THFB guest
writer Neal Boudette (BU '84), who covers the automotive sector for the
New York Times and writes about hockey any chance he gets, has wriiten about the Clayton Keller-Kieffer Bellows chemistry and about the 2017 BU recruits on the NTDP U18s, and last month authored an article on Terrier hockey for the Times. His latest feature article, looking behind the scenes of the
Terriers’ recruiting activities, follows below.
Well-designed and executed process
yields recruiting triumphs for Quinn & Company
By Neal E. Boudette
There’s no doubt David Quinn and his staff have been on a tear on the recruiting front.
In just the last few
weeks alone, they’ve won verbal commitments from two highly rated players for
the 2017-18 season – forward Shane
Bowers, a potential
first-round draft choice next June, and defenseman Cam Crotty, a likely mid-round pick.
Both committed soon
after BU landed Finnish D-man Kasper
Kotkansalo. Maybe most important
is that Quinn & Co. went head to head with BC for Bowers and Crotty, and won.
And, of course, these recruiting wins
come following this year’s freshman class, which is second to none, with three
first-rounders, a second-rounder and a fifth-rounder.
How do they do it? How
have Quinn, Albie O’Connell and Scott Young managed to convince so
many highly sought-after players to choose BU over BC or any of the other
strong college hockey programs out there?
The answer has many levels –
including early identification of budding stars; an honest pitch about where
and how prospects would likely fit into BU’s plans; and lastly a pro-style
environment designed to give players the skills and life experience to leave
Comm Ave. and compete for a spot in the N.H.L. or some other form of
professional hockey.
Of course, the city of Boston, Agganis Arena and the hockey team’s gleaming weight room, the rabid BU fan base
and the chance to play for a coach like David Quinn all helps, too. Continue reading
► Next up for BU is a home-and-home series against conference foe Connecticut. The Terriers will travel to the XL Center in Hartford on Friday night for a 7:05 start.
► Blogger Bart Rhett has posted extended highlights of BU’s 4-2 win against Michigan.
Terrier
Trivia
● Which
three former Terrier skaters later became BU assistant coaches and also brought
an opposing team to Walter Brown Arena as a head coach?
● Which
skater holds the BU record for most points in NCAA tournament games?
Answers
will appear in Thursday afternoon’s blogpost.
Looking ahead
NHL Central Scouting issued its November
rankings of 2017 draft-eligible players. Recent commit Shane Bowers
(Waterloo/USHL) received an “A” ranking while freshman goalie Jake Oettinger
and recruits David Farrance (photo) and Cameron Crotty received “B” rankings. Logan
Cockerill, Kasper Kotkansalo and Matthew Quercia (a 2018 recruit) all were
ranked at “C.”
USA Hockey’s NTDP
player feature this week looks at 2018 recruit Jack DeBoer. The son of San
Jose Sharks head coach Peter DeBoer, he played for The Salisbury School last
season and was a member of the gold-medal Team USA in the Youth Olympic Games
in Norway.
2019 recruit Case
McCarthy scored his second goal of the season in the Buffalo Jr. Sabres
16U’s 5-2 win over TPH Thunder on Monday at the Tier 1 Elite League New Jersey
Showcase. The Junior Sabres won all four tournament games with the 6’1"
blueliner from Clarence, NY scoring four points. He has nine points (2G, 7A) in his past six
games. McCarthy, who committed to BU last season, has been rated in the top 10 for
the 2017
OHL Draft, along with fellow recruits Robert Mastrosimone and Trevor Zegras
Looking back
Former BU assistant captain and standout Evan Rodrigues was recalled
from the AHL by Buffalo.
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