Dutchmen waste little time calling on Pontarelli

by Ryan Fay

When Josh Jooris gave up his senior year of eligibility and signed with the Calgary Flames on July 30, it wasn't long after that Cornwall Colts star forward Michael Pontarelli received a call from Schenectady.

"The day after Jooris signed with Calgary, I received a call from the [Union] coaching staff asking me if I wanted to come this year," said Pontarelli, who was originally slated to arrive next fall after playing a second season with Cornwall. "I told [Union] that I would absolutely be interested."

After some paperwork was settled on Thursday, the reigning Central Canada Hockey League (and Canadian Junior Hockey League) Most Valuable Player announced via Twitter that he'll be joining the Dutchmen this season.

Pontarelli (Cornwall Standard-Freeholder)

"Its been a whirlwind over the last week, trying to get all my stuff to [Union] admissions and the [NCAA] clearinghouse," Pontarelli said.

The 5-foot-8, 187-pound Pontarelli, a native of Laval, Quebec, has fond memories from his year in Cornwall.

"What I'll miss about Cornwall is the fact that I got along great with all the guys on the team," he said. "We had great team chemistry, so it was easy to be successful."

Successful they were, capturing the CCHL championship after knocking off defending champion Nepean in six games.

But having a chance to play college hockey now wasn't something Pontarelli could pass up.

"My goal was always to play college hockey, so if that option was given to me, I was going to take it no matter what," he said. "It's like playing in the AHL and being asked to play in the NHL. It's a no brainer."

Pontarelli, who also received interest from a "majority" of the Ivy League schools and a couple schools out west, could someday be asked to play in the NHL if he continues to produce numbers at the clip he did in Cornwall last year. In 53 games played, he scored a CCHL-high 52 goals and added 55 assists to lead the circuit with 107 points.

"I am a player that loves to contribute offensively," he said. "I think that I am a very smart player and I move pretty well. I love to put the puck in the net, but I also love to distribute the puck around."

Though his offensive capabilities are his calling card, he believes his defensive game is starting to catch up.

"My defensive game has improved a lot," he said. "My plus/minus towards the end of the season was great and in the playoffs I found myself playing more responsibly defensively. I think that I'm more of a complete player than I was at the start of the season."

When the forward committed to Union last October, the Dutchmen had already received several commitments for 2013-2014 and didn't expect to need the 19-year-old this season.

"They told me they had too many guys already coming in for [this] year, so the plan was for me to stay in Cornwall," Pontarelli remembered. "I think things began to change when I started finding more success [with Cornwall]. Obviously when Jooris signed with Calgary, it opened up a spot on the roster and that changed the plans [as well].

Now that Pontarelli will be joining the Dutchmen this fall, he's just eager to get going.

"I'm looking forward to jumping in right away and seeing how I stack up against everyone," he said. "I'm anxious to see what kind of impact I can bring."

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