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October
8, 2008
Recruiting Trail: Top 20 Defensemen
The players who've topped our list of incoming
defensemen in each of the previous five years have done pretty
well in their rookie campaigns. Ryan Suter, who sat atop the
2003 rankings, had a fairly productive year at Wisconsin prior
to turning pro at the end of the season. Alex Goligoski, who
put up 98 points in 118 career games for Minnesota, was our
top-ranked freshman rearguard in 2004. In 2005, Michigan's
Jack Johnson was the consensus choice as the No. 1 backliner,
and the honor went to Minnesota's Erik Johnson in 2006 —
both played in the National Hockey League last season. Last
year's honoree was Wisconsin's Ryan McDonagh, who had a solid,
if unspectacular year for the Badgers, notching 12 points
in 40 games.
This year's top incoming defenseman is Minnesota's
Aaron Ness, though based on the comments we got from scouts
and coaches, Ness and Boston University's David Warsofsky
could be considered 1A and 1B. The rundown of the top 20 defensemen
is led by the WCHA — it boasts seven representatives.
Six USHL alums appear on the list, as do six representatives
of U.S. prep school and high school programs.
Inside College Hockey compiled its 2008 Recruiting
Rankings with extensive input from college coaches and professional
scouts. Participants were asked to evaluate recruits based
on their projected impact at the college level, not on their
professional hockey prospects.
TOP
20 INCOMING DEFENSEMEN
|
| |
Name |
School |
Last
Team |
| |
Aaron Ness |
Minnesota |
Roseau (Minn.) H.S. |
Yeah, he's small and his
shot isn't the greatest. That said, he's a magician
with the puck, and will be a playmaking blueliner
in the Leopold-Martin-Goligoski mold.
|
| |
David Warsofsky |
Boston University |
U.S. NTDP |
Warsofsky is not all that
different from Ness in terms of puck-handling ability.
He'll join senior Matt Gilroy and sophomores Kevin
Shattenkirk and Colby Cohen on an impressive Terrier
defensive corps.
|
| |
Tommy Cross |
Boston College |
Westminster (Conn.) Prep |
At 6-foot-3, 210 pounds
and growing, Cross, Nick Petrecki (6-3, 220), and
Carl Sneep (6-3, 212) form an imposing trio for the
defending champs.
|
| |
Brandon Burlon |
Michigan |
St. Michael's (OPJHL) |
Burlon missed about half
of the OPJHL regular season in 2007-08 with a shoulder
injury. He boasts NHL size (6-0, 190) and has the
skills to be a shutdown defenseman in the college
ranks.
|
| |
Patrick Wiercioch |
Denver |
Omaha (USHL) |
Showed his mettle during
Omaha's run to the USHL playoff championship last
season by scoring 11 points in 14 playoff games, compared
to 21 points in 40 regular-season games.
|
| |
Blake Kessel |
New Hampshire |
Waterloo (USHL) |
Phil Kessel's younger
brother elicited the widest variety of opinions from
our panelists. He should get an opportunity to replace
the graduated Brad Flaishans and Craig Switzer as
the quarterbacks of the UNH power play.
|
| |
Will Weber |
Miami |
Chicago (USHL) |
The consensus on Weber,
who played high school hockey in Michigan before spending
last season with the USHL's Chicago Steel, is that
he's got all the tools, but lacks experience.
|
| |
Jake Gardiner |
Wisconsin |
Minnetonka (Minn.) H.S. |
Wait a second, Badger
fans will say ... Gardiner was a first-round choice
in this year's NHL Draft. He should be higher. Perhaps,
but those we surveyed feel Gardiner, who's only been
playing defense for a couple years, will struggle
mightily during his rookie campaign.
|
| |
Mike Bergin |
Rensselaer |
Smiths Falls (COJHL) |
Dominated Ontario's Central
Junior Hockey League, scoring 48 points for Smiths
Falls last season. He was a three-time all-COJHL selection.
|
| |
Derrick Pallis |
Princeton |
Nobles (Mass.) Prep |
He may not immediately
step in and be as productive as Mike Moore was for
the Tigers last season, but Pallis
is similarly sized and has shown to be a effective
playmaker from the point.
|
| |
Matt Bartkowski |
Ohio State |
Lincoln (USHL) |
| |
Matt Irwin |
Massachusetts |
Nanaimo (BCHL) |
| |
Brady Lamb |
Minnesota Duluth |
Calgary Royals (AJHL) |
| |
Corey Fienhage |
North Dakota |
Apple Valley (Minn.)
Eastview H.S. |
| |
Ben Blood |
North Dakota |
Indiana (USHL) |
| |
Sean Lorenz |
Notre Dame |
U.S. NTDP |
| |
Mark Borowiecki |
Clarkson |
Smiths Falls (COJHL) |
| |
Connor Goggin |
Dartmouth |
Choate (Conn.) Prep |
| |
Karl Stollery |
Merrimack |
Camrose (AJHL) |
| |
Eric Springer |
Wisconsin |
Sioux City (USHL) |
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