For UMaine, new recruits for next season are pretty unlikely at this point. We are pretty well locked in, especially at D. If an obvious roster upgrade presents itself that is a different story. The one thing to keep an eye on is Michel and Holway. I left the Alfond last Saturday night and pretty much said goodbye to Michel. I think he will be offered a contract and sign, as he should. I'm a little on the fence about Holway, but ultimately I think Detroit sees enough room for improvement that at least another year at UMaine is in order. Becker is likely to graduate. So we need to replace Hamilton, Michel, Becker is this scenario.
Assessing the
current situation Butala (Hamilton), Kleiboer (Michel), and Spicer (Becker). Palmer has one more year of junior eligibility and is a good player no doubt, i've watched him play a couple of times. Ultimately he doesn't represent an obvious roster upgrade and Maine doesn't have enough $ left to get him to Orono. He is likely to get more $ (a half to full ride) from another school . Palmer is your classic Norm Bazin type pickup (which more and more teams are doing now). Also Atlantic Hockey with their 18 scholarships now and many schools with new infrastructure projects completed/underway/planned should not be taken lightly going forward.
