Miami RedHawks coach Anthony Noreen had no hesitation about making Ilia Morozov the youngest player in NCAA men’s hockey this season.
The early returns suggest Noreen made an excellent decision.
The 17-year-old Russian has four goals and five assists in six games for the 6-0 RedHawks, and is a big reason why Miami already has doubled its win total from Noreen’s first season with the Ohio-based squad last year (3-28-3). It is the school’s best start since 2007-08, and Miami is the only team with an unblemished record in the NCAA this season.
The connection between coach and player stems from Morozov’s early days in the Chicago area just two years ago after the Moscow-born forward moved away from home to further his hockey career. He quickly opened eyes during a pre-season futures camp with the then-coach of the USHL’s Tri-City Storm.
“When I got the job (at Miami), he was a guy right at the top of our list to go after right away,” Noreen said in a recent telephone interview. “If he didn’t have the ability and we didn’t think there was the skill level, you’re not going at him in the first place.
“The most impressive thing about Ilia, and this goes back to tendering him in the USHL, is aside from the ability, the mental make-up, the social skills, the academic skills, they have to be different than a typical kid their age. In a locker room with 20-year-olds in junior and then to be a 17-year-old playing against and in a locker room with 24-, 25-year-olds, it just takes a little bit of a different make-up.”
Morozov’s mother has very good English skills and Ilia said she encouraged him to learn the language and get an education in the U.S. A billet family in the Chicago area took him in and he started his North American journey playing for the Windy City Storm minor-hockey team, which is affiliated with Nebraska-based Tri-City.
“It was scary at first,” the six-foot-three, 205-pound Morozov said. “The first two or three weeks were kind of awkward because I couldn’t speak too much. But my billet family was really nice to me and I got through (the challenging period).”
Noreen saw more than enough to tender Morozov with Tri-City for 2024-25, a move allowing USHL teams to lock up a player before the draft by forfeiting top draft picks. However, Noreen never actually got a chance to coach his prized recruit in the USHL as he took a job with a rebuilding Miami program in the loaded National Collegiate Hockey Conference (home of seven of the past nine NCAA champs). Meanwhile, Morozov put up 11 goals and 11 assists in 59 games against older players with Tri-City.
When it came time to decide on a college, Morozov’s ties with Noreen loomed large.
“I think the biggest part (of why he chose Miami) is coach Noreen,” Morozov, who doesn’t turn 18 until August, said. “When he worked at Tri-City, he gave me a tender and after the season ended, he signed with Miami. He gave me an opportunity here.”
Morozov graduated early from high school, returning from a post-season trip back home to Russia in the summer to take one last course and settle in at Miami. Morozov is one of only five 17-year-olds in the NCAA, and has received far less exposure than two of the others (Penn State’s Gavin McKenna and North Dakota’s Keaton Verhoeff, who might end up as the top two picks in next year’s NHL Draft).
But Noreen had no doubt Morozov was ready to make his presence felt, too, after watching how he handled his individual work in the summer.
“He wasn’t the kid out there shooting pucks off the glass. He was doing skating drills, puck-handling drills, most days it would be 30 to 40 minutes before he’d even shoot a puck,” Noreen said. “Then he was in the weight room, in the shooting room, then across the street in the swimming pool, then on the climbing wall, then back in the shooting room.
“He’s just that kid, what he does, he excels at. That includes school, socially, how he interacts with people. Just an impressive young man.”
NHL Central Scouting gave Morozov a ‘B’ ranking in its preliminary outlook for the 2026 NHL Draft earlier this month, meaning he’s projected as a second- or third-round pick.
Morozov said he pays little attention to the rankings, but does have higher expectations.
“I want to be in the first round,” he said.
Added Noreen: “If he’s a B, I think some people are going to be very pleasantly surprised when they’re able to see him first-hand.”
