Seven Newcomers Join Raiders in 2009-10

HAMILTON, N.Y. -- Colgate men's hockey coach Don Vaughan announced that his staff has added seven new members to its program as the 2009 recruiting class was revealed Thursday afternoon. 

Kurtis Bartliff (Clinton, Ont./Nanaimo - BCHL), Robbie Bourdon (Ile Bizard, Que./The Taft School), Thomas Larkin (Cocquio Trevisago, Italy/Phillips Exeter Academy), Christian Long (Cleveland Heights, Ohio/Brockville - CJHL), Jeremy Price (Milton, Ont./Nepean - CJHL), Billy Rivellini (Great Falls, Va./Choate Rosemary Hall), and Nathan Sinz (Anchorage, Alaska/Shattuck-St. Mary's) will all join the Raiders for the 2009-2010 season.

"I am really looking forward to working with this incoming class," said Vaughan.  "Brad Dexter and Jason Lefevre did an outstanding job of identifying this very talented group of student athletes. We feel that every one of these guys is a great fit for Colgate University and our hockey program. We have gone a long way in meeting our immediate needs especially on defense and with the addition of four very skilled forwards we have added some much needed depth in that area as well."

Bartliff, a 6-0, 185 pound forward, played in 59 games in the 2008-09 season for the Nanaimo Clippers of the BCHL and tallied 14 goals and 19 assists.  Prior to heading out west, the native of Clinton, Ont., played Junior B hockey for the Listowel Cyclones of the GOJHL, where he garnered the league's Rookie of the Year after posting 36 goals, 26 assists in 48 games.  Bartliff was honored as the Top Junior B player in Ontario; was named player of the week twice, and copped the league's player of the month in September. 

Bourdon, a two-sport letterman at The Taft School, was named to the 2009 all-New England All-Star team after registering 14 goals and 19 assists for the Rhinos in 23 games his senior season.  As a junior, the 6-0, 160-pound forward from Ile Bizard, Que., recorded 16 goals and 17 assists for 33 points at Taft.  He also lettered three years in football.

Larkin, a 6-5, 216-pound defenseman, was three-year varsity letterman at Phillips Exeter Academy and helped lead the Big Red to a spot in the NESIHA title game.  In late June, he was chosen by the Columbus Blue Jackets with the 16th pick in the fifth round (137th overall) in the 2009 NHL Amateur Draft. As a senior, Larkin  tallied 14 goals and 38 assists in 35 games for Dana Barbin en route to being named a first team all-New England Eastern All-Star and the team MVP.  His goal, assist and point totals broke single-season records for Phillips Exeter.  He left the school as the career point leader for a defenseman (82).  Larkin served as a team captain during the 2008-09 campaign for the Big Red. Previously, he played for HC Varese of the Italian Hockey Federation.

Long, a 5-10, 185-pound forward, tallied nine goals and 16 assists in 31 games for the Brockville Braves of the CJHL.  He opened the season playing 14 games for the Mahoning Valley Phantoms of the NAHL, where he notched three goals and an assist before returning to the CJHL.  In all, Long played three seasons at Brockville and in his 137-game career scored 45 goals and tallied 82 assists for the Braves.  He is the brother of current Raider goalie Charles Long. Once he hits campus in the Fall of 2009, he will have played organized hockey with his brother on three different levels.  The duo teamed to help lead St. Edwards High School to the 2004 Ohio State title. 

Price, a 6-1, 190-pound defenseman, was a first team CJHL all-star for the Nepean Raiders, where he netted 12 goals and 29 assists in 55 games for head coach Garry Galley.  He was recently chosen in the fourth round (113th overall) by the Vancouver Canucks in the 2009 NHL Draft.  The native of Milton, Ont., served as an assistant team captain and helped the Raiders to a first place finish in the regular season.  Price was a member of the Team Canada East squad that won a bronze medal in the 2008 World Junior A Challenge and also skated in the 2008 CJHL East vs. West Prospects Game.  Prior to playing for Nepean, the 2006  11th round draftee of the Oshawa Generals, played for his hometown Milton Icehawks, where he tallied 11 goals and 28 assists in his 81-game career.

Rivellini, a 5-8, 180-pound forward, posted 12 goals and 18 assists in 25 games for Coach Pat Dennehy at Choate Rosemary Hall.  The product of Great Falls, Va., lettered three years; served as team captain for the Wild Boars in 2008-09, and was named as the recipient of the William Pudich Senior Award for leadership and love for the game.  As a junior, he collected 13 goals and 13 assists for Choate Rosemary Hall.

Sinz, a 5-11 187-pound defenseman comes to Colgate from Shattuck-St. Mary's, the same school that produced recent graduates Mark Anderson and Jason Fredricks.  The native of Anchorage, Alaska tallied five goals and 20 assists for the Sabres in 50 games.  Shattuck posted a 38-11-7 record in the 2008-09 season and advanced to the USA National Tournament before falling in the quarterfinals to the Dallas Stars Midget AAA squad.  He was a member of the national title squad the previous season, when he posted 11 assists in 54 games.  He was named the recipient of the 2007 SSM Zulfer Award for Most Improved Player.  In his first two seasons at Shattuck, he recorded 13 goals and 38 assists in 104 games for the Under 16 Tier I team.

Colgate, which went 12-18-7 in 2008-09, will open the regular season October 9 at Niagara.  The Raiders broke an NCAA record with 19 overtime appearances a year ago including ending the campaign with seven consecutive games that went an extra session.