Updates

First off, there is a heck of a Harvard blog that is executed by the great broadcasting team over at WHRB. I would encourage all of you to check it out at:
http://whrbsports.blogspot.com/

On the recruiting front, another player that Harvard is keeping an eye on:

Matt Harlow - 5'10'' - LC - 170lbs - He skates on Nobles' top line and would be a recruit for the Class of 2011 or 2012. Harlow was drafted by Youngstown (USHL) where he could spend an extra year for seasoning after Nobles. He is described as a gifted play maker who plays with an edge and is one of the top forwards in New England in his age group. As a sophomore at Nobles, he finished 3rd in scoring (behind Billy Arnold & Kevin Hayes) with a 19-18-37.

Back in the swing of things...

One week away from the start of the 2009-2010 campaign and the heralded freshman class well into their first semester, I thought it time to dust off the blog cobwebs. Without further ado...

New Potential Recruits:

Shaun Pauly - 5'11'' - 173lbs - RW - Wenatachee Wild (NAHL) - 1992 DOB & probably a Class of 2011 recruit - Also being pursued by Boston University, Wisconsin, North Dakota, Colorado College, Denver, Yale, Dartmouth, and Brown. http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/playerpage.html?playerid=3175892&seasonid=4527


Michael Vilardo - 5'11'' - 165lbs - LW - USNDT U17 - Started the season with the Chicago Mission - Also pursued by Michigan, Notre Dame, Denver, and UNH. He had previously committed to Ohio State, but backed out of that commitment. He was one of the elite forwards at the U-17 Select Camp in Rochester this summer. In 4 games with the USNDT, he has yet to register a point. http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/playerpage.html?playerid=3345027&seasonid=4429

Current Recruits:

Andrew Calof - Center who plays for Nepean (CJHL) and thus far has a 12-16-28 line in 15 games played and is the leading scorer. Andrew is the 4th leading scorer in the entire CJHL and is a great set-up man on the PP. Andrew was also recently selected to represent Canada East at the World Junior A Challenge in November on Prince Edward Island. http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/playerpage.html?playerid=1453421&seasonid=4401

Mark Luzar - Defenseman who plays for Burlington (CCHL) and thus far has a 0-2-2 line in 11 games played. He is a 2011 recruit. http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/playerpage.html?playerid=3140944&seasonid=4693

Dan Ford - Defenseman who plays for Sioux City (USHL) and thus far has a 2-1-3 line in 5 games played and is the leading scorer. Dan was supposed to matriculate this fall at Harvard, but opted for one more year of seasoning in the USHL. He is a 2010 recruit. http://www.pointstreak.com/prostats/playerpage.html?playerid=2292188&seasonid=4429

Tom O'Regan - Left Wing at St. Sebastians. Tom's season will not get started until late November / early December. He is a 2010/2011 recruit (will largely depend on how he performs in his senior year and how whether he needs another year of seasoning)

Harvard's Freshman Class:

Harvard's Class of 2009 was ranked 5th overall (behind Notre Dame, Denver, BC, and Minnesota), though given the depth and size of this class, I think Harvard should be #2 behind Notre Dame. Louis Leblanc was heralded as the #1 incoming forward in all of college hockey. http://www.insidecollegehockey.com/7Archives/Features/0910/recruitsteam_0801.htm

My shot at Harvard's opening line-up:

Goalie: Kyle Richter

1st D: Alex Biega & Ryan Grimshaw
2nd D: Chris Huxley & Ian Tallet
3rd D: Chad Morin & Danny Biega
Extras: Brendan Rempel & Jack Christian & Peter Starrett & Alex Leinberry

1st F: Matt McCollem, Doug Rogers, Louis Leblanc
2nd F: Mike Biega, Alex Killorn, Alex Fallstrom
3rd F: PO Michaud, Connor Morrison, Erik Kroshus
4th F: Luke Greiner, Daniel Moriarty, Colin Moore

Extras: David Valek, Michael Del Mauro, Marshall Everson, Rence Coassin, Sam Bozoian

I can't tell you how hard it was to place the forwards. I can only imagine the competition and difficult decisions Donato will have week in and week out.

