BU nabs a top '98 recruit Kieffer Bellows

                                          - Photo credit to Minnesota Hockey Magazine/Jordan Doffing

The Boston University coaching staff continues to play chess while the rest of college hockey plays checkers on the recruiting trail . They received a verbal commitment from forward Keiffer Bellows of Edina, Minnesota which announced per his twitter account.

I am very excited and proud to announce my commitment to Boston University! Thank you to everybody who has helped me! #GoTerriers
— Kieffer Bellows (@BellowsKieffer) June 20, 2014

BU Hockey Line Projections Take 1

So posting has been a little slow around here which is typical of the summer months. I figured I would take this chance to take a stab at some new line combination for the coming season. Technically, the recruiting class is not filled and has not been officially announced because Adam Clendening's scholarship has not been officially filled. The 2012 recruiting class as of now looks like this:
Forwards: Sam Kurker(2nd 2012 Stl) , Matt Lane ,Wes Myron(6th 2012 Van), Mike Moran, and Danny O'Regan(5th 2012 SJ).
Defensemen: Matt Grzelcyk(3rd 2012- Bos), TBD(Marc Hetnik?- wouldn't require a scholarship since his father is employed by BU)
Goalies: Sean MaGuire(4th 2012-Pitt), Matthew O'Connor

So now that the incoming class is as established as we could hope here is what I think the lines will look like on opening night vs PC without having seen most of these guys play yet.

1- Nieto-Gill- Cisse  - Cisse is obviously the guy who I have jumping from the 4th line to the 1st so he has to have a big summer  but I think since this is his first healthy summer in 3 summers, he certainly is a guy capable of making this type of jump. Gill seems like the best option at center with his hands and Nieto is the fastest guy in Hockey East and I would expect 40-50 points from him this year.

2 Megan-O'Regan-Kurker  - This line has the captain with two very skilled freshmen who I think can compete in Hockey East right away and will need for success. Megan can make their lives much easier with how hard he drives to the net and opens up space for his linemates.

3 Lane- Hohmann- Myron  -This line could easily include sophomore Evan Rodrigues on right wing depending on how Myron looks in camp along with Lane but I see both of them being successful collegiate players.

4- Courtnall- Rosen-Santana - This is really the only line that is set in stone in my mind. This is going to be the most experienced, grinder line in Hockey East easily. They will give this team depth as they are able to roll 4 lines in important games.
Extra forwards: Evan Rodrigues, Mike Moran,  Matt Ronan, Jake Moscatel,

D-Pairs
1 Noonan- Privitera - This d-pair is going to be a force throughout Hockey East as Privitera had a strong second half minus the wrist injury and Noonan will be all Hockey East first team.
2. Escobedo- MacGregor- Coach Parker usually puts one offensive D and a "stay at home" dman together but I don't see him forcing that this year unless he wants to break up Noonan and Privitera. Escobedo will be one of the most steady dmen in Hockey East this season and I think MacGregor will have a coming out party as an upperclassman(maybe even score a goal...nah).
3. Grzelcyk- Ruikka- This pair will be solid to begin the year as Ruikka is a veteran to help lead Grzelcyk as he gets accustomed to the speed of the college game.

Extra dmen- Marc Hetnik, TBD?

Goalies
1a. Sean MaGuire- These top two goalies are going to split starts fairly regularly until winter break and probably beyond unless one of them separates themselves as the clear starter.
1b. Matt O'Connor
3. Anthony Moccia

8 Future Terriers drafted in 2012 NHL Draft

Last night's first round of the 2012 NHL draft was quiet on the college hockey front as a whole and that held true with BU as no current or future Terriers were drafted in the first round. Rounds 2-7 today were a different story as 8 future Terriers were drafted. That was 40% of the players taken from Hockey East schools and 12% of overall collegians or recruits drafted. That isn't a bad indicator for the quality of the classes that Coach Parker has coming in the next few years. Another cool fact is 6 of the 8 are Massholes which is always nice to have a local touch to the recruiting classes. Here are the recruits that were drafted.

Round- (Overall)
2- 56- Sam Kurker- Stl- Kurker will be arriving here this coming fall and figures to make an impact right away with his size and skill.  Kurker will be joining the Blues, who currently have former Terrier Kevin Shattenkirk on their roster and will for years to come with the production he has put up thus far.

3-85-Matt Grzelcyk -Bos- The Charlestown,MA native d-man  was drafted by the Bruins in the third round and called it "a dream come true".  He will also be arriving at BU this fall and has drawn comparisons to David Warsofsky, who is a former Terrier in the Bruins system. Grzelcyk is now the third Bruin prospect with ties to BU as the Bruins also have former Terrier Colby Cohen in their system.

4- 113- Sean MacGuire-Pitt- The incoming goalie, who will compete with the undrafted Matt O'Connor,  was drafted by Penguins. They obviously drafted MacGuire because they have deemed former Northeastern goalie Brad Thiessen as incompetent, which he is.

5-125- Doyle Somerby- NYI- Somerby is a 2013 recruit but seems to be a Gryba-like big defenseman who will hopefully start laying guys out as soon as he arrives on campus next fall. Here is a video from him after he was drafted.



5-136- Robbie Baillargeon-Ott- Another 2013 recruit here who was ranked higher than where he was drafted.  Former Terriers with the Sens now are Eric Gryba and Matt Gilroy. Gilroy is a UFA as of July 1st and I believe Gryba is entering the last year of his deal with the franchise.

5-138- Danny O'Regan- SJ- O'Regan joins current Terrier Matt Nieto as a Sharks prospect and former Terrier and captain John McCarthy who is playing with their AHL affiliate in Worcester,MA.

6-177 -Wesley Myron- Van - Tough luck for Myron getting drafted by the 2nd worse franchise in the NHL besides Montreal but I guess it is still nice to get drafted. He should stay at BU for all 4 years and then not sign so he can be a free agent and never play those losers up in Vancouver.

7-189- Brendan Collier-Car- The 2013 recruit was drafted late in the draft but that seems to be the MO on this kid as people continue to doubt him because of his smaller size but he has continued to produce. Let's hope that continues at BU and he continues his hard work ethic.

BSRS sniping at the Women's Beanpot Final Intermission

Yes, I am still listening to all D-1 offers. I know someone needs a shot like that for the stretch run. York was already calling me but I told him to jump off a cliff because BC sucks.

Enfield Native and Cushing Academy Product Robbie Baillargeon committs to BU

According to Chris Heisenberg's 2011 list of recruits, Cushing Academy product Robbie Baillargeon committed to BU today. Baillargeon is a 93 recruit and my best guess would be arriving at BU for 2013 or 2014 but nothing has been announced as of yet. This sophomore season Baillargeon had a 16-25-41 line through the first 19 games of the season. We will have more info it comes out. Baillargeon is a 6'0 170 lb forward who put some pretty impressive stats this season. He ended this season with a line of 30-34-64 in 30 games which is over 2 points a game which ain't half bad.

UPDATE- According to a source through the Terrier hockey blog, Baillargeon will arrive on campus in 2013. He picked BU over UNH,NU, and Maine according to a source on this USCHO board thread.