UNH Recruits Update: Oct-29-2015

2016 Commit Patrick Grasso
Des Moines Buccaneers

Player Spotlight - Patrick Grasso

Patrick Grasso (DOB: 5-29-1996) was just 16 years old when he committed to UNH back in August, 2012. At the time, he was also being recruited by Harvard, Yale, Princeton, RPI, Colorado College, St. Cloud State, Minnesota State, and Penn State. In his first two full seasons with the Des Moines Buccaneers in the USHL, Grasso scored 9 goals each season. Now, just 10 games into the 2015-16 season, he already has 6 goals and is tied for 2nd in USHL goal-scoring.

Patrick Grasso's style of play is similar to UNH's leading scorer Tyler Kelleher. Both are right-shot forwards who are also under-sized - Grasso is 5'7", 152 lbs. and Kelleher is 5'6", 160 lbs. Kelleher played center in his two seasons with the US National Team Development Program then shifted to right wing when he came to UNH. Grasso played center in his first two seasons with the Buccaneers but has moved to right wing this season. As this video of Grasso's 6th goal of the season shows, he - like Kelleher - is quick and readily creates distance against opposing skaters in tight spaces.



Grasso is a native of Ankeny, Iowa, just 12 miles from Des Moines. As the play-by-play announcer for the Buccaneers says, he is considered a "hometown hero". Grasso is also the team's captain. At this juncture, the Bucs are 7 points behind the Lincoln Stars who are in first place in the USHL's Western Conference.

NOTE
The statistics for the recruits, presented in the following table, are categorized by the projected year they will enroll in UNH. For example, the "2016 Recruits" are projected to begin playing for UNH in the Fall of 2016. I have based these projections on a number of factors including:
~ The year the recruit and UNH coaches originally targeted for enrollment in UNH.
~ How old the recruit would be upon admission.
~ Number of years in junior hockey prior to admission.
~ The recruit's performance in recent seasons as well as injuries.
~ Anticipated date of high school graduation.
~ Number of UNH players leaving the team at the end of the previous season and the position they played.

Player	Team	League	GP	Goals	Asst	Pts	PIM
2016 Recruits
Liam Blackburn  (F)	West Kelowna Warriors	BCHL	16	10	11	21	18
Justin Fregona  (F)	Langley Rivermen	BCHL	15	11	5	16	13
Patrick Grasso  (F)	Des Moines Bucs	USHL	10	6	1	7	2
Charlie Kelleher  (F)	Junior Bruins	USPHL	8	4	7	11	6
Nick Nonis  (D)	Powell River Kings	BCHL	17	1	2	3	18
Brendan van Riemsdyk   (F)	Islanders Hockey Club	USPHL	13	7	6	13	4
Mike Robinson  (G)	Junior Bruins	USPHL	-	-	-	-	-
2016 or '17 Recruits
Joe Cipollone  (F)	Tri-City Storm	USHL	1	0	0	0	0
	Vernon Vipers	BCHL	12	4	3	7	2
Liam Darcy  (D)	Islanders Hockey Club	USPHL	6	0	2	2	0
Aaron O'Neill  (F)	Tri-City Storm	USHL	-	-	-	-	-
2017 or '18 Recruits
Eric Esposito  (F)	Youngstown Phantoms	USHL	6	0	1	1	12
Jason O'Neill  (F)	Langley Rivermen	BCHL	7	1	2	3	0

News & Notes

United States Hockey League:

~ 2016 or '17 UNH Commit Aaron O'Neill is likely to be in the Tri-City Storms' lineup this weekend. O'Neill was on the 45-day injured reserve list with a lower body injury at the beginning of the season. In his first two seasons in the USHL, O'Neill played in 32 and 41 games respectively with the Green Bay Gamblers.

British Columbia Hockey League:

~ Last night, 2016 UNH Commit Nick Nonis scored his first goal of the BCHL season. The Powell River Kings defenseman posted a goal and 6 assists in 56 games last season. Here's a video of Nonis' goal:



~ 2016 UNH Commit Liam Blackburn scored the game-tying goal in each of the West Kelowna Warriors' victories last week. Blackburn has scored at least one point in his last 12 games and has netted 5 goals in his last 4 games. He is currently tied for 5th in BCHL goal-scoring with 10 goals.

UNH Captain's Corner: Roller Coaster Weekend at UMass & Union

UNH Captain Collin MacDonald

The first road trip of the 2015-16 season was a combination adventure ride, horror show, and victory lap all rolled into one. On Friday night, UNH took the ice at the Mullins Center on the campus of the University of Masschusetts Amherst for the first Hockey East matchup of the season. The game turned out to be two distinct contests. Over the first two periods, UNH built up a 6-1 lead on the strength of a hat trick by senior Alternate Captain Dan Correale, Captain Collin MacDonald's first goal of the season, Andrew Poturalski's second goal of the season, and Windham, New Hampshire native Chris Miller's goal in his first NCAA game.

Even when UMass scored their second goal with 3 and 1/2 minutes left in the second period, UNH largely controlled the game. Then, UMass stormed back with 4 unanswered goals in the third period. UNH held on to salvage a tie in the overtime period.

