BEMIDJI, Minn. - Bemidji State University head men’s ice hockey coach Tom Serratore today announced the signing of six players to National Letters of Intent for the 2004-05 season. Joining the BSU roster will be goaltender Matt Climie, forwards Blaine Jarvis, Tyler Lehrke, Brendan McIntyre and Matt Pope and defenseman Riley Weselowski.

The 2004 spring class adds size to the Bemidji State roster, as four of the six spring signees stand taller than six feet and four are 190 pounds or more - with two 200-pounders.

“We didn’t prioritize size, but we also wanted to upgrade in that area without sacrificing speed or skill,” BSU assistant coach and recruiting coordinator Ted Belisle said. “We didn’t go looking for size, but we definitely feel we’ve upgraded in that area.”

• Matt Climie (G, 6-2, 190; Leduc, Alberta, Canada./MJAHL-Truro) - Matt Climie joins the Bemidji State roster after two years as a dominant netminder for the Truro Bearcats of the Maritime Junior ‘A’ Hockey League. In 2003-04, he posted a 30-10-5 record and led the MJAHL with a 2.61 goals-against average. He rolled up 1,377 saves in 2,724 minutes played last year, saving at a .920 clip.

Climie was a two-time Bearcat Player of the Week, earning the honor in consecutive weeks on Feb. 16 and Feb. 23, 2004. The Feb. 16 award came after he had faced 98 shots in two games, leading the Bearcats to a split with Yarmouth and Campbellton, and the Feb. 23 award followed a 29-save shutout of Antigonish.

He was selected to the 2004 Cavendish Cup first-team as an MJAHL All-Star, and following the season was named Season MVP and with teammate Daniel Turner won the league’s “Best Goaltending Duo” award.

Climie’s 30 wins in 2003-04 tied for sixth in the Canadian Junior A Hockey League, and he was fourth with a .921 save percentage. The CJAHL comprises 137 teams in 10 member leagues.

• Blaine Jarvis (W, 6-1, 204; Gladstone, Manitoba, Canada/BCHL-Salmon Arm) - Blaine Jarvis originally announced his intentions to join the Bemidji State program two years ago, inking a National Letter of Intent during the spring 2002 signing period. He will officially be added to the roster for 2004-05 after spending the last two seasons as a forward for the Salmon Arm Silverbacks of the British Columbia Hockey League.

Jarvis helped lead Salmon Arm to a BCHL Interior Division championship and a berth in the BCHL championship series in 2004, as the team finished the regular season with a 42-17-1 record. He rolled up 20-35=55 points for the Silverbacks during the regular season, sixth on the team. His 35 assists were also sixth-most on the team, while his 20 goals scored tied for seventh on the roster. However, he was third on the team with 10 power-play goals, helping fuel a Salmon Arm power-play unit which ranked seventh in the BCHL with a .226 power-play efficiency.

Jarvis tied for 15th amongst all BCHL players with 9-8=17 points in the 2004 league playoffs.

He scored 25-27=52 points for Salmon Arm in 2002-03, tied for sixth on the team, and added 6-2=11 points in the BCHL Playoffs.

Jarvis was the 2002 Manitoba Junior Hockey League Rookie of the Year after scoring 42-42=84 points in 64 games for the Neepawa Natives. He was named Team MVP and won the team’s plus-minus award after finishing the season +49. He was twice named MJHL Rookie of the Week.

• Tyler Lehrke (F, 5-9, 165; Park Rapids, Minn./Park Rapids H.S.) - Tyler Lehrke joins Bemidji State after a standout prep career at Park Rapids (Minn.) High School. In 26 games for Park Rapids-Menagha last year, Lehrke broke his own school single-season record with 34 goals scored and shattered the school record with 45 assists and 34-45=79 points. He also crushed the school’s career scoring record, finishing his stellar career with 192 points - 58 points beyond the previous record. He’s the school’s all-time leader in goals, assists and points.

Lehrke finished second on the team in scoring with 32 points as a sophomore, then scored 31-25=56 points to lead the team as a junior. He became the first 30-goal scorer in school history, and his 25 assists also led the team. His breakout senior season saw him break his own school record for goals, and his 79 points as a senior were 14 beyond the previous single-season record set by Darin Hafner in 2000.

In 2004, Lehrke won the Minnesota State High School League Hobey Baker Character Award and earned All-Section and All-Conference honors. He was team MVP and an All-Mid State Conference pick as a junior in 2003. Lehrke was also a two-time All-Conference selection in baseball.

Lehrke was a Ted Brill Great Eight selection after his senior season as a forward on the Section 8A-8AA team, coached by Dave Morinville of Moorhead. He scored 1-2=3 points in the consolation finals.

