The past week has been a busy one on the college hockey recruiting front. Several local schools received commitments from prospects while a top uncommitted local talent made his college choice.
Boston University was looking towards the future with one commit while adding two players to the roster for the second half of the season.
The Terriers welcome forward Wilmer Skoog and goaltender Ashton Abel. The additions came due to needing an extra body up front and with the uncertainty in the goaltending position.
Skoog, from Stockholm, Sweden, was leading the North American Hockey League (NAHL) in points per game when he left the Maryland Black Bears for Commonwealth Ave. The ’99 had 15 goals and 18 assists in 24 games.
A left-shot center, Skoog played 2018-19 with the Minot Minotauros in the NAHL. He had 20 goals and 31 assists in 64 games with that organization. It was his first season in North America after playing for VIK Vasteras HK in his native Sweden previously.
Abel is a ’99 who comes to BU from the Okotoks Oilers in the Alberta Junior Hockey League. The Grand Prairie, Alberta, native had a .910 save percentage in 26 appearances during the 2019-20 season.
While shoring up the immediate future was important, BU also secured a goaltender for the longterm. The Terriers received a commit from North Jersey Avalanche 16-U goaltender Anton Castro.
The Mendota Heights, Minn., native is an ’03 who played previously for Gentry Academy in his home state. Castro appeared in the USA Hockey Select 16 Player Development Camp this past July.
Bentley adds a pair of commits
Bentley received commitments from Omaha Lancers left wing Cole Kodsi and Odessa Jackelopes defenseman Matt Clark.
Kodsi, a ’00 from Boca Raton, Fla., is a big commit for the Falcons. He had previously been committed to Michigan State. Kodsi brings a lot of junior hockey experience and is a versatile forward who can play a heavy game. He has five goals and six assists in 23 games this season for the Lancers.
Clark is in his second season in the NAHL. The ’99 from Jamison, Pa., has three goals and five assists in 27 games. He spent the 2018-19 season with the Chippewa Steel.
Both commitments represent an uptick in recruiting for Bentley, a program that should continue to reap the rewards of a new, beautiful on campus facility.
Anderson commits to Sacred Heart
Last week, Omaha Lancers ’99 defenseman Grant Anderson committed to Sacred Heart. The from Plymouth, Minn., is in his third season with the Lancers. He will bring over 160 games of USHL experience when he arrives on campus.
Anderson is a right shot with size, mobility, skill, and jam. He has four goals and five assists in 25 games so far this season.
Morrow headed to North Dakota
One of the top uncommitted ‘02s in the country, Darien, Conn., native Scott Morrow, has committed to North Dakota.
Morrow, a right-shot defenseman in his fourth season at Shattuck-St. Mary’s, is a skilled, offensive, puck-moving defenseman. He was terrific in the recent Cushing Academy Invitational.
He showed signs of breaking out this past summer when he had three points at USA Hockey Select 17 Player Development Camp. A late ’02, Morrow will be heavily scouted ahead of the 2021 NHL Draft when he’s in his first year of eligibility.
Goaltender of the future for BC
Boston College has had a string of very good goaltenders over the past 15 years, including Cory Schneider, Thatcher Demko, Joseph Woll, and now Spencer Knight.
That success in the crease looks like it will be continuing. On top of Hotchkiss senior Henry Wilder, the Eagles just received a commitment from ’02 Grant Riley.
The Rochester, N.Y., native is in his first season of junior hockey with the NAHL’s Janesville Jets. He has a .899 save percentage in 24 games. He made a name for himself the past couple of years with the Rochester Coalition youth program, run by BC alum Chris Collins.
Riley is a big goaltender who should be drafted in the 2020 NHL Draft. In the view of this writer, he and Youngstown Phantoms goaltender Colin Purcell, a UMass commit, are the top two American goaltending prospects for June’s draft in Montreal.
Quinnipiac receives BCHL commit
Former Michigan commit Nick Bochen has committed to Quinnipiac for the 2020-21 season. The North Vancouver, British Columbia, native is in his second full season with the Prince George Spruce Kings in the BCHL. A converted forward now playing on the blue line, he has three goals and 13 assists in 25 games.
