On Monday, Samuel Knoblauch (U-D Jesuit, 2016) announced on Twitter that he had verbally committed to play college hockey for NCAA UMass-Lowell. He becomes the 11th MI-HS alum currently to make a D-I commitment and the first to do so from the CCHL.

Proud to announce I've committed to play D1 hockey at Umass Lowell. So grateful to all those who have been there for me over the years!

— Sam Knoblauch (@sknobs17) November 20, 2017

Knoblauch played three seasons of high school hockey for the Cubs, appearing in three straight Division-I Final Fours while playing in 86 games while scoring 67 goals and 138 points during his career. From there, he went to the CCHL where he’s spent the last two seasons at Carleton Place. Knoblauch currently leads the league in scoring with 18 goals and 47 points in 32 games, as the Canadians sit in first place with a 28-2-0-2 record.

The CCHL has proven to be a successful pipeline for producing Division-I college hockey players. Last season, 64 players on NCAA rosters stemmed directly from the CCHL’s 12-team league. Knoblauch is the seventh player from the Canadians’ 2017-18 roster to commit to a Division-I school.