Two-time All-American and Hobey Baker finalist Hugo Boisvert will ink a deal with the Atlanta Thrashers next week, forgoing his final year of college eligibility at Ohio State.
The 23-year-old free agent, who was among the CCHA’s scoring leaders his sophomore and junior years, said his age was a factor in his decision.
“I’m getting old. I just think it’s time for me to move on,” he said. “I think I had two very good seasons, and I don’t know what I’m going to improve myself [at the college level].
“By coming back next year, I could have risked the money they offered me. And with hockey, you never know what can happen.”
Boisvert, who captured the CCHA scoring crown for the 1997-98 season, finishes his collegiate career with 58 goals and 99 assists in 121 games played. As a sophomore, Boisvert became the first hockey player ever to win Ohio State’s Male Athlete of the Year award, and he was the first Buckeye named All-American since Paul and Perry Pooley in 1984.
Boisvert said that signing with an expansion team gives him opportunities that he may not have with established teams.
“I’m very excited. I know they won’t have many skilled players from the draft. I think they’ll be a team with a lot of grinders who work hard. That [situation] would be good for me. I can’t start with a better organization.”
The terms of the deal have yet to be released.
Boisvert will become the second underclassman to depart Ohio State in the last two months. Goaltender Jeff Maund signed with the Chicago Blackhawks in April following his sophomore year.
