It's been a busy past two days on the college hockey recruiting scene. The floodgates opened once the clock hit midnight on Aug. 1, allowing rising juniors in high school to verbally commit to schools.
On the first day alone, eight New England natives secured Division 1 commitments, while 21 prospects committed to local schools.
Day 2 wasn't as crazy. In all, three local prospects committed to three New England schools.
There are still many strong prospects left on the board. They are opting to take their time, going on more visits and mulling their options — there is nothing wrong with that.
But there has been a lot to digest from the first two days. Let's dive in.
Harvard is now stacked on local goalies
On Friday afternoon, Mid Fairfield announced on Instagram that Jacoby Weiner (Riverside, Conn.) committed to Harvard.
It's big news, as Weiner was definitely the top local goalie in this recruiting class and is one of the best in the nation among the '08s. He took part in the U.S. National Team Development Program's Evaluation Camp earlier this year and will play at Kent this winter.
Typically, goalies don't commit this early. But Weiner has the size (6-foot-4 and 240 pounds) along with the athleticism and overall abilities to warrant committing this quick.
With Weiner picking Harvard, that's two straight seasons of the Crimson getting commitments from the top local netminders. Last summer, former Nobles standout Thatcher Bernstein (Brookline, Mass.) entered as the top local goalie recruit and picked Harvard. The '06 is also a former NTDP Evaluation Camp attendee and is slated to begin at Harvard in the fall of 2025.
Weiner, an '08, has a while until he arrives.
No surprise with Casey Mutryn
When I took this job as editor of New England Hockey Journal in September of 2022, Teddy and Casey Mutryn were young at the time, but sure-fire, high-end prospects. They were two of the first prospects I learned about and was told to watch. The word around the rinks was that they were always destined for Boston College.
So when Teddy committed to BC last summer, it was a foregone conclusion that Casey would follow suit.
It took him all of a few hours on Thursday for him to announce it.
Casey was never going anywhere else. Some other schools like Harvard and Michigan kicked the tires, but the Norwell, Mass., native had his sights set on Chestnut Hill from the jump. The family has deep ties to the school. The Mutryn parents, Scott and Kathy, were athletes at BC. Scott still does the radio color analysis for BC football games.
What Casey becomes at the NTDP will help set the tone for what kind of role he steps into with BC in two years. This NTDP U17 team has a plethora of high-end, offensive talent and Casey is very much in that class. His compete should help him differentiate from the rest. If that happens, he has future No. 1 center potential for the Eagles.
Will Bent picks Providence
Bent, who also attended U.S. National Team Development Program Evaluation Camp in the spring, was less of a sure thing for where he would commit to.
ON THE BOARD: Forwards still available | Defenders still available
He had interest from a lot of different places, but it came down to Providence and Harvard for him. Ultimately, he picked Providence.
While Bent's father, Mike, played a season at Harvard before three at Brown in the late 1990s, the son has spent the last two seasons in Rhode Island with Mount St. Charles, starring on the 14U and 15U teams. Surely, being in the state helped Bent opt to stay there for college.
I touched on this a bit in our news story about Bent committing to Providence, but the Dover, Mass., native has high-end potential. Typically, Providence has been known for grinding down opposing teams and winning that way. Bent, at least up until this point, projects as a top offensive producer, which is something the Friars will absolutely need in two to three years.
BU lands a pair of top prospects on Day 1
Head coach Jay Pandolfo's staff hasn't been overly busy so far, but they did land two future impact players in forward Tynan Lawrence and defenseman Luke Schairer.
Lawrence was tendered by the USHL's Muskegon Lumberjacks earlier this season and played up on Shattuck-St. Mary's 16U team this season as a 15-year-old. He was widely considered one of the top prospects in this year's recruiting class.
Schairer going to BU is no surprise. The big storyline surrounding the Mount St. Charles product is his pro potential. At 6-foot-3 and 174 pounds, Schairer doesn't have any big weakness in his game — he can do everything. He will play with the NTDP U17 team this winter and projects to lead BU's blue line within the next three to five years.
Who are the winners so far?
While BC and BU both landed high-end impact players, they tend to dominate the early days of recruiting every year. Yes, they are early winners, but neither school has trouble drawing top talent.
But a good sleeper pick: Dartmouth.
I loved what they did last Aug. 1 when the Big Green nabbed Grayden Robertson-Palmer out of Phillips Andover. He has the ability to drive play and take over games at the prep level.
On Day 1, they picked up commitments from Belmont Hill forward Jake Tavares (Belmont, Mass.) and Arlington High defenseman (and future Belmont Hill Sextant) Evan Jones (Arlington, Mass.). On Day 2, they got one from former Loomis Chaffee forward Indiana Grossbard (Wilton, Conn.), who will play for Avon Old Farms this winter.
Up front, Tavares showed himself as a natural goal scorer this past winter, tying David Bosco (Winchester, Mass.) for the team lead in goals with 18. At 6-foot, 174 pounds, he has the upside to continue on his ascent. That's a pick-up that should age well.
COACHES SOUND OFF: Advice for prospects looking to commit in August — and for those that don't
So is Grossbard, who was a breakout star in prep this past season, posting 36 points in 26 games for Loomis Chaffee. He had lots of interest from Hockey East and ECAC schools. Like Tavares, he's on the ascent. That's a recruiting win for Dartmouth.
Jones is a big steal. I'm not sure how many colleges made their way to MIAA games this winter, but Jones, as a sophomore, was dominant. That trend continued in fall hockey with the Boston Jr. Eagles, the Mass. Hockey Festival (all the best players in Massachusetts) and at USA Hockey's Select 17 Camp (all the best players in the country). His offensive upside and puck-moving abilities on defense make him a dynamo.
UMass was busy early
As the commitments rolled in on Thursday morning, UMass rattled off three straight in Jason Musa, Mclean Agrette and Nolan Duskocy.
All three share something in common: They play in the area. Musa has spent the last two seasons with Trinity-Pawling. Duskocy, from Ellington, Conn., has been a standout at BK Selects the past two seasons. Agrette spent the last two seasons with the Nichols School. And yes, I know Bishop Kearney and Nichols are in New York, but both teams play many games in New England.
An interesting tidbit about Musa is that his brother, Jack, was a standout freshman at UMass this season.
Maine gets commitments from a pair of strong forwards
On Thursday, Long Island Gulls and former Mount St. Charles forward Dylan Dean committed to Maine. Jude Herron (Duxbury, Mass.), who played for South Kent's 15O team this season, followed suit on Friday.
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In 2022-23, Dean was one of the top 14U prospects in the country, posting 35 goals and 81 points in 56 games for Mount St. Charles. He moved over to the Long Island Gulls for this past season, tallying 36 goals and 74 points in 60 games. At 6-foot-1 and 181 pounds, he has the size to project him as an impactful college player someday. He was also taken in the ninth round (130th overall) by the Sioux City Musketeers in the USHL Phase 1 Draft.
Herron went in the sixth round (77th overall) of that same draft, getting taken by the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders. He captained South Kent's squad this season with 24 goals and 53 points in 45 games. Herron is known for his high compete and stands at 5-foot-11 and 172 pounds. He was one of my favorite forwards at New England District boys camp earlier this year.
