Men's Hockey Signs Six Elite Recruits
November 16, 2006 | Men's Hockey
Head coach Mike Eaves announced the signing of six student-athletes to national letters of intent during the early signing period. Included in the class are goaltender Scott Gudmandson (Sherwood Park, Alberta), defensemen Cody Goloubef (Oakville, Ontario), Ryan McDonagh (Arden Hills, Minn.) and Brendan Smith (Toronto, Ontario), and forwards Joshua 'Podge' Turnbull (Duluth, Minn.) and Kyle Turris (New Westminster, British Columbia). All will join the Badgers in the Fall of 2007.
'If you were to take this group as a whole and talk about where they might fit in as a recruiting class, from a coaching standpoint, we couldn't be more excited, ' said Eaves. 'We think we have a range of people who are very talented, we think we have a range of people who are very passionate and we think we have a group of people who are good people who will grow into the type of players we will be very proud to have here.'
Gudmandson, a 5-10 and 175-pound goaltender, currently plays for the Omaha Lancers of the United States Hockey League (USHL). Through seven games this season, he sports a 2-5 record with a 3.95 goals-against average and .840 save percentage. He spent the two seasons prior with the Drayton Valley Thunder of the Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL), posting a 31-14-5 record with a 2.48 goals-against average, .901 save percentage and three shutouts in 60 games in 2005-06. In 2004-05, Gudmandson was the AJHL rookie of the year with an 18-8-5 record, a 2.10 goals-against average and .925 save percentage.
'Scott was one of the premier goaltenders in the Alberta junior league and is now in the USHL where he is playing at a higher pace and level,' said Eaves. 'He is a very dedicated athlete. His whole focus is becoming the best goaltender he can. He has a tremedous work habit and is a good athlete and I think he will be a good match to Coach Howard.'
Goloubef, a 6-1 and 195-pound defenseman, will come to the Badgers from the Oakville Blades of the Ontario Provincial Junior Hockey League (OPJHL). Through nine games this season, Goloubef has five goals and five assists for 10 points to go along with 46 penalty minutes. Despite playing in less than half his team's games, he leads the team with five power-play tallies, while also chipping in a game-winning score. Goloubef spent the 2005-06 campaign with the Milton Ice Hawks, collecting nine goals and 38 points in 42 games and helping the team to the best record in the OHL during the regular season. He also skated in 2004-05 with the Toronto Marlies Minor Midget AAA team along with fellow defenseman recruit Brendan Smith. Goloubef has international experience after skating for Team Ontario at the 2006 Under-17 World Hockey Challenge last December and January in Regina, Saskatchewan.
'Cody is very solid,' Eaves said. 'He sees the ice well and understands the game in terms of the reads that he gives you and is able to play with and without the puck very well.'
McDonagh, a 6-1 and 195-pound defenseman, will join the Badgers from Cretin-Derham Hall High School in St. Paul, Minn. The left-handed shot helped Cretin-Derham Hall to the 2006 Minnesota State High School Championship and earned all-tournament team honors along the way. A 2006 first-team all-state selection, he was also named first-team all-metro and first-team all-conference. A member of the silver medal winning U.S. Under-18 Select Team at the 2006 Under-18 Junior World Cup this past summer in Slovakia and the Czech Republic, he collected 14 goals and 45 points during the 31 games in his high school team's state title run last year. In 2004-05, McDonagh collected 12 goals and 30 points in 28 games on the blue line for Cretin-Derham Hall. He was also a member of the 2005 United States Under-17 Select Team that took first place at the 2005 Five Nations Cup in Huttwil, Switzerland held in August of 2005.
'Ryan is a premier hockey player in the State of Minnesota,' said Eaves. 'He is a very good athlete, a multi-sport athlete, but his passion is with hockey. He sees the ice very well, he's got a good, solid shot and is very strong in his positional play.'
Smith, a 6-2 and 174-pound defenseman, currently skates for St. Michael's Buzzers of the OPJHL. Through 18 games with the Buzzers this season, Smith has a goal and nine points. A member of Canada East at the 2006 World Junior A Challenge recently completed in Yorkton, Saskatchewan, Smith tallied two assists in four games for his silver medal-winning team. In 2005-06 with St. Michael's, Smith posted five goals and 26 points from the blue line. Smith, who skated with fellow Badger classmate Cody Goloubef in 2004-05 with the Toronto Marlies Minor Midget AAA team, also played on Team Ontario with Goloubef at the 2006 Under-17 World Hockey Championship last winter. Smith was invited to Canada's under-18 team tryouts this past summer, but was unable to attend due to injury.
'Brendan is an offensive defenseman,' said Eaves. 'He has offensive instincts to join the rush and once he has the puck on his stick, he can make things happen ' he can make something out of nothing. He'll help us get a second wave of offense from our defense.'
Turnbull, a 5-11 and 175-pound forward, will enter Wisconsin from the Waterloo Black Hawks of the USHL. Turnbull, the current USHL Offensive Player of the Week, leads his team and shares seventh in the league with nine goals and 15 points in 11 games played. He also leads the league with a plus-11. A former skater for Duluth East High School in Duluth, Minn., the same high school as former Badger Nick Licari and current forward Ross Carlson, he tallied 22 goals and 50 points in 27 games during 2005-06 for East. He also posted 26 goals and 48 points in 29 games for East in 2004-05 as the team placed third in the Minnesota State High School Class AA Tournament.
'Podge has real good instincts for the game,' Eaves said. 'The puck seems to find him. He's got a special shot that will find the holes and find its way into the net. He understands the game so he can anticipate where the puck is going and be there before it gets there. Once he gets it, he has the ability to make something out of nothing.
Turris, a 5-11 and 165-pound forward, skates for the Burnaby Express of the British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL). Recently named MVP of the inaugural World Junior A Challenge, he lead the tournament in scoring with five goals and 11 points in four games. He scored the first four goals in Canada West's 6-2 victory over Russia, before helping the team to the gold medal. Through 16 games with his Burnaby team this season, Turris has 21 goals and 36 points to lead the team. Last season, Turris posted 36 goals and 72 points in 57 games in helping Burnaby win the BCHL, and the 2006 Canadian Junior A Championship, the RBC Royal Bank Cup, where he led all scorers with seven goals and 13 points in six games. He was also the only college-bound member of Canada's gold medal winning team at the 2006 Under-18 Junior World Cup this past summer, and skated for Canada's Team Pacific at the 2006 Under-17 World Championship last winter.
'Kyle is a young man who I think is a special player in that his natural abilities and passion for the game come together,' said Eaves. 'He sees the ice very well and has the skill to take those reads and make something happen. He 'll bring a lot of offensive excitement to this team and to the people who watch this team.'