The next day, UNH headed to Schenectady, New York for it's third game of the season against an Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference opponent. Union College, the 2014 National Champion, was ranked 18th in the country by USCHO. During its championship season, Union defeated UNH twice in Durham and UNH lost at Union last season. This time around, UNH left town with a convincing 5-2 win over the Dutchmen.

Sophomore goalie Adam Clark got his first start this season and made 34 saves en route to the victory. Last season, Clark started in net for the first 17 games. When Danny Tirone enrolled for the second semester, he started in the final 14 games

Although Union jumped out to a 1-0 lead then a 2-1 advantage, UNH tied it up both times on goals by Alternate Captains Dan Correale and Maxim Gaudreault.

Tyler Kelleher scored the game-winning goal in the second period and added 2 assists. Linemate Andrew Poturalski assisted on Kelleher's game-winner then scored a critical power play goal at the beginning of the third period. Sophomore defenseman Richard Boyd capped off the UNH scoring with an empty-net goal near the end of the game. It was Boyd's first NCAA goal.

Yesterday, Hockey East announced that Dan Correale was named the Warriors Hockey Player of the Week. Correale scored 4 goals and 1 assist over the weekend and currently leads the team in goal scoring with 5 goals in 5 games.

Here's my interview with UNH Captain Collin MacDonald on the team's 3-point weekend:

Mike Lowry ("C-H-C"): Friday night at UMass Amherst, the team built up a 5-goal lead with 5 minutes left in the second period. Then, the Minutemen scored 5 unanswered goals to tie the game with less than 3 minutes remaining in regulation. The game ended in an overtime tie. Were there things that UNH stopped doing well during the UMass comeback? Were there aspects of the game that UMass improved on as they were making their comeback?

Collin MacDonald: Looking back on it, the goal that made it 6-2 at the end of the second period was an underrated one for them. I believe that gave UMass a little life in the locker room. We shot ourselves in the foot with a couple too many men on the ice penalties, and we also didn’t capitalize on our power play opportunities in the third. They brought the building to life in their favor obviously, and used it to their advantage. It was disappointing to us, and almost felt more like a loss honestly.



Mike Lowry: Late in regulation, UNH was penalized on two separate occasions for too many men on the ice. UMass's final two goals were scored on the ensuing power plays. In general, what do players and/or coaches need to do to avoid too many men on the ice penalties?

Collin MacDonald: It’s just all about focus and communication, knowing who your changing for is important. Those penalties happen from time to time, but we want to avoid them especially toward the end of the game like that. It’s definitely something we’ll learn from.



Lowry: After the disappointing outcome on Friday night, the team drove further west to Schenectady, NY for a Saturday night game against Union College. When there is such a brief turnaround between two games, is it best to forget about what happened the night before and focus on the next opponent or does the team benefit from reviewing what went wrong the night before?

MacDonald: I think coach does a good job at that, in the morning he’ll recognize things we could’ve done better for sure. But he knows we have to focus on the game at hand, and we’ll just move on for the time being and direct all our attention to how we’re going to be successful that night.



Lowry: UNH convincingly defeated 18th-ranked Union 5-2. What team and individual efforts stood out as positives in your mind?

MacDonald: As a team, we did the little things right. Union played a “in your face” type of game, so we chipped pucks behind them and tried to use the ice available to us. We blocked shots as a group, took hits to make plays, it was great to see. Individually, I can’t recognize Clarky’s performance enough, he’s a competitor and it showed all night. Cors, Pots, and Kells had another big game offensively, but I don’t want to overlook how they helped us defensively as well. Nothing fires up a team more than when you see those guys blocking shots, and winning battles like they did.



Lowry: 5'11" Danny Tirone and 6'5" Adam Clark have different styles of goal-tending. Do your defensemen and centers make any adjustments in how they play defense in front of these two different goalies?

MacDonald: We recognize that they play two different styles, but at the end of the day the goal is to keep the puck out of the net. That’s means strong positional play in the D-zone, blocking shots, and clearing pucks are all a must. Both goalies are talented and hardworking, we know they’re going to give it 100% so we just try to do the same for them.

Character Win for UNH, Downs Union 5-2

Sophomore Andrew Poturalski 1 Goal, 1 Assist

Junior Tyler Kelleher GWG Goal, 2 Assists

After surrendering a 5 goal lead last night at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, UNH drove out to Schenectady, New York and beat the 2014 National Champion Union College. Sophomore goalie Adam Clark made 34 saves en route to his first win of the season.

Both of UNH's alternate captains scored important game-tying goals. Dan Correale scored his 5th goal (team-leading) of the season midway through the first period to tie the game at 1-1. Fellow alternate captain Maxim Gaudreault scored an unassisted goal at the tail end of a Union power play early in the second period. That tied the game at 2-2. Gaudreault is the team's second-leading goal scorer with 4 goals in 5 games.

Junior winger Tyler Kelleher scored the game-winning goal in the second period and added 2 assists. Linemate Andrew Poturalski assisted on Kelleher's game-winner then scored a critical power play goal at the beginning of the third period. Sophomore defenseman Richard Boyd capped off the UNH scoring with an empty-net goal near the end of the game. It was Boyd's first NCAA goal.

The Wildcats improved their overall record to 2-2-1. They return to action next Saturday night at Merrimack College.