Morozov will have the chance to play in front of plenty of scouts and raise his ranking during a gruelling conference schedule against powerhouses like North Dakota, Denver and reigning national champ Western Michigan. They’ll see a Miami team featuring a dangerous trio with Morozov, fellow freshman Kocha Delic (Sudbury Wolves) and Canisius transfer Matteo Giampa.
Noreen has coached guys like Kyle Connor, Matthew Knies and Shane Pinto in his USHL days, so he has a good idea of where Morozov stands.
“What I would say with Ilia is I believe he has the highest floor of any guy I’ve ever had,” Noreen said. “I’m not going to say he has the highest ceiling, that’s yet to be determined.
“But I just think his game and how mature it is and his mental make-up, and how hard he plays, the size — he finished first or second in every one of our testing categories, and if you look at him, he’s still a boy. He’s still got a lot of growing and filling out. He’s not one of those overdeveloped young guys who’s bigger and stronger than everyone. He’s going to get a ton stronger, he’s going to get a ton more skilled because he’s going to work at it.”
In the short term, Morozov is determined to make a big impact this season. While many might think Miami will falter once it hits the meat of its conference schedule, Morozov believes his team can be dangerous.
“We (have a) completely new team and all the guys are pretty good. Everyone competes hard and works hard. I’m really confident in the group.”
Just like Noreen is really confident in Morozov.
“We’d love to see him keep right on the pace he’s at,” Noreen said. “But having said that, I think his best hockey is way, way in front of him and that excites all of us.”
Friday, Oct. 31: Boston Terriers (3-3-1) at Maine Black Bears (3-2-1), 7 p.m. ET
A top-10, home-and-home series starts between No. 4 Boston and No. 10 Maine. Boston star Cole Eiserman (New York Islanders) suffered a lower-body injury against UConn last week and his timeline to return is unclear. Former QMJHL 50-goal man Justin Poirier (Baie-Comeau Drakkar, Carolina Hurricanes) leads Maine in scoring early in his freshman year.
Friday, Oct. 31: Blainville-Boisbriand Armada (9-3-2-0) at Victoriaville Tigres (6-5-1-0), 7 p.m. ET
The Armada finally have cooled down, losing two in a row. Highly-regarded 2026 NHL Draft defence prospect Xavier Villeneuve goes against perhaps the QMJHL’s best 2026 forward candidate, Egor Shilov of the Tigres.
Friday, Oct. 31: Saskatoon Blades (9-5-0-0) at Seattle Thunderbirds (5-7-0-0), 10:05 p.m. ET / 7:05 p.m. PT
The Thunderbirds now have first-round picks Braeden Cootes (Vancouver Canucks) and Radim Mrtka (Buffalo Sabres) back from the NHL, so they have a chance to rise in the standings. Saskatoon has a productive Edmonton Oilers pick in David Lewandowski.
Sunday, Nov. 2: Brantford Bulldogs (11-0-1-1) at Saginaw Spirit (5-4-3-2), 5:30 p.m. ET
The Spirit are coming off an impressive win over the Western Conference-leading Windsor Spitfires. Saginaw has two of the top three first-year scorers in the league in Nikita Klepov and Levi Harper. Born in Florida and raised in Russia, Klepov played on a tender with the USHL’s Sioux City last season before signing with the Spirit this season. He is eligible for the 2026 NHL Draft.
Sunday, Nov. 2-Saturday, Nov. 8: U17 World Challenge, Truro, N.S.
Many top players eligible for the 2027 NHL Draft will play at this tournament. Notable names on the two Canadian entries include Alexis Joseph (Saint John Sea Dogs), Chase Surkan (Brandon Wheat Kings), Ryerson Edgar (Niagara IceDogs), Aleks Kulemin (son of Nikolay, Kingston Frontenacs), Sam Roberts (son of Gary, Oshawa Generals), Kaden Aucoin (son of Adrian, Sarnia Sting), Eli McKamey (Victoria Royals) and Maddox Schultz (Regina Pats).
Discover more from 6up.net
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.