For immediate release: December 29, 2012

Surrey, BC - The Surrey Eagles Hockey Club is pleased to announce that goaltender Michael Santaguida has committed to attend the University of Vermont, beginning in the 2013-2014 season.

The Mississauga, Ontario native joined the Birds in late September and has been a large part of the team's success, posting a record of 13-5-1 with a 2.35 goals-against-average and a .930 save percentage.

"Michael is an extremely hard working goalie," said Eagles Head Coach and GM Matt Erhart. "All that work that he's put in shows in his numbers. He gives us a chance to win every single night, and that's all you can ask for as a coach. We're really happy for him, and he deserves it."

The University of Vermont is located in the city of Burlington. The Catamounts play in the NCAA's Division I Hockey East Association.

"I wanted to go to a place where the team wanted me and really wanted to invest in me as a player," said Santaguida. "That was the biggest thing for me, and especially for a guy that's my size. They looked past that and said that they still really wanted me."

Santaguida becomes the fifth member of the Eagles to commit to an NCAA school, joining Devon Toews (Quinnipiac, 2013), Michael Stenerson (Alaska Anchorage, 2013), Dan O'Keefe (Yale, 2014) and Brady Shaw (Bentley, 2013).

The Eagles would like to congratulate Santaguida on his accomplishment.