KALAMAZOO -- The Western Michigan hockey team and head coach Andy Murray are excited to announce the signing of seven student-athletes for the upcoming 2016-17 season.
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Wade Allison (Myrtle, Manitoba/Tri-City Storm, USHL), Luke Bafia (Parrish, Fla./Green Bay Gamblers, USHL), Ben Blacker (Oakville, Ontario/Cedar Rapids RoughRiders, USHL), Lawton Courtnall (Westlake Village, Calif./Sioux Falls Stampede, USHL), Dawson DiPietro (Medina, Ohio/Janesville Jets, NAHL), Cam Lee (Ferguson's Cove, Nova Scotia/Green Bay Gamblers, USHL) and Hugh McGing (Park Ridge, Ill./Cedar Rapids Rough Riders, USHL) all signed National Letters of Intent. Richard Zehnal (Pardubice, Czech Republic) also joins the team as a sophomore after playing with the Western Michigan Stallions club hockey team last season. The class breaks down into five forwards, two defenseman and one goalie, while six of the seven NLI signees played in the USHL.
"Our goal with this incoming group was to enhance our speed, skill and competitiveness," said Murray.
Wade Allison | F | 6'2, 205 lbs | Right Shot | Myrtle, Manitoba/Tri-City Storm, USHL
Allison comes to Western Michigan with a scoring pedigree. This season, his first full season in the USHL, he tallied 25 goals in 56 regular season games to go along with 22 assists and 47 total points. The 25 goal ranked him 14th in the USHL in regular season goal scoring and he currently has eight points in the USHL Playoffs, helping Tri-City advance to the Clark Cup Finals. Allison was also the Team West MVP of the USHL Top Prospects game. As a result of his performance, particularly the second-half of the season, his NHL draft stock has soared. Allison jumped to No. 62 in the North American Skaters ranking by the NHL Central Scouting Bureau in the final rankings before the draft. He was 192 in the mid-season rankings.
Head Coach Andy Murray on Wade Allison
"He's a true power forward. He possesses great skating ability and a NHL shot. He's from Manitoba and played bantam and midget with Colt Conrad, then spent a year of development with a great minor midget program in Omaha under coach Wilkie.
Luke Bafia | D | 6'2, 201 lbs | Right Shot | Parrish, Fla./Green Bay Gamblers, USHL
Bafia is coming to WMU off his second season in the USHL with the Green Bay Gamblers where he served as an assistant captain.In 113 total regular season games he tallied two goals and 21 assists for 23 points. Known to be a good first pass puck mover this stay at home defenseman finished the season with a +12 plus/minus rating this season and racked up 118 penalty minutes.
Head Coach Andy Murray on Luke Bafia
"Luke is a strong-skating puck-moving defenseman. He excels at being a great match-up defenseman with a great defensive stick.This past season he faced the opposing team's top forwards. He is physically strong and plays with an edge."
Ben Blacker | G | 5'10, 170 lbs | Oakville, Ontario/Cedar Rapids RoughRiders, USHL
Blacker has been a workhorse in net for the RoughRiders for the past few seasons, playing in 86 regular season games. This season he led the USHL in wins with 33, also finishing with a 2.25 goals against average and a .926 save percentage. Blacker helped lead the RoughRiders into the USHL playoffs and was recently named Second Team All-USHL. He leaves the USHL with a record of 59-26-5.
Head Coach Andy Murray on Ben Blacker
"Ben is a fierce competitor and put up great numbers in Cedar Rapids. He's very quick, handles the puck well and has great durability, playing in about 90-percent of Cedar Rapids' games this season."
Lawton Courtnall | F | 6'0, 185 lbs | Left Shot | Westlake Village, Calif./Sioux Falls Stampede, USHL
Courtnall has hockey in the blood, being the son of former NHL great Russ Courtnall. He comes to Western Michigan after two full season in the USHL. During the 2014-15 season he helped the Sioux Falls Stampede win the Clark Cup, tallying a goal and three assists during the playoffs. He is coming off his most productive season offensively after totaling 31 points on 15 goals and 16 assists in 58 regular-season games. He led the Stampede in shots on goal
Head Coach Andy Murray on Lawton Courtnall
"Lawton is highly competitive and possesses great speed, which puts a great deal of pressure on opposing defenseman. He's going to remind a lot of people of Trevor Elias a fan favorite at Lawson Arena"
Dawson DiPietro | F | 5'11, 175 lbs | Left Shot | Medina, Ohio/Janesville Jets, NAHL
DiPietro is coming to WMU off his best season in the NAHL. He began the year with the Austin Bruins but was traded half-way through the season to the Janesville Jets. Combined he played in 59 regular season games and put up a career-best 52 points on 18 goals and 34 assists. In 108 career NAHL games he totaled 76 points on 29 goals and 47 assists. A lot of his points were generated because he goes to the net hard.
Head Coach Andy Murray on Dawson DiPietro
"Dawson is another player with great speed. He's a real puck hound that refuses to give up on the puck and will create energy for our team because of his determination."
Cam Lee | D | 6'0, 190 lbs | Left Shot | Ferguson's Cove, Nova Scotia/Green Bay Gamblers, USHL
Lee finished this regular season as totaling the fourth-most points in the USHL by a defenseman with 39 on six goals and 33 assists. Lee did a lot of scoring during five-on-five hockey as only 11 of his points came on the power play. For his career-best season he was recently named Third Team All-USHL. Lee totaled 113 career games in the USHL, putting up 12 goals and 42 assists for 54 points.
Head Coach Andy Murray on Cam Lee
"Cam brings great mobility and offensive support to our blue line. He made huge strides in his game this past season and logged a lot of minutes in all situations. You can tell he comes from a hockey family with his father being a successful Canadian college coach. Cam is a feisty competitor.
Hugh McGing | F | 5'8, 170 lbs | Left Shot | Park Ridge, Ill./Cedar Rapids Rough Riders, USHL
WMU will, for the second-straight year, be adding a "true freshman" to the roster as McGing turns 18 in July. But as a 17-year-old he put up 51 points on 23 goals and 28 assists for the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders in just his second season in the USHL. He was second on his team in scoring and ranked 16th in points in the league during the regular season.
Head Coach Andy Murray on Hugh McGing
"Hugh has great puck skills and possesses the ability to play with tempo. Every time we saw him he was usually the best player on the ice. He plays the game hard."
Richard Zehnal | F | 6'2, 205 lbs | Left Shot | Pardubice, Czech Republic
Zehnal joins the team after playing a year with the Western Michigan Mustangs club hockey team in order to meet academic requirements after coming from Europe. Zehnal played in the NAHL with the Coulee Region Chill, tallying 95 points on 31 goals and 64 assists in 98 games. He has also played 156 games in the USHL for the Sioux City Musketeers and the Youngstown Phantoms, posting 45 points on 19 goals and 26 assists.
Head Coach Andy Murray on Ricahrd Zehnal
"Richard is a play-maker that possesses good offensive instincts, is strong on face offs and protects the puck well using his size to advantage."
