by Sarah Kirkpatrick/DFP Staff
Freshman forward Brendan Collier and redshirt sophomore defenseman J.D. Carrabino have been cut from the Boston University men’s hockey team, a team source confirmed with the Boston Hockey Blog.
BU head coach David Quinn told The Daily Free Press on April 24 he would cut an unspecified number of returning players prior to the start of the 2014-15 season. The NCAA has no limit on how many players can be on a hockey roster, but things were getting a bit crowded in the Terrier locker room — with a large incoming recruit class, including the announcement of the addition of defenseman Brandon Fortunato on Tuesday, the roster would have been at 31 players.
“One of the things I have told every guy is that I base guys’ opportunities here based on, ‘Can you help us win national championships?’” Quinn said on April 24. “Not just athletically, but socially and academically. It’s a three-part equation. When there is a coaching change, that is where those decisions come in.
“This is everybody’s first taste of hockey where you either get it done or you don’t and you don’t survive. That’s the hard part of the job, that’s the hard part of transition and that’s the hard part of change. Unfortunately there will be some changes.”
Collier, a seventh-round pick (189th overall) for the Carolina Hurricanes in the 2012 NHL Draft, appeared in 28 games for the Terriers during the 2013-14 season. His only collegiate goal came on Feb. 17 against the University of New Hampshire, and he had three total assists on the season — one on Dec. 7 against Merrimack College, one on Jan. 17 versus Boston College and another Feb. 7 against the University of Massachusetts-Lowell. He had the only positive plus-minus on the team, with a +1.
Carrabino transferred to BU from Clarkson University and sat out the 2013-14 season due to NCAA transfer rules. Before arriving at BU, the 6-foot-6 blueliner played in just three games in two seasons for the Golden Knights.
No information was available regarding what Collier or Carrabino will do moving forward.
this is a good start, but i can’t believe kelly and macafee are still around. let’s hope they remain only as spares
good luck to carrabino and collier. i really do hope they find a place to continue their hockey careers
Collier is the poster boy for the failure of Parker/Bavis recruiting of late. His line mate from MC was a front line player for BC. Anything more have to be said for why BC has passes BU as the top college hockey team in Boston?
not only his line mate but they also have fitzgerald’s brother coming and he is supposed to be really good too. i hope we can get greenway’s brother who is very talented.
finally someone other than me, calls out the parker/bavis fiasco. so many fans think that if a fan is critical of the post 2009 parker era that they are not a true BU fan or they are a troll in disguise. that is not true
this is why we must be patient with DQ. he has a big hole to dig out of. i think he is making amazing strides, not only with the staff turnover but also with recruits. the gap is closing but the gag was so huge when he came aboard
keep the faith
I get Collier, but at the same time I get why he was recruited. He was a star in high school and did the requisite year in juniors. Carrabino is a mystery all around. He never even suited up. I guess his practice ethic was bad.
Best of luck to all of those kicked (and to be kicked) off the team.
To JD: I believe the reason Carrabino did not suit up was because of NCAA regulations (after transferring, a player must sit out a full season).
I knew the transfer rules. My point is that we really have nothing to go on with this kid and the program. I will say this, it sucks to transfer in order to play hockey for the school then get booted from the team before playing.
I do hope tat if he finds a new school to play for, he doesn’t have to sit out the additional year. That would be cruel.
I completely agree. This must be awful for JD … particularly because he transferred and waited all this time (just to get cut). I actually met him a few times at Agganis and at Fenway. He seems like a good guy and I hope he has a successful future. I’m pretty sure that if he transfers to a D-3 school he will not have to wait again (not positive though).
collier showed improvement as the season went along.
what about some others who really needed to be cut.
