FAIRBANKS, AK - The University of Alaska Fairbanks hockey team has signed its first recruit for next season.
Brandon Campos, a 5-10, 185 pound forward from Port Coquitlam, British Columbia and the Merritt Centennials of the British Columbia Hockey League will join the Nanooks for the 2006-07 season. He will enter UAF in the fall, and will have four years of eligibility.
Although sidelined by a concussion for the last three weeks, Campos had scored five goals and added 16 assists for 21 points in 12 games this season prior to getting injured. He also had one power play goal, and assessed only four penalty minutes.
Despite having played in only 12 games and having sat out the last three weeks, Campos is currently 4th in the BCHL for points per game, averaging 1.8 an outing.
"
Brandon Campos is a great skater," said
UAF Head Coach Tavis MacMillan. "He can skate down the ice at full speed and then jump left or right horizontally. He has great agility and he will be able to make an immediate impact for us just with his skating."
"We wanted more speed up front and that's the biggest thing we targeted, more speed and skill. He solves that for us and what's more is he's a great kid and comes from a good family."
Assistant Coach Wade Klippenstein, who is currently on the road recruiting, has been keeping tabs on Campos for a little over a year. He first saw him play in Merritt during the 2004-05 season when he was recruiting Campos' teammate, and current Nanook freshman
Brandon Cross, as a possible third goaltender.
"He (Campos) caught my eye based on his work ethic," said Klippenstein. "Every time he's on the ice he's always involved in the play. He's very easy to notice when he's out there because he's a high energy player and is similar to the mold of a Ryan McLeod."
"After that game, we got some tapes of Campos sent to us. The other coaches and I broke down his game frame by frame and we decided he was a guy we absolutely wanted to have as a part of our lineup."
"Last year when we lost to Michigan in the Super Six, we knew we had to get faster. We didn't handle their speed well, so we wanted to get that in our lineup and we feel that Campos fits that mold."
During the 2004-05 season, Campos amassed nine goals and 22 assists for 31 points and served 38 penalty minutes.
Campos also turned in a strong performance in the 2004-05 BCHL playoffs, with three goals, including a short-handed and a game-winner, and one assist for four points in five games.
He is the first member of the 2006-07 Nanook Hockey recruiting class.
-UAF HOCKEY-
