AJS

This. Very interested to see how it's going to play out. They are +2 right now.

Current list: https://www.uscho.com/pro-signings-by-ncaa-players-2019-offseason/ Hockey East is really taking a beating this off season with departures, with other top Seniors. Looking at last years records: 1. UMASS: Seems to be in pretty good shape, but lose top two scorers Makar and Pritchard (SR). Pretty good proven depth returning. 2. Northeastern: Lose top 3 scorers (all above 30 points) and a stud goalie 3. Providence: Lose 1, 3, 4, 6 and Senior goalie. 4. Lowell: Lose top 2 and Top D. Their point totals look like UNDs this year. 5. BU - Lose 5 early, under .500 record last year

At a minimum I'd like to see: Denver: Mitchell Duluth: Shepard, One Forward, Either Anderson or Perunovich and either Wolfe or Samberg That'd be one more for Denver and hopefully 4 for Duluth.

Couldn't agree more, but what goes for Garnder can be said three fold for guys like Keane / Yon / Johnson who because of injuries and lack of depth had to play roles they weren't cut out for. Keane playing on the second line at times and Yon / Johnson playing on the power play. These are guys that cannot be playing anything outside of a 4th line role at best. I said it earlier today, but I can't emphasis enough how gaining a net 2 Forwards (as it stands today) will greatly impact the team. Especially the caliber of players they are adding. I see the following, guys that were regulars at the end of the year: Michaud / Jones - Neutral Pinto / Garnder - From an offensive perspective a net gain, Pinto is a legitimate Top 6 talent, like @SIOUXELEVENS said, Garnder was made for the 3rd line Center Role Blaisdell / Keane - Night and Day difference as far as talent Caulfield / Johnson - Night and Day difference as far as talent Albrecht / Yon - Can't be worse If we think the Top 6 talent wise is (Michaud, Kawaguchi, Mismash, Pinto, Blaisdell, Adams), Top 9 include (Hain, Senden, Smith) -- you have a fourth line of a combination of Caulfield, Weatherby, Bowen, Hoff. You already have a one player buffer, before you have to get into Albrecht / Keane / Johnson / Yon. The last three playing big minutes last year. I think we're going to see a huge turnaround next year offensively.

Things we know going into next year. UND will have a solid 3rd line - Hain / Senden / Smith 2 "proven" scorers at the NCAA level The first line starts with Michaud centering Kawaguchi. Guys that have the talent to be contributors Top 6 Contributors next year outside of the two that are penciled into the first line. Mismash - 2nd round pick, a lot of talent. Had a solid Freshman campaign and then injuries last year. Injuries aside, he's easily a Top line guy Pinto - He'll be the 2nd line center. Great year in the USHL as a Senior. 2nd / 3rd round pick this summer. Blaisdell - Another definite Top 6 guy as a Freshman. Can really do it all. Most likely 3rd round pick this summer. Adams - We've seen the individual talent, can he actually take the next step? Weatherby - We'll see if he can make the jump from his Freshman year If we see the Top 6 as Kawaguchi - Michaud - Mismash - Solid D1 First Line Blaisdell - Pinto - Adams - A lot of talent I really do think next year they'll be able to mix and match a very solid Top 6 to go along with a good 3rd line. More importantly, there were 3 guys who played a lot last year that shouldn't see the ice on a good team. Even with some injuries, being that right now the Forward group is sitting +2 from last year, we won't see them nearly as much, much less all three of them on a nightly basis. Side note: Honestly, I really like a 4th line of Caulfied / Hoff / Weatherby / Bowen Offensively, there will be more talent (with the addition of Michaud / High end freshman) and more quality depth, which might be just as important.

