Compared to past Augusts, it's been relatively quiet on the college hockey recruiting front. Among the first-year eligible recruits, there have only been 21 since Aug. 1.
But this story isn't all about them. I covered a lot of that in a separate story earlier this week.
Instead, two of the three players in this story are non-first-year eligible players who've recently committed to Division 1 programs. All three players are either still in prep or once called a prep school home.
Let's dive in.
Freddy Meyer V commits to Boston University
On Thursday afternoon, Meyer, an '07, announced via Instagram that he committed to Boston University. His father, also named Freddy, played at BU from 1999 to 2003.
Meyer has been a defenseman for only two years. He grew up a forward, but was switched to defense during the 2023-24 season at Rivers.
As a sophomore this past season, Meyer scored two goals and posted 22 points in 28 games.
READ MORE: Track every commitment since Aug. 1
His size — 5-foot-10 and 160 pounds — is deceiving. Meyer is a phenomenal body-checker, laying out players in open ice and always taking the body in corners. He plays much bigger than he is. And because he used to be a forward, he has strong patience with the puck, vision and good skill. Because he's only been a defenseman for two seasons, he's still a bit raw.
Meyer was picked in the 13th round (210th overall) by the Sioux City Musketeers in the USHL Phase 2 Draft earlier this year, but will attend Quebec Remparts (QMJHL) camp this summer. Still, he's slated to be back at Rivers this winter.
This is pure speculation, but given this development, it would be hard to imagine Meyer's younger brother, Carter, an '09 bound for the U.S. National Team Development Program, not committing to BU.
Blake McMeniman commits to Army
Sure, he's a 5-foot-9 goalie. But that never prevented him from having success at Kimball Union.
McMeniman committed to Army earlier this week. His father, Thomas, played at Army from 1996-2000 after a career with St. John's Prep.
McMeniman burst onto the prep scene in 2023-24, guiding Kimball Union to an Elite 8 championship over Cushing. The netminder posted a 2.49 goals-against average and a .912 save percentage. He followed that up with an even better season as a senior, tallying a 1.93 GAA and a .918 save percentage en route to a Small School title.
In net, McMeniman is known for never going down too soon, taking good angles on shooters and having superb rebound control.
In the 2024 NCDC Futures Draft, McMeniman, an '07, was picked by Islanders Hockey Club in the second round.
Rudy Guimond commits to Harvard
Locals might remember Guimond for a couple of things. He was a standout goalie for Taft in 2022-23, consistently facing a slew of shots and guiding the Rhinos to a Large School championship. He finished that season with a 2.34 GAA and a .943 save percentage. The other thing: He was once committed to Yale.
Things have since changed.
Guimond decommitted from Yale and, after taking his time finding a new NCAA home, picked Harvard in late July.
Guimond left Taft a year early for the USHL's Cedar Rapids RoughRiders. Midway through this past season, the 6-foot-3, 172-pound netminder went to the QMJHL's Moncton Wildcats and flat-out dominated.Â
Get a load of this: In the regular season, Guimond won all 16 of his starts, posting a 1.73 GAA and a .940 save percentage. He went 8-1 in the playoffs to get the Wildcats a QMJHL title. He holds the new record for consecutive wins to start a QMJHL career with 24.
READ MORE: Are players becoming more realistic with their college hockey aspirations?
In 2023, the '05 was a sixth-round pick (169th overall) by the Detroit Red Wings. They are surely happy they took a chance on him coming out of Taft.
Guimond will go back to Moncton for this coming season.