Box Score

UNH Recruits Update: Oct-23-2015

2016 Commit Liam Blackburn West Kelowna Warriors

2016 Commit Justin Fregona Langley Rivermen

Player Spotlight - Liam Blackburn

Liam Blackburn, who has already signed a National Letter of Intent to come to UNH next fall, continues to post big numbers for the West Kelowna Warriors. In three games last week, Blackburn scored 3 goals and 4 assists. He has scored at least one point per game in his last 10 games and is currently tied for 7th in BCHL scoring.

Last Saturday, in a 5-2 win over the Prince George Spruce Kings, Blackburn was awarded the #1 Star. He redirected a wrist shot from the top of the circle for the Warriors's first goal. In the second period, Blackburn scored his second short-handed goal of the season, finishing off a 2-on-1 break. These goals - his 6th and 7th of the season - are shown in this highlight video:



By any standard, Liam Blackburn is off to an outstanding start to the 2015-16 season. In addition to being tied for 7th in scoring in the BCHL, he is tied for 6th in goal scoring (8) and assists (11) after 14 games. Remarkably, Blackburn had scored 28 points (8G, 20a) after 14 games last season and was the BCHL's leading scorer. By the end of last season, Blackburn tied for 6th in BCHL scoring (73 pts.) and posted the third most assists (51).

Player Spotlight - Justin Fregona

We're one month into the 2015-16 BCHL season and there are just seven players with double-digit goals - and 18-year-old Justin Fregona is one of them. The rookie right-winger for the Langley Rivermen scored 5 goals in three games last week upping his total to 11 goals. Followers of the blog may remember that Fregona also scored 5 goals in the first 4 games of the season. Fregona's 11 goals and 5 assists puts him in a tie for 3rd in BCHL goal-scoring and tied for 9th in total points.

Two nights ago, in a 6-2 win over the Coquitlam Express, Justin Fregona scored the Rivermen's game-winning goal midway through the first period. As this highlight video shows, Fregona swooped down the left wing, around the back of the net, and lifted a backhander under the goalie's glove. In the third period, Fregona scored a power play goal when he gathered a rebound and flipped it into the open-side of the net in one quick motion. It was his third power play goal of the young season.



Fregona graduated from St. Andrew's College, a university preparatory school in Ontario, last spring. The year before, current UNH sophomore Warren Foegele also graduated from St. Andrew's. Fregona's target date for enrollment at UNH is the Fall of 2016.

NOTE
The statistics for the recruits, presented in the following table, are categorized by the projected year they will enroll in UNH. For example, the "2016 Recruits" are projected to begin playing for UNH in the Fall of 2016. I have based these projections on a number of factors including:
~ The year the recruit and UNH coaches originally targeted for enrollment in UNH.
~ How old the recruit would be upon admission.
~ Number of years in junior hockey prior to admission.
~ The recruit's performance in recent seasons as well as injuries.
~ Anticipated date of high school graduation.
~ Number of UNH players leaving the team at the end of the previous season and the position they played.

Player	Team	League	GP	Goals	Asst	Pts	PIM
2016 Recruits
Liam Blackburn  (F)	West Kelowna Warriors	BCHL	14	8	11	19	18
Justin Fregona  (F)	Langley Rivermen	BCHL	14	11	5	16	13
Patrick Grasso  (F)	Des Moines Bucs	USHL	7	5	0	5	18
Charlie Kelleher  (F)	Junior Bruins	USPHL	6	4	6	10	4
Nick Nonis  (D)	Powell River Kings	BCHL	15	0	2	2	16
Brendan van Riemsdyk   (F)	Islanders Hockey Club	USPHL	13	7	6	13	4
Mike Robinson  (G)	Junior Bruins	USPHL	-	-	-	-	-
2016 or '17 Recruits
Joe Cipollone  (F)	Tri-City Storm	USHL	-	-	-	-	-
	Vernon Vipers	BCHL	12	4	3	7	2
Liam Darcy  (D)	Islanders Hockey Club	USPHL	6	0	2	2	0
Aaron O'Neill  (F)	Tri-City Storm	USHL	-	-	-	-	-
2017 or '18 Recruits
Eric Esposito  (F)	Youngstown Phantoms	USHL	6	0	1	1	12
Jason O'Neill  (F)	Langley Rivermen	BCHL	6	1	2	3	0

News & Notes

United States Hockey League:

~ Last Friday, 2016 Commit Patrick Grasso was awarded the #1 Star as the Des Moines Buccaneers downed the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders 3-1. Grasso scored 2 goals including the game-winner. So far, Grasso has netted 5 goals in 7 games and is tied for 3rd in USHL goal-scoring.

~ Joe Cipollone has left the Vernon Vipers of the BCHL and joined the Tri-City Storm in the USHL. Cipollone had been drafted by the Bloomington Thunder in the 7th round of the 2015 USHL Entry Draft. In 12 games with the Vipers, Cipollone posted 4 goals and 3 assists.

British Columbia Hockey League:

~ 2017 or '18 UNH Commit Jason O'Neill scored his first BCHL goal on Wednesday as the Langley Rivermen defeated the Coquitlam Express 6-2. As this video shows, O'Neill was parked in front of the crease and swatted a rebound past the Express goalie.



