Four United State Hockey League standouts -- forwards Jared Boll (Lincoln Stars) and Matt Greer (Des Moines Buccaneers) and defensemen Jim Jensen (Waterloo Black Hawks) and Josh Meyers (Sioux City Musketeers) -- have all signed national letters of intent to attend and play hockey for the University of Minnesota Duluth in 2005-06.

The addition of that quartet boosts the Bulldog recruiting class to 11 -- the largest in the 62-year history of the UMD hockey program.

Boll, Greer, Jensen and Meyers join forwards Andrew Carroll (Sioux Falls Stampede/USHL), Michael Gergen, (Shattuck-St. Mary's School), Nick Kemp (Sioux City/USHL), Mason Raymond (Camrose Kodiaks of the Alberta Junior Hockey League) and MacGregor Sharp (Camrose/AJHL), and defensemen Jason Garrison (Nanaimo Clippers of the British Columbia Hockey League) and Matt Niskanen (Virgina High School) as the 2005-06 Bulldog recruits.

\"I think we have a nice blend of guys coming in -- proven goal scorers, offensive and defensive-minded defensemen, and physical, gritty-type players,\" said Scott Sandelin, the 2004 Spencer Penrose Award recipient (NCAA I Coach of the Year) who will begin his sixth year behind the Bulldog bench this October. \"They'll add some size to our lineup as well. Obviously, with a dozen players gone from last year's team, this group of recruits will have the opportunity to get plenty of ice time right from the start and I believe they have the talent to answer that challenge.\"



The complete list of the 2005-06 UMD recruiting class is as follows:

Player Pos Hgt Wgt Birthdate Hometown Previous Team (League)

Jared Boll F 6-2 180 5/13/86 Crystal Lake, IL Lincoln Stars/USHL

Andrew Carroll F 6-0 190 5/7/85 Shoreview, MN Sioux Falls Stampede/USHL

Jason Garrison D 6-2 205 11/13/84 White Rock, BC Nanaimo Clippers/BCHL

Michael Gergen F 6-2 195 2/17/87 Hastings, MN Shattuck-St. Mary's School (MN)

Matt Greer F 6-2 190 11/21/85 Vadnais Heights, MN Des Moines Buccaneers/USHL

Jim Jensen D 6-0 190 7/1/84 Maplewood, MN Waterloo Black Hawks/USHL

Nick Kemp F 6-1 185 1/5/86 Hermantown, MN Sioux City Musketeers/USHL

Josh Meyers D 6-3 180 12/7/85 Alexandria, MN Sioux City Musketeers/USHL

Matt Niskanen D 6-1 185 12/6/86 Mountain Iron, MN Virginia-Mountain Iron-Buhl HS

Mason Raymond F 6-0 185 9/17/85 Cochrane, ALTA Camrose Kodiaks/AJHL

MacGregor Sharp F 6-1 180 10/1/85 Red Deer, ALTA Camrose Kodiaks/AJHL

Jared Boll (6-2, 180, Forward) -- Comes to UMD fresh off a two-year United States Hockey League stint with the Lincoln Stars ... showed a dramatic improvement in his offensive production this past winter, amassing 23 goals and 24 assists in 59 regular season affairs after turning in a 14-point rookie harvest ... ranked first in penalty minutes among USHL combatants (294) during the 2004-05 regular season after topping that circuit in that same category one year earlier ... joined fellow UMD recruits Andrew Carroll and Nick Kemp on Team USHL at the USHL Prospects/All-Star Game this past February in Grand Forks, N.D. ... will give UMD two Illinois natives on its 2005-006 roster (senior center Tim Stapleton hails from LaGrange)

Andrew Carroll (6-0, 190, Forward) -- Holds the distinction of being the first Sioux Falls Stampede player to commit to UMD in that United States Hockey League franchise's six-year history ...placed 14th on the final 2004-05 USHL regular season scoring charts by collecting a USHL-high 32 goals and 22 assists for 54 points -- tops among all Stampede skaters -- in 60 contests ... also had a team-leading three shorthanded goals to his 2004-05 credit ... played in the 2005 USHL Prospects/All-Star Game ... served as the Stampede team captain in 2004-05 .. put up a respectable 31 points (13 goals and 18 assists) as a Sioux Falls newcomer ... is 2003 graduate of Roseville High School ... helped lead the Raiders to a pair of Minnesota State Class AA Tournament appearances (third place in 2002 and second place in 2003).

