UNH Commits Update: 10-25-2019

The UNH Men's Hockey Blog

News & Notes

United States Hockey League:

~ 19-year-old Timo Bakos (DOB: 7-20-2000) from Augsburg, Germany verbally committed to UNH on September 28th. So far this seson, the 6'2", 174 lbs. left-shot center has scored 2 goals and an assist in 6 games with the Sioux Falls Stampede. Last season, Bakos scored 28 goals, 31 assists in 37 games for the Augsburger U20 team. Bakos is projected to enroll at UNH in Fall 2021.

~ Four UNH Commits made the jump from midget or prep school hockey to the USHL, the only Tier 1 junior hockey league in the United States - forwards Robert Cronin (Dubuque Fighting Saints), Liam Devlin (Chicago Steel), and Will Margel (Madison Capitols), and defenseman Alex Gagne (Cedar Rapids RoughRiders).

~ 2020 or '21 UNH Commit Alex Gagne is a legitimate NHL Prospect. Former NHL defenseman Ian Morin, the Director of Neutral Zone's NHL Draft coverage, evaluated Gagne at the beginning of the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders' season. He projected Gagne as a late third round selection in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft next June. Steve Kournianos of the Draft Analyst and contributor for the Sporting News ranked Gagne #108 in his 2020 Preliminary Rankings. Surprisingly, the National Hockey League Central Scouting Service did not include Gagne in their October Players to Watch list. Gagne has tallied one assist in 5 USHL games and has a +/- rating of zero.

~ 2020 UNH Commit Will Margel scored his first USHL goal in his fifth game of the season with the Madison Capitals. 2020 or '21 Commit Liam Devlin scored his first in the sixth game with the Chicago Steel.

British Columbia Hockey League:

~ Over his last 4 games with the Wenatchee Wild, 2020 or '21 UNH Commit Nick Cafarelli has scored 2 goals and 2 assists. Overall, he has 8 goals, 7 assists in 15 games. Cafarelli is tied for 3rd in BCHL goal-scoring and tied for 10th in scoring.

~ 17-year-old Nicolas Ardanaz, a mobile, offensive defenseman, scored a goal and an assist for the West Kelowna Warriors on October 19th. He was awarded the 2nd star of the game. Ardanaz is projected to enroll at UNH in either the Fall of 2020 or 2021.

~ 2020 UNH Commit Connor Sweeney scored his first goal of the season in his 14th BCHL game. Over his first 17 games, Sweeney has distributed 4 assists.

Alberta Junior Hockey League:

~ 18-year-old center Aidan Curran began the 2019-20 regular season with the Salmon Arm Silverbacks in the BCHL. He tallied a goal and 4 assists in 11 games. On October 18th, Salmon Arm transferred his CJHL playing rights to the Bonnyville Pontiacs in the Alberta Junior Hockey League. In 2 games with Bonnyville, Curran has been the starting center and has distributed 1 assist. He is projected to enroll at UNH next Fall.

Minnesota High School Hockey:

~ 2020 or '21 UNH Commit Carsen Richels has played the fall season with the MPLS St. Paul Magazine team in the Upper Midwest High School Elite Hockey League. The 6'2", 200 lbs. winger scored 6 goals and 9 assists in 13 games. The UPMHSEHL Playoffs begin today and Richels' team is seeded #3. The NHL Central Scouting Service has rated Carsen Richels a 'B' Prospect in their October "Players to Watch" list. They've determined he is a candidate to be selected in the 2nd or 3rd Round of the 2020 NHL Draft. Richels is a senior at Blaine High School.

New England Prep School Hockey:

~ In preparation for the 2019-2020 New England Prep season, which begins in late November, David Sacco has been playing for the Cape Cod Whalers U18 split-season team. In 7 Eastern Hockey Federation Selects games, Sacco has scored 5 goals and 1 assist. The NHL Central Scouting Service has rated David Sacco a 'C' Prospect in their October "Players to Watch" list. He is a candidate to be selected in the 4th, 5th or 6th Round of the 2020 NHL Draft. Sacco is a senior at Lawrence Academy in Groton, Massachusetts.

~ 2021 or '22 UNH Commits JP Turner and Morgan Winters have played the fall season in the Beast Series games. Turner has scored 3 goals and 7 assists in 7 games with the Neponset Valley River Rats U16 team. Winters has posted a goal and an assist in 7 games with the Neponset Valley River Rats U18 team. Both will compete in the Beast Series Playoffs this weekend. JP Turner is a junior at Avon Old Farms and Morgan Winters is a junior at Tabor Academy.

2019-20 Statistics

Player	Team	League	GP	Goals	Asst	Pts	PIM
2020 Commits
Aidan Curran 1/22/01 (F)	Bonnyville Pontiacs	AJHL	2	0	1	1	0
	Salmon Arm Silverbacks	BCHL	11	1	4	5	0
Will Margel* 3/16/01 (F)	Madison Capitols	USHL	8	1	0	1	2
Connor Sweeney 5/5/00 (F)	Trail Smoke Eaters	BCHL	17	1	4	5	10
2020 or '21 Commits
Nicolas Ardanaz 5/30/02 (D)	West Kelowna Warriors	BCHL	19	1	3	4	2
Nicholas Cafarelli 12/31/01 (F)	Wenatchee Wild	BCHL	15	8	7	15	14
Robert Cronin 8/15/00 (F)	Dubuque Fighting Saints	USHL	4	0	0	0	0
Liam Devlin 1/7/01 (F)	Chicago Steel	USHL	8	1	1	2	4
Alex Gagne 8/12/02 (D)	Cedar Rapids RoughRiders	USHL	5	0	1	1	2
Carsen Richels 10/3/01 (F)	Blaine High School	Minn HS	-	-	-	-	-
	MPLS ST PAUL	UMidwest HSELH	13	6	9	15	8
Jack Ring 12/18/00 (F)	Northeast Generals	NAHL	14	2	6	8	2
David Sacco 1/3/02 (F)	Lawrence Academy	NE Prep	-	-	-	-	-
	Cape Cod Whalers U18	EHF Selects	7	5	1	6	18
2021 Commits
Timo Bakos 7/28/00 (F)	Sioux Falls Stampede	USHL	6	2	1	3	0
Cy LeClerc 8/17/02 (F)	Islanders Hockey Club	NCDC	11	3	4	7	2
2021 or '22 Commits
JP Turner 1/31/03 (F)	Avon Old Farms	NE Prep	-	-	-	-	-
	NV River Rats 16U	Beast Series	7	3	7	10	34
Morgan Winters 12/8/01 (F)	Tabor Academy	NE Prep	-	-	-	-	-
	NV River Rats 18U	Beast Series	7	1	1	2	6
2022 or '23 Commits
Nick Ring 10/26/03 (F)	Boston Advantage U18	ECEL	4	2	1	3	0
* = Signed National Letter of Intent

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 "2020 Commits" are projected to begin playing for UNH in the Fall of 2020. I have based these projections on the following factors:
~ 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.
~ Number of UNH players leaving the team at the end of the previous season and the position they played.