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Life is pretty good for BC High junior forward Pat Kramer right now. His team is fresh off a victory over three-time defending state champion Malden Catholic to improve its record to 6-0-1. To top it all off the Bridgewater, Mass. native committed to Merrimack College on Friday, as first reported by Mike McMahon of The Mack Report.
Kramer plays for head coach John Flaherty at BC High, a catholic school in Dorchester, Mass. Kramer also plays split season midget hockey for the Cape Cod Whalers U18 organization. Kramer has four goals and 12 assists, predominantly playing along side senior Steve DeForge and junior Jake Lemanski.
Kramer has tremendous vision and hockey awareness, but he has the speed and puck skills to keep up in Hockey East. He will most likely arrive in North Andover for the fall of 2016 after a year of junior hockey following high school. He could be pushed up to 2015 if necessary.
Merrimack has done well recruiting the high school alma mater of head coach Mark Dennehy. Former goaltender Joe Cannata, now with the Vancouver Canucks organization, and senior goaltender Sam Marotta are two former Eagles to have donned the Merrimack sweater. Former forward John Heffernan is another BC High alum to have played for Merrimack since Dennehy's arrival.
Kramer isn't the only BC High player to draw serious interest from college recruiters. Sophomore defenseman Ryan Shea has become a hot commodity after his strong play in some of the summer and fall showcase tournaments. Fellow sophomore blue liner Billy Roche is also a player that could attract the attention of college recruiters down the line.
Sophomore goaltender Brandon Payzant, senior defenseman Sam Topham and DeForge are three other names to keep an eye on for the future.
Jeff Cox covers college, junior and high school hockey, NCAA recruiting, NHL Draft prospects and the AHL for SBNation. Follow him on twitter @JeffCoxSBNation.