An already strong start to the rising junior class for Boston University became even better on Thursday when top 2024 NHL draft prospect Macklin Celebrini committed to the Terriers.
Celebrini, an '06 from Vancouver, British Columbia, is one of the top prospects in the birth year across North America. He spent the past two seasons playing for Shattuck-St. Mary’s, a prep school in Faribault, Minn. In 2021-22 with the school’s prep team, he scored 50 goals and had 67 assists in 52 games. That came on the heels of posting 51 goals and 90 assists in 50 games with the school’s 14-U team the prior season.
Celebrini is a strong skater with elite hockey sense and a stick to match. He’ll spend the 2022-23 season playing for the Chicago Steel, the organization he signed a USHL tender agreement with in April.
At BU, Celebrini will join '06 center Kamil Bednarik and '06 defensemen Cole Hutson and Owen Keefe (Saugus, Mass.). That’s a solid start with four youngsters all slated to play in the USHL this upcoming season. Bednarik and Hutson will be with the U.S. NTDP while Keefe has signed a tender agreement with the Muskegon Lumberjacks.
The Terriers have nearly always enjoyed success on the recruiting trail, but this recent uptick can be directly attributed to new assistant coach Joe Pereira (West Haven, Conn.), who is considered a top recruiter in college hockey. The entire new staff, including head coach Jay Pandolfo (Burlington, Mass.) and assistant coach Kim Brandvold, is expected to have BU back atop the Hockey East standings sooner than later.
Celebrini wasn’t the only big-time recruit making a commitment after August 1. On Wednesday, Mount Saint Charles center Sacha Boisvert announced his commitment to North Dakota. A tall, lanky power forward from Trois-Rivieres, Quebec, Boisvert spent the past two seasons at the Woonsocket, R.I., based program.
In 56 games during the 2021-22 season with the school’s 15 Only team, the '06 scored 51 goals and had 43 assists. He was a mainstay on a team that was ranked first nationally for much of the season. Boisvert will spend the next two seasons with the Muskegon Lumberjacks in the USHL. He signed a tender agreement with that organization in January.
The lone local to commit following August 1 was Westminster and Yale Junior Bulldogs defenseman Matt Hanscom. An '05 who has made the past two USA Hockey Player Development Camps out of Massachusetts District, Hanscom pledged to RPI. There he’ll join Westminster teammate Ryan Shaw, who committed to the Engineers on Monday. In 26 games for the Martlets during the 2021-22 season, Hanscom scored two goals and had six assists. His size, skating, hard shot, and physical play are reasons for RPI considering him an early commit.
After committing Dexter Southfield and Boston Junior Eagles defenseman Jonathan Lanza on Monday, Yale made another addition to its future blue line. Avon Old Farms and Yale Junior Bulldogs defenseman Hudson Miller of New York City committed to coach Keith Allain’s program on Wednesday. He had two assists in 26 games for the Winged Beavers during the 2021-22 campaign.
