It's a slow time for Badger news and the OHL is always relevant in terms of taking high end talent away from major US College programs so I figured I'd make you all aware that the OHL Priority Selection Draft is being held on Saturday, May 2nd.The current crop of committed Badger recruits shouldn't be hit at all so that's always a positive. Teammates at the NTDP, Frankie Simonelli and Michael Mersch are already drafted by OHL clubs (Plymouth and Erie respectively) but are safe bets to end up on the UW campus. Jordan Schmaltz, a defenseman with the Chicago Mission could get drafted but that would be more indicative to his early commitment to Wisconsin rather than his play this past season. I wouldn't be worried about him taking the Canadian bait either.
In terms of potential recruits, there will definitely be some activity from the OHL draft. Wisconsin native and Team Illinois forward Trevor Morbeck expects to be picked fairly high. His brother Corey, a goalie for Team Illinois, was drafted in the 2007 OHL draft by the Oshawa Generals . Trevor Morbeck was passed over for the NTDP tryouts this year in large part due to the fairly poor kept secret that he doesn't have much intention on playing college hockey.
Another interesting Wisconsin native is Nolan Kirley. He was already drafted last year in the OHL draft but don't expect him to take that offer. His father is his high school coach and I would expect him to take the college route. He could be a nice filler defensive recruit for the Badgers in a few seasons.
As for other Wisconsin born potential recruits eligible for the first time, I wont be surprised if someone takes a flier Eau Claire Memorial defenseman Jacob McCabe. I'm not 100% sure he's eligible because he's a 93 and only a freshman but if he is eligible, he should be selected. A few other 93's that could go but would be long shots: Max McCormick, Green Bay; Ryan Dau, Hudson; Joey Fiala, Verona; Todd Koritzinsky, Middleton.
Other players who are uncommitted to colleges and have expressed interest in major college hockey programs but are likely to get drafted this weekend: Rocco Grimaldi (committed to NTDP), Colin Suellentrop (big defenseman with compuware minors, originally from Florida), Tyler Biggs (committed to NTDP), and Alexx Privitera (committed to NTDP). Those are just a few of the big names. I would expect the Chicago and Detroit area AAA midget programs to get hit hard as usual.
Posts
