By Nate Ewell

Two Canadian freshmen defensemen will take the ice Saturday night at TD Garden and play key roles as Boston University and Providence play for the national title.

Neither BU’s Brandon Hickey (Leduc, Alta./Spruce Grove-AJHL/CGY) nor Providence’s Jake Walman (Toronto, Ont./Jr. Canadiens-OJHL/STL) were named to the Hockey East All-Rookie Team, but that speaks more to the quality of the league’s rookies than to their performance. The two third-round NHL Draft picks last June are impressive players with bright futures ahead.

Both were instant impact players in the fall and have steadily improved during the course of the season. They have enjoyed unique paths to college hockey’s biggest stage, and one will walk away Saturday night as a national champion (7:30 p.m., ESPN, TSN2).

BRANDON HICKEY

Nearly four years ago, on April 20, 2011, Brandon Hickey took the ice at the rink in Spruce Grove, Alberta, about 45 minutes from his Leduc home. Hickey would go on to play junior hockey in the same rink, but this event was about U.S. college opportunities.

Staged by College Hockey Inc., Hickey was among 70 players who learned about NCAA opportunities and skated in front of 13 NCAA coaches in attendance.

Hickey would be drafted in the fourth round of the WHL draft just weeks after the event in Spruce Grove, but as he took the ice there, he wasn’t sure what his future held.

“I was on the fence there,” he said. “That was just before the WHL Draft. I was on the fence when I went to that to see if college would be the right place for me.

“It had a big impact. Hearing all the stories about the schools and what it’s like on campus, that really had an impact on me.”

Four years later, Hickey is starring for BU, one of the schools in attendance that day, and is a third-round pick of the Calgary Flames.

Hickey’s development as a freshman has been remarkable, and it started before fall classes even began. A rigorous workout schedule helped Hickey add 12 pounds of muscle in the summer alone. Now playing at 195 pounds, the added strength has helped his game – and the improvements haven’t stopped there.

“My skating, my offensive play, my defensive play – it has all gotten a lot better,” Hickey said. “The coaches have been great, working with the coaches on every aspect of my game. I couldn’t be happier with the way I am developing.”

JAKE WALMAN

This is the third anniversary of Jake Walman’s OHL draft year, when he played forward for the North York Rangers. A lot smaller and playing out of position, he watched the rounds pass by and never got a call from an OHL team. That got him thinking about his options.

“When the draft happened and I wasn’t selected we immediately thought about what my options would be, and NCAA was the clear route,” he said. “It turned out for the better. I’m getting much better development here. The time with coach Nate [Leaman] and the assistant coaches has been great for my development.”

Saturday, while OHL teams conduct their 2015 draft, Walman will skate for the national championship with the Friars. And he knows other kids are bound to find themselves in the same position.

“I have a lot of family friends back home and a lot of kids who went through the same situation as me and got passed over,” Walman said. “I guess I’ve tried to live it up for those guys, being a role model and trying to do the best I can to show them there’s another path.”

The path that brought him to Providence seems to be leading to a bright future. The third-round Blues pick has grown in stature and ability since arriving on campus.

Walman’s weight gain last summer actually dwarfs Hickey’s. He added 30 pounds and now plays at 195, just like Hickey. He admits the 30 pounds weren’t all muscle, but strength training has been a huge benefit.

“Before coming here the off-ice thing wasn’t really in my routine,” he said Friday. “Here, during the season we’re in the weight room twice a week. I’ve definitely learned a lot from our strength coach, Coach Rick [Blackadar], and it’s definitely helped my on-ice game. I’m able to battle in the corners with bigger guys. Coming in, playing against older guys, it’s tough to compete at first, but I’ve learned and being in the weight room definitely helped my strength.”

Unlike Hickey – who has three fellow freshmen defensemen patrolling the BU blueline – Walman has leaned on a wealth of experience at the position in Providence.

“I had the opportunity to learn from the upperclassmen, especially on the defensive end,” he said. “Coach paired me with [Anthony] Florentino and [John] Gilmour, and I had the opportunity to play with Mark Adams for a bit. Those guys have been here before and I’ve taken what I could from them.”