Rangers NCAA prospects report: Ty Henricks hit injures younger brother
Conference play began this past weekend in NCAA Division I Men’s Ice Hockey, with five New York Rangers prospects hitting the ice for their respective collegiate teams.
It was all smiles for Ty Henricks and younger brother Tanner before Western Michigan opened defense of their Penrose Cup with an NCHC game Friday against St. Cloud State. But no so much afterward.
Henricks, a Rangers forward prospect with Western Michigan, was assessed a major penalty for direct contact to the head of his brother, and a game misconduct. Worse, Tanner Henricks, a defenseman and Columbus Blue Jackets draft pick, sustained a lower-body injury on the play that will require surgery, and is out three months.
“All I’ll say is that it’s a really freak injury. It wasn’t part of the hit. It was an after thing,” St. Cloud State coach Brett Larson said.
Western Michigan defeated St. Cloud State 6-5 on Friday, but lost the rematch, with the elder Henricks back in the lineup, 5-1 on Saturday. Henricks recorded five shots on goal in the two games, but was held without a point. Worse, he probably has some explaining to do at the family Thanksgiving dinner.
The Broncos dropped one spot to fourth in the USCHO.com poll, as well as the USA Hockey poll. Western Michigan is 5-3-0 and hosts Denver University for two games at Lawson Arena this upcoming weekend.
Rangers 2025 top pick Malcolm Spence hits dry spell with Michigan
Malcolm Spence, New York’s top pick in the 2025 draft, had two shots on goal for Michigan on Friday night, when the Wolverines defeated Notre Dame 5-3. The freshman forward had one shot on goal Saturday in a 2-1 victory. Through 10 games, Spence has three goals and four assists for seven points. However, he’s without a point in four straight games, and hasn’t scored a goal in six consecutive games.
The Wolverines stayed at No. 2 in the USCHO.com and USA Hockey polls with a 9-1-0 overall record. Michigan hosts Wisconsin for two games this weekend.
Defenseman EJ Emery had three shots on goal and two blocked shots for North Dakota in a 4-3 loss to Minnesota Duluth in NCHC action on Friday. The sophomore was minus-1 and recorded one shot on goal during a 5-1 win in the rematch Saturday. The Fighting Hawks remained eighth in both polls with a 5-3-0 overall record. North Dakota is on the road for a pair of games this week against Omaha.
Boston College was upset twice by cross-town rival Northeastern, losing by scores of 4-1 on Thursday night, and 3-0 on Friday. Junior Drew Fortescue recorded one shot on goal and had a minus-2 rating in the first game. The defenseman was called for roughing in the second period of the rematch, before he was assessed a major penalty and game misconduct for direct contact to the head later on.
The Eagles are 2-4-1 and fell to 18th in the USCHO.com poll and 17th in the USA Hockey poll. Boston College is on the road against the Vermont Catamounts this weekend.
Minnesota dropped out of the top 20 rankings following losses of 5-2 and 4-0 last week to Wisconsin in Big Ten conference action. The Golden Gophers have lost four in a row, and dropped to 2-7-1 overall. Minnesota captain Brody Lamb had three shots on goal and one blocked shot in the first game of the series. He was held without a shot on goal in the second game, and took a minor penalty for slashing in the second period with two blocked shots. Lamb is tied for the team lead in goals (4) , and points (7) in 10 games. Minnesota hosts Notre Dame at 3M Arena at Mariucci for a pair of games this weekend.
Rasmus Larsson was not in the lineup for Robert Morris University, when the Colonials swept Niagara in a weekend set by scores of 4-2 and 4-3 to begin AHA conference play. The Swedish defenseman has only appeared in two games since transferring from Northern Michigan. Robert Morris hosts LIU at Clearview Arena this weekend.
Michigan State remained at the top of the polls following a week off. Freshman defenseman Sean Barnhill has one assist in six games, and has been solid defensively, tied for second on the team with seven blocked shots. Barnhill’s plus-4 rating is tied for fourth best on Michigan State. The Spartans are 5-1-0 and begin Big Ten Conference play this weekend at home with two games against top NHL Draft prospect Gavin McKenna and Penn State.
