UND99

And Hrynkiw played well in the RBC Cup last season, including a win over mighty Penticton. Point being?

I didn't say Rumpel played in the SJHL. Rumpel played in the SMAAAHL at the same time as Hrynkiw, along with Chris Gibson.

Unless he regresses, Schmaltz is an every night guy. By the end of the season he was playing some pretty good hockey on the backend and it will take alot to supplant him in the lineup.

It is more common to roll with 8 d-men on the roster than it is 7, so adding Ausmus should not affect whether or not Thompson or Stecher come in this fall. Poolman has always been slated for 2014, Crisfield as a 2013 or 2014, and LaDue has to come in this season as he is out of junior eligibility. Thompson would have been the only question mark since he had to accelerate his education, but things seem to be in order on that front.

Stecher has two years of junior eligibility left. However, I still think he's coming in this fall.

Here's the recruit profile for goaltender Matt Hrynkiw: http://atraditionofe...tt-hrynkiw.html One thing that became very evident when putting this together is that Hrynkiw is consistently very good. During four of his past five seasons he has led his league in GAA, and he's been in the same league as the likes of Chris Gibson (NHL 2nd Rounder) and Wisco's Joel Rumpel. When playing AAA midgets in SK, he was the league's top goalie both years in a league featuring guys like Matteau, Pouliot, Koekkoek, Reilly, all NHL 1st Rounders. He is not your traditional 3rd stringer, to say the least.

Via Twitter, UND recruit Shane Gersich will be playing with the NTDP next season. Wouldn't be surprised if Poganski ended up with the U-18ers as well.

Matt Hrynkiw video (from 2011-12):

He was on a line with Bjugstad and Palushaj. Their line played pretty well.

Paul LaDue played a season in the NAHL and had the least productive season of his three spent at the junior level.

Yes, he did. Only CHL #1 pick to not play in the CHL I believe. Seemed to work out OK for him I guess...

It would be a huge shocker if Nolan doesn't play in the WHL.

To go along with his shot, he also has a very smooth set of hands. When he fills out he's going to be a beast.

I've watched Gropp play a few times this season, and he would be a real nice addition. While the recruit pipeline appears to be pretty full at forward through the 1996 birth year, Gropp is a late 1996, so depending on where he is at in school (his birthdate is indicitive of a HS sophomore) there could be room for him.

No. European skaters and NA/Euro goaltenders ranked ahead of our recruits would result in them being pushed down the draft board relative to the ranking numbers you see. For example, there are probably 7-9 European skaters or goaltenders that will be selected in the first round this season. That would push Thompson's projection into third round territory.

Right now, I take LaDue and it's not even close. Long term, Thompson has a ton of upside and could end up being the best of the bunch.

Video profile and interview with UND recruit Christian Evers from a Des Moines news station. Even though it hasn't been officially announced, it sounds very much like he will indeed be going to Ann Arbor to play at the NTDP. For those who don't know, David Wilkie, his coach this past year at Omaha, is the father of UND recruit Chris Wilkie. Also, his mother has impeccable taste when it comes to headwear fashion sense: http://whotv.com/2013/04/17/nhl-dreams-evers-top-prospect/

Forbort's was changed to an assist.

Olson looked really good tonight, I honestly think we got a gem. Thinks the game well, made some very nice plays, can shoot the puck, and isn't afraid to get dirty in the hard areas. As far as Peterson? Yes, I would take him any day. He's got skill and drive, very nice player.

Freshly updated stats for all committed Sioux recruits via the 2012-13 Statistics link: http://atraditionofexcellence.blogspot.com/p/the-recruits.html

Looking forward to watching all three tomorrow. Really liked Mantha earlier in the season, but haven't seen Pelnik or Olson play yet this year. Outside of him being impressive the one time I got to see him in person, I've heard some really high praise being directed towards Mantha. Those 1996'ers are looking like a very special bunch.

I haven't seen him play since November, but in talking to people who have he has been plagued by inconsistency this season. Looks like an early round NHL draft pick one night and is hardly noticeable the next. Once he figures that out (and I believe he will), he will be just fine.

This is the first time in the past few years that he has been healthy, so in what is a a key year for him, he hasn't produced eye-catching numbers. I've only seen him play a couple times, but IMO he needs more time at the USHL level. 2014 is the earliest I'd see him coming in, and I wouldn't be surprised if it were 2015.

I would be really surprised if any of our incoming freshmen didn't end up here this fall. All six guys who are expected to come in this fall are what I would call very solid committments.

In addition to Rodwell, Mitch MacMillan will be a departing forward next season as well. With a big year, Rocco could leave early as it would be his third year in GF.