from today's gazette telegraph (without permission)
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Tigers land top hockey recruit
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By Ralph Routon
Colorado College pulled off a major recruiting coup Wednesday by signing the
No. 1 high school hockey player in Minnesota -- and his older brother -- to
play for the Tigers.
Toby Petersen, a much-coveted star forward at Jefferson High School in
Bloomington, Minn., faxed his letter-of-intent to Colorado College after a
visit Tuesday night from coach Don Lucia.
Petersen had narrowed his choices to CC and Minnesota, visiting here last
month and Minnesota this past weekend.
"We're extremely excited," Lucia said. "This sends a really strong message
of where our program is now. It's a great place to play hockey and a great
place to go to college.
"But this still was a courageous decision for Toby, because he got a lot of
pressure, a lot of phone calls telling him to stay in Minnesota."
Lucia and other sources said Minnesota had not lost its top-priority recruit
to any other school in about 25 years, since the early 1970s or perhaps even
the late '60s.
Toby's brother Ian, who has played junior hockey the past two years, also
signed with the Tigers. Ian Petersen was a standout forward for Jefferson
teams that won three consecutive Minnesota prep state titles.
CC picked up yet another promising offensive player, signing K.J. Voorhees
from the junior team in Omaha. Voorhees, who scored 58 points in 52 games
this past season, is originally from the Seattle area.
Counting earlier signees, that gives the team that nearly won the NCAA
championship last month a class of seven incoming freshmen. The group was
rated by several college hockey observers as arguably the nation's best crop
of recruits -- even before adding Toby Petersen.
The 5-foot-10, 190-pounder amassed 59 points (29 goals, 30 assists) in just
25 games this past season for Jefferson. He's regarded as a superb skater,
quick and darting, as well as a heady playmaker with outstanding agility.
Lucia compared Petersen to Brian Swanson, who scored 59 points and was the
Western Collegiate Hockey Association's rookie of the year for the Tigers
this past season.
"Toby is young," Lucia said, "but he has great potential. Now it's up to him
and us to develop that potential."
Petersen also was the leading scorer on the U.S. Select 17-year-old team
last winter, as well as the Select 16-year-old team a year earlier.
"I didn't know much about CC growing up," Petersen said. "It seemed like
they were in the cellar while I watched the Gophers win the title all the
time. But obviously that's changed. When I went out there, I felt like I
melded right into them. I really felt comfortable with the coaches, the
players and the school.
"My visit to Minnesota was good, too. It's two very successful hockey
programs, so I had to forget the hockey and actually look at the colleges
themselves."
An excellent student, Petersen decided in recent months to graduate from
high school a year early. He instantly became the top-rated college prospect
in Minnesota, despite the fact that he didn't turn 17 until last October.
He said he was influenced favorably by Colorado College's block schedule,
after having a similar format at Jefferson.
The 20-year-old Ian Petersen and Voorhees also should help a CC offense that
is graduating four of the Tigers' top scorers from the past three years
(Peter Geronazzo, Jay McNeill, Colin Schmidt and Chad Remackel).
The older Petersen, 6-0 and 185, had 47 points (20 goals, 27 assists) in 46
games this past season for Fargo, N.D., in the United States Hockey League.
He visited here this past weekend.
"Ian came home from CC and he was really excited about it," Toby said. "He
knew where he wanted to go."
Lucia said he was most pleased that "the two brothers decided independently
to come to CC," and didn't have to persuade each other.
Lucia, a Minnesota native, realizes this news will create shock waves there.
"It makes a big statement in the state of Minnesota about our program,"
Lucia said. "Always before, everyone backed off from the top prospects
there. But we'll be going after two or three more players from Minnesota
next year, and now we feel like we have a chance to get them."
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(end included material)
charlie shub University of Colorado at Colorado Springs
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