Ex-White Bear Lake defenseman Johnson to SCSU

As Chris Heisenberg first reported, former White Bear Lake defenseman Taylor Johnson has committed to St. Cloud State for the fall of 2008. Johnson, who currently plays for Green Bay in the USHL, would have been a senior for the Bears this fall. So far this year, Johnson, who currently stands at 5'9", 175 lbs., has played in 17 games for the Gamblers, posting two goals and four assists with a minus three rating.

Brainerd defenseman Olson commits to UMD

Brainerd High School defenseman Drew Olson has committed to Minnesota Duluth for the fall of 2008 or 2009. Olson, who currently stands at 5'11", 195 lbs, will be a senior for Brainerd this year and could join UMD as early as next fall. Olson was recently rated "B" prospect for this summer's NHL Entry Draft by the NHL's Central Scouting Service, and was a fourth round pick by the Omaha Lancers in the 2006 USHL Futures Draft. Olson would likely play in Omaha next year if he defers his enrollment at UMD to the fall of 2009.

NTDP defenseman Marciano commits to CC

According to Kate Crandall's blog, U.S. NTDP Under-18 defenseman Joe Marciano has committed to Colorado College for the fall of 2008. The Alta Loma, Calif. native was also considering Harvard. Prior to joining the NTDP, Marciano, who stands at 6-foot-1, 194-pounds, played for Shattuck-St. Mary's in Fairbault, Minn.

Minnesota State picks up another 2009 recruit

PF Changs Major Midget defenseman Danny Heath has committed to Minnesota State for the 2009 season, according to Chris Heisenberg. The Glendale, Ariz. native is already 6'1", 175 lbs. and was invited to the U.S. NTDP tryouts in 2006. Heath joins goaltender Kevin Murdock (Lincoln - USHL) as the two Maverick recruits for 2009.

Another Mattson picks UND

As Brad Schlossman of the Grand Forks Herald first reported, U.S. NTDP Under-17 defenseman Nick Mattson has verbally committed to the University of North Dakota for the fall of 2010. The Chaska, Minn. native chose the Fighting Sioux over Minnesota and Wisconsin.

This Mattson will join Holy Angels junior forward Danny Mattson (no relation) and several other Twin Cities natives in Grand Forks over the next several years. Schlossman's blog does a good job of outlining the UND / Twin Cities pipeline.

Here are some quotes from Mattson, which come from the GFH article that is linked to in the first paragraph:

“North Dakota kind of matches my personality,” Mattson said. “I’m a small town kid. I just really felt comfortable with the coaching staff and facilities. I had a chance to meet some of the guys when I visited there, asked them some questions, and everyone seemed to love it.”


“This is the biggest relief I’ve ever felt in my life,” Mattson said. “I had a long time to think about it. It’s something I’ve really been thinking about all the time for the past five months. It feels really, really good to have it done with.”



"I have a ton of things to work on to get to where I want to be,” Mattson said. “It’s nice to get this (commitment) out of the way, so I can focus on my game.”

Shattuck's Novotny commits to Denver

As Chris Heisenberg first reported, Shattuck St. Mary's forward Stepan Novotny has committed to the Denver Pioneers for the fall of 2008. Novotny is a native of the Czech Republic and has 29 points in 22 games so far this year for SSM, as the Western College Hockey blog points out. Novotny will join Joe Colborne (F - AJHL), Nate Dewhurst (F - USHL), and John Lee (D - USHL) as Pioneer freshmen next fall.

Ex-St. Thomas goalie Crandall commits to Wisconsin

Former St. Thomas Academy goalie Aaron Crandall has committed to the Wisconsin Badgers for the fall of 2009, according to various online reports. The ex-Cadet is currently playing for the Green Bay Gamblers in the USHL. So far this season, Crandall has a 2-4-1 record with a 3.70 goals against average and a .888 save percentage. Despite those unimpressive statistics, Crandell is a nice recruit and will likely carry the torch as another good UW goalie, especially head coach Mike Eaves' system.

Apologies for the lack of updates over the last day or so ... the WCHA Blog has had the pleasure of dealing with airline cancellations for the "A" job. Good times. Rant over.

Michigan Tech & Minnesota State add recruits

According to Chris Heisenberg's recruiting website, Michigan Tech has added Waterloo Blackhawks' forward Brett Olson to its' 2009 recruiting class, while Minnesota State has secured the services of Tri-City defenseman Cameron Cooper for the fall of 2008.

