Recruiting: Nordiques’ Luke Antonacci commits to Maine

Luke Antonacci (Princeton, N.J.) of the NAHL's Maine Nordiques announced his commitment to Maine this week. (NA3HL/Jeff Lawler)

Luke Antonacci, a 2002-born defenseman of the NAHL’s Maine Nordiques, has committed to play Division 1 NCAA hockey at Maine, the team announced on Friday.

Antonacci, a native of Princeton, N.J., played the majority of the past two seasons with the Nordiques in Lewiston, Maine. The Princeton Day School product appeared in 21 games a season ago, before going full-time with the second-year expansion team in 2020-21.

In 54 games, the 5-foot-9, 168-pound right-shot defenseman totaled 24 points on five goals and 19 assists.

Antonacci, 18, also put up four points on two goals and two assists in ten 2021 Robertson Cup Playoff games, helping the Nordiques win the East Division title and claim a spot in the Robertson Cup Championship. Both of his playoff goals were critical game-winners.

He was drafted No. 38 overall by the Sioux City Musketeers in the third round of the 2021 USHL Entry Draft, where he is likely to play the 2021-22 season before matriculating to Orono for 2022-23.

Antonacci is one of five prospects that have been committed to Maine since July 12, kickstarting the beginning of incoming first-year head coach Ben Barr‘s first-ever Black Bear recruiting class. Barr, a native of Faribault, Minn., who was hired as the new head coach on May 12, spent the last five seasons as the associate head coach, defensive coach and recruiting coordinator for the 2021 NCAA national champion Massachusetts Minutemen.

LIU adds ’04 defenseman

Nichols School defenseman Charlie Robinson (Kenmore, N.Y.) has committed to Long Island University, it was announced on Monday. The 2004-born blueliner played in 36 games with the Buffalo-area prep team in 2020-21, notching 28 points on 11 goals and 17 assists.

A Buffalo Regals product, Robinson was recently invited to attend USA Hockey Select 17 Player Development Camp, where his performance in front of collegiate and professional scouts likely impacted his commitment.

The 17-year-old defenseman stands at 6-foot, 154 pounds. He is slated to join the fledgling independent LIU program at the start of the 2023-24 season.

UConn lands pair of Mudbugs

Head coach Mike Cavanaugh and the Huskies received several commitments in the past week, two of which came by way of the 2021 NAHL Robertson Cup champion Shreveport Mudbugs.

Russian-born ’02 goaltender Arsenii Sergeev played in 20 games with the NAHL champs this past season. He joined the team shortly after the season started and posted a 14-4-2 record, including a .936 save percentage, 2.17 goals-against average and two shutouts.

The 6-foot-3, 192-pound left-catching netminder was selected No. 205 overall by the Calgary Flames in the seventh round of last weekend’s 2021 NHL Entry Draft.

He was the No. 8 ranked North American goaltender going into the draft, according to NHL Central Scouting, and was one of just two North American Hockey League players selected during the two-day, 224-player event. Sergeev is expected to join the Huskies in Hockey East for the 2022-23 season.

Fellow Mudbug Aidan Metcalfe (Palos Verdes, Calif.) also committed to UConn this week, the team announced. The ’00 defenseman played in 55 games and totaled 18 points on 18 assists during his second season with Shreveport in 2021-22.

Metcalfe, who played two seasons at Berkshire prep school in Sheffield, Mass., from 2017-19 before joining the Mudbugs, totaled 23 points in 43 games as an NAHL rookie. The 21-year-old also spent a brief amount of time with the Mid Fairfield organization in 2019-20. He is expected to join the program in Storrs, Conn., for the 2021-22 season.

Liam Flaherty can be reached at [email protected] and on Twitter @_LiamFlaherty.