Wildcats Announce 2018-2019 Freshman Class

DURHAM, N.H. - University of New Hampshire head men's hockey coach Mike Souza has announced the freshman class for the 2018-2019 season. Nine student-athletes will join the program.

"We are very excited about the 2018-2019 freshman class," said Souza. "With five forwards, three defensemen and one goalie, this class brings talent and depth. What stands out about this group is their strong leadership qualities. We really look forward to having them be a part of our program."

2018-2019 UNH men's hockey season tickets are available now and can be purchased by calling the Whittemore Center Box Office at (603) 862-4000 or by visiting www.UNHWildcats.com.

2018-2019 UNH MEN'S HOCKEY FRESHMAN CLASS

Name	Pos.	Ht.	Wt.	Hometown/Last Team (League)
Joseph Cipollone	F	5-8	175	Purchase, N.Y./Boston Jr. Bruins (NCDC)
Angus Crookshank	F	5-11	180	North Vancouver, B.C./Langley Rivermen (BCHL)
Filip Engarås	F	6-0	194	Stockholm, Sweden/Skellefteå AIK (SuperElit)
Eric Esposito	F	5-11	183	West Haven, Conn./Youngstown Phantoms (USHL)
Drew Hickey	D	5-11	185	New Canaan, Conn./Connecticut Jr. Rangers (NCDC)
Will MacKinnon	D	5-11	200	Plymouth, Mich./Des Moines Buccaneers (USHL)
Jackson Pierson	F	5-9	175	Zionsville, Ind./Culver Military Acad. (USHS)
Ty Taylor	G	6-4	200	Richmond, B.C./Vernon Vipers (BCHL)
Ryan Verrier	D	6-0	185	Reading, Mass./Green Bay Gamblers (USHL)

JOSEPH CIPOLLONE

COACH SOUZA: "Joseph has good hockey sense and will bring character. He earned some tremendous experience playing junior hockey and won a championship in the USHL."

BEFORE UNH:

Played two seasons for the Boston Junior Bruins (NCDC) as he posted 38 goals and 53 assists for 91 points
2017-2018 Assistant captain
Tallied nine goals and five assists for 14 points for the Tri-City Storm (USHL)
Team won the 2016 Clark Cup Championship
Attended the South Kent School where he was a two-time team captain and MVP (2013-2014 & 2014-2015)
Recorded 39 goals and 64 assists for 103 points over two seasons

VIEW CIPOLLONE'S COMPLETE BIO

ANGUS CROOKSHANK

COACH SOUZA: "Angus is a skilled player with a high compete level and an ability to find the back of the net. He has a strong work ethic and tremendous upside."

BEFORE UNH:

Posted 35 goals and 40 assists for 75 points for the Langley Rivermen (BCHL), including 25 goals and 27 assists for 52 points during the 2017-2018 season
Member of the Canada West Team that won the gold medal at the 2017 World Junior A Challenge as he ranked fourth in scoring in the tournament with two goals and three assists for five points
Scored the game-winner in the championship game versus the United States
Selected to the 2018 Top Prospects Game
Attended Burnaby Central Secondary School where he was the league's MVP and top scorer in 2015-2016
Posted 87 goals and 52 assists for 139 points over two seasons which included 57 goals and 26 assists for 83 points during 2015-2016

VIEW CROOKSHANK'S COMPLETE BIO

FILIP ENGARAS

COACH SOUZA: "Filip is a two-way player that is excellent on faceoffs. He was the center on a talented line for his team and led them to success. He was a two-year team captain that will bring leadership qualities."

BEFORE UNH:

Played three seasons for Skellefteå AIK (SuperElit) in Sweden
Two-time team captain (2016-2017 & 2017-2018)
He posted 28 goals and 28 assists for 56 points over 93 games for the Under-20 team
Appeared in 19 games for the Sweden International junior team
He tallied four goals and three assists for seven points during the 19 games

VIEW ENGARAS' COMPLETE BIO

ERIC ESPOSITO

COACH SOUZA: "Eric is a hard-nose tenacious player who had a great season last year in the USHL. As team captain he led the Youngstown Phantoms to the USHL finals."

