UNH Commits Update 4-19-2024: Central Scouting; Latest Projection on Incoming Freshmen; & Playoff Season

Connor MacPherson Ranked 195th

Jack Sadowski Ranked 215th

2024 NHL CSS Final Rankings

Earlier this week NHL's Central Scouting Service released the Final Rankings of North American Skaters. UNH Commit Connor MacPherson is ranked #195 and Jack Sadowski is #215. The 2024 NHL Draft will be held on June 28-29 in Las Vegas.

Last year, four players who were committed to play for UNH made Central Scouting's Final Rankings for North American Skaters and three were subsequently drafted in the 2023 NHL Draft:
~ Ryan MacPherson Philadelphia Flyers, Round 6, 172nd Overall (Final Rank #211).
~ Ryan Conmy Los Angeles Kings, Round 6, 182nd Overall (Final Rank #112).
~ Sebastian Bradshaw Dallas Stars, Round 7, 221st Overall (Final Rank #194).
~ Connor MacPherson Not Drafted (Final Rank #128).

Projected Changes to 2024-25 UNH Roster

As of today, the following 6 UNH players from the 2023-24 roster plan to leave the team through graduation (Gr) and/or the transfer portal (TP):
GOALIES (2)
Tyler Muszelik (TP to UConn)
Jeremy Forman (Gr, TP)
FORWARDS (4)
Stiven Sardarian (TP to Northern Michigan)
Harrison Blaisdell (Gr)
Nick Cafarelli (Gr, TP)
Cam Gendron (Gr, TP)
DEFENSEMEN (0)*
* Senior defensemen Nikolai Jenson and Luke Reid have one year of eligibility remaining and reportedly plan to remain on the UNH roster next season.

Implications for Incoming Freshmen
There was a total of 8 defensemen on the 2023-24 roster. Unless one of them enters the transfer portal or signs a professional contract, or the coaching staff decides to carry 9 defensemen on the 2024-25 roster, there are currently no apparent openings for an incoming freshman or transfer defenseman. If an opening becomes available, I project the defensemen listed under "2024 or '25 Commits" in the stats table below would be potential candidates.

Jared Whale a sophomore goalie for the University of Alaska-Anchorage committed to UNH through the transfer portal. He will backfill the opening created by Tyler Muszelik's transfer. That leaves one open roster slot for a goalie which could be filled by a transfer or a junior hockey goalie not currently committed to UNH.

The MacPherson twins, Connor and Ryan, will fill 2 of the 4 openings for forwards on UNH's 2024-25 roster. The forwards listed under "2024 or '25 Commits" in the stats table below and forwards from other schools listed in the transfer portal are potential candidates for the remaining 2 openings.

UNH Commits in the 2024 Playoffs

United States Hockey League
3 UNH commits have been participating in the 2024 USHL Playoffs. Reid Conn and the Chicago Steel were eliminated in the opening round. Price Grimes was on Chicago's roster but did not dress for the 3-game series.
Josh Player and the Green Bay Gamblers defeated the Steel in the opening round and will face Muskegon in the USHL quarterfinals. Conner de Haro and the Youngstown Phantoms eliminated Madison and will play Dubuque in the quarterfinals.

British Columbia Hockey League
8 UNH commits have been participating in the 2024 BCHL Playoffs. 4 of them and their teams were eliminated in the opening round:
Connor DeTurris (Nanaimo Clippers)
Lars Petter Eckholm (Cowichan Valley Capitals)
Sebastian Bradshaw (Coquitlam Express)
Luca Primerano (Prince George Spruce Kings)
Connor and Ryan MacPherson and the Penticton Vees defeated the Prince George Spruce Kings in the opening round and will play the Vernon Vipers in the quarterfinals. Ryan Philbrick, Ryan Grout and the Salmon Arm Silverbacks beat the Merritt Centennials and will face the West Kelowna Warriors in the quarterfinals.

Ontario Junior Hockey League
Jayden Connors and the St. Michaels Buzzers lost to the Cobourg Cougars in the opening round of the 2024 OJHL Playoffs.

Special Offer

Neutral Zone has provided "in depth amateur scouting coverage and rankings" since 2015. It's my go-to source for scouting reports on young players who have committed to UNH. NZ is offering a special discount for followers of UNH hockey. Subscribe to Neutral Zone and receive 20% off your subscription by entering "UNH20" in the Discount Code box when you register.