United States Premiere Hockey League:

~ On Saturday, 2016 UNH Commit Brendan van Riemsdyk scored a hat trick and added an assist as the Islanders Hockey Club downed the Junior Pirates Hockey Club 6-2. BvR is tied for 3rd in USPHL goal-scoring and tied for 1st in power play goals (4).

UNH Captain's Corner: Last-Minute Loses to St. Lawrence & Clarkson

UNH Captain Collin MacDonald

Two perennial forces from the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference travelled to Durham this weekend and left town with dramatic victories. On Friday, St. Lawrence University (Canton, NY), ranked #19 in the latest USCHO National Poll, jumped out to a two-goal lead in the first period. UNH stormed back on goals by Jamie Hill and Maxim Gaudreault in the third period to force overtime, but lost 2:27 into OT.

Last night, Clarkson University (Potsdam, NY) also built a 2-0 lead but UNH rebounded in the second period on goals by Kyle Smith and Maxim Gaudreault. In the final stanza, Clarkson regained the lead but freshman defenseman Matt Dawson tied it up with 10 minutes remaining. It looked like the game was headed for another overtime but Clarkson scored with just 42 seconds left.

Here's my interview with UNH Captain Collin MacDonald on these difficult loses:

Mike Lowry ("C-H-C"): After falling behind against both ECAC opponents, then rallying both nights to tie the game in the third period, the team lost in overtime to St. Lawrence and in the waning seconds of the game to Clarkson. What message will you impart to the team about how to handle such difficult losses?

Collin MacDonald: It’s definitely been a tough couple of days; we have a very bitter taste in our mouths right now. Bottom line is that we lost, doesn’t matter that they both came down to the end. We’ll learn from the weekend, and just get back to work.



Mike Lowry: In all four games so far this season, including the exhibition game, the opposing team has scored the first goal. Is this pattern a concern for the team? If so, what does the team need to do differently?

Collin MacDonald: We want to jump out early and get the early lead. It’s hard playing from behind, but I wouldn’t call it a pattern of concern. It’s still very early; we will figure it out.



Lowry: In the second half of last season, goalie Danny Tirone played very well posting a goals against average of 2.14 and a save percentage of .924. Over the first three games of this season, Tirone's GAA is 3.29 with a .866 Save %. Have you noticed any differences in the way Tirone is playing and/or the way the team is playing in front of him?

MacDonald: Danny Tirone is one of the most dedicated hockey players I’ve played with. He’s battling right now and we will continue to battle with him. His work ethic and commitment will allow him to improve as we go forward. We have to help him out as well. Myself in particular, I can’t be turning the puck over and leaving Danny out to dry, it’s not all on him.



Lowry: What team and individual efforts over the weekend stood out as positives in your mind?

MacDonald: Guys played hard, didn’t quit. But like I said, the bottom line is we didn’t get it done, no one is happy about that.



Lowry: The team begins a stretch of 6 away games beginning next weekend out in Amherst then Union College. Last season, the team was 8-12-0 on the road and 11-6-2 at home. What are the keys to winning on the road?

MacDonald: Preparation is huge. We need to prepare all week, prepare on game days, and we can win anywhere.

UNH Suffers Another Devastating Loss Late; Clarkson Wins 4-3

Freshman Defenseman Matt Dawson
Scored Game-Tying Goal

For the second night in a row, the Wildcat fans were sent home with a heartbreaking defeat. A 4-3 loss to the Golden Knights of Clarkson with a last minute goal by Jeff DiNallo sent UNH’s record to 1-2 on the season.

“I just told my staff and I told my team that was awful. Absolutely pathetic.” UNH’s head coach Dick Umile said. “It was a terrible display of hockey,” he added.

The game started with UNH and Clarkson looking like evenly matched opponents. Chances for both sides early on resulted in some fantastic saves by both UNH goalie Danny Tirone and Clarkson goalie Steve Perry.

Nearing the end of the first period Tirone made a fantastic save on a rebound as he went into a split and kept the score 0-0. However, Tirone took a second or two extra to get up and was visibly hurt after making the save. After skating around for a few, he appeared to be ready to play. The Wildcats took a penalty on the play and went shorthanded.

Clarkson struck on the power play just moments later as A.J. Fossen was left alone on the side of the post and received a perfect tape to tape pass from Sam Vigneault to make it 1-0.

Although the goal wasn’t Tirone’s fault, there was a bit of concern that he wasn’t feeling at his best. He seemed to recover and play well after that point, but there was certainly some concern.

As though you’ve heard this story before, UNH fell behind 2-0 in the second period.

“It was going to be important for us to get out of the gate quickly” Clarkson head coach Casey Jones said after the game. Troy Josephs got a breakaway opportunity shorthanded and was hooked from behind by Matt Dawson and he was rewarded with a penalty shot. He was just able to sneak a shot past Tirone in goal as it dribbled across the line to make it 2-0 at 4:09 of the second period.

It was the same song and dance as the night before, and Umile wasn’t afraid to share his feelings. “I’m getting tired of that act,” he said about playing from behind.