Olson, who hails from Superior, Wisc., has 32 points in 102 USHL games, as the Western College Hockey blog points out. He has average size (5'11", 173 lbs.) but should be a solid role player for the Huskies.

Cooper, meanwhile, is a name that may be familiar to Twin Cities residents, as he recently played for the Academy of Holy Angels before heading to the USHL. The Lakeville, Minn. native is off to a good start this season, as he has six points in 10 games for the Storm.

BCHL forward Witt commits to Michigan Tech

The Michigan Tech Huskies have added BCHL forward Evan Witt to their 2009 recruiting class, according to Chris Heisenberg's recruiting website. Witt, who currently plays for the Vernon Vipers, has three goals and five assists in 18 games this year for the Vipers. This season will be Witt's first in the BCHL, and he'll presumably continue his career in Western Canada next season before heading to Houghton in the fall of 2009. When he hits campus, Witt, who currently stands at 5'11", 175 lbs., will be just short of his 20th birthday.

Eden Prairie defenseman Leddy commits to Minnesota

According to the Gopher Hockey Blog, Eden Prairie High School defenseman Nick Leddy has committed to play for Minnesota. The junior visited Minnesota last Thursday and committed to the Golden Gophers on Monday. He was also interested in North Dakota, St. Cloud State, and Minnesota Duluth.

As the Gopher Hockey Blog points out, Leddy is currently participating in the Upper Midwest High School Elite League, and will play his junior season for Eden Prairie. He's scheduled to join Minnesota in the fall of 2009. He was a first round pick of the Des Moines Buccaneers in the recent USHL draft, so it would appear likley that he'll play in the USHL next year before enrolling at Minnesota.

Leddy's stock has risen rapidly over the last year or so. This past summer, he played very well at the Select 16s Festival in New York and was chosen to play on the U.S. Under-17 Select team that participated in the 2007 Under-17 Five Nations Tournament. Leddy had a goal and two assists in the four games for Team USA.

Gophers land out-of-state recruit in Wausau 's Condon

As the Gopher Hockey Blog first reported, Wausau West's High School's Nate Condon committed to Minnesota late last week. The senior forward will finish out his four years for Wausau and then play a year in the USHL before joining the Gophers in the fall of 2009.

In addition to the Gopher Hockey Blog's coverage, Wisconsin Prep Hockey has some more info, including some quotes.

A 6'0, 180 lb. forward, Condon currently leads the Upper Midwest High School Elite League in scoring while playing for Team Wisconsin, who take on Russell Stover, a midget AAA team, for the league championship today. The Gopher Hockey Blog reported that Condon was also considering Notre Dame, Minnesota Duluth, Minnesota State, Dartmouth, and Wisconsin.

He is the first Wisconsin-born player to join the Maroon and Gold since Phil Kessel in 2005-06. US-NTDP member Grant Scott, a forward from Pennsylvania, is the only other current Minnesota recruit not born in the land of 10,000 lakes. This current season and the 1999-2000 season have been the only years under Don Lucia's watch where the Gophers didn't have a out-of-state player on the roster.

Condon was rated an "A" prospect by the NHL's Central Scouting Bureau, and was a fifth round choice by the expansion Fargo Force, led by former North Dakota head coach Dean Blais, in the recent USHL Futures Draft.

Tech adds a pair of recruits for 2008

As the Western College Hockey blog and Chris Heisenberg reported, Michigan Tech has added a pair of recruits for next fall.

The first is Bryce Reddick, a 5'10", 165 lb forward who currently plays for the Cowichan Valley Capitals in the BCHL. The Las Vegas native had 19 points in 54 games last season for the Caps, and currently sits 16th in the BCHL scoring race with 21 points in 15 games. He will have just turned 19-years-old when he steps foot in Houghton next fall.

The other Husky recruit added on Thursday is Seth Soley, who is from Eau Claire, Wisc. The Eau Claire Memorial High School forward has good size at 6'1", 185 lbs., and has played very well thus far in the Upper Midwest High School Elite League -- he is currently the second-leading scorer behind fellow Wisconsin native Nate Condon, who is uncommitted.

Shore commits to Pioneers

Forward Drew Shore has committed to Denver for the fall of 2009, according to the U.S. Hockey Report. The Denver native currently plays for the U.S. NTDP U-17 team. Both of his parents attended DU, so this was a logical choice for Shore. Wisconsin was the only other WCHA school in the mix for Shore, who joins fellow NTDP'ers William Wrenn (D) and Adam Murray (G) as DU recruits for 2009.

