No one is more appreciative of a second chance to represent the United States at the World Junior Championship than Drew Commesso.
The Boston University goaltender’s first opportunity never got off the ground a year ago when some of his Terrier teammates tested positive for Covid just before the opening of the U.S. camp in Michigan.
Commesso didn’t have Covid, but he and teammates Alex Vlasic and Robert Mastrosimone had had close contact with those who’d tested positive, so as a precaution all three were uninvited from camp by USA Hockey at the last minute.
“It was really disappointing, no doubt. You work the whole year and the years before leading up to it. It’s been a goal of mine to make that team ever since I was a kid watching the U.S. in the medal games with my dad and that big shootout game,” said Commesso, referring to the 2017 game in which Troy Terry’s heroics paced the U.S. to a gold-medal win over Canada.
Despite his disappointment, the 19-year-old looks at the situation with a measured, mature perspective.
“It’s something that’s always been a goal for me. To have that taken away, even though it was out of my control, really stunk. At the same time, I know that life’s going to set you up with some obstacles. It’s how you react to it. While I was really disappointed, I knew that there was a bigger plan behind it and that my opportunity would come.
“I was also very happy to watch my (National Development Team Program) teammates win the gold there because those are some of my closest friends that I played with for two years. To see them have success and to see the U.S. win a gold medal was really cool. I was very happy for everybody on the team and for USA Hockey in general. It was a well-earned gold medal,’’ said Commesso, a Norwell, Mass., native who was drafted in the second round (No. 46) by the Chicago Blackhawks in 2020.
If things had turned out differently 12 months ago, Commesso would have backed up Spencer Knight (Darien, Conn.), now a rookie with the Florida Panthers, on the depth chart.
This time around, Commesso is a lock to be the starter. The other three goalies invited to camp – Kaidan Mbereko of the Lincoln Stars of the USHL, Luke Pavicich of UMass and Dylan Silverstein of the NTDP 18s – don’t have the experience or pedigree that Commesso possesses.
“Drew’s a competitor,’’ says Providence College’s Nate Leaman, who guided the U.S. to gold last year and will coach the American team again this time around.
“He has the capability of making the big save, and that’s what you want. If we play well in front of him, I think he’ll make all the routine saves. He more than gives us a chance.’’
As a freshman last year, the 6-foot-2 Commesso posted a 6-3-1 record with a .915 save percentage and a 2.99 goals-against average as the Terriers returned to the NCAA Tournament after not making it for two straight years.
It was a year like no other, of course, because of the pandemic. A couple of months into the new season, there have been bumps in the road, but fans are back in the buildings and things are going much more smoothly.
“This is more of a normal season, which is great,’’ Commesso said. “I think the big thing I learned last year was to not take anything for granted, especially playing hockey. Obviously being at Boston University, it’s such a blessing. It’s such a great student section and such a great arena with lots of fans and it’s awesome to play on the road, too. I’m really just taking it all in. It doesn’t really matter who I’m playing or where we’re playing, I’m just super grateful for the opportunity this year.’’
It’s been an up-and-down start to the season for Commesso and the Terriers, who are 6-9-2 overall and 5-5-2 in Hockey East. Picked for second place in the preseason coaches poll, they are in sixth place after the first two months.
Their best win is a 4-3 overtime decision at UMass. They snapped a 1-6-2 skid with a sweep of New Hampshire last weekend in which Commesso was sharp in stopping 57 of 59 shots.
“Obviously we haven’t had a lot of the outcomes we want early in the season, but the coaches are preaching to us, and our team keeps valuing, getting better every weekend and especially of late we’ve been doing a good job of that,’’ he said.
“We’ve put together some good weekends and we’re finally starting to get the results that we wanted, so it’s great to see all our hard work pay off. All of the team trusts our coaches. We’re ignoring all the outside noise. All that really matters is the next game. That’s been our mentality and it’s going to be our mentality going forward.’’
Individually, Commesso’s save percentage is below what you would expect for a netminder of his caliber. He is 47th in the country at .900 (tied with Boston College’s Eric Dop).
“I don’t really look at my save percentage during the course of the season. I don’t like looking at any of my personal stats,’’ said Commesso.
“Obviously some stats are not going to be where you want at times. All I can control is how I play the next game. The stats will come with it, but that’s not really something I focus on, my personal stats. It’s more getting better every day and every weekend and giving my team the best chance to win.’’
With less than three weeks until the first game of the World Juniors, Commesso is raring to go.
“It’s going to be a lot of fun. I talked to Matty Beniers, he’s a close friend and we have ties going back to when we played in the Brick Tournament (camp invites Brett Berard, Ian Moore were on that team, too). We’re all really excited to kind of get the band back together. Obviously my great teammates at the NTDP, there’s a lot of them vying for spots on the team and hopefully will make it,’’ he said.
“We’re all very excited to get back together and more excited to pursue the common goal of winning another gold medal. I can’t wait.’’
FREE-AGENT WATCH
Patrick Giles, Boston College
A right winger, Giles has size at 6-foot-5, 216 pounds, but hasn’t been a big scorer at any level. He has 7-4-11 in 15 games this season after putting up 3-9-12 in 24 games last year. He’s a solid candidate for an AHL/ECHL deal.
Marc Gatcomb, UConn
Gatcomb’s a grinder, pure and simple. The 6-foot-2 left winger might have to start in the ECHL but could work his way up to the AHL.
Tommy Miller, Northeastern
Paired with Huskies’ stud Jordan Harris, Miller keeps it simple. He’s not going to put up points but could turn out to be a serviceable defender in the ECHL.