He might have been a star for MC but it is still the Catholic league and that often does not transfer well to HE. when he went to the south shore kings,not the USHL, his numbers were very pedestrian. that should have been a wake up call to tell him, no thanks.
i saw him in high school and he was slow. same with kurker – a big stiff if there ever was one. thank God, he is gone
i admire DQ’s balls to pull the plug. i know this sounds course and callous, but this is a competitive business. this is not charity where we give out very expensive free rides to kids who just take up a space in the locker room
good luck to all of them – just not in a scarlet and white uni
Catholic League doesn’t transfer well to hockey east? Bahhhhhhaaa his linemates @ MC were RF & MV…both made the Frozen Four and one left with the National Championship.
You are right about one thing and that is sounding coarse and callous. I’m sure this is a devastating turn if events for these kids and their families. Show a little sensitivity to these young people and temper your comments. What if it were your kid being talked about in this way publicly? Have some compassion. These are not pro athletes and this must be heartbreaking for them.
if they are not pro athletes why are most of them in such a hurry to leave early and sign a pro contract, a lla charlie coyle. but i guess you are right. i just figured these kids don’t read this silly blog. but i will temper my comments from now on. although i feel this way, i will keep my comments along this line to myself. my frustration with last year, and the last few years, just seeps out.
It appears that Charlie made the right choice for himself. If I remember correctly, he was roundly criticized on this blog for under performing at BU. Coaches do what they feel they need to do in order to succeed. It is only fair to accept that a player can do the same. I appreciate that you understood that off hand comments can be devastating to the players who were cut and now must sit out a year if they can even find another school. I don’t know how many read this blog, but sometimes we are drawn to read things about ourselves, either in the unlikely hope that we have a supporter somewhere in the community or perhaps just the need to see what they really thought of us. It’s a cruel world out there these days and I’ve seen enough cruelty in blog comments here and on the uscho board to stay silent anymore.
Coyle was wrong to quit his team in the middle of the year. You do not do this to your fellow players. If I remember Collier was trying to jump to another team in the middle of last year. It is a reflection of life today that there is no loyalty to the group .. Selfish people only thinking of themselves.
Collier was thinking of jumping to another team? really? What team?
Now I am not naming names because I have committed to being more sensitive, but i hope DQ can help a few other players find other programs so he can get more of his recruits in. it is probably not going to happen, but i wish it would
and don’t game me started on coyle. yes he did what he needed to do for himself, but the mid year bail out was inexcusable in my mind. that being said, the player has the right to do what is best for him. which is why i feel absolutely zero loyalty or compassion for a kid who is asked to leave the program. yes it is probably a bummer for the kid and his family, BUT if they can leave us at the drop of a hat, then turnaround is fair game. the whole thing sucks, but it can’t just be one sided where it is only players jumping ship.
BU has been burnt too many times by players defecting and leaving them high and dry. Now it is time for us to be proactive and think about what’s in the best interest of BU hockey. if that means cutting kids because they are not up to snuff …… oh well
With regard to Collier “thinking of jumping to another team”, I believe that for a month or so during the holiday break, one of the USHL teams was listing him on their roster (or claiming him if he had become available). Obviously that move never happened. The same scenario happened with Kurker … but it did come to fruition. So, I don’t think Collier was thinking of going to another NCAA team … but was keeping his options open to play in the USHL if he did not continue at BU. Good luck Brendan and JD!
I only said about Collier jumping as the net was very active that he was to go WHL or the like. The rest of your statements I completely agree with. It is dog eat dog out there. A shame for sure.
It sure is. I remember way back in my BU days (mid-late 1980’s) that everyone stayed four years … both the marginal players and the future NHL stars. Those were the days. By the way, you heard that Collier was headed for the WHL? I always think of that league as a haven for big, bruising physical players (more so than any other of the CHL’s).
and it will go on and on and on.
bc eagles……most stay four friggin years
not just us boys
Seven underclassmen will not be returning to Connecticut for the Huskies’ inaugural season in their new conference. Seven players, forwards Joe Birmingham, Tyler Bouchard, Brett Skibba and Sean Gaffney along with defensemen Kevin Tuohy, Chris Bond and Christian Neumann, have been cut from Cavanaugh’s roster.
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.