The College Of The Holy Cross is looking to head back to their championship winnings ways under coach Bill Riga. With a large freshman class coming in, who are the names fans will see on the ice for the Crusaders this coming season?
Bill Riga is back as the head coach of the Crusaders for his sixth season with the team, and he’s looking to bring Holy Cross his first conference title as the bench boss. With a plethora of freshmen set to join the team this season, who are these new names throwing on the purple sweater this season?
All entry years are from CollegeHockeyNews and are subject to change. Players are listed alphabetically by last name.
Cooper Conway –Left Wing, Dubuque Fighting Saints (USHL)
Conway saw success in the USHL this past season while also playing two games in the BCHL for the Salmon Arm Silverbacks (what a name, by the way). In his 32 games for the Fighting Saints, he had 21 points and a plus-minus of 10.
A crafty player who is known to be relentless on the forecheck.
Drew DellaSalla –Forward/Defenseman, Lincoln Stars (USHL)
DellaSalla is a very unique player; primarily a forward, he has the ability to walk down the bench and play on the blueline.
Similar to Conway, DellaSalla split time in the BCHL with the Chilliwack Chiefs along with the USHL. Across the two leagues, he combined for 49 games and 15 points.
Ryan Flaherty –Center, Rochester Jr. Americans (NAHL)
Flaherty brings a mix of edge and goal scoring to the Crusaders next season. He had a very impressive 2024-25 campaign for the Johnstown Tomahawks. He had 18 goals and 30 points in 57 games this past season in Rochester; he posted seven goals in 55 games with 33 points.
He also saw 91 penalty minutes in 2024-25 and 72 this past season.
Patrick Fortune –Left Winger, Nanaimo Clippers (BCHL)
Fortune was six points under a point-per-game in the 2024-25 season in Nanaimo; he followed that up with 52 points in 49 games this season.
At five-foot-eight, Fortune will be the shortest player on the team next season, but what he doesn’t bring in size, he brings in his skating ability.
Noah Jettelson –Defenseman, Cape Breton Eagles (QMJHL)
Jettelson is the only player on this list thus far who played major junior in Canada. The six-foot-two defenseman from Patterson, New York saw a lot of success in his only year in Cape Breton.
In 64 games, he had 26 points, and in the playoffs, he put up seven points in six games.
Preston Lounsbury –Left Winger, Moncton Wildcats (QMJHL)
Although he’s not from Moncton, Lounsbury has played an insane amount of hockey there. He played three minor hockey seasons in Moncton and then eventually played 262 games for the Wildcats.
He also put up a combined 29 points over his last two playoff runs while he was in the QMJHL.
Christian Maro –Right Winger, Vernon Vipers (BCHL)
Maro played three seasons in the BCHL, where in his final season, he split time with Vernon and the Coquitlam Express.
In that final season, he played 49 games, putting up 39 points. In his 20 games with the Express, he had 21 points with seven goals. The total of 17 goals this season was a career-high in junior.
Bode Sampair –Right Winger, Sherwood Park Crusaders (BCHL)
Sampair adds to the talent heading to Holy Cross from the BCHL. He finished as the third-highest scorer on his team this past season with 44 points in 40 games.
Sampair also lit it up in high school hockey in Minnesota, where he had an insane 73 points in 28 games.
Connor Towle –Goalie, Cape Breton Eagles (QMJHL)
Jettelson will be defending for a familiar face, as his goalie last season will be wearing the same sweater as him once again.
He went 12-8-6 with a .914 save percentage and a 2.65 GAA. Towle rounds out what should be a very promising freshman class for the Crusaders.