2023-24 Statistics

Player	NZ Stars**	Team	League	GP	Goals	Asst	Pts	PIM	+/-
2024 Commits
			Playoffs	3	1	1	2	8	+3
Connor MacPherson* 3/2/05 (F)	4.0	Penticton Vees	BCHL	54	11	31	42	16	-
			Playoffs	4	2	0	2	0	-
Ryan MacPherson* 3/2/05 (F)	4.0	Penticton Vees	BCHL	54	16	22	38	12	-
			Playoffs	4	0	2	2	8	-
2024 Transfer
Jared Whale 11/1/02 (G)	3.25	University of Alaska-Anchorage	Independent	24	10	12	1	2.67	.909
2024 or '25 Commits
Reid Conn* 2/2/04 (D)	3.75	Chicago Steel	USHL	59	3	8	11	72	-19
			Playoffs	3	1	1	2	8	+3
Connor DeTurris 10/8/04 (F)	3.75	Nanaimo Clippers	BCHL	43	15	24	39	8	-
			Playoffs	5	0	4	4	2	-
Lars Petter Eckholm* 3/7/04 (F)	3.25	Cowichan Valley Capitals	BCHL	45	6	7	13	10	-
			Playoffs	5	0	0	0	0	-
Conner de Haro* 10/17/05 (D)	3.75	Youngstown Phantoms	USHL	51	2	8	10	35	+23
			Playoffs	3	2	1	3	0	+6
Ryan Philbrick* 6/20/04 (D)	3.75	Salmon Arms Silverbacks	BCHL	5	0	2	2	4	-
			Playoffs	6	0	4	4	0	-
		Cedar Rapids RoughRiders	USHL	30	2	5	7	14	+5
Josh Player* 5/13/05 (D)	3.75	Green Bay Gamblers	USHL	59	5	6	11	59	+1
			Playoffs	3	0	0	0	4	-4
2025 Commits
Sebastian Bradshaw 5/26/05 (F)	3.75	Coquitlam Express	BCHL	41	5	9	14	43	-
			Playoffs	7	0	0	0	2	-
		Brooks Bandits	AJHL	3	0	1	1	8	-
Luca Primerano* 3/17/05 (F)	3.5	Prince George Spruce Kings	BCHL	54	9	13	22	8	-
			Playoffs	4	0	0	0	0	-
Jack Sadowski* 7/29/06 (F)	3.75	Kimball Union Academy	NE Prep	37	41	50	91	-	-
		Wildcats 19U	NEFPHL 19U	17	11	15	26	0	-
		Massachusetts District	USA Selects 17	6	1	2	3	4	-
2025 or '26 Commits
Jesse Allecia 10/12/05 (F)	3.50	Salisbury School	NE Prep	26	17	8	25	-	-
		Yale Jr. Bulldogs 18U	18U AAA	30	13	12	25	-	-
			BEAST 18U	8	2	3	5	0	-
			USA 18U Nationals	6	1	1	2	2	-
Price Grimes* 1/28/06 (D)	3.5	Chicago Steel	USHL	41	1	5	6	48	-5
			Playoffs	0	0	0	0	0	0
Ryan Grout 8/15/07 (G)	4.0	Salmon Arms Silverbacks	BCHL	15	11	3	1	2.23	.926
			Playoffs	0	0	0	0	0	0
Kole Hyles 1/16/06 (F)	3.75	Cushing Academy	NE Prep	32	14	9	23	-	-
		Central Mass Peguins	EHF 18U	23	8	10	18	-	-
			USA 18U Nationals	4	1	2	3	4	-
		New England District	USA Selects 17	6	4	3	7	0	-
Niko Tournas 2/17/06 (F)	4.0	Cedar Rapids RoughRiders	USHL	41	2	3	5	20	-2
		New England District	USA Selects 17	6	4	5	9	1	-
2026 Commits
Nikita Konevych 6/3/06 (D)	NR	Corpus Christi IceRays	NAHL	20	0	4	4	75	-7
		Austin Bruins	NAHL	8	0	1	1	0	-4
George McCaffrey 1/2/07 (F)	3.5	Westminster School	NE Prep	23	4	7	11	-	-
		MidFairfield Rangers 15U	NE Pack	10	3	4	7	0	-
		MidFairfield Rangers 16U	USA 16U Nationals	4	1	1	2	2	-
		Team White	USA Selects 16	5	3	1	4	0	-
Jayden Connors 2/26/07 (D)	3.75	St. Michaels Buzzers	OJHL	46	2	21	23	36	-
			Playoffs	10	1	2	3	8	-
* = Signed National Letter of Intent
** = Neutral Zone 5-Star Rating

NOTE
The statistics for the commits, presented in the above table, are categorized by the projected year they will enroll in UNH. For example, the "2024 Commits" are projected to begin playing for UNH in the Fall of 2024. I have based these projections on the following factors:
~ Number of UNH players leaving the team at the end of the previous season and the position they played.
~ Number of incoming transfer players and the position they play.
~ If a National Letter of Intent has been signed.
~ The year the commit and UNH coaches originally targeted for enrollment in UNH.
~ How old the commit would be upon admission.
~ Number of years in junior hockey prior to admission.
~ The commit's performance in recent seasons as well as injuries.
~ Anticipated date of high school graduation.

