Dylan Margonari Commits to MSU

According to a United States Hockey League press release published earlier today, Minnesota State received a commitment from Dylan Margonari. The Greensburg, Pa., native plans to join MSU for the 2012-13 season.

Margonari is listed as a 6-foot, 178-pound forward. He is currently playing in his second season with the Youngstown Phantoms of the USHL. Last season, in 23 games played, he compiled four goals and two assists. This year, he has two points (1G, 1A) through 10 games.

In this year's USHL Fall Classic, Margonari finished +2 in plus/minus and reportedly impressed those in attendance.

I don't have much more on him at this point, but TheScoutingNews.com hints that Margonari might be a solid find.

Gaede makes World Jr. A Team USA roster

Minnesota State recruit Max Gaede will play for Team USA in the World Jr. A Challenge this November. Gaede -- a 6-foot-2, 191-pound forward -- is currently playing in the United States Hockey League for the Sioux City Musketeers. The Woodbury, Minn., native has three goals and three assists in seven games this season.

Gaede was drafted 88th overall by the San Jose Sharks in the 2010 NHL Draft. He is expected to join the Mavericks for the 2011-12 season. 

You can view the full USA Hockey World Jr. A Challenge Roster here (pdf).

A couple thoughts on the 2010-11 freshmen

I haven't seen these guys play much, but I figured I'd jot down a few initial thoughts on each of the 2010-11 MSU men's hockey freshmen. I focused exclusively on positive attributes.

Danny Heath (D)- Solid skater, moves the puck well, good offensive potential for a defenseman.
Corey Leivermann (F)- Great hustle, reads the puck well, ready to battle in the corners.
J.P. Burkemper (F)- Good size, moves well, hard shot, physical.
Chase Grant (F)- Fast, great skater, good hands, nice passing (head's up player), looks at ease with the college game.
Zach Lehrke (F)- Good offensive instincts, impressive on the powerplay, moves the puck well, solid skater.
Josh Nelson (D)- Does a nice job holding the blueline, seems to be a solid defensive defenseman, but shows offensive potential, nice hustle.
John McInnis (F)- Good hustle, fast, has potential to score goals as he adapts to the college game.
Evan Karambelas (G)- Haven't had the opportunity to see him play.

Feel free to add your own thoughts via the comment section.  Overall, I'm very impressed with this group of incoming freshman and looking forward to watching their development this season. Please keep all comments positive.

Berge Decommits

Josh Berge, a forward for the Lincoln Stars of the United States Hockey League, and brother of former Minnesota State Maverick Mick Berge, has reportedly withdrawn his commitment to MSU.

Berge was traded to the Lincoln Stars by Tri-City last winter. In 16 games with the Stars, he totaled eight points (two goals and six assists). Prior to the trade, he scored two goals and compiled eight assists with the Tri-City Storm during the 2009-10 season. To date, the 5-foot-8, 158-pound Oklahoma native has tallied 16 career goals in the USHL.

He's probably not a huge loss for the program, but it would have been nice to have another Berge wearing the purple sweater.

Leitner out for 2010-11 Season

You may have noticed a fairly significant change to the Minnesota State men's hockey roster recently. 

Early last week Matt Leitner - a top incoming recruit - was no longer on MSU's active roster. I immediately sent out a few emails to see if I could get the scoop.  The lack of response surrounding the issue threw up a red flag. Something was wrong.

Earlier this evening, Shane Frederick of the Mankato Free Press and author of Puckato shed some light on the subject with this tidbit:

Leitner is academically ineligible to play for the Mavericks this season, something that was a concern for the coaching staff since the California native and United States Hockey League standout committed to MSU last year.

Leitner's ineligibility is a big loss for the program, but he is enrolled in classes at the university and working to improve his GPA.  He remain's hopeful that he will be able to hit-the-ice next year, 2011-12, and re-join his former Fargo Force teammates and current Mavericks Corey Leivermann and Chase Grant.

The California native is a tremendous hockey player and has a bright future in the NCAA if he can regain his eligibility. Last season, in the United States Hockey League, he scored 66 points in 54 games (25 goals, 41 assists).

I had the opportunity to watch Leitner play in Sioux Falls last winter.  You can read a few of my initial thoughts here. In March, CollegeHockey247.com ranked Leitner 42nd among the Top-50 recruits for the Class of 2010.

Leitner will be missed this season, but should be an extremely valuable asset next year if he puts his mind to it.

It's All In The Numbers...

Minnesota State released the 2010-11 men's hockey roster today.  The team has nine incoming freshman this season.  Here are their sweater numbers: No. 2- Josh Nelson (D), No. 7- John McInnis (F), No. 11 Corey Leivermann (F), No. 13- Danny Heath (D), No. 15- J.P. Burkemper (F), No. 18- Matt Leitner (F), No. 19- Zach Lehrke (F), No. 20- Chase Grant (F), No. 35- Evan Karambelas (G).

Click on player names above to view their full profile on the Minnesota State Mavericks website. You can view the complete roster here.

Gaede Drafted by the San Jose Sharks

Woodbury High School graduate and USHL Sioux City Musketeer Max Gaede was drafted by the San Jose Sharks earlier today. The 6-foot-2, 187-pound forward was taken late in the third round, 88th overall, in the 2010 NHL Draft. Gaede plans to attend Minnesota State in the fall of 2011 after playing one-year with Sioux City in the USHL.

Max Gaede Profiled on Western College Hockey Blog

Chris Dilks, author of the Western College Hockey Blog, profiled Minnesota State recruit Max Gaede as a potential NHL draft pick.

I haven't had the opportunity to watch Gaede play, so WCH is a truly great resource. Dilks wraps up his article with a nice final analysis of Gaede.

Gaede really rose up draft boards all year long. He made it all the way up to 104th on the final Central Scouting rankings, and now looks like a lock to be selected somewhere on the second day of the draft.

He's a bit of a raw talent. Playing high school hockey at Woodbury, he wasn't always playing with or against equal or better talent, and his skating could still probably use some work. But he's got some intriguing potential as a power forward once he fills out a little more that can make plays offensively.

Unless a team really likes him, the fourth round is probably about as high as he'll go. If he lasts any later than that, I wouldn't necessarily call it a steal for the team that picks him, but they would be getting some pretty nice value on a late round pick.

Gaede will likely join the Sioux City Musketeers, of the United States Hockey League, next season before heading to Minnesota State, Mankato. He played a few games with the Musketeers earlier this spring after concluding his senior year with the Woodbury Royals (28GP - 22 goals, 17 assists - 39 points).