Our final installment of the preseason looking at players new to the Huskies, we round out the team by looking at the four forwards joining Northeastern this Fall. Ahead of the season opener, be sure to read our previews of the goaltenders and the defensemen as you get ready for the start of the season.
Three freshmen and one transfer from a fellow Hockey East school round out the eleven-person incoming class of 2022.
Cameron Lund– arguably the biggest name in the entering class as a whole, Lund comes in with a head of steam after being selected as the 34th overall pick in the 2022 NHL Draft by San Jose. A right-handed shot who can play center and right wing, we expect Lund to contribute early and often this season. Already with an NHL-caliber shot, the Bridgewater, MA native played for the Green Bay Gamblers of the USHL last season and put up 50 points (25 goals) in 62 games. Expect Lund to slide into the top six early next season and play a quality game both scoring between the dots and setting up teammates with his size and handling ability. Personally, I think he would fit in great alongside a distributor like Jack Hughes.
Liam Walsh– A transfer from Merrimack, Walsh was an assistant captain for the Warriors last season and broke out with 27 points (10 goals) in 34 games after seasons of 10 and 12 points earlier in his career. He would have been the team’s top returning scorer if he elected to go back to North Andover for his season season. Instead, he graduated Merrimack after three years and graduate transferred to Northeastern, where he is the elder statesman of the incoming class as a ’99 birth year. Similar to Lund, the lefty has the ability to play both wing and center, playing primarily down the middle for Scott Borek’s team. Formerly teammates with Aidan McDonough for Cedar Rapids in the USHL, where Walsh wore letters on his jersey for two years including one as captain, Walsh could either round out the top six or occupy the newly-vacated third center role to bring veteran presence, leadership, and scoring ability to the third line.
Jack Williams– Committing to Northeastern back in 2017 prior to the change in recruiting rules, Jack Williams finally arrives on Huntington Avenue this Fall. Coming off his best season in the USHL with Muskegon where he was team captain, Williams is a right-handed center who can play all 200 feet of the ice. In three USHL seasons he saw his production increase every year to a career-best 59 last year (18 goals, 58 games), and he thrived in the USHL playoffs with 11 points in 9 games. A former standout at Berwick Academy in Maine and Selects Academy in Connecticut, Williams has all the makings of a quality four year player and instant contributor for Northeastern. Don’t be surprised if he competes for a starting center role on the third or fourth lines, and if he eventually plays himself into a special teams role by season’s end with his propensity for the defensive side of the game.
Anthony Messuri– rounding out the incoming class is the left-shot winger from Arlington, MA and former stalwart at Arlington High School. A former two-time Super Eight champion and Boston Globe Athlete of the Year, Messuri follows in the footsteps of his father and two uncles to the collegiate hockey level. Coming from Utica in the NCDC, he played 18 games and put up 6 points (4 goals) after also playing 15 games (4 points) with Aberdeen of the NAHL. Messuri projects as a player who will play more later in his career than initially, but could eventually fill the role that senior Alex Mella has played in his Northeastern career as a bottom six sparkplug.
A smaller-than-usual forward group due to the volume of returning contributors, the entry class of 2022 nevertheless brings three players we expect to contribute immediately, and a fourth who could carve out an important role in time. With the departures of the Jackson twins in the transfer portal, there are spots to be had in the Huskies’ top nine and on special teams units. As we’ll discuss in our season preview post, one area where the Huskies need to improve from last season is consistent goal scoring, and I expect Lund and Walsh to help in that area immediately with Williams having the potential to chip in from the bottom six too.
Look for our season preview in the days leading up to the home opener on October 1st against LIU!
As always, go Huskies!