Head Coach Wayne Wilson is proud to announce the RIT men’s hockey Class of 2018 on Tuesday, June 24. Seven first-year student-athletes and one transfer will join the squad, which includes four forwards and four defensemen. Six players hail from Canada, while two are from the United States.
“This is a real exciting group of newcomers, whose impact will be felt once they adjust to the collegiate lifestyle and game” said Wilson, now entering his 16th season at RIT in 2014-15. “All eight players are capable of stepping up right away and I am confident all will make a big impact.”
Forwards Mark Golberg (Ottawa, Ontario/Cumberland Grads) Max Mikowski (Cheektowaga, NY/Buffalo Jr. Sabres), Myles Powell (Courtenay, British Columbia/Cowichan Valley Capitals), and Anthony Repaci (Toronto, Ontario/Toronto Jr. Canadiens), and will look to help bolster an offensive unit that was in the middle of the pack nationally last season.
Golberg, a 5-foor-10 center, led the Cumberland Grads of the Central Canadian Hockey League in scoring during the 2013-14 season with 64 points on 32 goals and 32 assists. He scored 12 power-play goals and added three game-winning tallies. In three full seasons with Cumberland, Golberg scored 60 goals and added 73 assists for 133 points in 163 games. Former Tiger standout and Hobey Baker Award Finalist Simon Lambert, along with defenseman Brent Patry also played for Cumberland during the 2003-04 season.
Mikowski, a bruising 6-foot-3 forward, enjoyed a strong season for the Buffalo Jr. Sabres of the Ontario Junior Hockey League in 2013-14, recording 59 points on 23 goals and 36 assists, while racking up 77 minutes in penalties. In three seasons with Buffalo, Mikowski recorded 113 points on 45 goals and 68 assists to go along with 178 penalty minutes and 10 game-winning goals. He is the fourth Tiger on the 2014-15 roster to hail from Western New York.
Powell, who stands 5-foot-10, led Cowichan Valley of the British Columbia Hockey League in scoring last season, compiling 59 points on 21 goals and 38 assists. He tallied five power-play goals and two game-winners. Powell also played for the Victoria Grizzles and Alberni Valley Bulldogs, racking up 107 points on 44 goals and 63 assists in 148 career games.
Repaci comes to RIT from the Toronto Jr. Canadiens of the Ontario Junior Hockey League. The 6-foot forward led the team and was among the league leaders last season with 35 goals and 32 assists for 67 points. Repaci led the OJHL with eight game-winning goals and four shorthanded tallies. In two seasons with Toronto, Repaci recorded 126 points on 60 goals and 66 assists in 107 games.
“Mark (Golberg) can play in any situation, is a strong, two-way player, with good offensive skill,” said Wilson, who is just 18 wins shy of 300 entering the 2014-15 season. “Max (Mikowski) is a big, strong, physical, power forward who is always around the crease and net area and has a blue-collar style of play. Both Anthony (Repaci) and Myles (Powell) are very skilled, strong with the puck, strong skaters, and excellent playmakers, both of which can come in and contribute right away.
On defense, Matt Abt (Leduc, Alberta/Whitecourt Wolverines) and twin brothers Brady and Chase Norrish (Strong Field, Saskatchewan/Yorktown Terriers) will join a young, but experienced unit and look to contribute right away. In addition, Greg Among (O’Fallon, MO/Cedar Rapids Roughriders) will join the team as a transfer from 2014 NCAA Tournament participant UMass Lowell. Per NCAA rules, Among will have to sit out the 2014-15 season, but will be eligible in 2015-16 for his junior season.
Abt, who stands 6-foot-3, played the last four seasons in the Alberta Junior Hockey league, first for the St. Albert Steel and most recently with the Whitecourt Wolverines. Abt enjoyed a breakout season in 2013-14, recording 42 points on 10 goals and 32 assists in 51 games, while racking up 155 penalty minutes en route to earning Whitecourt MVP honors. In 194 AJHL games, Abt recorded 502 penalty minutes. A three-year assistant captain, Abt was St. Albert’s Rookie of the Year in 2010-11 and Whitecourt’s top defensive defenseman from 2012-14.
The Norrish twins capped off a tremendous junior career, helping lead the Yorkton Terriers of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League to the 2013-14 Canalta Cup, Western Canada Cup, and Canadian Royal Bank Cup Championship as the top Junior “A” team in all of Canada. The last RIT player to have won a Royal Bank Cup title was Andrew Favot with the Aurora Tigers in 2007.
Chase Norrish was named the 2013-14 SJHL Defenseman of the Year, leading all blue-liners in scoring with 45 points on nine goals and 36 assists. In the postseason, he added seven goals and eight assists for 15 points in 16 contests. Standing 5-foot-10, the two-time SJHL Defenseman of the Month recorded 22 goals and 62 assists for 84 points to go along with 164 penalty minutes in 169 career games with Yorkton.
Brady Norrish, Yorkton’s Defenseman of the Year in 2012-13, enjoyed a strong 2013-14 season as well, recording nine goals and 21 assists for 30 points in 54 games, while adding seven points in the postseason. In 165 career games with Yorkton, the 5-foot-10 Norrish tallied 79 career points on 22 goals and 57 assists to go along with 118 penalty minutes.
Among comes to RIT after playing the last two seasons at UMass Lowell, recording a goal and 10 assists in 40 games. The 6-foot-2 defenseman helped lead UMass Lowell to consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, including a berth in the 2013 Frozen Four. Previously, Among played two seasons for the Cedar Rapids RoughRiders of the United States Hockey League, scoring 10 goals and 38 points in 99 career games. Among served as assistant captain of Cedar Rapids in 2011-12 and helped lead the RoughRiders to the Anderson Cup in 2010-11.
“It is the first time I will have the opportunity to coach twins at RIT,” said Wilson. Both Brady and Chase (Norrish) led Yorkton to the Royal Bank Cup and come to RIT with great skill, grit, and toughness. Matt (Abt) is a big, tough, strong player, who can really skate well. He was one of the top defensemen in Alberta. We are happy to welcome Greg (Among) to our program and look forward to him in a Tiger uniform in 2015-16.”
The Tigers enter their tenth season at the NCAA Division I level. Last season, RIT finished with a 12-20-5 record and advanced to the Atlantic Hockey Association First Round. RIT is embarking into a new era, beginning its first season at the Gene Polisseni Center, located on the south end of campus. The building will have 4,000 seats, with additional standing room only space for a total capacity of 4,300 fans. The 2014-15 season begins on Oct. 4 with an exhibition contest against Brock University.
