Kings prospect Ryan Conmy among NCAA’s top-scoring freshman in an impressive start to collegiate career

Prior to the start of the 2023-24 NCAA Men’s hockey season, the University of New Hampshire Wildcats were voted by Hockey East’s coaches to place 11th out of 12 in the conference’s preseason poll. Now 15 games into the season, Kings prospect Ryan Conmy and his team are sitting fifth in Hockey East, ranked nationally, and have multiple wins over Top-5 teams. You can’t point to one specific reason as to why UNH has exceeded expectations, but one of them is definitely Ryan Conmy.

Drafted in the sixth round in the 2023 NHL Draft, Conmy, a native of Alexandria, Virginia has been brilliant this season. Standing at 5–10 and weighing in at 188 pounds, Conmy has led the way offensively for the Wildcats.

With 22 points (10-12-22) in the 15 games this season, Conmy leads his team in the goals, assists, points, power-play goals, shots and plus/minus. That’s a lot of things. The freshman standout has been a go-to player in a veteran-heavy lineup. On a team with 16 upperclassmen, it’s the first-year player in Conmy who has earned a role on the team’s first line, accompanied by regular power-play minutes. With that opportunity, success has come for both himself and the team.

“I’m just trying to make the most of the opportunities that the coaches have given me,” Conmy said. “Obviously, you have to earn the spots on the first line and the first power play and stuff like that, but I’m just trying to take full advantage of it. Once you get there you don’t want to give it up.”

Unranked to begin the season, Conmy and the Wildcats wasted no time in finding out what their team was made of.

To begin the season, UNH played the #1 ranked Boston University Terriers once and the reigning National Champions, the Quinnipiac Bobcats (ranked #4 in the nation) twice in their first three games. What followed was a team that realized its potential. A 6-4 victory over BU and split with Quinnipiac brought belief to a team that had more potential than the Hockey East coaches thought.

“I think we as a team connected here really quickly,” Conmy detailed. “We were here for a month in the summer, a bunch of guys took a class and we skated together. We got an early start on getting to know each other and there wasn’t really a period of time where the locker room was separated between groups of older guys and younger guys. I’d say that definitely contributes to some of the some of the success we’ve been having. Obviously, the start that we had, we played against two of the top ranked teams in the country. So, you’re going to find out really quick what the what the team is made of. Going 2-1-0 in those three games against those teams was just an eye opener to kind of realize what this team can do.”

With four wins over ranked opponents, Conmy and UNH have put themselves on the map. From unranked to now 16th in the nation, UHN is in contention to establish themselves as a threat in Hockey East and true contenders for the year end NCAA Tournament.

The confidence that has grown within the Wildcats locker room and the confidence that Conmy is playing with during his freshman season have coincided. For the Virginia native, he credits his individual confidence to the team’s early-season success. The offensive-minded forward has built up the trust from his coaching staff to be able to play his game and play to his strengths.

“Confidence has been a huge thing for me the past couple of years,” he said. “Just being able to trust my shot, I think it’s one of my better assets and I have confidence in that. Just being able to trust that and know my team trusts me. Hopefully [my shots] go in or they create offense off of that, maybe it creates a rebound or just start starts an offensive shift, stuff like that. So I’m just trying to continue building my confidence.”

Ryan Conmy scores the first goal of the game to put the Wildcats on the board!

Game Day Central ➡️ https://t.co/XQZyjPxan4#BeTheRoar pic.twitter.com/kdn4dF2Xrb

— UNH Men's Hockey (@UNHMHOCKEY) January 6, 2024

Part of Conmy’s confidence took off when the shot-first forward was put with his current linemates Stiven Sardarian and Cy Leclerc.

The trio rank first, second and fourth on the team in points and all three play on the team’s top power play unit. The chemistry Conmy feels he’s built with his linemates isn’t just on the ice, but the time spent with each other off the ice has done nothing but make his bond and trust in Sardarian and Leclerc even stronger.

“Just getting to come to the rink every day and see [Leclerc and Sardarian] and just go into the dining hall everyone’s together, being able to be with them almost 24/7 and get to play with them on a line or even just playing some video games or just hanging out at a house, stuff like that, more of the off-ice bonding, I feel like is where we’re really connected,” Conmy detailed. “Then, you go on ice and build that trust too, it goes back to the summer. I feel like we kind of got a little bit of a head start on some teams that maybe didn’t do that as much. We’ve just built that trust, knowing where each other are on ice and practicing every day. If it’s line rush drills or breakouts or just being really talkative with them is something that I like to do as a linemate to have the best chemistry out there.”

While the season is off to a great start for Conmy, it hasn’t come easily or without adversity.

Conmy is not exactly an imposing player, standing at 5-10 and weighing just under 190 pounds. Being that he is undersized, the forward has had to learn how to be effective despite. In a sport that demands continuous learning and adapting, Conmy is focused on trying to mold his game and use his strengths to his advantage, while minimizing his weaknesses. Unable to control his height for obvious reasons, Conmy has his attention on using his speed to his advantage, puck protection and minimizing the effectiveness of the bigger players reach.

“I know I’m a little bit on the smaller side, so it’s just about trying to find ways to use that to my advantage,” he said. “If it’s maybe having like a step on a guy that might be a little bit bigger, maybe have a little more speed on a bigger defender and just taking them wide, things like that, but also just going into the corners, just trying to play bigger than I am honestly. Using my body as I can, I feel like I do have a pretty good frame for my size, but I just have to be able to protect the puck smartly and have to definitely continue working on things like that. So, I’m just trying to work on that and trying to develop and find ways to use my size as a positive. The coaching staff has been great in helping me with all of that.”

Honing in on Conmy’s speed, the forward’s motor is one of his best assets.

Combine that with his aggressive and unafraid manner, Conmy takes advantage of open space and open lanes, especially when that lane leads to the net. Slippery and nimble, Conmy has done a standup job this season in not letting his size limit his potential.

“With my speed, I feel like it’s a way that I can get an edge on some of the bigger guys,” he said. “Other than that, it is tough. It takes a lot more to find different ways to get stuff done. I’m still trying to figure out what little things I can do to make an impact when it comes to the details.”

While Conmy has been nothing short of impressive on the offensive side of the puck, the Virginia native is also focused on being an all-around responsible and trustworthy player. As he continues to develop as a prospect, that’s what will be required of him to take the next step in the NCAA and eventually, hopefully, beyond.

Focused on having the same impact on the defensive end as the offensive end, an unprovoked Conmy explained his game with an emphasis on being effective in every zone.

“I would definitely say I’m an offensive-minded player that likes to attack the net,” he described. “Going towards the net and creates offense, but also someone that’s committed defense too. Someone who will block shots and obviously not shy away from being a defensive player. So, still taking pride in that but obviously, at the end of the day when I think when I’m going out there, I’m obviously wanting to get the puck to the net and in the net. Whether it’s making a pass, taking it myself or just get my body there and wait for a shot from the point to hopefully create some offense. I try to create offense anyway I possibly can. That’s how I’d shortly describe my game.”

Having found plenty of success to start his collegiate career, Conmy ranks among the best freshman scorers on the season, ranking 14th in the NCAA and eight among Freshman in points-per-game (1.29). This past weekend, Conmy scored in each of his team’s two games, a pair of victories over Princeton. With just over half of the collegiate season remaining, UNH and Conmy will be ones to watch, as they chase down a berth in the NCAA Tournament.

Another late-round selection off to an exciting start, Conmy remains one to watch moving forward.