Meriden
That wasn’t good enough for Lombardi, and it didn’t take the left-handed winger long to improve his trajectory. Adamant to about making strides both in the rink and academically, Lombardi is now among Kimball Union’s staunchest contributors as a senior.
Entering Wednesday’s game against Phillips Exeter, he led the team with 13 goals and 21 assists, and his grade-point average has risen from below 2.5 as a sophomore to 3.27 today.
The progress hasn’t gone unrewarded. Last week, Lombardi verbally committed to NCAA Division I Quinnipiac University, joining a Bobcats team that has appeared in the NCAA championship game two of the last four seasons and captured ECAC championships three of the last four.
Quinnipiac’s up-tempo offensive style should be well-suited for the speedy Lombardi, who’s worked tirelessly during the last several offseasons to improve his balance and agility.
Lombardi plans in April to sign a National Letter of Intent to join Quinnipiac, led by 23rd-year coach Rand Pecknold. The Bobcats, who set a program record with 32 wins last season, lost, 5-1, to North Dakota in last year’s national championship game, three years after falling to Connecticut rival Yale on the same stage.
“I’d have to call it a dream fit for me,” Lombardi said prior to Kimball Union’s Tuesday practice at Akerstrom Arena. “Watching them in the national championship game last year, I thought, ‘How awesome would it be to play for a team like that, who has a chance to play in that game every year?’ Then when I visited the campus, I just knew it was where I wanted to play.”
A native of Barrington, R.I., southeast of Providence, Lombardi also drew attention from hometown Providence College — 2015’s national champion — as well as UMass Amherst. Quinnipiac’s persistence in recruiting Lombardi ultimately helped to land him.
“They were around a lot last week. They visited Monday, and they were at (the Wildcats’ 1-1 tie at Deerfield) on Wednesday,” Lombardi said. “I committed to them Thursday.”
Lombardi, who spent his sophomore year at Barrington High and previously played for a Providence-based travel team, credits the heavily structured academic environment at Kimball Union for helping to improve his grades.
He also praises Wildcats coach Tim Whitehead, who emphasizes strong classroom habits. Whitehead previously coached at the University of Maine, where the Black Bears held a collective GPA of 3.0 or better for 13 straight seasons under his watch.
“I wouldn’t be where I am without coach Whitehead; he basically deserves all the credit,” Lomabardi said. “When I came in sophomore year, my grades were bad and I wasn’t sure exactly how it was going to play out here. He’s really helped guide me along the whole time. He, and the seniors who were here when I got here, guys like Dom Franco and Brendan Riley. They taught me a new level of respect for the game.”
Lombardi parlayed that into increased efforts to improve skills during the offseason. Back in Barrington during summers, he connected with Newport, R.I., resident and NHL scout Toby O’Brien, who doubles as a coach for Middletown, R.I.-based development and training facility Ocean State Hockey. Lombardi has worked with O’Brien, now the co-director of amateur scouting for the Florida Panthers, each of the last three offseasons.
“He’s really improved his agility and balance by miles,” said O’Brien, who previously scouted for the Buffalo Sabres and New York Islanders and had a stint as head coach and general manager of the ECHL’s Johnstown (Pa.) Chiefs.
“It’s all about body position and keeping your weight centralized, and he’s been very receptive to the concepts that have helped him do that. In today’s game, with today’s technology, we’re able to break down (skating form) so minutely, we can really see where small things are making players out of balance. He’s embraced (correcting) those things whole heartedly.”
At 6-foot-1 and 175 pounds, it isn’t Lombardi’s physical stature that grabbed the attention of recruiters. It’s the intangibles the Wildcats’ assistant captain possesses that have played a larger role, O’Brien said.
“When you look at Mike, his attitude, passion and humility have really allowed him to overachieve,” O’Brien said. “He’s got that authentic love of the game that you just can’t teach, that a lot of guys who might have better natural skills just don’t have. I think that attitude has really helped him overcome a lot of obstacles.”
Whitehead has called Lombardi’s ascendance inspirational, pointing toward the limited opportunities for North American high school hockey players to continue at programs such as Quinnipiac.
“There are 60 Division I hockey teams in the U.S. That’s a lot less than a lot of other sports,” Whitehead, who coached Maine to three NCAA Frozen Four appearances, said. “You’ve got your Ivy League schools that are really hard to get into academically, then you’ve got your bottom five or six schools where parents might say, ‘We didn’t send you to prep school to go there.’ That leaves even fewer teams that could be realistic options for someone like Mike, and he’s really done it the old-fashioned way. He brings so much energy and commitment and has been focused on improving every day.”
Lombardi entered KUA the same time as classmate Kyle Shero and junior Alex Heinritz, both of whom have shown progress similar to Lombardi’s, Whitehead said. Winners of the last five Lakes Region League titles, the Wildcats are aiming for their third straight appearance in the New England Prep School Athletic Conference Elite 8 tournament, which invites the top eight overall teams from NEPSAC’s small- and large-school divisions. Kimball Union appears on course, entering Wednesday’s game 21-3-1.
“It’s a great group. We’re not as experienced as we were last year and maybe not as talented,” Whitehead said. “But we’re a really tight team, and that can take you a long way.”
Jared Pendak can be reached at jpendak@vnews.com or 603-727-3225.