The Union men's hockey team announced its incoming recruiting class on Thursday.
The eight member freshman class includes forward Alex Gonye, defenseman Noah Henry, defenseman Matt Krug, forward Eli Lichtenwald, defenseman Griffyn Martin, goaltender Alex Sakellaropoulos, defenseman Jeff Taylor and forward Mike Vecchione.
“I’m very happy with this class,” Union head coach Rick Bennett said in a release. “You always want to bring in a group that’s better than the one that just left, but that’s going to be a tough challenge with this group of players. It’s up to them to see if they can accomplish that. I feel our assistant coaches Joe Dumais and Jason Tapp did a tremendous job balancing last season with recruiting.”
Below are some capsules on each player with insight from their previous coaches and/or Bennett.
“When Troy (Grosenick) signed, our assistants did a great job getting Alex, an excellent goaltender, to come to Union," Bennett said. "We’re looking for big things from Alex.”
Defensemen
Jeff Taylor is a local kid, a native of Clifton Park who played at Albany Academy prior to spending last year with Dubuque of the U.S Hockey League. Taylor helped Dubuque capture a Clark Cup Championship, registering 27 points (five goals, 22 assists) in 57 games played.
The 19-year-old drew raves from now former Dubuque head coach Jim Montgomery, who has since moved on to be the head coach of Division I Denver. The former RPI assistant predicted Taylor will be an impact freshman.
"His [best assets] are quickness and his intelligence," Montgomery told me earlier this year. "He's an extremely smart player with great instincts. He's very valuable all over the ice, especially breaking the puck out."
Taylor is listed at 6-foot, 180-pounds.
"He still needs to get stronger like any teenage athlete," Montgomery said. "He needs to continue to build muscle mass in the weight room so he can have the physicality needed at the college level."
Griffyn Martin, who checks in at 6-foot, 175-pounds, played prep hockey at Avon Old Farms in Connecticut. A former Yale commit, Martin was one of Avon's three captains this past year and scored three goals and added 14 assists in 29 games played. He was named the team's Most Valuable Player.
“Griffyn is a physical defenseman who in time can develop into a really good player for us," Bennett said. "He’s a tremendous character guy to have on your team."
Matt Krug, a Buffalo, New York, native, spent the past two seasons with the Indiana Ice of the USHL. In 56 games played last season, the 20-year-old scored two goals and chipped in nine assists.
"He is a character kid who works hard and has a good first pass," Indiana head coach Jeff Brown told me earlier this year. "He's more of a stay at home defenseman. He's a good leader. Krug won’t step in and be an impact guy, but over the course of his time at Union, he will be a regular and a big part of the future."
Bennett hopes the 6-foot-1, 198-pound Krug will develop into a Shawn Stuart style defenseman.
Noah Henry, a Seattle, Washington native, is the fourth defenseman coming in. The 19-year-old Henry started last season with the British Columbia Hockey League's Penticton Vees before being dealt to Powell River in mid-November. In 52 combined games played, the 6-foot, 190-pound Henry had two goals and 14 assists.
Jeff Taylor is a local kid, a native of Clifton Park who played at Albany Academy prior to spending last year with Dubuque of the U.S Hockey League. Taylor helped Dubuque capture a Clark Cup Championship, registering 27 points (five goals, 22 assists) in 57 games played.
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| Taylor (USHL) |
"His [best assets] are quickness and his intelligence," Montgomery told me earlier this year. "He's an extremely smart player with great instincts. He's very valuable all over the ice, especially breaking the puck out."
Taylor is listed at 6-foot, 180-pounds.
"He still needs to get stronger like any teenage athlete," Montgomery said. "He needs to continue to build muscle mass in the weight room so he can have the physicality needed at the college level."
Griffyn Martin, who checks in at 6-foot, 175-pounds, played prep hockey at Avon Old Farms in Connecticut. A former Yale commit, Martin was one of Avon's three captains this past year and scored three goals and added 14 assists in 29 games played. He was named the team's Most Valuable Player.
“Griffyn is a physical defenseman who in time can develop into a really good player for us," Bennett said. "He’s a tremendous character guy to have on your team."
Matt Krug, a Buffalo, New York, native, spent the past two seasons with the Indiana Ice of the USHL. In 56 games played last season, the 20-year-old scored two goals and chipped in nine assists.
"He is a character kid who works hard and has a good first pass," Indiana head coach Jeff Brown told me earlier this year. "He's more of a stay at home defenseman. He's a good leader. Krug won’t step in and be an impact guy, but over the course of his time at Union, he will be a regular and a big part of the future."
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| Henry |
Noah Henry, a Seattle, Washington native, is the fourth defenseman coming in. The 19-year-old Henry started last season with the British Columbia Hockey League's Penticton Vees before being dealt to Powell River in mid-November. In 52 combined games played, the 6-foot, 190-pound Henry had two goals and 14 assists.
“Noah is a defenseman with tremendous speed," Bennett said. "That’s really going to help us with our breakouts, which helps our defensive zone. He’s really going to help us there and we’re excited about that."
