Notre Dame made some news on the recruiting trail this week, adding 2009-born forward Braiden Scuderi.
Scuderi, a Haddon Heights, New Jersey, native, currently plays in the top flight of American junior hockey with the USHL’s Cedar Rapids Roughriders. His 10 points in 21 games at Cedar Rapids has him tied for eighth in USHL rookie scoring. Scuderi is a product of Rhode Island’s Mount St. Charles Hockey Academy.
Brock Sheahan and his staff have quietly amassed a solid recruiting haul in their first full year in charge. According to national scouting service PuckProspects, Scuderi becomes Notre Dame’s third five-star prospect to commit to the Irish this cycle, joining the National Team Development Program’s Cannon Thibodeau and Diego Gutierrez.
Irish still seeking connection in their game
Much ink has been spilled in these pages over Notre Dame hockey’s search for consistency. The Irish seemingly took one step closer to that goal by snapping a six game losing streak last week at Merrimack. Though the team lost the following game to No. 15 Boston College, that game was there for the taking too.
“It was actually really nice to see us play more to our capability, five-on-five throughout both games,” Sheahan said this week. “Over time, if we can continue to build on that, you’ll start to see more consistent results.”
Notre Dame hadn’t scored at five-on-five in two weeks prior to its 5-4 win over Merrimack last Wednesday. The two game non-conference road trip broke that spell, but the Irish still need to prove that the team can replicate its play into the Big Ten, where the record has begun 0-6 to start the year. Notre Dame has only one five-on-five goal in conference play this season.
“Some of that’s us being disconnected in the way we play, a lot of that’s offensively: just not supporting the puck, not playing fast, not getting depth in the [offensive] zone, unwillingness to spend time in the [offensive] zone [and] just getting rid of the puck. If you do all those things, you’re not going to play offense,” he said. “When things aren’t going well, you have guys that try to do things by themselves. So when I say disconnected, you’ll see guys in isolation -- on line rush four, neutral zone [offense] -- just by themselves, right?”
The Irish cannot afford to play selfish hockey against the Badgers. Keep an eye on Notre Dame’s cohesiveness this weekend. It will be a strong indicator of its success against Wisconsin.
Kempf named to World Junior team
Netminder Nicholas Kempf earned some hard-earned recognition this week, as he was named to the USA Hockey team that will represent the country at the IIHF World Junior Championship in Minnesota.
Kempf has started all 14 games for Notre Dame this season as a sophomore, currently posting a .902 save percentage and 3.44 goals against average. He would have already been on USA Hockey’s radar, too, from his time with the National Team Development Program where he spent two years prior to joining the Irish.
“Nick is an elite goaltender,” Sheahan said. “I think over time here, people are going to see he’s got the capability and hopefully he continues to realize that potential that he’s one of the best goalies in the country of his age.”
Sheahan believes that Kempf’s selection to the team only serves as confirmation of that. If anything, it should serve as a confidence booster for Kempf, who has played well but has not necessarily had a smooth transition to college hockey. Being a young netminder is rarely smooth, and even last game at Boston College he allowed a pair that any goaltender might like to have back.
“Forget about our record and his numbers, he’s given us a chance to win every night from the start of the season until the Boston College game. And yeah, would he like – it’s probably the first and the fourth goal – back? Of course. But he also made some elite saves in the game. He’s not the reason we lost the game,” Sheahan said.
He may very well be the reason that USA wins a few games in Minneapolis come December. Regardless, it’s set to be a special year for the Americans at the World Juniors: the USA will go for its third straight gold medal, on home ice too. Kempf is set to play a big part in it.
Brown’s Breakout a Boon
Freshman forward Cole Brown showed up in a big way last Wednesday against Merrimack, scoring twice in the third period to complete an Irish comeback. It was the New Jersey Devils prospect’s first career multi-goal game. Coming over from the OHL’s Brantford Bulldogs in the offseason, Brown has taken some time to adjust to college hockey. Cashing in on the scoresheet had to have felt good.
“It’s been frustrating for him, a guy who’s used to producing,” Sheahan said of Brown. “But it’s harder to score at this level. What I’ve appreciated with him is that he’s really stuck to what we’re asking him to do, which is play inside contact, initiating contact, possessing the puck and working off the puck to be a support for his teammates.”
That work paid off when Brown celebrated his first goal last Wednesday. And it didn’t stop there, either. His line, with junior forward Cole Knuble and senior forward Sutter Muzzatti, was arguably Notre Dame’s best last week.
Brown still has to grow into his frame, which is lanky at 6’3, 190lb. But there’s time for that, and plenty of potential to follow.
“That’s the reason he’s here, and not in New Jersey’s organization… yet,” Sheahan said. “We’re really excited to have him, and when I’ve talked to New Jersey about him, I’ve talked about, what does he look like in the second half of the year? And I think we are starting to see it.”