Goalie Jared Whale Commits to UNH Out of Transfer Portal

Jared Whale (G) 2024 UNH Transfer

"Whale looks bigger than his 5’11” frame and does a good job of reading plays." Neutral Zone, January, 2022

Jared Whale Goalie, 6'0", 185 lbs. Catches Left Hometown: Calgary, Alberta DOB: November 1, 2002; 21 years, 5 months Neutral Zone Rating: 3.25 out of 5 Stars 2023-24 Team: University of Alaska-Anchorage (Independent) Committed to UNH on April 6, 2024 at Age 21 years, 5 months.

NCAA Highlight Reel

In the 2023-24 season, Jared Whale was the #1 goalie for the University of Alaska-Anchorage. He started in 24 of the Seawolves' 34 games and compiled a record of 10-12-1 (2.67 GAA, .909 Save%). Whale shutout two top 10 NCAA teams in away games. He made 32 saves against #9 Providence in a 2-0 win and 41 saves against #6 Wisconsin in a 1-0 victory. This highlight reel from the University of Wisconsin game shows his most outstanding saves:

Interview

I had an opportunity to interview Jared Whale, via email, about his hockey career and commitment to UNH:

Mike Lowry: (1) Congratulations on your commitment to play for the University of New Hampshire. Since March 31st, 140 freshman, sophomore and junior hockey players have entered the transfer portal. Why did you consider transferring from the University of Alaska-Anchorage?

Jared Whale: The main reason I wanted to transfer from UAA was because I wanted to join a conference and be involved in conference play. I missed competing in those big playoff and standings games that we weren’t able to get in Anchorage. To me there was no better conference to join than Hockey East in that sense because it’s known for its very competitive nature.

Mike Lowry: How did you become interested in UNH? What are the main reasons you chose UNH?

Jared Whale: I’ve known about UNH since I was around 13-14 and thought that it would be a great spot to go and play. When UNH reached out I started my research on their history and culture and found the way I approached hockey matched well with the way UNH ran their program.

As well, when I was talking to other players I know that have either played for or in UNH they all said it was one of the best atmospheres in college hockey. I was also a big fan of the campus and the academic programs and Alumni programs UNH has to offer for my life after hockey.

Lowry: When you renewed the recruiting process, what college programs, other than UNH, did you consider? Which ones made an offer to you?

Whale: When I went in the portal I did have interest from other schools, they were all great opportunities and programs. It made the decision really tough, but at the end of the day I wanted to play in Hockey East for UNH!

Lowry: At this stage in your hockey development, what are the strengths of your game? What areas are you trying to improve?

Whale: The strengths to my game are my ability to read and anticipate the play, I also move around my crease really well giving me the ability to make difficult saves look easier. I would like to implement a little faster recovery time and to move on my feet more. I would also like to improve my puck handling so I can make life easier for the defensemen.

Lowry: Did you have an opportunity to watch the 2023-24 UNH team play? If so, how do you think you can help the team when you join it?

Whale: I was able to watch a couple UNH games right at the end of the season. I will be able to give UNH a chance to win every time I am in goal and probably steal a couple big wins on top of that as well.

Neutral Zone Scouting Report

USHL Game Report, October, 2023

"Whale kept his team in the game, but ultimately gave up a late goal on a deflected shot. Making 37 stops on 40 shots, Jared showed good composure in a game that was heavily controlled by Fort McMurray. Whale looks bigger than his 5’11” frame and does a good job of reading plays. He will need to work on his depth management with potential tip threats. This will give him more awareness and a better chance to make saves on deflected and tipped pucks."

College & Junior Hockey Statistics

Player	Season	Team	League	GP	Win	Loss	Tie	GAA	SV%	SO
Jared Whale (G)	2023-24	Alaska-Anchorage	Ind.	24	10	12	1	2.67	.909	2
	2022-23	Alaska-Anchorage	Ind.	7	1	6	0	4.14	.899	0
	2021-22	Olds Grizzlys	AJHL	25	3	19	2	4.61	.883	0
		Brooks Bandits	AJHL	9	8	1	0	1.67	.932	2
	2020-21	Brooks Bandits	AJHL	10	8	1	0	1.65	.912	1
	2019-20	Drumheller Dragons	AJHL	1	1	0	0	4.00	.897	0