Top-end blueliner Fabbro picks BU, joins 2016 recruit class--UPDATED: New Video

BU’s already star-studded 2016 recruit class added another gem yesterday with a verbal from Penticton Vees right-shot defenseman Dante Fabbro. A native of New Westminster, British Columbia, the 6’1”, 185 lb., Fabbro is now in his second season with Penticton . 

Last season he had a 4-29-33 scoring line in 44 games while earning a spot on the BCHL All-Rookie Team and helping lead the Vees to the league championship. In the playoffs, he was named the top defenseman in the RBC Cup despite being the youngest defenseman in the tournament.

Excited to announce I will play @NCAAIceHockey next season for @TerrierHockey!Thanks to my family and friends @bwchockey @PentictonVees

— Fabbs (@17Fabbro) October 12, 2015

A finalist for the 2015 CJHL Rookie of the Year award, he played for Canada West in the 2014 World Junior A Challenge (1G, 2A in 4 games) and put on the Maple Leaf in this past summer’s Hlinka Memorial Tournament. Following the Hlinka, SB Nation wrote:

Potential uber-recruits Dante Fabbro and Tyson Jost had strong tournaments for Canada. I was most impressed by Fabbro who looks like the complete package on defense. Everything was smooth, calm and poise.

ScoutingPost Blog’s Kirk’ Luedeke added:

One word to describe this right-shot (the only one on the CAN roster) d-man: smooth. He exhibited poise with and without the puck on the blueline- making good decisions in the gold medal game and rifling the puck in from the point. He didn’t get any points, but the talent is clearly there.

98 D Dante Fabbro (@PentictonVees) commits to BU. Big time add for the Terriers, top draft prospect at 6'1, great skating + overall game.

— Over The Boards (@OverTheBoards) October 12, 2015

Ten games into this season, Fabbro has five goals and 11 assists. In his most recent effort, he scored a pair of goals, earning first-star honors in a 5-1 whacking of Chilliwack, leading the first-place Vees’ to their 10^th straight win.

                    #57 in Blue:  0:23 first goal; 7:03 second goal (6:17 shift starts).

International Scouting Service’s October draft rankings has Fabbro at #8, (with Kieffer Bellows #19, Clayton Keller #21 and Chad Krys #25). In November 2014, OverTheBoards ranked Fabbro as the #7 uncommitted NCAA prospect.

A top-end skating defenseman from British Columbia who thinks the game at a high level and has the requisite skill to capitalize on his understanding. His frame and positional nature as a right shot defenseman who can quickly release accurate lasers from the point would make him a highly valuable add to any d-corps in Division 1, though the Seattle Thunderbirds, who selected him 8th overall in 2013, are likely expecting him to join their back-end in the near future.

The verbal from Fabbro, following on the heels of  Krys' recent commit and with so many talented Ds already on the roster (and David Farrance coming in 2017) is further evidence that talented young defensemen choosng the college route want to be molded into NHLers by Terrier Coach David Quinn.

● Elite Prospects card

● SB Nation report

Looking ahead

Photo by Rena Laverty USA Hockey

► O&E Hometown Life recap of U18 tie with Notre Dame

"Clayton, he's an excellent player and the thing that's probably best about him is how hard he competes, with and without the puck," [Coach Danton] Cole said. "He's not a big guy but he plays the game extremely large. He wants the puck in big-time situations. He can score, he can pass and does a great job defending."

● Bellows and Keller video highlights--Oct. 9, 2015