beastandco

I would rather have a “decent” USHL guy than a “decent” CHL guy. We don’t know how a decent CHL guy translates. I only want top CHL guys. Give me anyone drafted in the first two rounds

Has he made a decision?

The bottom 6 forwards for USHL teams are division 1 guys. The bottom 6 forwards for CHL teams will be playing men’s league next year. The top end talent of the CHL is much better but the depth is not even close

I think we are forgetting that the coaching staff sees Hobie in practice every day. If they felt good about him, they would have gave him the keys.

I don’t see why we can’t leave a spot open up front until mid summer. Worst case scenario we can just bring in one of our recruits in early. I think we’ll want to leave Schultz, O’Neil, and Simpson in the USHL but we could bring in a guy like Pilgrim to be an extra forward

I agree with you. The weird thing about the CHL opening up is that nobody really know how good a guy like Zakreski is. I would say he’s a bottom 6, depth guy for next year that might have some PP2 time. He had over a point per game in the CHL but the CHL is a higher scoring league than the USHL

I believe Schloss first mentioned this silent commit in like February on his podcast. Obviously, a lot has changed since then. I think it’s very possible that Bryn would rather go a different direction. I would say the main hole on our roster is another top 6 center. There probably is only a handful of CHL centers that can slide into that role game one. Having the opportunity to center back to back USHL players of the year is something that not many other teams can compete with.

Jackson Blake was a 3rd round pick in 2021. He is now playing top 6 minutes on one of the best teams in the league. The kid put in the work but his time at UND definitely helped him take the next step

I read Schlossmans article yesterday and it stated that they were ineligible because they did not take the required classes in their first couple of years of high school. If Bear wanted to play at UND but currently is not eligible, would he be able to take summer classes to become eligible? Does the NCAA have the ability to make exceptions for these CHL players coming in since they were not planning to be able to play NCAA until a few months ago? It seems somewhat unfair to the student athletes

I think McKenna is such a big name that the money received directly from the school or collective is not as much of a factor. Gavin McKenna is a hockey superstar, not just college hockey superstar. He probably is getting well over 6 figures from endorsements alone. He probably has more financial freedom to make the best decision for his development compared to other CHL guys. UND is top notch in every other facet and if money is not his main focus, I would assume UND is or was heavily in the mix.

Is there any other guys you know of? I feel like a guy like Carter Bear would make sense for both sides. He’s Winnipeg kid but likely won’t be able to play until after Christmas.

I also do not see this new regime targeting these “one and done” type CHL players. Obviously if you have a shot at these guys, you’re going to take it. Mckamey is a guy that could get drafted high, but he is coming a year early so he most likely will be playing for 2-3 years.

If NIL was not a thing and the CHL had opened 5-10 years ago, I would absolutely think UND would be in the running for guys like McKenna and Misa. These guys will get more money individually than UND has in its entire hockey NIL budget just to play one year.

Herter would take over. I doubt they would lose anyone. Maybe a couple of recruits

These kids just did not take the required classes in high school to be eligible to play American college athletics. In the future it will be much different because they’ll have years to satisfy the NCAA requirements. It’s mainly just because of the difference in US and Canadian schooling requirements

I am not worried. Gordon is exactly what UND is looking for and Gordon follows UND hockey on instagram. I would say it is very likely that he commits here shortly

I am all for going after top CHL guys to fill the other top 6 center position. I don’t think there are many guys that can come from the CHL and be top 6 guys for UND unless it’s a first round pick type of prospect. Manitoba is filled with CHL guys and they are not close to NCHC good. This forward group looks like it will be very solid. I think this is a tournament team with our defensive corps.

Is Isaac Gordon still expected to commit?

Rickwood? Gordon?

What does this mean?

Gophers likely want him too. They have just as many holes as us

Considering James is likely to be a captain or the captain next year, I would assume he would be one of the first people outside of the coaching staff to know. Also, Rickwood likely knew where he was headed before he even entered the portal a couple of days ago.

His dad and sister both follow UND hockey. Interesting that they both would do that after he hit the portal

I do think Perron and OMac were soft and easy to play against in their own end. I do not think their offensive ability is replaceable through the portal but getting bigger and stronger players creates a new dynamic that UND has lacked in recent years in my opinion. If we are able to land both Gordon and Rickwood, we are a CHL/portal center away from having our roster complete.

Andrew