nascar99

There are some solid players in USports that are of NCAA quality. Anyone who goes into the USports pool and finds adequate to above average contributors will deserve credit.

Andrew O'Neill going to the Dub to play another year of junior before coming to North Dakota. Very good plan to develop his offensive game further.

Love to hear that, good sign.

They're also waiting to see some of these guys' decisions on going NCAA or not, and what their NHL teams will say after drafting them this summer. McQueen, Reschny, Kindel, Lakovic, Smith, Bear, Cootes, Schmidt, Fiddler, Ravensbergen, Behm are all Dub guys who are talented enough to go to the NCAA in their D+1: they could be steered towards committing by teams such as Philadelphia, Detroit, Calgary, Montreal, St Louis, Columbus, Pittsburgh, etc if those teams are convinced the NCAA route is better for their development for the next 1-2 years before signing and turning pro.

Rare instances of them going after non Minnesotans and it worked out for them almost as well as possible. I do wonder if Snuggerud & Chesley were in his ear when Cooley was decommitting from Notre Dame, in order to get him to go to Minnesota with them. Peer recruiting isn't as common in hockey as it is in football obviously, but it does happen from time to time. Motzko does recruit out of state more than Lucia and Woog, but that isn't super surprising since he did that when at St Cloud State. Regardless, Motzko and Minnesota really don't recruit Canadians except for a few older Junior A goalies.

Another point: This becomes a chicken & the egg situation: since Minnesota has almost always been a 90%+ Minnesotan roster, the Goofers really only appeal to Minnesotans. The Minnesota program doesn't really recruit non Minnesotans because they never have, nor are they convinced that non Minnesotans would be that interested in them. Non Minnesotans (especially Canadians) don't/rarely consider Minnesota because the program doesn't seem interested in them because they aren't from Minnesota. Yes, there are a few exceptions, but those aren't common. The only reason why Matthew Wood (Nanaimo, BC) ended up at Minnesota in the portal was because his dad was a Goofers women's assistant in the late 2000s/early 2010s, Matt had to contact Motzko to tell him he wanted to be there.

Because you can count the number of Canadians that Minnesota has had on their roster in the past 40 years on both hands, they have almost zero connections in the minor hockey world across Canada. They have no idea who the elite players are coming up through the Western Canadian Sports School Academies (CSSHL) at places like Rink Hockey Academy, Burnaby Winter Club, Edge School, Delta Hockey Academy nor do they have any grasp of the elite players coming through the GTHL for organizations like the Don Mills Flyers, Toronto Marlboros, Mississauga Senators, Vaughan Kings, Toronto Red Wings, Toronto Jr Canadiens, etc. Motzko doesn't know (m)any of these coaches, has no pipeline to tap from to get a head start on recruiting. Boston University, Michigan, Notre Dame, Penn State, Michigan State, and several others out east go to GTHL games all the time and are in those minor hockey rinks to recruit these kids during their u16 year. They have connections established with these organizations, coaches, & players. Denver, North Dakota, Wisconsin, Nebraska Omaha, and others are at these CSSHL rinks to recruit kids during their u16 year. They have connections established with these organizations, coaches, & players. Minnesota literally just looks at most kids birth certificate, sees if it says "Minnesota" or not, and then goes to Minnesota HS hockey rinks, some USHL as well. The Goofers don't attack recruiting to get the best players from all over, especially Canada. Say what you will about Michigan's "mercenary" approach, but they will leave no stone unturned to get as high end of talent as possible in every recruiting cycle.

Most hockey players nowadays have decent, adequate grades. This isn't football or basketball where a good portion of guys actually struggle to hit certain GPA requirements.

The good thing is that Minnesota has been doing f*** all in terms of getting elite recruits lately with the 2008s. Not sure if that's a Motzko problem or an overall historical program philosophical issue of almost never going after non Minnesotans.

The depth CHLers will put up 10-12 points if they're placed in a depth role in the NCAA. If they're elevated into a bigger role, they would tend to produce more. The top CHLers should be able to produce pretty darn well for the most part, unless of course they're buried down the lineup.

Arizona State bringing in a solid OHLer this fall.

Xavier Wendt (2008, goalie, Plymouth, MN) signs in the Dub with the Tri City Americans

Hopefully the CHLers actually interested in the NCAA get a waiver to get their core classes in a bit later. Additionally, if Bear is interested in coming down here, deferring him a year while he gets healthy before he comes in in 2026-27 might be beneficial for all parties involved

That’s a big time get for the Terriers. Good to see that the Minnesota Wild aren’t rushing him to pro & understand the benefits of the NCAA route. Wonder if Ritchie is getting some solid NIL money. Additionally, this allows for BU to defer some of their meh recruits another year, send em back to junior to develop. This new world is crazy, but fun & intriguing too.

Younger skill players get more ice time across the CHL compared to the USHL. USHL teams are full of 18, 19, & 20 year olds who have come from AAA minor hockey, MN HS, or New England Prep School, many of these guys are playing extra years of junior there as their future NCAA teams are parking them there to develop/get older before bringing them in. As a result, the (non NTDP) USHL teams tend to not play their 16 and 17 year olds a ton. Chase Reid (late 2007, Chesterfield, Michigan, Michigan State commit) is the best example of going to the O instead of not getting USHL minutes. Waterloo didn't have him on their roster to start 2024-25, he was buried in the NAHL, he signs with Sault Ste Marie, and tears it up with the Greyhounds for the rest of the season.

Epperson is from Mequon Wisconsin, west of Lake Michigan. I think the David Carle Factor is likely what drew Epperson to them. Credit to the Pioneers here.

Kristian Epperson to Denver

Then NCAA and CHL coaches/GMs need to get on the phone with each other and develop partnerships with each other to create pipelines that mutually benefit one another. But I agree with you on your general point that this will take time.

Haven't delved into his film yet but 68 GP, 57 PTS in his 16 year old season in the Dub on a team without high end offensive talent is really good. Williams is projected to be 1st rounder in the 2026 NHL Draft.

Leaves Boston University*

Defensive structure is typically better in the USHL than most of the CHL, there's no question about that. The difference is the CHL generally leans younger & more skill (the USHL's young skill is unevenly distributed, as most of it is on the NTDP u17 & u18 Teams). Most non NTDP USHL teams don't play their 16 and 17 year olds a significant amount for a couple reasons: those guys aren't that skilled and/or they have an overwhelming amount of 19 year olds coming out of AAA/MN HS/New England Prep School, many of whom really aren't that good, but they're older and typically more defensively responsible. In addition, because the USHL has always been an NCAA feeder league, NCAA teams park their recruits extra years in the USHL to play another year of junior to get older/more ready for the jump to the NCAA, so this contributes to the older distribution IMHO. Maybe I'm overstating the statistical skews, but I'm not the first to observe the differences between the USHL versus the CHL (and all 3 CHL leagues are slightly different in players, quality, structure).

He missed half the season before being traded to Barrie. That's a really solid addition for State, should be an instant contributor in the middle 6, provide scoring depth.

The elite of elite CHLers (as well as those coming from the NTDP/USHL) are 1 & done. The normal good guys should be at least 2 year guys, maybe even 3. Gavin McKenna only needs one year at Michigan, Malcolm Spence likely needs 2 years there unless he has a Dylan Larkin (or better) esque freshman season. Also depends on how patient the NHL teams who hold their rights are.

Antonin Verreault to Quinnipiac, another nice pickup for them