Jason Garrison (6-2, 205, Defenseman) -- Reigned as the Nanaimo Clippers' top-scoring defenseman this past season -- his second with that British Columbia Hockey League club ... skated a regular shift in 57 (of a possible 60) regular season games in 2004-05, picking up 22 goals and 40 assists along the way ... that 62-point output was bettered by only one other BCHL blueliner ... added 12 more points during a 15-game league playoff run ... was one of three Clippers to strut his stuff in the 2005 BCHL All-Star game ... finished his inaugural BCHL campaign with 27 points on seven goals and seven assists in 52 outings.

Michael Gergen (6-2, 205, Forward) -- Drew the curtain this spring on a productive three-year career at Shattuck-St. Mary's school ... rolled up 93 points -- the second highest total on the club -- on a team-leading 49 goals and 44 assists during the 2004-05 regular season (when Shattuck-St. Mary's posted a 53-7-2 record) ... played integral role in Shattuck-St. Mary's USA Hockey Under 18 national title conquest this past March ... led Team Minnesota in scoring two years ago at the USA Select 17 National Festival.

Matt Greer (6-2, 190, Forward) -- Stopped off for one year of United State Hockey League seasoning prior to enlisting with the Bulldogs ... placed fourth on the 2004-05 Des Moines regular season scoring charts with 14 goals and 18 assists for 32 points ... was one of just three Buccaneers to skate in all 60 regular season games last winter ... is a 2004 graduate of White Bear Lake High School ... was showered with a bevy of honors following his third, and final, year with the hockey Bears ... received Associated Press All-State (second team) and All-Suburban East Conference acclaim (for the second straight year) in addition to receiving the Hobey Baker High School Character Award ... his National Hockey League rights are held by the Columbus Blue Jackets (eighth round pick and 255th selection overall in the 2004 NHL draft).

Jim Jensen (6-0, 190, Defenseman) -- Will enter the UMD program as a sophomore, having skated for another NCAA Division I Bulldog contingent -- the Ferris State University variety -- in 2003-04 ... bided his time this past winter as a member of the United States Hockey League's Waterloo Black Hawks ... battled the injury bug, but still saw action in 49 regular season Waterloo games and had five goals (including three game-winners) and eight assists ... also picked up one goal in five playoff engagements ... suited up in exactly half of Ferris State's 38 games two years ago and came away with a pair of assists ... spent the previous two season (2001-02 and 2002-03) in Waterloo ... served as the Black Hawks' assistant team captain in 2002-03 and registered a personal-high 14 points (one goal and three assists) ... that was a three-point improvement over his rookie league output is a 2002 graduate of Waterloo High School ... was a three-sport letterwinner (hockey, football, baseball and track) while attending St. Paul's Hill Murray High School from 1999-2001.

Nick Kemp (6-1, 185, Forward)-- Made his hockey home in Sioux City, Iowa, during the 2004-05 season after graduating from Hermantown High School in may 2004 ... skated in 59 of 60 regular season games for the United States Hockey League's Sioux City Musketeers and had 38 points (15 goals and 23 assists) to show for it ... his 23 assists were the fourth highest total registered by a Musketeer ... was a +9 in those 59 outings ... helped lead Sioux City to a Clark Cup runnerup finish at Clark Cup finals (USHL playoff championships) ... was credited with six points in 13 postseason engagements ... took part in the 2005 USHL Prospects/All-Star Game ... capped off his playing days at Hermantown High School in 2003-04 by pacing all northeastern Minnesota preps in scoring with 39 goals and 33 assists for 72 points ... his uncle, John Hyduke, was UMD's starting goaltender for four years (1985-89) and served as a Bulldog volunteer goalie coach from 1996-2002 ... is looking to become just the third Hermantown native to ever don a Bulldog uniform.