Forwards
Prep star Alex Gonye could be one player looked upon to replace some of the offense that left the program with the graduations of top scorers Wayne Simpson and Kyle Bodie and the early departure of fourth-leading scorer Josh Jooris, who signed with Calgary Flames on Tuesday.
Gonye, a 19-year-old Deerfield (M.A) Prep product, is known for having a scoring touch. He scored 24 points (six goals, 18 assists) in 24 games played this past season.
“Alex will be given a very good chance to develop into a top forward here," Bennett said. "He brings a lot of offense and very good vision on the ice, and he can shoot the puck. We think he’ll be able to grow into the daily grind of college hockey and the physicality on this level.”
Another scoring threat coming in is 20-year-old Saugus, Massachusetts native Michael Vecchione. He decommitted from New Hampshire prior to committing to Union and had a breakout season last year in his second season with Tri-City of the USHL. The 5-foot-10, 195-pound forward upped his offensive contributions considerably with 60 points (26 goals, 34 assists) in 63 games played.
"He's really developed as a player," Tri-City head coach Josh Hauge told me earlier this year. "He has a confidence now that he can score at this level. Statistically, he's improved a lot but his overall game has also improved by a lot... areas like his defensive play, his ability to block shots, play tough, and do the little things.
"The thing the fans notice is just how good of a skater he is. He's extremely fast, plays at a fast pace, and has a natural ability to score goals."
Eli Lichtenwald, 20, split last season between Omaha of the USHL and Nipawin of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League. After a midseason trade to Nipawin, where he played in 2010-2011 and earned SJHL rookie of the year honors, Lichtenwald took off and scored 22 points (13 goals, nine assists) in 19 games played.
Lichtenwald is one of Union's larger recruits in recent memory as he checks in at 6-foot-6, 235-pounds. For a player so big, the native of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan still has a lot of room to grow.
"The biggest thing with Eli is that he has a lot of room to improve," Nipawin head coach Doug Johnson told me earlier this year. "He is a late bloomer. He was an average midget player that blossomed his first year of junior and will only get better in the future. What Union fans see from Eli as a freshman won't even be comparable to what they see from him as a senior.
"I firmly believe Eli has the ability to be a very good regular with the possibility to be an impact player if he keeps developing like I believe he will."
Goaltender
When Troy Grosenick gave up his senior year of eligibility to the San Jose Sharks in April, the Dutchmen needed to add another goaltender for the upcoming season.
Enter 19-year-old Alex Sakellaropoulos.
The native of Tinley Park, Illinois played the past two seasons with the Chicago Steel of the USHL. He posted a 22-20-2 record in 48 contests last year with a 3.03 goals-against average, a .914 save percentage and three shutouts.
Forwards
Prep star Alex Gonye could be one player looked upon to replace some of the offense that left the program with the graduations of top scorers Wayne Simpson and Kyle Bodie and the early departure of fourth-leading scorer Josh Jooris, who signed with Calgary Flames on Tuesday.
Gonye, a 19-year-old Deerfield (M.A) Prep product, is known for having a scoring touch. He scored 24 points (six goals, 18 assists) in 24 games played this past season.
“Alex will be given a very good chance to develop into a top forward here," Bennett said. "He brings a lot of offense and very good vision on the ice, and he can shoot the puck. We think he’ll be able to grow into the daily grind of college hockey and the physicality on this level.”
Another scoring threat coming in is 20-year-old Saugus, Massachusetts native Michael Vecchione. He decommitted from New Hampshire prior to committing to Union and had a breakout season last year in his second season with Tri-City of the USHL. The 5-foot-10, 195-pound forward upped his offensive contributions considerably with 60 points (26 goals, 34 assists) in 63 games played.
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| Vecchione (USHL) |
"The thing the fans notice is just how good of a skater he is. He's extremely fast, plays at a fast pace, and has a natural ability to score goals."
Eli Lichtenwald, 20, split last season between Omaha of the USHL and Nipawin of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League. After a midseason trade to Nipawin, where he played in 2010-2011 and earned SJHL rookie of the year honors, Lichtenwald took off and scored 22 points (13 goals, nine assists) in 19 games played.
Lichtenwald is one of Union's larger recruits in recent memory as he checks in at 6-foot-6, 235-pounds. For a player so big, the native of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan still has a lot of room to grow.
"The biggest thing with Eli is that he has a lot of room to improve," Nipawin head coach Doug Johnson told me earlier this year. "He is a late bloomer. He was an average midget player that blossomed his first year of junior and will only get better in the future. What Union fans see from Eli as a freshman won't even be comparable to what they see from him as a senior.
"I firmly believe Eli has the ability to be a very good regular with the possibility to be an impact player if he keeps developing like I believe he will."
Goaltender
When Troy Grosenick gave up his senior year of eligibility to the San Jose Sharks in April, the Dutchmen needed to add another goaltender for the upcoming season.
Enter 19-year-old Alex Sakellaropoulos.
The native of Tinley Park, Illinois played the past two seasons with the Chicago Steel of the USHL. He posted a 22-20-2 record in 48 contests last year with a 3.03 goals-against average, a .914 save percentage and three shutouts.
The 6-foot-3, 215-pound Sakellaropoulos is the odds on favorite to serve as the primary backup to junior Colin Stevens in the upcoming season.
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