Cunti saga continues - UPDATED

The on-going drama involving Luca Cunti and St. Cloud State continues. Cunti played for the Chicago Steel in the USHL on Saturday night, which would indicate that his chances of playing for the Huskies this year appear to be decreasing. As of last weekend, the 2007 third round pick of the Tampa Bay Lightning had not yet received his clearance of amateur status from the NCAA.

UPDATED - Pointstreak has since updated the box score from Saturday's game, and apparently Cunti was NOT in the lineup for Chicago, and is still awaiting clearance from the NCAA in St. Cloud.

St. Clair commits to Colorado College

As noted on the Western College Hockey blog, PF Changs U18 forward Colton St. Clair has verbally committed to Colorado College for the fall of 2010, according to The Scouting News. The PF Changs team was in Colorado Springs this weekend, and the team attended both CC victories over Minnesota.

NTPD's Wren commits to Denver for 2009

William Wren, who currently plays on the U.S. Under-17 Team, has verbally commited to the Denver Pioneers for the fall of 2009, according to the U.S. Hockey Report. The 6’1”, 185 lb. defenseman joins teammate Adam Murray, a goalie, as being DU commits for '09 from the Under-17 team. Both hail from Anchorage, Alaska as well. The Pioneers were the only WCHA team in the hunt for Wren.

DU head coach George Gwozdecky is putting together a very talented freshman class for 2009. Wrenn and Murray join Paul Phillips (USHL - Cedar Rapids), Matt Donovan (USHL - Cedar Rapids), and Nate Dewhurst (USHL - Des Moines) as '09 Pioneer recruits. If Denver can manage to keep a fair amount of their current underclassmen on campus for a few seasons, they should really be set up nicely for 2009 and beyond.

Burnsville's Hendrickson commits to UMD

According to a report in the Duluth News Tribune, Burnsville High School forward Jake Hendrickson has committed to play for Minnesota Duluth. The senior will join the Bulldogs in the fall of 2009 after playing this upcoming season for Burnsville and then playing a year in the USHL. He's currently participating in the Upper Midwest High School Elite League. According to the report, he made recruiting visits to North Dakota, Colorado College, Denver and Wisconsin.

From the article:

Last season, Hendrickson had 26 goals and 45 assists for 71 points in 30 games as Burnsville went 19-11 and finished fourth in the 2007 Minnesota Class AA tournament. In the Upper Midwest High School Elite League this fall, he has 10 goals and 14 assists for 24 points in 15 games for Team Northeast, to tie for third in league scoring.

Ryan Walters commits to Minnesota

St. Thomas Academy forward Ryan Walters has verbally committed to Minnesota, The Scouting News confirmed after rumors starting circulating last night on the Minnesota High School Hockey message board. Walters, a sophomore, is considered by many to be one of the top recruits in the nation for the class of 2010. He briefly played in the Upper Midwest High School Elite League this fall before playing for Des Moines in the USHL. He will play there before and after this upcoming season, and then, according to a report in the Pioneer Press, will play full-time for the Buccaneers the following two seasons before enrolling at Minnesota.

This past summer, after participating in the University of Minnesota's Model Camp, Walters performed well at the Select 16s in Rochester, N.Y. He finished the event with seven points in five games. After the Select 16s, the U.S. Hockey Report gave Walters an "A" rating. Fellow Gopher recruit Josh Birkholz also received an "A."

Walters, who is originally from Rosemount, followed with an impressive performance in the 2007 Under-17 Five Nations Tournament in the Czech Republic, scoring four goals and registering one assists in four games.

Here's a brief video clip of Walters playing in the Elite League from last month.

Top AJHL goalie spurns WCHA schools, picks RPI

According to the U.S. Hockey Report, Camrose Kodiaks (AJHL) netminder Allen York has committed to RPI for the fall of 2008. Minnesota, Wisconsin, Denver, and Michigan Tech were among the schools that York was considering. The Gophers and Badgers reportedly wanted York for the fall of 2009. His final two choices, however, were RPI and Denver, and when US-NTDP goalie Adam Murray committed to Denver for 2009, that helped convince York to commit to RPI.

Burnsville forward Barnes commits to UW

According to Todd Milewski's blog, Burnsville High School forward Tyler Barnes has committed to play for Wisconsin. Denver, Colorado College and St. Cloud State were also reportedly in the mix. As junior last season, Barnes had 54 points in 31 games for the Blaze. He will join the Badgers in the fall of 2009 after playing for Waterloo in the USHL next season.