Team to Beat/ Top FR recruit in the country

[hockey247]

I guess this is a 2 parted question:

Who is the team to beat this year and why?

Also looking on the D3Hockey site. Who is the 1 Freshmen that stands out to you?


Let the banter begin!

[OSU2010]

Re: Team to Beat/ Top FR recruit in the country

Well I'd say any of the perennial powerhouse teams could be on that list, Oswego, plattsburgh, norwich, snc, I'd Bet at least 2 of those 4 teams will make it to the FF this year, the team that sticks out to me as having a really strong recruiting class this year is St. Thomas, they're a team I'll be watching with some interest

[PrezdeJohnson09]

Well I'd say any of the perennial powerhouse teams could be on that list, Oswego, plattsburgh, norwich, snc, I'd Bet at least 2 of those 4 teams will make it to the FF this year, the team that sticks out to me as having a really strong recruiting class this year is St. Thomas, they're a team I'll be watching with some interest

Agreed on St. Thomas. Watch out for Elmira recruit from the BCHL. 60 point guy out of that league is something to watch for at the D3 level.

[pete99race]

Re: Team to Beat/ Top FR recruit in the country

Heard some good things about SNC recruit: Tyler Zepeda.
Three year veteran with Waterloo (USHL)...

[norm1909]

Re: Team to Beat/ Top FR recruit in the country

How many teams will these guys catch sleeping?

[delfan]

Re: Team to Beat/ Top FR recruit in the country

St. Thomas has an impressive and well balanced recruit list - 6 Forwards & 4 D
3 D1, 5 NAHL (2 forwards over 60 pts) and 2 from the Canadian Junior leagues
Returning 9 0f 10 top scorers and 21 players from last year

Also agree with the Elmira recruit from the BCHL. (60 points) stands out, he should do well in D3

[elbojpb]

Still No Championships

If I were a betting man, I'd place a rather tidy sum on SNC repeating this year. They man-handled two very good teams at Placid, lost very few, and consistently get recruits from the top echelon of Jr Leagues, and D1 flunkies. Anyone know if the one of the off-shore betting companies features D3 teams?

PS - their coaching staff rivals many D1 programs!

[PrezdeJohnson09]

Re: Still No Championships

If I were a betting man, I'd place a rather tidy sum on SNC repeating this year. They man-handled two very good teams at Placid, lost very few, and consistently get recruits from the top echelon of Jr Leagues, and D1 flunkies. Anyone know if the one of the off-shore betting companies features D3 teams?

PS - their coaching staff rivals many D1 programs!

Agreed but they did just lose AJ Aitken (one of their primary coaches) to Marian.

[collegehcky2]

Re: Team to Beat/ Top FR recruit in the country

Agreed on St. Thomas. Watch out for Elmira recruit from the BCHL. 60 point guy out of that league is something to watch for at the D3 level.

I'd bet on the Swede coming into Elmira to be a breakout type of recruit.

[altazo]

Re: Team to Beat/ Top FR recruit in the country

Seth Soley will be the biggest guy SNC will have to replace this season.

[vcxc3200]

Re: Team to Beat/ Top FR recruit in the country

Mac Olson from Hobart could be scary this year... He spent time up in the USHL. Sounds an awful lot like a certain former UC Pioneer who was named a 2005 AA. He really could fit that Jimmy Sokol mold, and i think the talent around him (Salituro, Traversa, etc.) will make him even better.

Another guy to look out for is Utica's Donald Olivieri. This kid has a shot not many in d3 possess. He's cracked a few panes of plexiglass in his lifetime and seems to have great command of the point to boot.

[hockey247]

Re: Team to Beat/ Top FR recruit in the country

Look for Castleton to be strong, lots of upper classman who have put points up.

Top Freshmen look for:
Nate Brown at Geneseo
Connor Gorman at Platty
Erik Cooper at SNC
Jeff Pauluk at Eau Claire
Connor McBride at St. Thomas
Brantley Sherwood at Plymouth St
Jarryd Ten Vaanholt at Elmira
Matt Coleman at Manhattenville
Marc Biggs at Salve Regina
Jesse Petito at Wentworth
Derek Gingera at Castleton
Dean Niezgoda at Norwich

[fanofhockey1]

Re: Team to Beat/ Top FR recruit in the country

Two high impact potential players in the NESCAC:

Conor Brown - Amherst - one of the top players in the CCHL last year
Jacob Charles - Middlebury - point per game in the BCHL who has a late 1992 birthdate...so pretty young compared to a lot of the other top recruits listed. Should be an interesting one to follow.

[sticksnstones]

Re: Team to Beat/ Top FR recruit in the country

Norwich is extremely dangerous again...they didn't lose much.

[SB in the 'Seo]

Re: Team to Beat/ Top FR recruit in the country

How many teams will these guys catch sleeping?

I've been thinking about this recently because Naz and MCC (where they will play their games) are both about 5-10 mins from my house and their first 2 games are against Geneseo. I haven't really dug into hockey research yet (looking at schedules, recruits, etc.) because I'm still in golf mode, one big tournament to go (New York state championship at the end of the month) and then I'll jump into hockey mode.

So I'll throw it out there to those who maybe have already jumped into their '12-'13 analysis. What do you expect from Naz? Conventional thinking would suggest that they struggle in their first year. However, recent history (Adrian) would suggest that teams can compete right out of the gate. How do you expect them to fair in their Non-conference and ECAC W games?