Pittsburgh, Pa. - Robert Morris University men's hockey is please to announce the addition of six student-athletes to the Colonials program during the spring 2018 signing period. A trio of forwards, pair of defensemen and a goaltender have signed national letters of intent with RMU.

Forwards joining the Colonials are Kip Hoffmann, Connor MacEachern and Aidan Spellacy, the defensemen are Brendon Michaelian and Tyler Orban, while goaltender Reid Cooper rounds out the 2018 Spring NLI signees.
 
Hoffmann, a 5'11, 185 pound forward hails from Huntley, Illinois and plays junior hockey for the North American Hockey League's Janesville Jets. The 1997-born Hoffmann won a USA Hockey Youth National Championship on the 16U Tier I level with the Chicago Mission prior to heading to the NAHL. Hoffmann's championship with the Chicago Mission was won on the Colonials home ice in 2013 when Pittsburgh hosted Nationals.

Hoffmann served as Janesville's captain this season, leading the Jets to the Robertson Cup playoffs, ending the regular season fourth in the league in scoring with 60 points. In his four seasons with Janesville, the Jets have not missed the postseason. The Illinois native has played in 215 total games in the NAHL, recording 143 points on 63 goals and 80 assists, posting a plus-47 rating. Hoffmann has increased his offensive output each season, becoming more than a point per game player in the 2017-18 season.

"Kip is one of the most skilled players in the North American Hockey League," said Colonials assistant coach Michael Gershon. "Kip has developed into a 200-foot player during his four-year NAHL career and a player who can play anywhere in the lineup and will bring not only skill but speed to the program."

"Kip also brings leadership as the captain of the Janesville Jets," Gershon continued. "We are excited to bring a not just the player, but the person into the Colonial Family."
 
The next North American Hockey League signing is forward Aidan Spellacy, who hails from the same junior team as current Colonials defenseman Sean Giles and fellow 2018-19 incoming freshman forward Justin Addamo.

Spellacy is a 5'11, 175 pound forward from Lakewood, Ohio who played his junior hockey with the Lone Star Brahmas in the NAHL following time with St. Ignatius High School and the Team Ohio U18's.

Spellacy posted 21 goals and 31 assists in 133 career games in the NAHL, serving as a leader for the Brahmas and a solid two-way player.

"Aidan had a very good year with Lone Star as he was an alternate captain and a key contributor on both Lone Star's power play and penalty kill, which were both ranked in the top 10 in the the North American Hockey League," said Gershon.

"Aidan brings great intangibles to RMU as one of the hardest players to play against and gives nothing but 100% on every shift.  He is a 200-foot forward who will be just as effective in the offensive zone as he will be in the defensive zone," added Gershon.

"Aidan is another winner that comes to RMU as he was on the 2016-2017 Lone Star Brahmas that won the North American Hockey League's Robertson Cup as league champions. We look forward to Aidan bringing his contagious personality, character and will to win to RMU."
 
The final North American Hockey League signing comes from a team that's familiar to Colonials fans and has placed at least one player on the RMU roster for each of the last six seasons.

Michaelian, a 6'0, 175-pound defenseman, is a native of Wixom, Michigan and has played his junior hockey for the NAHL's Amarillo Bulls. Prior to his two seasons in the NAHL, Michaelian played youth hockey for the Victory Honda and Oakland Jr. Grizzlies organizations.

Michaelian served as a team captain for Amarillo, leading the Bulls in scoring this season with 34 points on 5 goals and 29 assists. The 20-year old Michigan native put up 8 goals and 40 assists for 48 points in 115 regular season games in two seasons for Amarillo.

"Brendon is another top North American League player and is a puck moving defenseman," said Gershon. "Brendon will continue the Amarillo Bulls/Robert Morris University relationships that has worked so well in the past."

"Brandon was also the captain of the Bulls and we looked forward to bringing his leadership to the Colonials, along with adding his skating and puck moving ability to our blue line."

The Colonials graduated a pair of Amarillo Bulls alums in 2018, senior forwards Brady Ferguson and Timmy Moore, who made up two-thirds of RMU's top scoring line this past season, both moving on to play professionally in the AHL and ECHL, respectively.
 

Turning to the Canadian junior leagues for the final three signings, first up is 5'9, 170 pound forward, Connor MacEachern.

MacEachern calls Brooklin, Ontario home and played his junior hockey for the Cobourg Cougars in the Ontario Junior Hockey League. He skated for Canada East U19 team in the World Junior A Challenge last year, scoring a goal and an assist in four games in the tournament.

MacEachern helped the Cougars win the RBC Cup in 2017, posting 24 points in 54 games in the 2016-17 regular season, adding 7 points in the playoffs and a goal and two assists in six games of RBC Cup action. Connor took his game to another level in the 2017-18 season, posting a total of 53 points in 52 games, scoring 23 goals and dishing 30 assists, including 11 points in 10 games in the playoffs.

"Connor had a breakout year during his second year as a Cobourg Cougar, as he doubled his previous points total and led the team in scoring during the playoffs," said Gershon.

"Connor is another skilled forward with good speed, who plays hard away from the puck and is responsible in his own zone," Gershon added. "He is already a winner at the junior level, having been apart of Cobourg's RBC Cup winning team last year. We look forward to Connor continuing his development and being a big part of the Colonials."
 
The next signing comes from the Central Canada Hockey League, Nepean Raiders defenseman Tyler Orban.

Orban is a 5'10, 150 pound defenseman and native of Stittsville, Ontario, who played youth hockey in the Ottawa Valley Titans program and Kanata Lasers midget AAA.

The 2017-18 season was the 2000-born Orban's first full season in junior A hockey, playing 58 games for Nepean in the CCHL, scoring 2 goals and adding 4 assists.

"Even as a young player in his league he stands out due to his athleticism, poise and skating ability," said Colonials assistant coach Kody Van Rentergem. "Every time I have seen him play it's an improvement from the time before it. We're really excited for his future as a Colonial."

 
The final signing comes from the British Columbia Hockey League, goaltender Reid Cooper.

Cooper, a 6'2, 180-pound goalie, hails from Corman Park, Saskatchewan and most recently played his junior hockey for the Salmon Arm Silverbacks in the BCHL, spending a season and a half with the Coquitlam Express as well. Prior to junior hockey, Cooper was part of the Notre Dame Hounds AAA program.

After making a fresh start with Salmon Arm, Cooper posted an 8-5-0 record in 16 games played, helping the Silverbacks to the postseason. Cooper recorded a shutout in those 16 games, putting up a 3.32 goals against average and a .889 save percentage.

"Reid is an extremely talented goaltender," said Van Rentergem. "He takes up a lot of the net with his size, skating and positioning."

"He's a fantastic person, easy to talk to and extremely friendly and kind," added Van Rentergem. "I'm really excited to have him joining us in the fall."

Those six signees will join a Robert Morris team coming off its fifth consecutive appearance in the Atlantic Hockey conference tournament final four, playing in the championship game in four of those five trips, winning the program's first NCAA berth in 2014. The Colonials have dominated the classroom as well as the ice, with 20 or more student-athletes making the Atlantic Hockey all-Academic team in each of the last eight seasons. Robert Morris men's hockey received its fifth consecutive NCAA commendation for its Academic Progress Rate following the 2016-17 season, ranking in the top ten percent of NCAA men's hockey institutions in eligibility, graduation and retention rates.


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