By Warren Kozireski —
Cornell incoming freshmen forward Ryan Walsh of Macedon was selected by the Boston Bruins in the sixth round of the NHL Entry Draft in Nashville while three other New York college-bound players were also chosen including fellow Big Red teammates in forward Jonathan Castagna and defenseman Hoyt Stanley and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) rising freshman Sutter Muzzatti.
Walsh, a 6’1’ centerman who played some of his developmental hockey with the Rochester Coalition, Rochester Selects and Buffalo Regals organizations, had an impressive 2022-23 campaign with Cedar Rapids of the United States Hockey League (USHL), where he led the RoughRiders in all scoring categories: goals (30), assists (49), points (79) and was named to the USHL’s First All-Star Team.
His 49 helpers were tied for the most in the USHL, while his 79 points—which broke the previous franchise record which stood for 16 seasons—was the second-most in the league.
Castagna was taken by Arizona in the third round with the 70th overall pick. Over the last two seasons at St. Andrew’s College in his native Ontario, Castagna registered 92 points (39 goals, 53 assists) in 85 career games.
Stanley, a right-shot defenseman, was the 108th overall selection by Ottawa in the fourth round. The 6-foot-3 blueliner spent the previous two seasons with Victoria in the BCHL, where he had 38 points (four goals, 34 assists) in 53 games last year and being named to the BCHL Top Prospects Game while earning a spot on the league’s All-Rookie Team.
Muzzatti was drafted in the fifth round as a 20-year-old, 143rd overall by the Nashville Predators. He led the Engineers in assists and was third in points as a freshman playing in 35 games with seven goals and 15 assists for 22 points.
