COMMITTED UND Recruits

[siouxforce19]

5 minutes ago, .357 said:

"I met a couple of guys on the team. They were awesome."- C. Williams

Like someone else mentioned here, it's nice to have current players who are good ambassadors for the program. Makes it that much easier to sell UND to future recruits. 

A very nice start to establishling the WHL --> UND pipeline. Over a month ago, Jackson told Izzo on a podcast that 60-70% (if memory serves correct) of all CHL talent is in the WHL, which seemed like an exaggeration to me; but he should know, I guess. 

I don’t know about the percentage but when I was looking at the leading scorers for the OHL and WHL, at the time I looked, it seemed like the WHL had a higher quantity of point per game players. The high end of the OHL could be higher but perhaps the depth of talent is better in the WHL. 

[brianvf]

PuckPreps puts him at 4.5 stars:

 

[ChadR]

Hope he makes it to campus.

[fightingsioux4life]

41 minutes ago, ChadR said:

Hope he makes it to campus.

Why wouldn't he make it to campus? I see this comment every time we land someone good and it's getting a little tiresome.

We need to get our swagger back and these coaches seem to be doing just that 

[gfhockey]

He’s a chippah!

[Wilbur]

1 hour ago, ChadR said:

Hope he makes it to campus.

This ^

A lot can happen over the course of a hockey season.  

[siouxfaninseattle]

13 minutes ago, gfhockey said:

He’s a chippah!

Ya mean we want him??

[brianvf]

21 minutes ago, Wilbur said:

This ^

A lot can happen over the course of a hockey season.  

It sounds like both Chyz and Jax are really stressing keeping and recruiting players that really buy into the university and the team.
Whether that ends up being the case with these higher end recruits, I guess we'll see.  But we can hope that they are successful with that.

[AlphaMikeFoxtrot]

Guy isn't convinced he makes it to campus. Clearly he hasn't accepted the new development pecking order.

[siouxforce19]

21 minutes ago, AlphaMikeFoxtrot said:

Guy isn't convinced he makes it to campus. Clearly he hasn't accepted the new development pecking order.

He has not. I see him whining about it all the time 

[scpa0305]

13 hours ago, brianvf said:

It sounds like both Chyz and Jax are really stressing keeping and recruiting players that really buy into the university and the team.
Whether that ends up being the case with these higher end recruits, I guess we'll see.  But we can hope that they are successful with that.

The higher end guys are trying to go pro as quickly as possibly. This is just another step along the way. Development is critical. I’d say the longest true Canadian blue chips will be around is 1-2 maybe three years. If they don’t accelerate school, I’d say hope for 2.

[scpa0305]

8 hours ago, siouxforce19 said:

He has not. I see him whining about it all the time 

I saw the same thing with this fanbase when Blake left last year. Multiple posters saying he wasn’t ready and that he’d fail, when clearly he was one of the very best players in college (he was the best player I saw last year).

we just need to remember this is all new and these CHL guys are diehards for the programs like we are. Soon they’ll realize there are always newer kids coming up and the wins/losses will look the same. Williams will be back next year and then he’ll be more ready to continue his journey up the ladder. They’ll have him another year  

[.357]

12 hours ago, siouxforce19 said:

He has not. I see him whining about it all the time 

CHL loyalists may be upset about losing top players like Williams, but I think most of their frustration & bitterness stem from the NCAA removing all doubts that it's the highest tier of non-professional hockey in NA. There's no escaping that fact now, & they  don't want to admit it. It's an ego thing.

[Wilbur]

There is an argument that this makes both leagues better.  A ton of prime 16-17 year old Americans like Rudolph and Jundt never step foot north of the border without the new agreement.  And likewise college teams with good relationships up north will grab some kids like Williams who are able to jump in the CHL and flourish at a young age and see that the next step is obviously the college game against older and better put together players.

  

[scpa0305]

7 minutes ago, Wilbur said:

There is an argument that this makes both leagues better.  A ton of prime 16-17 year old Americans like Rudolph and Jundt never step foot north of the border without the new agreement.  And likewise college teams with good relationships up north will grab some kids like Williams who are able to jump in the CHL and flourish at a young age and see that the next step is obviously the college game against older and better put together players.

  

100%…some of the CHL haven’t wrapped their heads around the number of higher end Americans and Canadians (who would have went AJ/BCHL etc) that will flood into their leagues. The depth of the CHL leagues will be tremendously better. And they’ll still keep all the blue chips….until they’re 18 haha 

[fightingsioux4life]

5 hours ago, scpa0305 said:

The higher end guys are trying to go pro as quickly as possibly. This is just another step along the way. Development is critical. I’d say the longest true Canadian blue chips will be around is 1-2 maybe three years. If they don’t accelerate school, I’d say hope for 2.

Hasn't this always been the case?

[fightingsioux4life]

1 hour ago, .357 said:

CHL loyalists may be upset about losing top players like Williams, but I think most of their frustration & bitterness stem from the NCAA removing all doubts that it's the highest tier of non-professional hockey in NA. There's no escaping that fact now, & they  don't want to admit it. It's an ego thing.

The CHL and NCAA have always had a Hatfield and McCoy relationship. That won't change overnight.

[scpa0305]

2 hours ago, fightingsioux4life said:

Hasn't this always been the case?

Yep. As more higher end players go the college route just expect to see it more frequently. 

[nascar99]

3 hours ago, fightingsioux4life said:

The CHL and NCAA have always had a Hatfield and McCoy relationship. That won't change overnight.

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. 

[.357]

5 minutes ago, nascar99 said:

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. 

If you start creating that kind of partnership/pipeline between the CHL & NCAA, it sounds like that would push the USHL more to the fringe & make it less relevant. 

Plus, what are the advantages for American guys of playing in the CHL over the USHL? Speaking strictly about the advantages for developing their game, not other factors like the location may be more scenic or they can be more independent & maybe get away from mom & dad. 

[nascar99]

52 minutes ago, .357 said:

If you start creating that kind of partnership/pipeline between the CHL & NCAA, it sounds like that would push the USHL more to the fringe & make it less relevant. 

Plus, what are the advantages for American guys of playing in the CHL over the USHL? Speaking strictly about the advantages for developing their game, not other factors like the location may be more scenic or they can be more independent & maybe get away from mom & dad. 

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.

[.357]

28 minutes ago, nascar99 said:

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.

So if it continues to play out like this -- more talented American 16 & 17 yos preferring the CHL over the USHL -- it sounds like the CHL comes out the bigger winner in the long run..although the CHL currently doesn't see it that way because they think they're getting cheated by the NCAA of their talented 18 & 19 yos. They're only looking at one side of the equation, not realizing they will have likely have it pretty good in a few years with more talented 16 & 17 yos.