Just 18 seconds later the comeback kids were at it again. Kyle Smith scored his first of the season on the power play to cut the lead in half to 2-1. Cameron Marks took a shot from the point that found its way off the leg of Smith and into the back of the net for the Wildcats first goal.

Maxim Gaudreault added a goal at the 8:48 mark of the second to tie it at 2-2, and the comeback was officially on once again for a UNH team that just can’t seem to find a lead.

At 4:11 of the third Clarkson went back on top. A goal by Jordan Boucher put Clarkson up 3-2 and the Wildcats again found themselves playing catch-up.

In the midst of consistent pressure after another UNH power play, freshman Matt Dawson took a puck and riffled it top shelf for his second goal of the season to tie it 3-3. In my opinion, Dawson looked like one of the best defenseman on the ice for the Wildcats this weekend. He played strong on his stick and isn’t afraid to step up into plays when necessary.

Back and forth the teams went for the remainder of the third period, including a terrific save by Tirone on Fossen to keep it 3-3 that sent the fans at the Whittemore Center into a frenzy.

Then the dagger was put in the coffin of the Wildcats comeback. Just when it looked like the teams were playing into overtime with 42 seconds left to play, DiNallo found a loose puck sitting in front of the net after a shot that was knocked down by UNH defenders and he had a yawning net to shoot at, and he didn’t miss.

Wildcat fans flooded to the exits as they watched their team fall late in a game for the second night in a row.

If Dick Umile’s comments above don’t say it all, it was a disappointing weekend at home for UNH and there is a lot to figure out for this team.

Here are the video highlights courtesy of UNH Athletics:

Wildcats' Comeback Falls Short In OT; St. Lawrence Wins 3-2

Jamie Hill Short-Handed Goal
Sparks UNH Comeback

DURHAM, NH - The trend early on in the season continues for the Wildcats; fall down early, figure it out late. Whether that can be considered a bad trend or a good trend is left for your own discretion, but it certainly isn’t pretty.

The game tonight against #19 St. Lawrence ended with an overtime goal by Saints’ senior Christian Horn as he wristed a shot from the tops of the circles over Danny Tirone’s blocker for a 3-2 victory.

For the first ten minutes of the game the two teams played evenly, with a slight advantage in shots to St. Lawrence. But midway through the first the Saints took over. A gorgeous short side goal over Tirone’s shoulder by Gavin Bayreuther kicked it off and gave the Saints a 1-0 lead 10:39 into the first.

43 seconds later, St. Lawrence struck again. Brian Ward found a puck sitting in the crease behind a sprawled out Tirone and tucked it in to give the Saints a 2-0 lead.

To put it lightly, nothing was working for UNH. In every aspect of the game, UNH was out manned and out battled. Starting with breakouts in their own zone, none of the Wildcats were on the same page. It was as though they put repellant on their sticks and were trying to avoid playing the puck. Fundamentals were out the window and it was looking glum for the Wildcats

Moving forward to the second period, UNH again was outshot and outplayed. With two power play opportunities the Wildcats took three shots to contribute to the seven shots they took the entire period. Shot selection was another issue in the first two periods. This, I’ll credit to the defense of St. Lawrence for keeping UNH to the perimeter and not allowing quality opportunities. However, the Wildcats weren’t helping themselves with puck possession in the offensive zone.

At long last, the UNH team many spectators were expecting appeared. As the third period began there was a new mentality for the Wildcats. It was a team that wanted it; a team that was willing to push the limits to make a comeback, but in a calm and smart way. The fundamentals were there, the energy was there and the decision making was spot on.

After pushing all period long the Wildcats got on the board at 17:36 of the third on a wrap around shorthanded goal by Jamie Hill to cut the lead in half, 2-1. “In [scouting] we noticed that the goalie would over commit, so I thought if I would take it around the net I’d have more ice and I just got a lucky bounce off a guys skate.” Hill said after the game.

The momentum was with UNH and it showed. They began playing with confidence all over the ice and sure enough, it paid off. After going to the power play with just over three minutes left to play, even the special teams started to click.

From behind the goal line Kyle Smith threw a pass to the slot that found the stick of Maxim Gaudreault who made no mistake of pushing a shot to the top corner of the net to knot the score up 2-2. The Whittemore center was rocking and UNH looked like they had figured it out

Early on in overtime Dan Correale had a golden opportunity to finish off the game off of a pass by Tyler Kelleher, but an outstanding lateral save by Kyle Hayton stopped the 2 on 1 bid and the game continued on.

Shortly after, with 2:33 remaining in overtime Christian Horn sniped a shot over Tirone’s shoulder after entering the offensive zone and ruined the party at the Whittemore Center.

It’s still very early in the season, but UNH can’t afford these slow starts against difficult opponents. If they can find a way to play all 60 minutes the way they play in the third period, they’ll be a team no one will want to face this season.

Here are the video highlights courtesy of UNH Athletics:



UNH faces off against Clarkson University on Saturday night at the Whittemore Center.

