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USHL Youngstown Phantoms

Phantoms' Serratore Commits To Minnesota

March 3, 2010 - United States Hockey League (USHL)
Youngstown Phantoms News Release


YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio - Youngstown Phantoms forward and assistant captain Tom Serratore has verbally committed to skate for the University of Minnesota's Golden Gophers hockey team, one of the elite programs in NCAA Division I, beginning this fall.

"I feel honored and thrilled to get a chance to play for Minnesota," said Serratore, who has been offered an athletic scholarship. "I used to go to their games when I was young and everybody knows the Gophers and the fans are great. I really feel like my hard work has paid off."

The most experienced USHL player on the Phantoms roster with 116 league games under his belt, Serratore is tied for second on the team with 13 goals and his 24 points rank fourth. The Colorado Springs, Colo., native skated for the Sioux City Musketeers in his first two USHL seasons, registering 13 points in 69 total contests.

"Minnesota was keeping a close eye on Tom all year," Phantoms Head Coach/GM Curt Carr said. "They're a very skilled hockey team and he'll bring his speed, grit and determination to their lineup. He has a lot more skill than people give him credit for."

Minnesota, which has iced a team since 1921, has claimed seven national championships (most recently in 2003) and 12 Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) titles in program history. Current head coach Don Lucia has mentored the Gophers to eight NCAA tournament berths, including three appearances in the Frozen Four.

Lucia is the latest member of a strong Minnesota hockey teaching tradition which includes 1980 Olympic gold medal-winning coach Herb Brooks, who claimed three NCAA crowns in seven seasons with the Golden Gophers before helping author the "Miracle on Ice" as bench boss for Team USA in Lake Placid, N.Y.

"[The Minnesota coaching staff] said they needed a player like me," said Serratore. "They're looking for me to be a hard-working player and finish my checks."

Serratore, whose father Frank is the longtime men's hockey coach at the Air Force Academy, came to the Phantoms by way of the USHL Expansion Draft in May 2009 with a reputation as the ultimate team player. He'll now take that track record to the Olympic-sized ice sheet of Mariucci Arena on Minnesota's Twin Cities campus.

"After his first couple weeks [in Youngstown], I was very impressed with Tom as an individual and as a leader," Carr said. "Everything you hear about Tom is in relation to his work ethic and how he does the little things: block shots, go to the net and be physical. He sometimes plays with a complete and utter disregard to his own body and safety, but that's the stuff guys feed off of."

The Phantoms now have 10 players committed to play NCAA Division I hockey. Scott Mayfield (University of Denver), Dave Donnellan (Western Michigan University), Luke Eibler (Northeastern University), Cody Strang (University of Wisconsin), Jefferson Dahl (University of Wisconsin), Stuart Higgins (University of Maine), Brett Gensler (Bentley University), Taylor Holstrom (Mercyhurst College) and Andrej Sustr (University of Nebraska-Omaha) had previously reached deals to further their educations.

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