If anyone has any insights or recruiting rumors, please send me an email.

Development Camp Update

By and large, Harvard players performed well at their respective development camps. Below is a hodgepodge of fan and coaching analysis:

Louis Leblanc - 1st Round (#18) by Montreal Canadiens

• He made a GREAT rush at the start of the 1st, skated pass a d-man from the outside and drove the net but didn't score but that was great to see. But 2 things are absolutely certain. He needs to bulk up BIG TIME. And he needs to make quicker decisions with the puck. The overall rhythm of this camp is impressive and Leblanc is not there yet. But you see that he has skills, you see that he's not afraid of anybody, you see that he has a great work ethic, so based on that you can't be disappointed. But if you expect a 1st rounder to blow you away and came away as the best player today, you might be disappointed and especially when you start comparing him to other players like Avtsin and others I will talk about today. But a great prospect he is that will need to indeed become much stronger and much faster in his decision making.

Alexander Fallstrom - 4th Round (#116) by Minnesota Wild

• I really liked what I saw from him. He is a big player with some good speed and good hands. He was a noticeable player all day and appeared to have a good hockey IQ. I am happy he is intelligent (Harvard) but wish he was going to a better hockey program. But, again, I liked what I saw from him today
• The player that stood out the most to me was Fallstrom. I really like his game and think he will definitely help the Wild someday down the road.

Alex Killorn

• A couple of NCAA guys looked sharp in Alex Killorn (Harvard) and Matt Marshall (Vermont). Both guys looked pretty quick and fast on the ice. Killorn showed pretty good hands in close on one play where he cut into the crease and roofed a shot over Jaroslav Janus

Alex Biega

• He was the biggest surprise for me. Quick, strong, and battling very well. When he had the puck he was very hard to take him off it. Strong on his skates and battled hard. When he was the one without the puck he played physical, quick and fierce, knocking the guy down. Also showed nice hands on a few of his shots.

See Ya Zach!

Mitchell signs with the Guelph Storm out of Major Junior's OHL.

More to come....

Zach Mitchell joins Harvard's Recruiting Class of 2011

Zach Mitchell - 5'11' - 155lbs - RW - (1993 birth year) plays for the Toronto Marlies. He is described as follows as part of the OHL Draft preview:

Mitchell is an outstanding offensive producer that is still responsible in his own zone. He scored four goals and five assists for nine points in the OHL Cup to help the Marlies to the championship. He played in all situations this season and excelled at killing penalties.“He distributes the puck quite well, and once he does move it to an open teammate he immediately works to get himself into a support position,” Kitamura said. “This makes him very tough player to defend. He works to get into a shooting position, anticipates the play and wins races to loose pucks regularly. When he does get a scoring chance, he usually puts the puck into the back of the net.”

Welcome Zach!!

Harvard Recruits & Final Central Scouting Rankings

Name - Final Ranking (Mid-term Ranking):

Louis Leblanc - 13 (18)
Alexander Fallstrom - 69 (84)
David Valek - 72 (76)
Brendan Rempel - 98 (85)
Marshall Everson - 181 (123)

Danny Biega is not eligible to be drafted until next year because of his age. Mark Luzar & Zach Mitchell (more coming on this new recruit) will not be eligible until the 2011 draft.

Daniel Ford, Andrew Calof, Conor Morrison (too old), and Luke Greiner were not mentioned.

Leblanc, Fallstrom, and Valek were all invited to the NHL combine from May 25-30 in Toronto

Another Blue Chippah for Harvard!

Even with all my bias, I think that with this latest signing, Harvard most certainly has the #1 recruiting class in the nation - particularly with the hit Notre Dame took when Cam Fowler bolted for Major Junior.

David Valek - 6'2'' 215 power forward from the USNDT has signed with Harvard and will join the Crimson in 2009. Valek has a 6-13-19 line in 40 games this year with the national team. In international tournament play, he is the 2nd leading scorer for the team with a 4-4-8 in 8 games.

In the CSS Mid-Season rankings, Valek was ranked #76.

With Everson, Leblanc, Valek, Fallstrom, Rempel, and Ford - Harvard will likely have 6 NHL draft picks in the Class of 2009.