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NTDP U17 '99-born defenseman Max Gildon announced via Twitter that he has committed to the University of Wisconsin
Proud to announce my commitment to the University of Wisconsin! Thank you to everybody who has helped along the way! pic.twitter.com/DhdJNpYEaP
— Maxwell (@GildonMax) February 29, 2016
Gildon originally hails from the Dallas area, and is one of the most physically-gifted players in his age group. He was drafted in the third round of the WHL Bantam Draft in 2014 by Vancouver, though reportedly would have been the first overall pick if he had chosen to pursue the WHL route.
We ranked him as one of the top '99-born players in the country last year:
Max Gildon-D-Dallas Stars U16-Started the year as the top '99 on my list, and he'll end up there too. A very complete package for a young player. Tough and physical on the defensive end, and good offensive abilities on the other end. He moves pretty well for his size, but could smooth out his skating a little bit. Definitely an elite prospect.
This year, he's shown some growing pains moving from AAA hockey to the intense junior schedule the NTDP plays, but still has worlds of upside. From this past fall:
Max Gildon-Gildon has so much physical talent, but it's going to take some time for him to develop into a more complete hockey player. There were a lot of sloppy mistakes with the puck that will need to be cleaned up.
This is a major recruiting coup for the Badgers if they are able to keep Gildon committed and he continues to reach his enormous potential, and comes at a time when the Wisconsin program is desperately looking for positives amidst a second straight miserable season.