While having signed a NLI for 2004, Lehrke will play junior hockey in 2004-05 and will join BSU at a later date.

• Brendan McIntyre (F, 5-8, 176; Orleans, Ontario, Canada; CJHL-Cumberland) - Brendan McIntyre joins Bemidji State after a three-year stint with the Cumberland Grads of Ontario’s Central Junior ‘A’ League. He rolled up 161 points in three years with Cumberland and has been a two-time CJHL All-Star.

In 2003-04, McIntyre scored 23-36=51 points, fourth on the team. His 23 goals were tied for third on the team, and his 36 assists ranked him fourth amongst his teammates. He was also sixth on the team with 106 penalty minutes. His 51 points ranked him 21st in the CJHL. He participated in the 2003-04 CJHL All-Star Game as a member of the league’s second All-Star team. He also was named second-team All-CJHL.

In 2002-03, he finished second on the team with 24-48=72 points and helped lead Cumberland to the CJHL regular-season championship. His 24 goals were fourth on the team and his 48 assists were third. He was also named to the 2003 CJHL All-Star Game.

McIntyre was a CJHL Rookie All-Star game participant in 2002 after a 10-20=30-point debut campaign. Prior to joining the Grads, he helped lead Eastern Ontario to a 2001 Major Bantam championship.

• Matt Pope (F, 6-1, 175; Langley, British Columbia, Canada; BCHL-Langley) - Matt Pope joins Bemidji State after a high-scoring season with the Langley Hornets of the British Columbia Hockey League.

Pope finished second on the team in scoring with 27-44=71 points in 60 games played, one of just two players on the team to score more than 59 points on the year. His 27 goals tied for third on the team, and he led the squad with 44 assists; no other Hornet player had more than 32.

Pope was a fixture on Langley’s first line throughout the season. The Hornets finished the campaign with a 19-36-1 record and did not earn a berth in the BCHL playoffs. Pope was named Langley’s “Best All-Around Player” for 2004.

Pope also played for Langley during the 2001-02 and 2002-03 seasons.

• Riley Weselowski (D, 6-1, 175; Pilot Mound, Manitoba, Canada; MJHL-Neepawa) - Riley Weselowski is the only defenseman amongst Bemidji State’s 2004 spring signees. He comes to BSU after a standout season with the Neepawa Natives of the Manitoba Junior Hockey League, where he was one of the league’s leading offensive defensemen.

Weselowski was the MJHL’s highest-scoring defensemen, leading the league’s defenders with a team-high 20-40=60 points. His 20 goals tied for second amongst MJHL defensemen, as did his 40 assists. He tied for 17th in the MJHL amongst all players in assists, and he tied for 14th in the league with four game-winning goals.

Weselowski was named MJHL Player of the Week on Dec. 14, 2003 and eventually was the league’s Defenseman of the Month and was runner-up for Player of the Month for December, 2003. He led the entire league with six goals scored and also had two assists leading up to his Player of the Week award, and helped Neepawa sweep its four games during the week. He led the league’s defensemen with 15 points in 10 games en route to his Defenseman of the Month honor. He was runner-up for Defensive Player of the Month in November, 2003 and won Defensive Player of the Month for September/October.

He was named one of three finalists for the Steve “Boomer” Hawrysh Memorial Trophy, awarded to the MJHL MVP, and was a 2004 MJHL Sherwood Division All Star.

Weselowski was also named to the 2003 MJHL Rookie All-Star First Team.

“We feel this class gives us a group of kids with a great deal of character,” Belisle said. “Their impact may not be felt immediately, but they’ll make their presence felt down the road. This class is exciting because we’ve upgraded our size without sacrificing speed or skill. They’re quality kids who will challenge for spots immediately, and we look to them as the future of our program.

“This is just a class of good hockey players,” Belisle added. “They’re well-rounded; we look for balance in our players, but each player brings his own dimension which we feel will help this hockey team. We feel they will be good matches for our program.”

The spring signees join defenseman David Deterding who inked with the Beavers during the early period last fall and brings BSU’s signing class for 2004-05 to seven.

Bemidji State finished the 2003-04 season with a 20-13-3 record, marking the program’s first 20-win season since making the jump to Division I in 1999, and won the R.H. “Bob” Peters Cup, awarded to the College Hockey America regular-season champions. BSU set school records for Division I-era victories (20) and points in CHA play (33), and also set a conference record with 16 victories in CHA play. The Beavers finished with a five-point cushion over second-place Niagara, the largest margin by any winner of the six Division I men’s hockey conferences. It was the first conference title in BSU’s Division I era.

• Fall 2003 early-period signee / # Spring 2002 commitment