Three Players With Ties To Ferris State Hockey Invited To New York Islanders Prospect Camp

Big Rapids, Mich. - A trio of players with ties to the Ferris State University men's ice hockey program received invitations are representing the Bulldogs in the New York Islanders National Hockey League (NHL) Prospect Development Camp this week.

Forward Gerald Mayhew, who will be a senior for the Bulldogs this coming year, along with former FSU captain Kyle Schempp and incoming freshman signee Keeghan Howdeshell all received invitations to take part in the Islanders' development camp.

The prospect camps give NHL clubs the opportunity to evaluate some of the game's top prospects from the junior, collegiate and professional levels.  Players take part in daily intrasquad contests along with sessions on player development and on-ice workouts among other things.

Both drafted players and free-agent prospects along with invitees can participate in these camps, providing the NHL teams a chance to survey player skills, abilities, and growth.

Each NHL team runs its own development camp during the summer months, which includes their drafted prospects as well as a handful of players who are invited as guests. NCAA players must finance these camps on their own to retain their collegiate eligibility.

Schempp signed a professional contract with the New York Islanders after leading the Bulldogs to their second NCAA Final Eight appearance in the last three seasons in late March. He spent the past three seasons with the Bulldogs and served as the squad's team captain as a junior this past year. The 6-foot, 178-pound center posted 66 points on 29 goals and 37 assists in 121 collegiate games, leading FSU to the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) Final Five Championship and the NCAA West Regional Championship game.

Meanwhile, Mayhew paced the Bulldogs in scoring in 2015-16 with 41 points on 16 goals and 25 assists in 41 contests. He also finished with a squad-best 151 total shots in his junior season. For his three-year career to date, Mayhew has compiled 84 points on 35 goals and 49 assists in 117 collegiate games.

Finally, Howdeshell wrapped up his second season with the U.S. National Development Team during the 2015-16 campaign. He registered two goals and seven assists for nine points in 59 games. Previously, he played With the U17 team in 2014-15 where he appeared in 53 total games and scored seven goals along with six assists for 13 points. Before he was recruited by the NTDP, he played with the Compuware program at the U16, Bantam and AAA levels.

The Bulldogs, who are the defending WCHA postseason champions and coming off a NCAA Final Eight appearance, will embark on their 42nd campaign this coming fall and again face perhaps one of the country's toughest schedules as they seek their fourth trip to the NCAA Tournament in the last six years.

The 2016-17 schedule is highlighted by matchups against every other in-state Division I opponent from Michigan, including non-conference home showdowns against Michigan, Michigan State and Western Michigan inside FSU's Ewigleben Ice Arena. Overall, the Bulldogs will play host to five of the other six D1 programs from Michigan this coming year. This coming season will represent the first time in which the Bulldogs have faced every Michigan opponent in the same campaign since the 1995-96 season.

Along with the premier matchups against the in-state foes, the Bulldogs will also entertain conference rivals such as Minnesota State and Bowling Green as part of a 17-game home schedule. The Bulldogs will open up the 2016-17 campaign on home ice with one of the program's earliest starts ever as they play host to Alabama Huntsville on Oct. 1-2 in a conference-opening WCHA series.

The Bulldogs closed the 2015-16 campaign by making the program's fourth NCAA Tournament appearance, including the third in the past five years to date. Along with this past year's run to the NCAA West Regional Championship game, the Bulldogs also won the WCHA's Broadmoor Trophy as the league's Final Five Champion. It marked the first conference tournament championship in school history and came on the heels of conference regular-season titles in both 2012 and 2014.

Along with a Frozen Four berth and national title game showing in 2012, FSU also has reached the regional final and the final eight of the NCAA Tournament in both 2014 and 2016.