UNH Recruits Update: Oct-16-2015

UNH Commit Charlie Kelleher

Player Spotlight - Charlie Kelleher

When Charlie Kelleher first committed to UNH back in August 2012, he hoped to enroll this year and play two seasons with his brother Tyler. Both had starred for Longmeadow High School in Western Massachusetts but they did not play on the same team. After leading the Lancers to the 2010 State Division III Championship in his freshman year, Tyler (DOB: 1/2/1995) left for Deerfield Academy, and subsequently the U.S. National Team Development Program. Charlie (DOB: 2/4/1997) lead Longmeadow to the 2012 Western Mass Division III Title as a freshman and then moved on to play for the Boston Junior Bruins.

In the 2012-13 and 2013-14 seasons, Charlie Kelleher was a top scorer for the Junior Bruins Under-18 team posting a total of 17 goals and 29 assists. He was selected for the 2014 US Premiere Hockey League 18U All Star game and US Hockey Report described him as "the most skilled player on either team, a pure playmaker".

Unfortunately, Charlie Kelleher's development was hampered last season by a severe case of mononucleosis. He had moved up to the Junior Bruins' Premiere team and started the season strong with 8 goals and 13 assists over the first 17 games. That earned him a spot in the 2015 USPHL All Star game. Then, mono kept Kelleher out of the Junior Bruins' lineup for most of November and all of December. When he returned to action in January, his production decreased somewhat to 2 goals and 8 assists over the final 18 regular season games.

With the objective of coming to UNH next season and playing with Tyler during his senior season, Charlie Kelleher is returning to form. After missing the first 5 games of the 2015-16 season with a minor injury, Kelleher has scored at nearly a 2 point per game rate over the last 5 Junior Bruins' games.

Last Saturday, Kelleher assisted on the team's first goal then scored the second and fifth goals in a 6-3 win over the Rochester Junior Americans. On Wednesday, Charlie potted the Junior Bruins' second and third goals in a 4-0 shutout of the Okanagan European Eagles. So far, the Junior Bruins have won eight games and lost two and are tied for second place in the USPHL.

NOTE
The statistics for the recruits, presented in the following table, are categorized by the projected year they will enroll in UNH. For example, the "2016 Recruits" are projected to begin playing for UNH in the Fall of 2016. I have based these projections on a number of factors including:
~ The year the recruit and UNH coaches originally targeted for enrollment in UNH.
~ How old the recruit would be upon admission.
~ Number of years in junior hockey prior to admission.
~ The recruit's performance in recent seasons as well as injuries.
~ Anticipated date of high school graduation.
~ Number of UNH players leaving the team at the end of the previous season and the position they played.

Player	Team	League	GP	Goals	Asst	Pts	PIM
2016 Recruits
Liam Blackburn  (F)	West Kelowna Warriors	BCHL	11	5	7	12	18
Justin Fregona  (F)	Langley Rivermen	BCHL	10	6	3	9	13
Patrick Grasso  (F)	Des Moines Bucs	USHL	5	3	0	3	0
Charlie Kelleher  (F)	Junior Bruins	USPHL	5	4	4	8	2
Nick Nonis  (D)	Powell River Kings	BCHL	13	0	2	2	14
Brendan van Riemsdyk   (F)	Islanders Hockey Club	USPHL	10	4	5	9	4
Mike Robinson  (G)	Junior Bruins	USPHL	-	-	-	-	-
2016 or '17 Recruits
Joe Cipollone  (F)	Vernon Vipers	BCHL	12	4	3	7	2
Liam Darcy  (D)	Islanders Hockey Club	USPHL	5	0	2	2	0
Aaron O'Neill  (F)	Tri-City Storm	USHL	-	-	-	-	-
2017 or '18 Recruits
Eric Esposito  (F)	Youngstown Phantoms	USHL	4	0	1	1	12
Jason O'Neill  (F)	Langley Rivermen	BCHL	2	0	0	0	0

News & Notes

United States Hockey League:

~ 2016 Commit Patrick Grasso has gotten off to a hot start with the Des Moines Buccaneers. The 5'7", 160 lbs. forward has potted 3 goals over the first five games of the USHL season. Grasso is currently tied for 3rd in USHL goal scoring. Grasso scored 9 goals in each of his first two seasons with the Buccaneers.

British Columbia Hockey League:

~ 2016 UNH Commit Liam Blackburn added a goal to his scoring totals last week in a 3-4 loss to the Penticton Vees. Blackburn is currently tied for 11th in BCHL scoring.

~ Last Friday, BCHL rookie Joe Cipollone earned the #1 Star as the Vernon Vipers downed the Nanaimo Clippers 6-2. Cipollone scored the Vipers' second goal and added an assist. Cipollone is on target to enroll at UNH either next fall or the fall of 2017.

~ 2017 or '18 UNH Commit Jason O'Neill officially joined the Langley Rivermen last week and played in two of their games.

United States Premiere Hockey League:

~ Last week, 2016 UNH Commit Brendan van Riemsdyk added 2 assists to his scoring totals. He is currently tied for 5th in USPHL goal scoring (4 goals) and tied for 8th in total points (9 pts).

UNH Captain's Corner: Season Opening Win Over AIC

UNH Captain Collin MacDonald

The UNH Wildcats kicked off the 2015-16 season with a convincing 7-3 victory over American International College from the Atlantic Hockey Association. I had an opportunity to interview UNH Captain Collin MacDonald on how the team performed.

Mike Lowry ("C-H-C"): Congratulations on the team's 7-3 win over AIC in the season opener. What team and individual efforts stood out as positives in your mind?

