Edina's Hurley commits to Notre Dame

Junior forward Connor Hurley of Edina High School in Minnesota on Wednesday announced that he would be continuing his career at the University of Notre Dame.

The 6-foot-1.25, 172-pound center, who was being courted by Minnesota, Wisconsin, Minnesota-Duluth and Michigan State, is considered one of the top draft-eligible scholastic skaters for the 2013 NHL Draft. Hurley earned a B rating on NHL Central Scouting's preliminary rankings for players participating in scholastic high school hockey in Minnesota.

"The academics [at Notre Dame] obviously was a big thing that matters in my family," Hurley told the Minnesota Hockey Hub website. "They've got a great team now and they are getting a lot of good recruits in for the years to come."

Hurley has struck for eight goals, including three game-winners, and 15 points in six games with Edina (6-0-0) this season. He also played two games for the Muskegon Lumberjacks of the United States Hockey League this season, producing three assists and a plus-1 rating.

Hurley can take pride in the fact two former Edina standouts, forwards Anders Lee and Steven Fogarty, currently play for the Irish.

Lee, a junior, was chosen by the New York Islanders in the sixth round (No. 152) of the 2009 NHL Draft. He leads Notre Dame with 10 goals and 15 points in 15 games. Fogarty, a freshman, was selected in the third round (No. 72) of the 2011 Draft by the New York Rangers. He has three goals and four points.

Hurley isn't the only B-rated draft-eligible skater from Edina this season -- defenseman Parker Reno is also turning plenty of heads. The 6-0.5, 190-pound blueliner has nine assists for the unbeaten Hornets. Reno will attend Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute next fall.

Edina coach Curt Giles said Hurley can do a lot of special things with the puck at top speed.

"The neat thing about him is he can go at full speed, and he can see the play and read the play," Giles told Hockey Hub. "He's deceptively strong and can do everything. He can pass, shoot and he can skate."

Follow Mike Morreale on Twitter at: @mike_morreale