Miska Going to the 'Dogs

Press Release

The Penticton Vees Jr. ‘A’ Hockey Club is pleased to announce goaltender Hunter Miska has committed to the University of Minnesota Duluth.

Miska is the 17th player on the Vees roster to secure a NCAA Division I scholarship and joins teammate Jarod Hilderman as future Bulldogs.

Vees President, General Manager and Head Coach Fred Harbinson, says Miska has all the intangibles to successful at this level and in the NCAA, “Hunter has been a huge part of our success; his confident attitude, tireless work ethic and overall athleticism has made him one of the elite goalies in the BCHL.”

Miska, 18, is in his first season with the Vees and in 30 games has a 17-6-2-4 record, sporting a 2.29 goals-against average, while maintaining a .914 save percentage. Miska is second in the BCHL in goals-against average, tied for second in shutouts (2) and is eighth in save percentage amongst goalies that have played 20 or more games.  Miska is coming off a 29-save shutout of the Surrey Eagles on Saturday, as the Vees blanked the Eagles 3-0.

Miska came to Penticton via the US National Development Team (USNTDP) based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The North Branch, Minnesota native played for both the Under-17 and Under-18 teams in his two years with the USNTDP. Miska faced junior and college hockey competition during his time with USNTDP. The U-18 program plays in the United States Hockey League (USHL) and also frequently plays exhibition games against NCAA Division l programs. Miska has been on the international stage, as he won silver in Sochi, Russia in April with Team USA at the Under-18 World Hockey Championships

The University of Minnesota-Duluth has a rich hockey history and has been playing at the NCAA Division l level since 1930. The Bulldogs joined the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) in 1965 and had been a member up until this past season. The Bulldogs are now set to begin play in the newly created National Collegiate Hockey Conference (NCHC) this fall. The Bulldogs most recently won the NCAA National Championship in 2011 and have made four trips to the NCAA Frozen Four Tournament. UMD has won three WCHA Tournament championships and has been crowned WCHA regular season champions 13 times.  Notable Vees alumni that have suited up for the Bulldogs include Brett Hull, TJ Caig and most recently Derik Johnson. 

(Nathan can be reached at nathanfournier@mainehockeyjournal.com)