Collin MacDonald: Obviously Kells and Pots each having 4-point nights was a positive. Dawson looked comfortable back there in his first game. Salvaggio scoring his first career goal is great, he’s a guy who could definitely make some noise with his size, speed, and shot.



Mike Lowry: The Correale-Poturalski-Kelleher line produced 4 of UNH's goals. What makes that line such an effective scoring threat?

Collin MacDonald: These three are definitely fun to have on your team. Each guy brings something different to the table and they just work well together. Kells can obviously finish, Pots is so dangerous with the puck on his stick and makes great plays, Corrs works so hard to get pucks and with his speed he’s always a threat.



Lowry: All 6 UNH defensemen took opportunities to lead the offensive rush through center ice and into the AIC zone. What are the potential advantages and disadvantages to this strategy?

MacDonald: Yeah it’s good to see our defensemen carry the puck and create some offense. Obviously this will give us opportunity to score on the rush. We just have to make sure we communicate and cover for each other to avoid odd man rushes going back toward our net.



Lowry: What aspects of the game does the team need to improve on?

MacDonald: We definitely want to get better every game; it’s something the coaches talk about all the time. Our defensive zone play needs to improve. Defenseman need to end plays down low, forwards need to play their positions and block shots.



Lowry: On a personal note, it looks like you've fully recovered from the serious leg injury you suffered in your sophomore season. This was particularly evident from the speed and quickness you showed on the forecheck against AIC. What was the long recovery period like for you?

MacDonald: The recovery was tough, but I learned a lot from it. There’s still a lot of maintenance work I do for it, but it makes me stay on top of taking care of myself. Little things like warming up, stretching, and icing are huge.

Despite High Scoring Win Over AIC, UNH Wildcats Have Work To Do

UNH Junior Tyler Kelleher
2 Goals, 2 Assists

DURHAM, NH - The UNH Wildcats opened up the 2015-16 season with a 7-3 victory over American International College. The game was highlighted by a four-point night for both junior Tyler Kelleher and sophomore Andrew Poturalski. But before the stats run away with the story, I’m going to pull it back a bit. Or for that matter, I’ll let Head Coach Dick Umile's words speak for themselves.

“I was not happy with the way we played, especially for two periods”. Umile said in the post game press conference. “We didn’t play as well when we didn’t have the puck as I believe we can play; we will be working on that this week for sure”. He added.

Umile was visibly mad with the performance of his team early on. Admittedly, he was happy to start the season with a win, but he made sure that his team knew there was a lot of work to do.

UNH was in a hole, 2:03 into the second period when AIC Yellow Jackets' Bryant Christian pushed in a puck behind UNH goalie Danny Tirone. The sophomore goalie was handcuffed on a shot from the circle and couldn’t cover it up in time. The Wildcats were down 2-1.

Danny Tirone was off his game for the first half of play. He wasn’t reading shots well and seemed to be battling each puck that came his way. A big glove save on Austin Orszulak midway through the second period looked like it sparked Tirone, and got him into a rhythm for the rest of the game.

UNH responded in just fourteen seconds on a goal by freshmen defensemen Matt Dawson , for his first collegiate goal, as he fluttered a shot towards the net that deflected over the head of Alex Murray, the Yellow Jackets goalie, to tie the game at two.

At 8:51 of the second period, Kelleher picked up a rebound and scored his second goal of the game to give UNH a 3-2 lead.

The production of the UNH “second line” between Kelleher, Poturalski and Dan Correale is quite the threat for the Wildcats offense. The line mates combined for eight points on the night, including a Correale power play goal at 15:45 of the second period to extend the UNH lead to 4-2.

However, the domination of the UNH offense was overshadowed by the lack of defense being played. According to Umile that includes the talented line that put four goals on the board.

“They can score goals, but you’ve got to play defense too”, Umile said after the game.

UNH's defensive lapses were due, in part, to the defensemen jumping into offensive rushes through the neutral zone and into the AIC end. Sometimes this lead to scoring opportunities for the Wildcats. However, on multiple occasions, it resulted in up to four UNH players caught in the offensive zone as AIC transitioned up ice toward the UNH end.

At 11:25 of the third period Johno May scored for the Yellow Jackets on a highlight reel breakaway goal to beat Tirone and pull it back to a two-goal game, at 5-3.

UNH would add an empty net goal by Maxim Gaudreault at 18:45 of the third and another by Poturalski with .2 on the clock to take the 7-3 victory and move to 1-0 on the season.

Quietly, UNH freshman Marcus Vela had himself an outstanding game. Despite not making the score sheet, Vela was plus 1 and was a physical force as well as made multiple smart plays for the Wildcats both defensively and on offense. It seemed he was always reading the play well and was always around the puck. I look at him as a player to follow closely this year for UNH.

In the end, a win is a win for UNH, but there is plenty of work to be done before they make their way into Hockey East play.

Here are the video highlights courtesy of UNH Athletics:



Next up for the Wildcats are two home games against ECAC teams. St. Lawrence University is in town next Friday night and Clarkson University follows on Saturday night.