Josh Meyers (6-3, 180, Defenseman) -- Patrolled the Sioux City Musketeer blueline in 2004-05 and concluded the regular season as the club's top-scoring defenseman ... had eight goals (five of which were scored on the power play) and 24 assist for 32 points in 57 engagements ... was a +16 in his lone United States Hockey League regular season ... topped all USHL rearguards in points during the 2005 playoffs, collecting one goal and nine assists in 13 outings as the Musketeers advanced to the Clark Cup finals ... was a teammate of fellow 2005-06 Bulldog recruit Nick Kemp in Sioux City ... spent the 2003-04 season displaying his wares with the Minnesota Blizzard of the North American Hockey League ... was named the most valuable player and the defensive player of the year on that club, which was stationed in his hometown of Alexandria, Minn... is a 2004 graduate of Alexandria's Jefferson High School ... is a distant cousin of Ryan Geris, who played defense at UMD for two-plus seasons before recurring post-concussive symptoms forced him to hang up his skates for good last November.

Matt Niskanen (6-1, 185, Defenseman) -- Established himself as one of the most prolific all-around athletes the Iron Range has produced in some time ... capped off an exception prep hockey career this past March by captaining Virginia-Mountain Iron Buhl High School to its first Minnesota State High School Tournament appearance ever .... was named to the Associated Press All-State first team after amassing 27 goals and 38 assists ... earned All-Iron Range Conference recognition as a sophomore, junior and senior and landed a spot on the Duluth News-Tribune All-Area team in both 2003-04 and 2004-05 ... served as team captain his last three years at MIB, including in 2003-04 when the Blue Devils captured their first Iron Range Conference title in 29 seasons ... is the first player to double as the Duluth News-Tribune's football and hockey player of the year in the same year (2004-05) ... had 61 points (24 goals and 37 assists) as a junior ... was the offensive ringleader (three-year starting quarterback) for a Mountain Iron Buhl High School football team which advance to the quarterfinal round of the 2004 Minnesota State Nine Man Playoffs ... named the 2004 Mesabi News High School Player of the Year ... was also a four-time all-conference performer for the baseball Rangers (pitcher and infielder).

Mason Raymond (6-0, 185, Forward) -- Resided alongside the Albert Junior Hockey League scoring heavyweights during his two-year stay with the Camrose Kodiaks ... received the AJHL Most Valuable Player Award for 2004-05 ... placed fifth on the 2004-05 AJHL regular season points charts , pumping in a league-high 41 goals and adding 41 assists in 55 outings and was a+55 to boot ... his 1.49 points per game average was the secon d highest figure registered by an AJHL skater ... collected another 20 points (eight goals and a league-best 12 assists) in 15 AJHL playoff affairs while helping lead the Kodiaks to the 2004 title ... placed first among his Camrose teammates in regular season scoring as an AJHL rookie in 2002-03, netting 62 points on 27 goals and 35 assists.

MacGregor Sharp (6-1, 180, Forward) -- Set up shop for three seasons in the Alberta Junior Hockey League, supplyin g the Camrose Kodiaks with an abundance of offensive firepower ... closed out the 2004-05 regular season by racking up 19 goals and 31 assists for 50 points in 57 engagements ... played a valuable role n the Kodiaks' conquest of the 2005 AJHL playoff championship, collecting seven points (three goals and four assists) in 15 outings ... skated for a pair of seasons each with fellow incoming Bulldog freshman Mason Raymond and UMD sophomore-to-be Matt McKnight (2002-04) in Camrose.

(All signings are contingent upon admission to UMD, and compliance with NCAA rules, including certification by the NCAA

Clearninghouse).

In addition, the Bulldogs' 2005-06 roster will contain one other newcomer, sophomore goaltender Nate Ziegelmann, who transferred to UMD last fall from the University of North Dakota. The Grand Forks, N.D. native appeared in two games with the Fighting Sioux in 2003-04, giving up one goal and making nine saves in 21:38 of work.



UMD closed out the 2004-05 season with a 15-17-6 overall record and was 11-13-4 in Western Collegiate Hockey Association play (sixth place).