Off-Ice News

Breaking down BU’s star-studded 2007-born recruiting class

by Mitch Fink Views: 1480
Photo by Michael Caples, via USNTDP.

The Boston University men’s hockey team has wrapped up its recruiting class of 2007-born skaters. 

It is an embarrassment of riches. 

This week alone, the Terriers received commitments from two highly-touted USHL defensemen: Sascha Boumedienne of the Youngstown Phantoms and Carter Amico of the U.S. National Team Development Program. In full, the class consists of seven skaters — four defenseman and three forwards.

Here’s a breakdown. 

Conrad Fondrk, U.S. NTDP (USHL) — Forward

Reports describe Fondrk as an all-around playmaker with a great hockey IQ and an elite scoring touch. The St. Paul, Minn. native won’t wow anyone with his size (5 foot 10, 170 pounds), but he makes up for it with his vision and quality on the puck. 

In an in-depth evaluation on PuckPreps.com, regional scout Chase Allen concluded that Fondrk is  “a safe candidate to be an effective player the second he reaches the NCAA.” 

Ahead of this season, PuckPreps tabbed Fondrk as a five-star prospect, the fourth-best American 2007-born skater and the 12th-best North American skater. The Athletic’s Corey Pronman ranked Fondrk as the 15th-best prospect for the 2025 NHL Draft.

Through 23 games with the U.S. NTDP U-17s, he’s posted a 9-10-19 statline. Before that, Fondrk spent two seasons with Mt. St. Charles in Rhode Island, a prep hockey powerhouse in New England. He dominated there, scoring 75 goals and 125 points in 66 games with the school’s 15U team. 

Best attributes: hockey sense, puck skills, passing

Projected freshman year at BU: 2025-26

Charlie Trethewey, U.S. NTDP (USHL) — Defenseman

A reliable defenseman with legit offensive upside, Trethewey has been a point-per-game skater (7-17-24 in 23 games) for the U.S. NTDP U-17 team. He’s a 5-star prospect, according to PuckPreps, and The Athletic placed him 10th — five spots above Fondrk — in the 2025 NHL Draft ranking referenced above. 

Before joining the NTDP team, Trethewey put up crooked numbers (20-66-86 in 81 games) with the Little Caesars 15U AAA team. A native of Ellicott City, Md., he’s on the fast track to become just the third-ever Maryland-born NHLer. 

Best attributes: speed and agility for his size, playmaking

Projected freshman year at BU: 2025-26

Sascha Boumedienne, Youngstown Phantoms (USHL) — Defenseman

The final addition to BU’s class of ‘07s, Boumedienne is a smooth-skating D-man from Sweden. PuckPreps has him as a four-star recruit and the 71st best 2007-prospect, but The Athletic ranked him as the 12th-best prospect for the 2025 NHL Draft. Other early projections have mocked Boumedienne as a first round pick — around where fellow BU Swedish defenseman Tom Willander was selected last summer. 

Scouting reports have praised Boumedienne’s passing and defensive acumen, but his fluid skating and powerful slapshot have drawn the most attention. Boumedienne has posted a 1-12-13 statline in his first 19 games with the USHL’s Youngstown Phantoms this season. At BU, he’ll become the third Swede to suit up for the Terriers in the Jay Pandolfo era, following Willander and Wilmer Skoog.

Best attributes: skating, shot

Projected freshman year at BU: 2025-26

Zachary Morin, Youngstown Phantoms (USHL) — Forward

This PuckPreps five-star prospect is an offensive powerhouse. From skating to scoring, from zone entries to passing, scouts have heaped praise on Morin, who is playing for Youngstown alongside Boumedienne this year. In a report from last April, PuckPreps scout Brayden Olafson noted that Morin also excels on the power play and may be “one of the premier special teams experts in Junior hockey.” 

Scouts have noted that Morin must improve his defensive game to qualify as a true two-way forward, but the prospect appears to have the tools to improve in that regard. He has scored eight points (4 goals, 4 assists) in 19 games with Youngstown. Morin also plays lacrosse, and may play both sports at BU. The Terriers boast a solid men’s lacrosse program that made a NCAA tournament appearance two seasons ago. 

Best attributes: skating, puck skills

Projected freshman year at BU: 2025-26

Jack Murtagh, U.S. NTDP (USHL) —Forward

By all indications, Murtagh will be a fun player to watch when he arrives at BU in two years. Reports have tabbed Murtagh as a dynamic forward with an arsenal of deceptive moves that make him tough to stop. But the PuckPreps five-star recruit is also adept at tipping pucks around the net and using his size (6 foot, 170 pounds) to his advantage. 

Murtagh has posted an 8-8-16 statline in 22 games with the U.S. NTDP, and put up some ridiculous numbers in the 14U and 15U AAA ranks with the Bishop Kearney Selects program: 67-46-113 in 73 games with the 14U team in 2021-22, and 52-49-101 in 68 games with the 15U squad in 2022-23. 

Best attributes: puck skills, creativity

Projected freshman year at BU: 2025-26

Carter Amico, U.S. NTDP (USHL) — Defenseman 

Amico’s unique player profile makes him one of the most intriguing prospects on this list. A 6-foot-5 defenseman, his frame is similar to that of Cade Webber, BU’s assistant captain and a bruising stay-at-home defenseman. But Amico has legitimate offensive upside to go along with his size. That combination has some scouts excited — PuckPreps’ Donesh Mazloum called him “a true unicorn on the ice,” adding that “the sky is the limit” for his future outlook. 

The blueliner, who hails from Westbrook, Maine, has posted eight assists in 15 games with the U.S. NTDP U-17 squad, playing alongside Fondrk, Tretheway and Murtagh. A four-star PuckPreps prospect, he played alongside Fondrk on the Mt. St. Charles 15U team last season (8-22-30 in 55 games).

Best attributes: mobility for his size, physicality

Projected freshman year at BU: 2026-27

Simon Wang, Brantford 99ers (OJHL) — Defenseman

Unlike so many of his counterparts on this list, Wang doesn’t have four or five stars attached to his name, or an NHL Draft projection. But the 6-foot-5, 210 pound defenseman is still well-positioned to be an effective skater for BU when he arrives. 

Wang was born in Tianjin, China — making him BU’s first-ever recruit from Asia, according to the Terrier Hockey Fan Blog — but he moved to Canada at age 12 and has played his junior hockey in the Toronto area. He’s currently playing for the Brantford 99ers of the OJHL, and was selected in the ninth round of the 2023 USHL Draft by the Dubuque Fighting Saints. 

Best attributes: puck skills, physicality

Projected freshman year at BU: 2026-27

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