Monty Lands Three Canadian Forward Recruits

Three Canadian born forward recruits made verbal commitments to the University of Denver this week.  Jarid Lukosevicius, Liam Finlay & Logan O'Connor will attend DU in upcoming seasons.

Jarid Lukosevicius [5’11 165 lbs] is slotted to arrive at DU in 2015.  He started well in his first full BCHL campaign, scoring 5 goals and adding 10 assists in his first 14 games. Lukosevicius was named to the Canada West selection camp roster for the upcoming 2013 World Junior A Challenge.

For Lukosevicius, selecting a school and committing to a higher level of hockey was a new experience. “I didn’t know much about American colleges before the season, but I knew that Denver was an excellent school. When they made me an offer, I knew I had to accept it” 

“Denver is a very reputable program” says Kings Head Coach and GM Kent Lewis. “They’ve got a very good staff, it’s a great place to live, and they’ve certainly recruited some great BCHL players over the years. They’ve done a great job in recruiting and we are happy for Jarid and his family that he has made the decision to go to Denver.”

Lewis believes Lukosevicius’ start to the season was just one contributing factor to Denver pursuing the 18 year-old winger. “Schools have been tracking him since last season when he was one of the top players on the North West Giants who won the BC Major Midget League” says Lewis. “He’s a good player, and he’s going to get better. These type of players don’t come along very often. His shot is hard and accurate, he sees the ice very well and he’s got a really high compete level.”

Coach David Michaud announced that Liam Finlay will attend DU, "Liam's development has progressed rapidly since joining the British Columbia Major Midget League last season as a 15 year old. To have one of our players commit to an elite NCAA Division 1 hockey program early in his second year of midget hockey is a very rare occurrence and speaks to Liam's dedication and perseverance.”

To date with the Okanagan Rockets, Finlay has posted 16 goals and 52 assists in just 48 regular season games played.  This season, he has 6 goals and 12 assists for 18 points in just 7 BCMML games. Finlay recently committed to play the 2014-15 season with the Penticton Vees of the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL). As a reserve player for Penticton this season, Finlay has one assist in three games played.

Finlay is very excited about his decision to commit to the Pioneers. "In researching NCAA hockey programs with my family, we felt that the University of Denver (DU) was a model program. DU has an excellent reputation both academically and scholastically. I am very interested in their business program and, of course, the long track record of Denver Pioneer hockey success was very appealing.”

Logan O'Connor moved down to the USA this winter to play hockey for the Sioux Falls Stampede in the USHL.  Last seasonhe 5-foot-11, 165-pound winger recorded 23 points (7g, 16a) in 34 games for the Calgary Royals Midget AAA team. He helped lead the Royals into the playoffs where he posted four points (1g, 3a) in five games.

2014 Recruiting Class Updated Stats 
F Landon Smith (Salmon Arm, BCHL) - 13 games, 8 goals, 11 assists
F Tyler Pham (Indiana, USHL) - 6 games, 0 goals, 1 assist
F Jared Fiegl (U.S. Under-18) 8 games, 0 goals, 1 assist
F Garrett Gamez (Tri-Cities, USHL) 5 games, 0 goals, 0 assists
F Cody DePourcq (Penticton, BCHL) - 12 games, 4 goals, 6 assists
D Tariq Hammond (Okotoks, AJHL) - 12 games, 2 goals, 8 assists

2015 Recruiting Class Updated Stats
F Dylan Gambrell (Dubuque, USHL) 4 games, 1 goal, 2 assists
F Kevin Conley (Team Wisconsin Under-16, AAA)
F Jarid Lukosevicius
F Logan O'Connor

2016 Recruiting Class Updated Stats
F Troy Terry (Thunderbirds, AAA)
F Liam Finlay