Merrimack College has rarely been forced to deal with players leaving early for the NHL.
While failing to make the Hockey East playoffs the last five seasons, the Warriors would hardly notice a scout at Lawler Arena, and if they were there, chances were they were looking at one of Merrimack's talent-rich adversaries.
Not anymore.
Merrimack defenseman Joe Loprieno, who just completed his junior season, has inked a deal with the San Jose Sharks, marking the second player in as many seasons to leave Merrimack early for the National Hockey League.
The deal reunites the bone-crunching defenseman with former classmate Matt Jones, who signed a deal with the Sharks last March after his sophomore season.
Loprieno has signed an amateur tryout agreement with San Jose's AHL affiliate in Worcester, where he will practice for the remainder of the AHL season (about 2 weeks). His NHL deal will kick in this summer.
It's likely that the 6-foot-3, 210-pounder will only see practice time in Worcester. Loprieno sprained his knee on Jan. 24 against UMass Lowell in what proved to be his final game for the Warriors.
"I haven't had a lot of time to let it sink in yet," Loprieno said from Jones' Worcester apartment, where he was staying while practicing with his new team. "They were in contact with me for most of the year. Even after I got hurt, they kept in contact with me. It's a special feeling. When you're a kid all you want to be is an NHL hockey player. To sign a deal with an NHL club is, well, it's a dream come true, really."
Loprieno and Jones were the two prized recruits in head coach Mark Dennehy's first full recruiting class in 2006. He skated with the Chicago Blackhawks' prospects after his freshman season at their development camp. Last summer, he attended both the Boston Bruins and Sharks camps.
"The Boston and San Jose camps especially I think put me on the right track," said Loprieno, a co-captain last season. "The Blackhawks used their camp as more of a tryout for their AHL team. It was still a great experience to go, but I think the Sharks and Bruins camps really got me ready to make this step.
"They gave me drills to work on throughout the summer and the season to develop to the point where I was ready to make this jump. And, that's where they first noticed me."
Dennehy's recruiting pays off
Loprieno's signing certainly indicates a rise in the talent pool at Merrimack. This season the only NHL-contracted player formerly of Merrimack was Matt Foy, who left after just one season (2001-02) and went to Major Junior in Canada after being drafted by the Minnesota Wild. He played just a handful of games with Peoria (AHL) this winter and is no longer with the team.
With Loprieno and Jones now in the mix, two of the three NHL contracted talent Merrimack will have next season didn't arrive until Dennehy in 2006.
Joe Cannata marked the first recruit to come from USA Hockey's national development program and Stephane Da Costa, an incoming freshman, has been one of the deadliest snipers in the USHL, arguably college hockey's top breeding league. He starred for the French National team at the IIHF World Junior Championships.
Karl Stollery, a freshman defenseman, was just named to the Hockey East All-Rookie team. He was the only defenseman chosen by the coaches (normally there are two).
"You have to think that if Jonesy stayed, if I were still there and if (Rob) Ricci were coming back, we'd really have a heck of a team next year," Loprieno said. "You look at the roster we had this year and we deserved better."
Ricci, a junior, signed with Las Vegas of the ECHL.
The Warriors have come a long way since a three-win campaign Loprieno's freshman year.
But who can blame rugged defenseman, or Jones for that matter, for jumping at the opportunity to live out a dream?
You can't.
"To go through this with someone who I was in the same year with at Merrimack is awesome," Loprieno said of playing with Jones. "We went through a lot of firsts at Merrimack. He has a year on me when it comes to pro hockey, but knowing him and knowing a lot of the other guys from being at their camp last summer makes the transition a lot easier."
SNbSMike McMahon is an Eagle-Tribune sportswriter. E-mail him at mmcmahon@eagletribune.com
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