Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Justin Fontaine Signs With Wild

More UMD stuff coming Wednesday, but I wanted to pass along news of an NHL team signing a UMD player.

This time, it's not an early departure, and it's not a shock.

The Minnesota Wild announced a two-year deal with former Bulldog Justin Fontaine Tuesday.

Fontaine capped a marvelous career at UMD by helping the Bulldogs win their first NCAA title. He ended his four years among the school's most prolific offensive players of all-time, ranking 16th on the school's all-time list.

In 159 games at UMD, Fontaine scored 62 goals and had 102 assists for 164 points. He is the first Bulldog player since Mike Peluso (1994-98) to average a point per game over a four-year UMD career.

Fontaine opted to stay in school after his junior year, deciding to take one more crack at a national championship. He got his wish.

Now, he moves on to an organization he impressed during last summer's rookie camp.

"I had a great time last summer, getting to know a little bit about their program," said Fontaine of his time at the camp. "I'm ready and happy to be a part of the organization. I've wanted to go there since last summer. I had a great time and met a lot of great people." 

Fontaine had a great college career, especially when you consider that he scored just 12 points during his freshman season.

It's expected that fellow senior and team captain Mike Montgomery has a pro contract waiting for him, but we have not gotten any word yet where or when he will put his John Hancock Mike Montgomery on a contract.

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