USHL Pinto - '00 (F): 28-31-59 (56GP) Gaber - '99 (F): 22-28-50 (61GP) Halliday - '02 (F): 10-24-34 (55GP) Ness - '99 (F): 16-17-33 (57GP) Mancinelli - '01 (F): 13-17-30 (58GP) Schmaltz - 01' (F): 5-13-18 (60GP) Frisch - '00 (D): 4-13-17 (57GP) Reid - 01' (D): 2-17-17 (60GP) Miller - 01' (D): 4-12-16 (48GP) Randklev - '99 (F): 3-8-11 (21GP) Montgomery - 02': (F) 4-3-7 (36GP) Costello - 00' (F): 3-4-7 (55GP) NTDP U18 Caulfield - 01' (F): 12-24-36 (56GP) Rowe - 01' (G): 3.49 GAA / .872 SV% (32GP) NTDP U17 Sanderson -02' (D): 4-19-23 (41GP) Kleven -02' (D): 3-5-8 (49GP) AJHL Bast - 00' (D): 7-28-35 (45GP) BCHL Blaisdell - 01' (F): 33-25-58 (51GP) Stratton - 99' (F): 11-30-41 (50GP) Rizzo - 01' (F): 11-29-40 (37GP) Bowen -02' (F) 19-20-39 (58GP) SJHL Albrecht - 98' (F) 33-56-89 (56GP) Other Kunz -02' (F) James -03' (F) Moore - 01' (D) Johnson - 01' (G) Ausmus '04' (D) Panzer '04 (F) Spicer '04 (F)

Not yet, but should be anytime now. It was released April 12th last year.

From a couple days ago: https://www.grandforksherald.com/sports/4597923-rb-depth-chart-pro-potential-and-new-offense-review-heralds-und-football-mailbag Defensive line is likely UND's biggest need in recruiting after spring ball in terms of players ready to see the field right away. UND's coaches think Jalen Morrison can be a quality starting nose. They've also rotated defensive end Carl Engwall into the middle on occasion. I'd expect an addition of a nose in the form of a junior college transfer or FBS dropdown following spring ball. This could be a more pressing need in 2020 when UND plays a Missouri Valley schedule than in 2019 against the Big Sky slate because of the difference in how the leagues use fullbacks and power-run schemes.

This is only the way I feel about the situation, but I bet it rings true with a lot of other people. You can't and shouldn't fault the way anyone close to the program has felt or the way they've expressed their feelings since the decisions was made. This obviously includes the twins. Not only is it natural, but something everyone else would have done and would be doing with a sport they were apart of or with fans / alumni, felt connected to. I like I'm sure everyone else was never anti-women's hockey. The only problem I have with this situation is how it was handled by the local media, which was almost entirely by Schlossman. To say he was unprofessional would be an understatement. Not only do I feel he couldn't have been more one sided with his reporting, but I also felt he was doing everything he could in his position to make UND look as bad as he possibly could. I agree that UND could have handled this better, but I don't believe that had anything to do with the one-sidedness of how it was reported. Schlossman with this situation turned from reporter to activist. I expect more although in this day and age I shouldn't, from the media. Report on the situation and lay out all the facts. I was always on the side that this was the best decision overall for the University going forward, so I supported it from day one, so you could say I have my own bias. I went from neutral feels towards the women's program and did sympathize, because it's tough on the players, obviously. Schlossman single-handily helped grow a more negative attitude overall towards a program that is no longer here. Before this all happened I felt the same about all the sports that were cut, but Women's hockey I now see in a worse light, that can't be said for the others.

I'm trying to temper my expectations going into next year, but this Michaud addition is really exciting. It's a rare situation where you can just add a guy that's already proven himself as an above average college player. We already know that he would have lead this team in goals / points, which I realize was in a different style / situation, but still. If we look strictly now at goals lost going into next year, his 13 would cancel out the combined goals scored by Jones / Shaw / JJ. UND needs to replace only 8 goals going into next year, which is almost unheard of. I'm very interested to see how the forward roster shakes out for next year, because even if they delay Rizzo, you'd think there would be a couple guys who are currently on the roster that won't be back.

I don't think anyone is going to dispute that an extra year of Juniors is a bad thing for him, in fact, I think most people would agree that overall it would help him out. Like I said, as long as everyone is on the same page (Rizzo, his parents and UND), then him returning to Penticton is a win for everyone.

Is Donovan still a recruit? That’s how.

Re Rizzo: In general, do I feel in most situations would an extra year of Juniors be beneficial to a player, absolutely. I don't necessarily disagree with delaying Rizzo a year, especially given he's currently a Senior in HS. It's VERY, VERY important though that the lines of communication are open and clear between Rizzo and the UND coaches. What happened with Donovan earlier this year has left me a very cautious of these type of situations. Rizzo is still a high end player and even with injuries early, still put together a year better than most of our recent Forward recruits. Will be interesting to follow, there's no need to get excited right now, but another Donovan situation would be a major black eye for Berry.

