RIT men’s hockey announces Class of 2023; seven new players to don the RIT sweater
ROCHESTER, NY – Head Coach Wayne Wilson is proud to announce the RIT men’s hockey Class of 2023. Seven first-year student-athletes—which include five forwards, one defenseman and one goaltender—will join the current squad.
“We are really excited about this group of newcomers,” said Wilson, who enters his 21st season behind the bench in 2019-20 and recently signed an extension that will keep him at the university until 2024-25. “We brought in guys with great speed, who are exceptional skaters, compete well and have tremendous hockey sense.”
Forwards Elijah Gonsalves (Scarborough, Ontario/Wellington Dukes), Thomas Maia (Brampton, Ontario/Oakville Blades), Caleb Moretz (Fairbanks, AK/Flin Flon Bombers), Andrew Rinaldi (Pierrefonds, Quebec/Wellington Dukes) and Colton Trumbla (Winnipeg, Manitoba/St. Michael’s Buzzers) add speed and skill to a strong group of returners. All five newcomers will look to make immediate contributions.
Gonsalves played the last two seasons in the Ontario Junior Hockey (OJHL), first with the Aurora Tigers in 2017-18 and Wellington Dukes, alongside fellow incoming newcomer Andrew Rinaldi in 2018-19. Gonsalves finished third on Wellington in scoring during the 2018-19 season with 53 points on 20 goals and 33 assists and was sixth among all OJHL players with 130 penalty minutes. The 5-foot-9 forward added six power-play goals, three shorthanded goals and a shorthanded tally.
“Elijah has great speed and hockey sense,” said RIT associate coach Brian Hills. “He is a feisty player who has a great competitive edge to him and is a very unselfish player.”
Maia played the last two seasons for the Oakville Blades of the Ontario Junior Hockey League under former RIT men’s hockey standout Mike Tarantino ’04. Maia helped lead Oakville to the 2019 Buckland Cup as OJHL Champions in addition to the Dudley-Hewitt Cup and semifinals of the national championship tournament, formerly the Royal Bank of Canada Cup. Maia, a 5-foot-9 forward, finished second on Oakville in scoring with 58 points on 20 goals and 38 assists in 53 regular season games in 2018-19 and tallied seven game-winning goals. He added 17 points in 19 OJHL postseason games.
“Thomas is an extremely smart, cerebral player,” said RIT assistant coach Dave Insalaco. “He makes plays all over the ice and has really good offensive skill, especially on the power-play.”
Moretz, who was invited to attend Buffalo Sabres Prospect Development Camp last month, played the last two seasons with the Flin Flon Bombers of the Saskatchewan Hockey League (SJHL). Moretz, who stands 5-foot-10, served as an assistant captain and won Flin Flon’s Most Dedicated Player award in 2018-19, while tallying 51 points on 21 goals and 30 assists. He added 41 points in 57 games during the 2017-18 season.
“Caleb is a tremendous playmaker who plays a 200-foot game,” said Hills. “He is not afraid to go to the net and finishes his checks well.”
Rinaldi served as assistant captain with Wellington in 2018-19, playing alongside Elijah Gonsalves. A 6-foot playmaking forward, Rinaldi led the Dukes in scoring and was eighth overall in the OJHL with 63 points on 29 goals and 34 assists in 2018-19, while adding 106 penalty minutes. Rinaldi, a 2018-19 OJHL First Team All-Star, led all OJHL players with 12 goals and 27 assists during the 2019 postseason as Wellington advanced to the OJHL Championship finals. He helped lead Wellington to the 2018 Buckland Cup as OJHL Champions, Dudley Cup Championship and finals of Canada’s Royal Bank Cup.
“Andrew has top end speed and drives the net hard,” said Hills. “He is a gifted scorer who is not afraid to get to the dirty areas.”
Trumbla, a 6-foot-1 power forward, was a standout with the St. Michaels Buzzers of the Ontario Junior Hockey League last season, leading all OJHL players with 34 goals in just 34 games. He scored seven power-play goals and added four game-winning tallies in addition to three hat-tricks. Trumbla, who was named the Kewl South-East Conference Player of the Month for February, 2019 also added 13 points (6-7-13) in 11 postseason games. He tallied 83 goals and 71 assists for 154 points in 190 career OJHL contests over five seasons.
“Colton is a great skater who has a tremendous shot and can score from anywhere,” said Insalaco. “He led the OJHL in goal-scoring despite missing time due to injury.”
Highly touted defenseman Ryan Nicholson (Mississauga, Ontario/Oakville Blades) will look to crack a deep RIT blueline in which all eight rearguards from last season’s team return. Nicholson, who played in Oakville with fellow newcomer Thomas Maia, helped the Blades set OJHL regular season records with 44 wins and 94 points last season. Nicholson, who stands 6-foot-2, was second among Oakville defensemen in scoring with 34 points on eight goals and 26 assists in 52 regular season games in 2018-19. He tallied five power-play goals and three game-winning markers, while scoring eight points in 19 OJHL postseason games for the Blades.
“Ryan is an exceptional skater who sees the ice really well and has a great shot,” said Hills. “He likes to join the rush offensively and defends well with his feet and stick.”
Goaltender Kolby Matthews (Coquitlam, British Columbia/Coquitlam Express) will compete for the starting nod in 2019-20. Matthews, who stands 6-feet tall, recorded 14 wins with the Coquitlam Express of the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) in 2018-19 with a 3.01 goals against average and a .900 save percentage. He also played a season with the Calgary Canucks of the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL) and Battlefords North Stars of the Saskatchewan Hockey League (SJHL) in 2017-18.
“Kolby is quick, very athletic and tracks the puck really well,” said Insalaco. “He has the potential to be a top goaltender based on his size, athletic ability and quickness.”
The Tigers begin the 2019-20 season on Oct. 5 on the road at Colgate University. RIT will play in the prestigious Ice Breaker Tournament versus Bowling Green State University and either Ohio State University or Western Michigan University in Toledo, Ohio on Oct. 11-12 and host Merrimack University on Oct. 19 at Blue Cross Arena in downtown Rochester as part of the university’s Brick City Homecoming & Family Weekend.
Ticket information for the 2019-20 season is available at www.rittickets.com.
