The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
Sports
8 — Wednesday, July 6, 2022
Adam Fantilli’s hockey journey worked toward development, not
comfort
On a long car ride from Chicago to
his home in Nobleton, Ontario, Adam
Fantilli’s family made a pit stop — a
detour years in the making.
Stopping in Ann Arbor to visit
the Michigan hockey program —
which his older brother, Luca, had
committed to a few months prior —
Fantilli got an up close look at one of
the many options for his future. As
one of the top prospects for the 2023
NHL Draft, he had the opportunity
to play anywhere he wanted, but
Fantilli’s focus was to pick a home that
would help him grow the most as a
hockey player.
“I’m a late birthday,” Fantilli told
The Daily. “So I thought playing three
years of major junior before being
even eligible (for the NHL Draft) was
not really the way I wanted to take
things because it’s hard to make the
NHL as an 18-year-old.”
That meant that Fantilli wouldn’t
immediately sign a major junior
contract like so many other top
Canadian peers had done — he needed
another path.
And in the quest to find the right
one, he found overlap with his
brother. From playing for Kimball
Union Academy in New Hampshire
to the United States Hockey League’s
Chicago Steel, the Fantilli brothers
played side by side.
But their journey wasn’t scripted
like that. They never planned to don
the same jersey each night — one with
their first initial squeezed ahead of
their last name. It just so happened
that the same programs filled each
brother’s separate needs — needs that
led both brothers to the Michigan
hockey team.
***
Adam’s decision to choose the
NCAA came quickly once he saw Ann
Arbor. He liked what he heard from
Michigan coach Mel Pearson, and
made his commitment shortly after
the visit.
But that decision went against the
grain of everything a Canadian hockey
player hears growing up. For decades,
most top Canadian junior players have
chosen to play in Canadian major
juniors leagues. Rarely have Canada’s
best young players taken the NCAA
route.
Of the top 10 Canadians picked in
the past 10 NHL drafts, just 11 played
college hockey — and that includes
last year’s picks Owen Power and
Kent Johnson, both of whom did
so at Michigan. Top Canadians in
college hockey continues to be a rare
occurrence.
But that didn’t distract Adam — and
Luca — from taking that option.
“They always said they wanted to
pursue hockey, so we felt it was always
best for them to keep all their options
open,” Adam’s father, Giuliano, said.
“And we made sure that their marks
were always really good, Adam always
took extra courses in the summer to
get ahead.The NCAA was always an
option from day one.”
Keeping options open meant that
even though he was one of the premier
prospects in his age range, Adam
couldn’t play major junior hockey
because it would take away his NCAA
eligibility. He continued the common
development route in his local AAA
league, the Greater Toronto Hockey
League’s U16 league, but he needed to
make sure his next hockey destination
didn’t shut any doors.
Luckily, his brother had already
found it. Luca had gone to the States
to play for Kimball Union Academy,
and he loved the program. After
visiting, Adam did too, in addition to
being close to his brother. So Adam
made a decision that baffled some of
his Toronto neighbors. He packed his
bags and joined Luca to play American
prep school hockey.
“We’ve always kept their hockey
careers separate,” Giuliano said. “…
When (Adam) went to visit his brother
down south, he missed him. And then
he saw the caliber of play down there,
which we aren’t normally exposed to
up here in Toronto, and he was like,
‘Wow, this would be a great option for
me.’ ”
Playing with Luca was just the
icing on the cake, as their father
described it.
But beyond that, the experience
provided plenty of benefits. Playing for
former Maine coach Tim Whitehead
— who won 250 games behind the
Black Bears’ bench — both Fantilli
brothers
sharpened
their
skills
against top American competition.
Both thrived playing for the Wildcats,
KATE HUA/Daily
and soon other junior programs
pursued them.
After he honed his game against
a higher level of competition, Adam
decided to push himself even harder,
and that took him to one of the best
prospect development programs in
America: the United States Hockey
League’s Chicago Steel — yet another
team that his brother already played
for.
“It kind of happened by fluke,”
Giuliano said. “… If it was a better spot
for Adam somewhere else, he would
have definitely done it. He wasn’t
going somewhere because of his
brother, that’s for sure.”
Chicago fit Adam’s needs perfectly.
It allowed him to play other elite
junior players without closing off a
path to college hockey. In fact, that
was the path that almost every one
of the brothers’ teammates took,
committing to an NCAA school. By
not committing to a major junior
program, Adam found himself in a
college hockey feeder system.
Still, major junior hockey was
never fully off Adam’s radar. The
USHL simply offered an opportunity
to play tougher competition without
jeopardizing his NCAA eligibility. As
a top prospect with his pick of junior
programs to play for, he prioritized
keeping his options open.
“It’s not like they’re closing the door
on the OHL or the Western League or
Quebec,” Chicago Steel coach Brock
Sheahan said. “That is still an option
for them. But if you go the other route,
you’ve closed off college.”
So Adam skated for Chicago
alongside his brother and Michigan-
committed
forward
Mackie
Samoskevich.
But back home in Canada, some
of his neighbors questioned Adam’s
decision. Sheahan noted that Adam
received hate mail for his decision, and
Giuliano fielded plenty of questions
about why Adam was playing in the
States.
“Other people just have Canadian
Major Junior (in mind), that’s all they
want you to do,” Giuliano said. “They
want you to stay in Canada and play
junior hockey, and they think it’s the
best route. And it is a great route for a
lot of kids.
“When people actually ask, and
we give an explanation on why we’re
doing what we do and we take Adam’s
birthday into account I think they
understand a little bit more.”
ICE HOCKEY
CONNOR EAREGOOD
Summer Managing Sports Editor
Photos courtesy of Chicago Steel
Read more at michigandaily.com