| UMass Lowell Riverhawks 2005/2006 Recruiting Information (Stats through 03/07/05) |
| Coach Blaise MacDonald's fourth recruiting class at UMass Lowell will be his last small one for the next three years. The Hawks graduate 3 players in the summer of 2005, goaltender Chris Davidson (Hudson, QUE), captain Peter Tormey (Buzzards Bay, MA) and forward Peter Hanlon (Winthrop, MA). Also, another spot opens up as senior-to-be Ben Walter signed with the Boston Bruins in late August of 2005. Players that have signed an NLI (National Letter of Intent) will be highlighted in red. Players in this class cannot sign an NLI till November of 2004. |
| Taking up one roster spot will be incoming junior J.R. Bria. The defenseman played for the Colgate Red Raiders for two years prior to transferring to Lowell. Born 10/30/82, Bria will have two years of eligibility left. In his sophomore year at Colgate, Bria put up a 1-5-6 line in 27 games. Bria, 5'11", 205 pounds, played previously for Cap District in the EJHL. When he committed to Colgate, he chose the Red Raiders over Maine, BU, Union amongst others. The first real commitment came from goaltender Nevin Hamilton of the Boston Junior Bruins. Hamilton, 6'1", 195 from Ashland, MA was the only underclassman to be named a first team EJHL All-Star team for the 03/04 season. He was also the EJHL Goaltender of the Year. Hamilton, born 5/28/85, is with his fourth year with the Jr. Bruins, and has been an All-Star for three years. According to his team website, Hamilton is a "tall, lanky goaltender with great quickness and instincts." He is also good with his angles. He was also a Mass Select 17 member. Hamilton currently is the #1 goaltender in the EJHL with a 93.38% save rate and a 1.70 GAA. Lowell received a second goalie commit, for the 05 season (it would appear) from Vinnie Monaco. A participant of the 2004 EJHL All Star game, the youngster plays for the NE Jr. Huskies. He currently has a 3.01 GAA and a 90.74% save rate, good for 9th in the EJHL. Born 01/11/86, Monaco is a local kid, from Andover, MA. The thought in this area is that Monaco is intending to walk-on. The 5'11", 180 pound goalie previously played for the Lowell Jr. Lock Monsters. Another member of the NE Jr. Huskies committed to UML, as center Nick Monroe will be headed to Lowell in the fall of 2005. The youngster from Groton, MA finished the season for the Jr. Huskies with a 17-20-37 line in 47 league games. The 5'9" 175 pound forward also previously played for the Lowell Jr. Lock Monsters. He played in the 2003/2004 season All Star Game, and was a member of the HNIB All Scholastic Tourney. Right wing Michael Potacco is the most recent commit to UML, making it 5 players in the last month (05 and 06 classes combined). The 5'10", 184 pound forward heads to Lowell from the St. Michael's Buzzers of the OPJHL. Potacco, an 84 birthdate, played in 70 games in the 03/04 season, putting up a 21-31-52 line. St. Michael's has sent a couple of players to Hockey East, including three current Merrimack players (Nick Pomponio, Mike Alexiou and Ryan Sullivan). A current Buzzer, Brayden Irwin will be joining UVM for the 06/07 season. Potacco, one of the oldest players on the roster for St. Michael's, finished second on the team in scoring this year with a 38-33-71 line in 49 games. He also added a 3-6-9 in 11 games in the playoffs. Originally committed for the 06/07 class, LW Mark Roebothan of the Valley Jr. Warriors (EJHL) will be joining a year earlier due to the departure of Ben Walter. The St Johns, Newfoundland native is 5'11", 192 pounds. Born 11/04/86, the forward was second on the team with a 37-35-72 line in 50 games during the 2004/2005 season. He had 12 power play goals and just 24 PIM in those games. He was a participant in the EJHL All-Star game during the season. Prior to joining the Jr. Warriors, Roebothan played for the Kanata Stallions of the CJHL. The Jr. Warriors site stated that he is a deceptive skater with a great sense around the net. He participated in the U16 and U17 Canadian Festival teams and the Canada Winter Games in 2003. In his first year in the EJHL, Roebothan had amassed 46 points in 55 games. |