By Joshua Boyd / USPHLPremier.com
The Metro Jets have been the most successful USPHL Premier team since entering the league, with their .867 winning percentage ranking first since their inaugural 2018-19 campaign. So it’s no surprise when their college commitment list just continues to grow each year, as schools love a winner.
Northland College will be the next destination for four-year USPHL Premier veteran Brock Hart, who took his game to the Jets for the first time in 2023-24 and put up a fantastic 42 points in 40 regular season games plus 12 points in six postseason contests.
“I decided to commit to Northland College because of the beautiful town and the college is right on Lake Superior with all around beautiful sights,” said Hart, a native of Rockford, Ill. “Also because it’s a super small college and you can get to know everyone and be super close. With that especially you can have the 1-on-1 teaching and learning ability. They have also had a great hockey program throughout the years being in a competitive conference.”
Northland plays in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC), which saw three Division III national champions between 2013 and 2019.
For the Jets, Hart was second in time on ice (20:40), plus-minus (+93) and blocked shots (32). He helped push the Jets to their sixth straight Nationals qualification, running the table for their USPHL existence in that category.
“My thoughts on playing in Metro is they are top notch. Metro is such a great program for players like myself to grow as an individual on and off the ice,” said Hart. “To the coaching staff, to my teammates, everyone in that program is top tier people. You become a better human being every day once you arrive to the rink. The way the coaches develop you is like no other. There is no other program that does it better than the Metro Jets hockey.”
Hart originally began playing in the USPHL Premier in 2020-21 and he came to the Jets with 142 combined regular season and playoff games already under his belt.
“I thought it was great. Playing four years was a good learning experience physically and mentally. It takes a lot to wake up every day and play the sport I love. But that’s why I did it because I loved the sport and I loved every team I was on. I grew to become a more mature person everyday living with a billet family,” Hart added. “The league was good. Coming to play my senior year, there was really good competition and it was a tough start but then I adapted to the league and found my game. In all the traveling and all the showcases, it was good to get my name and my game out there to all the scouts and whomever was watching.”
Despite how much he has excelled and improved over his four years in the USPHL Premier, Hart knows he’ll still need to elevate his game to have success in NCAA hockey.
“The part of my game that I would want to work on more is involving more defense into my game. I am a super offensive defenseman, so I like to create offense off of my defensive skills,” said Hart. “So I would like to have more defensive ability at any point in a game.”
The USPHL congratulates Brock Hart, his family, the Metro Jets and Northland College for his commitment.
