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The UConn men's hockey team picked up a commitment Wednesday from USA Hockey National Team Development Program defensive standout Joseph Masonius, the program confirmed to The UConn Blog.
Masonius was originally committed to the University of New Hampshire, but there were issues with the admissions process, according to Mike Anthony of the Hartford Courant. He will join Mike Cavanaugh's team this fall.
Masonius stands at 5'11'' and 177 as a '97 defenseman.
— Will Moran (@goalmouthradio) July 1, 2015
Masonius, a native of Spring Lake, New Jersey, spent last season in Ann Arbor, Michigan with the U.S. U-18 national team, where he was teammates with Tage Thompson, another member of UConn's freshman class. He was the team's second-leading scorer among defensemen with 29 points in 60 games. Against collegiate opponents, he led all defensemen with 10 points.
Born in 1997, Masonius was eligible for June's NHL Entry Draft, but he did not hear his name called.
UConn now has two freshmen defensemen who could make an immediate impact. Miles Gendron was the 70th overall pick by the Ottawa Senators in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft.
Check out some of Masonius' highlights from last November below.