WCHA Instant Impact: Hunter Fejes (CC)

Next on the Instant Impact docket is Colorado College freshman Hunter Fejes.

Previous Entries:
Joey Benik, SCSU
Blake Tatchell, UAA

Hunter Fejes, F, Colorado College
Vitals: 6'1" - 192 lbs - 5/31/1994
Hometown: Anchorage, AK
Previous Team: Shattuck-St. Mary's Prep

Heading into the 2012-13 season, Colorado College will be returning the bulk of their experience on the blueline along with their full complement of netminders from a year ago. Perhaps the Tigers' biggest question mark this season will be generating offense after having lost three of their top four point producers, including All-WCHA left-winger Jaden Schwartz.

CC certainly received good news when Rylan Schwartz, Jaden's older brother, opted to return to school for his senior season, bringing his 23 goals along with him. But who is set to step into the Tiger lineup and help offset the loss of more than 40% of the team's goal scoring from a year ago? Enter freshman forward Hunter Fejes.

Fejes, an Anchorage, Alaska native who has spent the past few years attending Shattuck-St. Mary's School, is a big, physical, and fast left-winger who SSM prep head coach & Director of Hockey Tom Ward describes as a "great skater" with a "knack to score." Fejes isn't your prototypical playmaker, but instead projects as a skilled power forward who isn't afraid to go into the hard areas in order to make things happen.

Fejes spent the past two seasons playing for the SSM prep team, registering 28 points (14G, 14A) on the Sabres' 2010-11 Tier-1 Under-18 national championship team. He continued his progression with a 2011-12 season during which he scored a team leading 38 goals to go along with 40 assists. He also knows how to step it up when it matters most, leading the 2012 Tier-1 Under-18 National Tournament in points (eight) and goals (four) in six tournament games en route to helping SSM to its second consecutive national title.

As Ward mentioned, Fejes (like virtually all WCHA newcomers) will require a period of adjustment as he acclimates himself to the speed and strength of the NCAA game. But once he settles into his new surroundings, expect the Tiger freshman to be a dangerous goal scorer who will help lead the Colorado College offensive threat. Of note, Fejes was a sixth round selection of the Phoenix Coyotes in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft.