Hi, My Name is ... appears weekly on NHL FanHouse. We will spotlight future NHL prospects currently making a name for themselves in college hockey. Where applicable, the players' draft rights will be listed. Check back every Tuesday at 8AM ET. Please post in the comments section if you have a nomination, or if you feel the author really blew it this week.One of the truly fascinating things about sports is the rate at which certain athletes develop their skills.
While at the University of North Dakota, star forwards like T.J. Oshie and Jonathan Toews exploded onto the college hockey scene.
While he wasn't nearly as hyped, Chris VandeVelde (NHL rights: Edmonton) is next up in the long line of star forwards in Grand Forks. The junior was expected to step up his game this year after posting 41 points in 81 games in his first two years (32 of those came last year). The Sioux lost Toews after the 2006-2007 season, and Oshie departed after last season. With a ton of freshmen and sophomores all over the ice, the Fighting Sioux need their upperclassmen to score.
While he got off to a bit of a rough start, VandeVelde showed this past weekend that he may be on the verge of turning a corner.
During a weekend non-conference sweep over Bemidji (Minn.) State, VandeVelde chipped in three goals. Two of those came during Saturday's come-from-behind 4-3 overtime win in Grand Forks. He added an assist in Friday's win for a four-point weekend. VandeVelde is up to 16 points (seven goals) in 22 games. That might not sound like much, but with North Dakota's penchant for second-half surges, there's no doubt VandeVelde is going to be a key player for the Sioux in the coming weeks.
Hockey's Future discusses VandeVelde's potential:
Vande Velde is strong skater who finds open ice, is very active in both ends of the rink, and is able to put the puck on net. Good at both ends of the ice, the power forward has continued a steep curve of development and looks to round out his offensive game in college. Has hands to set up or finish plays and he's a guy who can stand in and battle in front of the net ... Long term Vande Velde projects to be a second or third line power forward.Look out for VandeVelde and UND in the second half of the season. They've made four straight Frozen Fours, and the formula has been the same every year. Catch fire after Christmas, and ride the wave through the NCAA regionals.
Other players to watch
Notre Dame is the top-ranked team in the major polls, and they ran their unbeaten streak to 16 by winning the inaugural Shillelagh Tournament near Chicago. Senior Garrett Regan (undrafted) scored twice as the Fighting Irish beat Minnesota-Duluth 3-1 in the tournament championship. Ironically, Regan's father, Pat, was a defenseman at UMD in the late 1970s. Senior goaltender Jordan Pearce (undrafted) allowed just two goals during the two games.
With forward Colin Wilson (Nashville) and defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk (Colorado) at the World Juniors, Boston University still took the championship of the Denver Cup. BU beat RPI 6-2 Friday and host Denver 4-1 Saturday. Freshman defenseman David Warsofsky (St. Louis) had four assists on the weekend, while senior forward Brandon Yip (Colorado) and sophomore forward Nick Bonino (San Jose) had a three-point weekend.
Senior forward Greg Collins (undrafted) scored two third-period goals Sunday, as New Hampshire rallied from a two-goal hole to beat Maine 5-4.
There's been a lot of talk in college hockey about Princeton, and rightfully so. The Tigers are an impressive 13-3 so far, despite a 4-0 loss Sunday to Dartmouth. However, Cornell is also off to a great start in the ECAC. The Big Red improved to 9-1-3 by beating Massachusetts 5-2 on Sunday. Junior Colin Greening (Ottawa) had two assists in the game, and now leads the team with 12 points in 13 games.