BEFORE UNH:

Played three seasons for the Youngstown Phantoms (USHL)
Team captain (2017-2018)
Team won the 2017-2018 Eastern Conference Championship and advanced to the Clark Cup Finals
Posted 34 goals and 25 assists for 59 points over three seasons which included 23 goals and 10 assists for 33 points during 2017-2018
Also tallied four goals and five assists for nine points during the 2018 playoffs
Played two seasons of varsity hockey at the Loomis Chaffee School (2013-2014 & 2014-2015) where he recorded 23 goals and 20 assists for 43 points, winning the Large School Championship in 2013-2014 and the Founders League title in 2014-2015

VIEW ESPOSITO'S COMPLETE BIO

DREW HICKEY

COACH SOUZA: "Drew is a strong leader with experience as a captain. He had a great year last season with the Connecticut Junior Rangers. He also has the ability to move the puck."

BEFORE UNH:

Played two seasons for the Connecticut Junior Rangers (NCDC)
Team captain in 2017-2018
Posted the most points by a defenseman in the league in 2017-2018 with seven goals and 27 assists for 34 points
Earned 2018 League All-Star accolades
Totaled 10 goals and 36 assists for 46 points over two seasons
Attended the Taft School where he played three seasons of varsity hockey and was the team captain in 2015-2016

VIEW HICKEY'S COMPLETE BIO

WILL MACKINNON

COACH SOUZA: "Will has great leadership attributes. He is a strong defenseman that can move the puck. He will bring character to our team on and off the ice."

BEFORE UNH:

Played the 2017-2018 season for the Des Moines Buccaneers (USHL)
Assistant captain
Won the team's Most Improved Defenseman Award
Posted two goals and eight assists for 10 points
Member of the National Team Development Program in 2016-2017, playing in 91 games

VIEW MACKINNON'S COMPLETE BIO

JACKSON PIERSON

COACH SOUZA: "Jackson is a two-way player that sees the ice well. He has leadership qualities as he was the captain for the No. 1 ranked High School team in the nation at Culver Military Academy."

BEFORE UNH:

Member of the varsity hockey team at Culver Military Academy
Team captain in 2017-2018
Culver's all-time career leading scorer with 58 goals and 92 assists for 150 points.
Broke the season points record with 88 on 30 goals and 58 assists during 2017-2018.
Three-time Team MVP
The team went 43-4-1 in 2017-2018 finishing the season as the No. 1 ranked team in the nation by USA Hockey, the best in program history

VIEW PIERSON'S COMPLETE BIO

TY TAYLOR

COACH SOUZA: "Ty is a goaltender with natural ability. He had a tremendous year in Vernon where he was named the BCHL Goalie of the Year. He brings competitiveness, athleticism and size."

BEFORE UNH:

Two-year member of the Vernon Vipers (BCHL)
Named the 2017-2018 BCHL Goalie of the Year
2017-2018 CJHL Top Goalie Nomination
Earned 2017-2018 first team All-BCHL accolades
Set the team's all-time season record for shutouts with eight which tied the league's all-time record
Posted a 1.87 goals against average and a .931 save percentage

VIEW TAYLOR'S COMPLETE BIO

RYAN VERRIER

COACH SOUZA: "Ryan is a mobile defenseman and had a great season in the USHL leading his team in points by a defenseman. He will add to our athleticism on our blue line."

BEFORE UNH:

Played the 2017-2018 season for the Green Bay Gamblers (USHL) as he posted four goals and 14 assists for 18 points
His 18 points led all defensemen on the team
Played one year of varsity hockey at the Salisbury School (2016-2017) where he tallied seven goals and 19 assists for 26 points as he led all defensemen in scoring and won the team's Most Improved Player Award
Three-year member of the varsity team at Austin Prep (2013-2016) and was the team captain
Was named the team's MVP in 2015-2016 as he led the team with 27 points on 11 goals and 16 assists as he was a CCL All-Star in 2016
Boston Globe "Super Team" (All-Scholastic) and Boston Herald All-Scholastic in 2015-2016

VIEW VERRIER'S COMPLETE BIO

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Joseph Cipollone

Angus Crookshank

Filip Engarås

Eric Esposito

Drew Hickey

Will MacKinnon

Jackson Pierson

Ty Taylor

Ryan Verrier

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