Corban Knight commits to UND

From the press box, we could see a recruit on the bench for warmups during the Sioux-Gophers game this weekend.

As the lights dimmed, the pre-game video played, and the crowd roared 10 times louder than usual, I turned to USCHO's Pat Miller at my right and (halfway) joked: "How long until that guy commits?"

The correct answer would have been 12 hours.

Okotoks Oilers forward Corban Knight committed to UND coaches before he left Grand Forks this weekend.

"The entire trip was an unbelievable experience and I loved everything," Knight said. "My dad came down on the trip with me and it was obvious to us that this was the place. We just felt like it was the right choice."

Knight is from High River, Alta., a town just outside of Calgary. He said he knew Brad Eidsness while growing up and played on Okotoks with him last season. He said he skated with Ryan Duncan once last year in Alberta and had the chance to go to dinner with Duncan and Duncan's parents in Grand Forks over the weekend.

A little background on Knight:

He's an all-star in the AJHL and will play on Andrew MacWilliam's team in the all-star game later this month.

He was the MVP of the prestigious Mac's AAA midget tournament in January 2008. Past MVP's of that tournament include Zach Parise and Ryan Malone.

He has an option to come next year, but will evaluate how the rest of the season goes. Will be a 2009 or 2010 recruit.

He was rated a 'B' player by Central Scouting, which means third- to fifth-round. But in today's mid-term rankings, Knight was not listed.

Posted by: Schlossman on Monday, January 12 at 10:11 PM | Comments (13) | Permalink