UNH Recruits Update: Oct-9-2015

2016 Commit Liam Blackburn (Photo: Lorne White/KelownaNow.com)

2016 Commit Justin Fregona Langley Rivermen

Player Spotlight - Liam Blackburn

What is a "top prospect"? When it comes to forwards, a top prospect is a player who excels in the offensive and defensive zones. Over the years, UNH has been fortunate to have several excellent two-way forwards who grew up playing hockey in British Columbia. Grayson Downing is a prime example. In his four years at UNH, Downing (Abbotsford, British Columbia) scored 40 goals - 11 were power play goals and 3 were short-handed. Last year, Downing played on UNH's top power play and penalty kill units.

Current UNH freshman Marcus Vela (Burnaby, BC) is another top prospect. In the exhibition game last Sunday, the San Jose Sharks' draft pick played substantial minutes on both the power play and penalty kill. He dished out 3 assists - one on a power play. Last season with the Langley Rivermen (BCHL), Vela scored 5 power play goals on their top power play unit and was a top penalty killer.

Liam Blackburn (Prince George, BC), who has already signed a National Letter of Intent to come to UNH next fall, looks to be the next outstanding two-way forward to come to Durham from British Columbia. Blackburn is the leading scorer with the West Kelowna Warriors (BCHL) with 4 goals and 7 assists in 9 games. Over the last three games, he has netted a power play and a short-handed goal. Over the first 9 games of this season, Blackburn has posted 2 power play goals, 3 power play assists, and this short-handed goal:



Blackburn's 6 special teams' points are the second most in the BCHL. He is also tied for 8th in BCHL scoring. During the regular season last year, Blackburn tied for 6th in BCHL scoring and posted the third most assists. In 51 regular season games with the West Kelowna Warriors, he scored 22 goals, including 8 power play goals, and dished out 51 assists.

Player Spotlight - Justin Fregona

BCHL rookie Justin Fregona jumped out to a fast start scoring 5 goals in the Langley Rivermen's first 4 games of the season. Last weekend, Fregona's play-making abilities came to the fore as he assisted on 3 goals and added one of his own in three games.

On October 2nd, Fregona assisted on the game-winning goal as the Rivermen downed the Chilliwack Chiefs 6-4. The next night, Fregona scored Langley's first goal and assisted on the game-tying goal during a 3-2 overtime victory over Chilliwack. Finally, on Sunday, he assisted on the game-winning goal in a 4-2 win against the Cowichan Valley Capitals.

Langley is off to a strong start this season. They have a record of 6 wins and 2 losses and are in first place in the BCHL's Mainland Division. Justin Fregona is their leading scorer with 6 goals and 3 assists. He is tied for 4th in BCHL goal-scoring and tied for 10th in scoring. Fregona's target date for enrollment at UNH is the Fall of 2016.

NOTE
The statistics for the recruits, presented in the following table, are categorized by the projected year they will enroll in UNH. For example, the "2016 Recruits" are projected to begin playing for UNH in the Fall of 2016. I have based these projections on a number of factors including:
~ The year the recruit and UNH coaches originally targeted for enrollment in UNH.
~ How old the recruit would be upon admission.
~ Number of years in junior hockey prior to admission.
~ The recruit's performance in recent seasons as well as injuries.
~ Anticipated date of high school graduation.
~ Number of UNH players leaving the team at the end of the previous season and the position they played.

Player	Team	League	GP	Goals	Asst	Pts	PIM
2016 Recruits
Liam Blackburn  (F)	West Kelowna Warriors	BCHL	9	4	7	11	10
Justin Fregona  (F)	Langley Rivermen	BCHL	8	6	3	9	11
Patrick Grasso  (F)	Des Moines Bucs	USHL	3	1	0	1	0
Nick Nonis  (D)	Powell River Kings	BCHL	9	0	2	2	12
Brendan van Riemsdyk   (F)	Islanders Hockey Club	USPHL	7	4	3	7	4
Mike Robinson  (G)	Junior Bruins	USPHL	-	-	-	-	-
2016 or '17 Recruits
Joe Cipollone  (F)	Vernon Vipers	BCHL	9	3	1	4	2
Liam Darcy  (D)	Islanders Hockey Club	USPHL	5	0	2	2	0
Charlie Kelleher  (F)	Junior Bruins	USPHL	2	0	2	2	0
Aaron O'Neill  (F)	Tri-City Storm	USHL	-	-	-	-	-
2017 or '18 Recruits
Eric Esposito  (F)	Youngstown Phantoms	USHL	3	0	1	1	12
Jason O'Neill  (F)	Langley Rivermen	BCHL	-	-	-	-	-

News & Notes

United States Premiere Hockey League:

~ For the second consecutive year, the NHL Central Scouting Service has identified defenseman Liam Darcy as a "Player To Watch" for the NHL Entry Draft. According to the NHL CSS, the 5'11", 180 lbs. blueliner has the potential to be drafted in the 4th, 5th or 6th round of the 2016 draft next June. Darcy is a rookie with the Islanders Hockey Club in the Premiere Division of the USPHL. Last year, as a senior at Berwick Academy, Darcy was ranked as the 204th North American skater by the NHL CSS in their final rankings for the 2015 Draft. Although Darcy was not drafted last June, NHL scouts obviously still think he has potential.