Here’s the latest update on UMass’ recruits.  I plan on writing an in-depth look at next year’s class in the next day or two.  So I recommend checking back for that.

Brandon Montour – D – Waterloo Blackhawks (USHL) – T-Minus One Week
17 GP /6 G / 15 A / 21 Pts / 30 PIM /-11
Montour is on campus preparing to hopefully make his Massachusetts hockey debut next Tuesday against Northeastern

Brandon Egli – D – Vernon Vipers (BCHL) – 2015
20 GP / 0 G /5 A / 5 Pts / 19 PIM
Egli was scoreless this week.

Jake McCarthy – D – South Shore Kings (USPHL) – 2015 or 2016
0 GP / 0 G / 0 A / 0 Pts / 0 PIM
McCarthy is still nursing an injury that is delaying his debut for the Kings.

Kurt Keats – C – Powell River Kings (BCHL) – 2015
28 GP / 22 G / 16 A / 38 Pts / 45 PIM
Keats had an assist in one game.  He spent the weekend at the Team Canada West selection camp.  I don’t believe the roster for the World Junior A Challenge has been announced yet, but Keats captained the team last year so he’s expected to make it.  The tournament starts next weekend.

Austin Plevy – C – Brooks Bandits (AJHL) – 2015
31GP / 20 G /31 A / 51 Pts / 54PIM
Plevy had a couple assists in three games this past week.  Plevy is tops in the AJHL in points, 3rd in goals, 2nd in assists, 3rd in PPG.

Shane Bear – D – Brooks Bandits (AJHL) – 2016
32GP / 1 G / 16 A / 17 Pts / 37 PIM
Bear had an assist in three games this past week.  He’s tied for 5th in the league for power play assists.  Like Keats, he too is waiting to see if he made the Team Canada West roster.

Troy Conzo – RW – Wenatchee Wild (NAHL) – 2016 or 2017
3 GP / 0 G / 0 A /0 Pts / 0 PIM / –2  Des Moines (USHL)
13 GP/ 2 G/ 2 A / 4 Pts / 4 PIM / +2 Wenatchee (NAHL)
Conzo had an assist this past week.

Kyler Nachtigall – LW – Brooks Bandits (AJHL) – 2016
32 GP / 9 G / 7 A / 16 Pts / 41 PIM
Nachtigall had a big week, scoring three goals in three games this past week.  He started the season a little slow but has really come on as of late.

Ty Pelton-Byce – C – Team Wisconsin U18 (Elite)/Madison Memorial (WI HS) – 2016
21 GP / 12 G / 12 A / 24 Pts / 8 PIM  Team Wisconsin U18
5 GP /5 G / 4 A / 4 Pts  Madison Memorial
Pelton-Byce had two goals and two assists in a recent 5-0 win for the Spartans.  He’s tied for first in the Big Eight conference for goals and fourth in points.

John Leonard – F – Springfield Rifles (Mass Selects)/Springfield Cathedral (MA HS) – 2017
14 GP / 21 G / 11 A / 32 Pts  Springfield Rifles
0 GP / 0 G / 0 A / 0 Pts  Springfield Cathedral
Cathedral’s season starts December 13th.  Here is a season preview from Masslive.

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Staying on the topic of recruiting, I caught this article today on how well former UMass commit Alex DeBrincat has been doing in the OHL.  DeBrincat plays on a line with Connor McDavid, who is battling Boston University’s Jack Eichel to be the top pick in next year’s NHL draft.  Reading the article got me interested in what exactly happened to lead DeBrincat to renege on UMass.  So I found this article where he says he had always preferred the OHL route but committed to UMass because of his parents.  Hey, there are two routes to the pros and it’s better the player chooses what’s best for him.

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Former Collegian writer Joe Meloni discusses UMass’ lack of success this season and under Coach Micheletto in general in his weekly Hockey East piece for College Hockey News.  Nothing groundbreaking, but it is another piece of evidence that shows that public opinion is quickly turning on Mick.  Again, as I wrote Saturday, I think it’s time for him to be a more flexible with his style of play to try to get the team winning soon.  I’ll probably have more to talk about the current overall situation with the team after next week’s Northeastern game.

College Hockey News also has this look at Air Force who the Minutemen play on the 29th of this month up at the Catamount Cup in Burlington.

Here’s an interesting look at the Mullins Center going from Hockey to Hoops to Hockey and back to Hoops this past weekend.

No real news in our McGaucheon Watch but there is this football focused column by Masslive’s Ron Chimelis on the subject.