beastandco

I would guess that Zellers, Reschny, and Verhoeff are heavy favorites over the field for NCHC rookie of the year.

There seems to be a few guys that just are not interested in the NCAA path, those guys being some of them. It’ll be interesting to see how the next couple of weeks unfold. I do not think Bryn and staff would leave spots open into July if we cannot or will not land any of these guys. There are like fifteen guys that can make a huge difference for us next year, all we need is one or two guys to commit. Hopefully we find out soon.

After reading this article, it almost seems like it is a first round talent or bust for one of the last forward spots. Most notable players from previous drafts are picked over or have already signed their ELC. There are a couple of uncommitted guys outside of the 2025 draft class but nobody that would be a huge difference maker. Schloss stated that most second round picks in 2025 are either already committed or are already pro in Europe. I do not think they could bring in a guy picked after Cooper Simpson at 79 when Simpson was deferred to juniors for a year. Simpson is not ready for college but in that range of the draft, nobody is really ready to make the jump to UND. I do not think the pool of players is very large that could come in over some of our other recruits. Especially considering a lot of them are not academically eligible and/or just do not have interest in college hockey. With that being said, I do not think Bryn would go into this blindly. A lot of solid players have chosen schools in recent weeks that typically are unable to compete with UND for recruits. It seems like any forward that is not named Gavin McKenna or Michael Misa is on the table for UND.

He needs a big year in the weight room. 150lbs at 6 foot is very lean. Hes young and has a lot of time. If he’s considered a top 45 pick now, imagine what a big year and 20-30 lbs would do for his draft stock.

I think that’s pretty spot on. I think we might see a wild card get picked like Zakreski or Kernan. Kernan was 5th in USHL goals this past year, it wouldn’t shock me if he went in the 7th.

Over/under 3.5 commits drafted today? I feel like Simpson could go higher than expected because of his upside and Laurilla could drop a bit due to the new CBA. I think they both go in the 3rd/4th round.

Last year, Sacha was taken in the same spot in the draft. He was very inconsistent but was starting to show glimpses of a special college player towards the end of the year. I think Reschny will be similar for us this year. Reschny is a better play driver than Sacha and that will translate to more points, in my opinion. Sacha has that “NHL center” frame and he still needs another year of college.

Jost is UND’s only one and done in the last 30 ish years. It would take a huge year for him to leave after one.

Spence, Mews, and Ivankovic on top of Hage, Horcoff, Perron, Hughes, and Cole McKinney. Their top 6/9 forwards are pretty full and they probably are just filling out the rest of their roster.

Procyszyn is a big, right shot center that would be a good fit. He probably would play in the bottom six next season. He would be a solid get to fill out one of the last two spots. Packaging him and a Cootes/Kindel/Martin would be a home run but that is definitely wishful thinking.

From what I have read about Martin, he would fit like a glove on next year’s roster. Him and Cootes are exactly the type of players that Dane said he would target in his opening press conference.

It would take at least a 2nd/3rd rounder to make the team next year over players already committed. Schloss said yesterday that even he has no idea who they have been targeting. I would guess any WHL guys inside the first two rounds are potential targets. Considering the majority of the CHL is picked over already outside of draft eligible players, I would assume UND is targeting these top guys in the draft. UND has to be close with a couple of them because I do not see Bryn and staff going into July without any knowledge of who will fill the last two spots.

Tonight is exciting for a lot of different reasons. Other than Reschny, one thing to watch is who Ottawa takes at 21. Ottawa has typically done well when selecting players that play for UND. If Ottawa selects an uncommitted CHL player, it wouldn’t surprise me to see them end up at UND. Regarding Reschny, I don’t think he makes it past Calagry at 18. He could go even higher, imo.

Simpson is very similar to Zellers, in my opinion. He has a lot of elite offensive skill but needs a year in the USHL to round out his game. He could put up some numbers this year in juniors. The CHL play style is a lot less structured than the USHL, so I would prefer him in the USHL for the time being. O’Neil is a great fit in the WHL and so would Schultz. Cooper Williams is already close to DuPont. The buzz around this team would be crazy if we landed DuPont in a year. It would not only be good for the hockey team, but good for the University as a whole.

More and more CHL players will commit before their draft year. This year is an anomaly because CHL players became NCAA eligible midseason. UND already has two players, McKamey and Williams, that are playing in the CHL while committed to an NCAA program. That will be the new norm in a couple of years. Players waiting so long this year to commit is a combination of them simply not being eligible and wanting their NHL team to take the bullets for them leaving the CHL.

Verhoeff could be three years. Hughes and Makar both stayed through their D+2 year. I feel like McKamey could get pushed back a year unless he gets 70/80 points in the WHL this year. If they can get another impact player this year and Bear/DuPont, this team could be special for years to come.

There are some interesting quotes from Schlossman about UND’s open forward spots in this week’s column. Schloss saying “a couple could end up in college” is notable. If five or less CHL players are coming into college next year that are picked in the first round, I am a little nervous. It almost sounds like a few are silently committed and if they land on an anti-NCAA team, they probably will not leave the CHL.

Sending most of the staff to the draft would not be a bad idea either. Having the whole staff there to support Reschny and the day 2 picks would be good. More importantly, you’ll never have all of your recruiting targets in the same city again. Setting up meetings with players and teams after they are drafted could be crucial.

It sounds like there is some important recruiting stuff happening this weekend. Gage was saying on his podcast that Simpson, Bryn, and Dane will not be able to make his wedding because of recruiting matters. I believe he’s pretty close with those guys so it must be important. Since the draft is on Friday, it is probably an important visit that is happening for a non draft eligible player.

McKenna waiting until mid to late July could play in UND’s favor. If a few teams have belief that McKenna could land there, they will likely be less aggressive recruiting other players. I really think a lot of these guys will commit within a of couple weeks. I’m sure they have completed most of their recruiting process and they are just waiting for their NHL team to sign off on their decision. Realistically, how many other teams can offer what UND can in terms of opportunity to grow as a player around other high level prospects? There is a wide open spot in our top 6 with two of James, Zellers, Reschny, Swanson, and Rickwood as your line mates. It seems like a great situation for both the player and NHL team.

A couple of weeks ago on this thread, someone had stated to me that Cootes would be the perfect fit and I agree. Based off of social media, I think Reschny is somewhat close with him so that helps a lot. I really like Cootes and Brady Martin. One of those two would be perfect fits, in my opinion.

There could be a wave of commitment flips as well. I think we’ll see UND’s roster shape up shortly after the draft. I can already see the Schloss headline of “UND Lights Fireworks By Landing…” on July 4th.

A lot of very good points here. I just have a hard time believing that Bryn and Co do not have a good idea who is coming in for the last two spots right now.

I agree. I know Reschny has to do some extra work this summer to become eligible this fall. There are a lot of guys I’m sure that are not eligible and also a lot of guys that will stay loyal to their junior teams. I know hockey Canada isn’t a big fan of college hockey and a lot of these kids want to be on the world juniors team this winter. I’m expecting Schloss to drop a podcast this week previewing the draft and giving an update on UND’s open spots. He hasn’t said much about the two open spots at forward.

Decommitments are bound to happen anyways. In UND’s case, I don’t think there is a recruit quite ready to make the jump to college hockey that isn’t already coming in. Simpson will likely go in the 3rd/4th round but is very raw. Schultz will go late and would really benefit from a year or two in juniors. It doesn’t make sense for either of those guys to come in this year. Outside of McKenna, I feel like there is very little buzz about anyone else coming over from the CHL. As much as I want a Kindel, Cootes, or Schmidt, there is no indication that NCAA is on their radar.