Prospective Recruits

[Frozen4sioux]

Where does this guy compare to the crop coming in right now. .... When is He projected to be there seems to be pretty full classes now at und

[crb1]

My guess is UND didn't offer him anything. It's hard to believe that someone from Grand Forks would be dreaming of playing for St. Cloud.

[siouxforce19]

My guess is UND didn't offer him anything. It's hard to believe that someone from Grand Forks would be dreaming of playing for St. Cloud.

I live in MN, so I've never seen this kid play. I have heard that while he is D1 caliber, that he's not quite there yet to get an offer from UND. Just a guess. Like I said, I don't know. I will withhold judgment until I see him play, if I ever do.

[hrkac]

It could be that St. Cloud's offer was better (or UND didn't offer at all). Or maybe he simply wanted to play away from home (a la Gage Ausmus).

Sure it's tough to see a local kid get away, but UND has landed its fair share - Thompson, Johnson, LaDue, and Poolman most recently. And don't forget UND snagged Austin Poganski from St. Cloud's backyard.

yeah, i'm not saying how did he get away. just curious.

[scpa0305]

Via Jacob Benson on twitter

I'm shocked that SCSU gave him an offer this early. I like Benson a lot and he has been a beast so far in ND high school, but his stats at MN elite were quite low, I'm guessing UND didn't recruit him too much. We'll see, he could have had a bad fall. I could be wrong but I believe a lot of my (and my brothers) old hockey stuff got shipped to him when he was real young. I wish him good luck and will root for him.

[gfhockey]

i bet if he gets good UND offers him late in teh game

[gfhockey]

did his dad play for und hockey? todd benson out of egf

[tnt]

Who is the last Grand Forks player that got a scholarship from the Sioux without playing junior hockey first? I am sure UND showed interest, as they did with LaDouceur, Meland, and Lawdermilt to some extent, but I would guess they did so to keep open communication for when the players progressed in Junior hockey. If they would offer very early, it would probably be very limited scholarship money, because let's face it, there are a lot of great hockey players out there, and UND is one of the elite programs that has a chance at a lot of them. This is in no way to say St. Cloud isn't getting a good player, but if they waited too long and waited for Junior experience, they might not have got him.

[siouxforce19]

Who is the last Grand Forks player that got a scholarship from the Sioux without playing junior hockey first? I am sure UND showed interest, as they did with LaDouceur, Meland, and Lawdermilt to some extent, but I would guess they did so to keep open communication for when the players progressed in Junior hockey. If they would offer very early, it would probably be very limited scholarship money, because let's face it, there are a lot of great hockey players out there, and UND is one of the elite programs that has a chance at a lot of them. This is in no way to say St. Cloud isn't getting a good player, but if they waited too long and waited for Junior experience, they might not have got him.

Technically, Luke Johnson committed before he played in the USHL.

But he also demonstrated what level he was at among his peers at USA select camps, Elite League, etc. as well, so we knew what kind of player he was.

[LakotaNation]

Article about Benson's commit. http://www.grandforksherald.com/event/article/id/255827/group/Sports/

[Goon]

Does anyone know anything about this kid? Alec Rauhauser of Bismarck Century, here is a goal that he scored last night.

[tnt]

Does anyone know anything about this kid? Alec Rauhauser of Bismarck Century, here is a goal that he scored last night.

Just that he was ranked 196 in these midterm ratings.

http://www.collegehockeyrecruitexchange.com/

[tnt]

Technically, Luke Johnson committed before he played in the USHL.

But he also demonstrated what level he was at among his peers at USA select camps, Elite League, etc. as well, so we knew what kind of player he was.

Guess I didn't think that through quite enough. Just remember Luke playing for Red River in 8th and Central in 9th and 10th. Forgot this would be his Senior season. Also Jake Marto verballed before he played Juniors, but then played a few years after his Senior season, but I believe there was some competition from Duluth and Minnesota that was in play there. Don't remember if Irmen and Potulny verballed before Junior hockey either. But you are right, many of those guys had more of an elite status at the time. Will be interesting to see how Benson does in Dubuque next season. A lot of people think that John Lizotte has some upside because of his size and skill. We will see how it all plays out.