I'm really hoping this can be a win / win for the University. Kennedy comes in, makes the tough (unpopular to some) decisions and sets up the University for the future. The future President will be able to come in with a much better situation than Kennedy stepped into.

My $.02. Kennedy stepped into a tough situation, the road he took to the final outcome of some of his decisions was rocky at best. Cutting sports is the perfect example. The final outcome of those decisions, was always what was best long term for the University. I can't emphasis enough how although unpopular to some, what he did is going to be so valuable going forward. He wasn't the perfect President and he had his flaws for sure, but overall, the University is in a much, much better place because he made the tough decisions. Side note: Remember that weird tough guy routine Schlossman and Miller did when Kennedy first started and he was on a bus tour of the state and didn't return their calls (or give them quotes) as soon as they wanted? It was really embarrassing for them, but that kind of set the tone for at least his relationship with the Herald. It's really too bad, they never seemed to really give him a chance.

Pinto has really been consistent this year, 8 goals in his past 8 games (only one two goal game). Current stat line is 28 goals 28 assists 56 points in 53 games (13th in the USHL). Held off the score sheet 14 times this year.

Any predictions for early departures for the NCHC teams still left playing? There are a lot of high end Sophomore D-man that are possibilities, Mitchell with Denver and Duluth has three that I could see.

I know some don't like how the college landscape has changed over the years with the young verbals, but as someone who really enjoys college hockey recruiting, I personally love it. I like watching a recruit develop, seeing how they progress from year to year. These three '04 players are a perfect example, see how the perform this summer at the US Development Camp, how they progress next year in high school, Ausmus and Spicer as Sophomores and Panzer as a Freshman. Then as others have said, potential NTDP Camp. It's fun to follow.

The Bantam Elite League is a collection of the best Bantam players in ND, MN and Wisconsin. Ausmus, Panzer and Spicer were All-Bantam Elite First Team players and Spicer was the MVP (per Youth Hockey Hub) last year. Currently, very highly regarded from this region. I say this region, because I'm not sure how they stack against the rest of the country, this summer at the USA Player Development camps (first year for the 04's) will give a great insight where they're currently at for that birth year. Moore, don't really know a lot about him, excited for Schlossman's article on his commitment. The big thing that sticks out currently is he's projected in the mid-80s for this years draft.

This one really has to hurt for the Huskies. I always say there's a hypothetical cliff that will Seniors / Early Departures a team can fall off of from how they did this year. It'll be interesting for next year. The Huskies lose their entire Top line as well as their Top D-Pair, their 2nd line Center, but they still return (as of now) 3 players who scored more than UNDs top returning scorer and then two more before you get to a bunch up with UNDs other returning scorers. Clearly they will take a pretty large step back, but should still be a really solid team.

No more speculation is needed. This defensive pipeline is so impressive. Next year is set. Looking ahead the following year UND will lose two Seniors and most likely JBD. Eligible would be Bast, Kleven, Miller and Reid (Sanderson? he has one of those July B-days, so not sure if he's currently a Sophomore or Junior). So many great players.

Very intriguing. It's time for Berry to really make the hard decisions with this forward group for the good of the program. Michaud is a guy that can instantly speed up the progression of the forward group. It's obviously a very delicate situation right now, because with only 3 Seniors leaving and 5 already coming in, there's already a numbers issue. The hard decisions isn't so much in the who, that's pretty obvious, it's how it's potentially handled. Based on the short history we've seen, I'm not optimistic Berry will make the hard decisions, but we'll see. The defense and goaltending is already set for this team and those two groups are National Championship caliber units.

Obviously, where did I say they weren't?

Good to hear @siouxforce19 / @skateshattrick! This isn't a knock at all, but given Bast is just a Senior this year, another year of Juniors will be a benefit all around for both him and UND. As I think it would have for Frisch as well. Where we stand though, Frisch coming in next year and Bast being delayed one year is the optimal situation.