Michigan Tech hockey might be on break until the Great Lakes Invitational in Detroit, but the coaches have been busy tying some loose ends on the recruiting trail. On Thursday we reported the addition of goaltender Jamie Phillips and today Mel Pearson received a commitment from Joe Schuldt, defenseman for the Minnetonka Skippers (MSHSL). Schuldt is a captain of this year’s squad, which is currently ranked second in Class AA and still undefeated including big wins over Eagan (#4) and Burnsville (#7). Tech Hockey Guide was at the big win versus Burnsville and witnessed Schuldt and the Minnetonka defense struggle with Burnsville’s speed early in the game but eventually tighten things down and get the win. Schuldt’s career at Minnetonka includes a most improved player award for the 2010–11 season and four letters in hockey.
Schuldt is a physical presence on the blueline and is described as good skater. The offensive part of his game still needs some improvement for him to be considered a threat to score but that has improved over the last season. He seems to be working hard on his offense: his scoring has improved each of his four seasons on the Skipper blueline. His 3 goals and 7 assists last season show that he can step up into the play and make a difference.
Along with playing for the Skippers, Schuldt was a member of the Advanced 17 Select Camp and participated in the Upper Midwest Elite League this fall on Team Southwest. Schuldt scored 9 points in 20 games including 1 goal for Team Southwest while they finished in the middle of the very competitive Elite League.
Schuldt and some of his teammates seemed very interested in Michigan Tech during the Huskies’ recent trip to Mariucci. It will be interesting to see whether some of his fellow Skippers, including younger brother Jimmy, decide to join him. With the caliber of high school hockey in Minnesota, it is great to see Mel Pearson return to his roots in Edina and recruit players from winning programs to come up to Houghton. Schuldt will join Ryan Furne, Daniel Sova (both Hill-Murray), Michael Lickteig (Little Falls), Walker Hyland (Woodbury), and Tyler Heinonen (Delano) with a MSHSL background. Schuldt is likely to play a season or two of junior hockey before joining the Huskies in 2013 or 2014.
Joe Schuldt put together this Youtube video to show off his talents to D1 schools:
[youtube width=”600″ height=”365″ video_id=”iQDxRTiy0mA”]
Tim is a 2004 graduate of Michigan Tech. He is a co-founder of both Mitch’s Misfits and Tech Hockey Guide. With recent additions to the staff, Tim is again able to focus on his passion, recruiting. He currently works as an environmental engineer and resides in the Minneapolis/St. Paul Area.