[scpa0305]

Guess I didn't think that through quite enough. Just remember Luke playing for Red River in 8th and Central in 9th and 10th. Forgot this would be his Senior season. Also Jake Marto verballed before he played Juniors, but then played a few years after his Senior season, but I believe there was some competition from Duluth and Minnesota that was in play there. Don't remember if Irmen and Potulny verballed before Junior hockey either. But you are right, many of those guys had more of an elite status at the time. Will be interesting to see how Benson does in Dubuque next season. A lot of people think that John Lizotte has some upside because of his size and skill. We will see how it all plays out.

Potulny and Irmen committed during juniors. You are correct, all those other players played very well during elite/national tournaments. Benson is a junior...and having a great season, but at his age both Potulny and Johnson were averaging a point per game in the USHL on very good teams.

[The Exiled One]

I'm shocked that SCSU gave him an offer this early. I like Benson a lot and he has been a beast so far in ND high school, but his stats at MN elite were quite low.

http://www.hselitehockey.com/stats/team_instance/220379?subseason=80533

Looks like they were pretty decent to me.

[AZSIOUX]

Hey exile been a while. Have any good recruit news or who to look for?? Thanks

[The Exiled One]

Hey exile been a while. Have any good recruit news or who to look for?? Thanks

Nah, you guys have been keeping up pretty well. Besides, I'd have been just as wrong as the rest of you if I tried to predict where Gersich, Poganski, or Benson were going to play! One of you linked to my blog a few posts back. The "rankings" tab on that blog pretty much sums up who I think are hot prospects now, but it's a bit out of date. I'll have to updated it for February.

[scpa0305]

http://www.hseliteho...subseason=80533

Looks like they were pretty decent to me.

You're right...I don't know what I was thinking. Because I'm not sure if he played Elite last year. Those numbers aren't eye-popping but by no means bad at all. I take back what I previously posted...either way I'll be rooting for him as a fan of all GF raised players.

[MissSioux85]

In the Herald's sportswriters chat, Schlossman says UND didn't offer Jacob Benson anything due to the amount of 1996-born forwards already committed.

After reading that St. Cloud offered on Friday and Benson committed Tuesday, I had a feeling UND probably didn't show much interest.

[siouxnews]

has anyone seen tyler hill? there is a lot of buzz about him..

[tnt]

In the Herald's sportswriters chat, Schlossman says UND didn't offer Jacob Benson anything due to the amount of 1996-born forwards already committed.

After reading that St. Cloud offered on Friday and Benson committed Tuesday, I had a feeling UND probably didn't show much interest.

Wonder if they are still entertaining hopes of McMaster or Gropp, who I believe are both in the '96 class as well.

[AZSIOUX]

has anyone seen tyler hill? there is a lot of buzz about him..

This guy? 6'6 forward 225 lbs. Canuck playing in the ushl.

http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/pdisplay.php?pid=161357

[The Exiled One]

This guy? 6'6 forward 225 lbs. Canuck playing in the ushl.

http://www.hockeydb.....php?pid=161357

That's him. His age should make him a senior, so the fact that he switched from prep school to the USHL shows that he might be looking to step into a lineup next season. There's not going to be a lot of opportunity for that without an unexpected early departure. That's not an uncommon occurrence, but I have a feeling he'll head back east. He'll probably get drafted too. I see him as a riser. 85th in the midterms, but I think he goes late second round.

[Sioux17]

Guess I didn't think that through quite enough. Just remember Luke playing for Red River in 8th and Central in 9th and 10th. Forgot this would be his Senior season. Also Jake Marto verballed before he played Juniors, but then played a few years after his Senior season, but I believe there was some competition from Duluth and Minnesota that was in play there. Don't remember if Irmen and Potulny verballed before Junior hockey either. But you are right, many of those guys had more of an elite status at the time. Will be interesting to see how Benson does in Dubuque next season. A lot of people think that John Lizotte has some upside because of his size and skill. We will see how it all plays out.

Lizotte is a beast. Smart, agility, very athletic and a good size. Playing forward this year has really made him more involved and increased his work ethic out there. I hope UND is taking a lok at him.

[tnt]

Lizotte is a beast. Smart, agility, very athletic and a good size. Playing forward this year has really made him more involved and increased his work ethic out there. I hope UND is taking a lok at him.

Is he planning on playing Junior hockey next year to get some more looks? If he proves himself at the next level, I would think that he adds the physical element that isn't a hallmark of the skilled '96 class.