien, Conn. A second-round pick of the Carolina Hurricanes, Morrow is an immense offensive talent who can run a power play and jump into the rush.
UMass Lowell
Under Norm Bazin, the River Hawks have never prided themselves on bringing in blue-chippers. It’s always been about building a team and having players skate to their identity. A pair of junior hockey age-outs will bolster the blue line with Isac Jonsson and Gabe Blanchard coming in from Tri-City and Sioux City, respectively. Jonsson and Blanchard both have some skill, but Blanchard’s physical presence will certainly be welcomed by the UML faithful. Sacred Heart decommit Matt Crasa is a skilled goal scorer out of Fargo in the USHL and Owen Cole will bring his playmaking abilities from Brooks in the AJHL.
This is an intriguing freshman class at Merrimack. With a lot less resources than the rest of the league, Merrimack’s staff has brought in some solid players. Two St. Andrew’s alums, Mark Hillier and Devlin O’Brien, are nice additions from north of the border. Hillier is a cerebral, smart center while O’Brien has a high motor, keeps his feet moving, and produces by outworking opponents. Dexter Southfield alum Matt Copponi could have benefited from a year of junior, but he’ll try his hand at being a true freshman. The Mansfield, Mass., native is well known for his compete level, but his skating and skill are underrated. Perhaps the most important part of the freshman class is 6-foot-8 goaltender Hugo Ollas. If he can come in and play well right away, it could shore up the Warriors’ biggest weakness.
Mike Souza and his staff continue their quest to bring the Wildcats back to the promised land. This class doesn’t have a true game-changer, but there are some good players who can help New Hampshire for the next few years. Forwards Robert Cronin and Liam Devlin both took huge jumps in their second seasons in the USHL. Cronin, from Plymouth, Mass., put up over a point per game with Dubuque. Bedford, N.H., native Alex Gagne is a draft pick of Tampa Bay Lightning. Colton Huard is a junior hockey veteran with dual citizenship. One sleeper is Will Margel, a skilled forward out of South Kent, who had a big year in the NAHL with Johnstown after some bumps along the way in the USHL.
Northeastern has been doing a great job on the recruiting trail for a few years now, thanks to new head coach Jerry Keefe, who was promoted this summer. There is one common theme in this class and that is lineage. Jack Hughes (Westwood, Mass.) will be watched closely by NHL scouts as the skilled, playmaking forward out of St. Sebastian’s and the NTDP is in his first year of draft eligibility. Jack’s older brother, Riley, is a junior and New York Rangers pick. Keefe went back to his Lac-St. Louis connection to find Choupani and Justin Hryckowian, both of whom produced in the USHL. Ryan St. Louis, the son of NHL legend Marty St. Louis, is a freshman from the NTDP. Cam Gaudette is the younger brother of former Hobey winner Adam Gaudette while Chase McInnis’ dad is BC alum and former NHL forward Marty McInnis.
Richard is the crown jewel of the Providence freshman class, but there are a couple of other notable players. Mostly, Woburn, Mass., native and Bruins draft pick Riley Duran will bring his hard, north-south game from the USHL’s Youngstown Phantoms. His game picked up exponentially down the stretch during his first season of junior hockey. Michael Citara and Cody Monds bring skill and creativity from the USHL. Citara, a Mount Saint Charles alum, and Monds, a Northwood School product, aren’t the typical PC commits, but they will help ignite the offense. Kimball Union product and Edmonton Oilers prospect Tomas Mazura is the wildcard. He has the tools to be an impact player if Leaman and the coaching staff can get the most out of it.
Woodcroft and his staff have focused on recruiting internationally, specifically Europe. It has helped the Catamounts upgrade their talent considerably. In addition to Buyalsky, UVM has a couple of other European freshmen who have been selected by NHL teams. German Luca Munzenberger is a third-round pick of the Edmonton Oilers while Russian Timofei Spitserov, who prepped at Culver Military Academy, is a seventh-round selection of the San Jose Sharks.
Swede Isak Walther was plucked off the board in the sixth round of the 2019 draft by the Nashville Predators. Three other newcomers from the other side of the pond round out the incoming class to Burlington.
