Mason Hriczov, one of New Jersey’s top goalie prospects, had to shrug off thoughts on his sub-par performance, by his standards, at one of the most important camps of his career.

He attended four camps overall over a span of four months last summer and the journey took him to Buffalo, Omaha and Ontario.

All that camp exposure was a result of Hriczov’s getting drafted by two leagues and receiving an invitation to USA Hockey’s annual development camps.

In April, Hriczov was selected by the Kitchener Rangers in the 13^th round, 262^nd overall, in the Ontario Hockey League draft. The OHL is one of the three preeminent junior leagues in Canada that make up the Canadian Hockey League and is a major feeder to NCAA Division 1 programs and the NHL draft.

Just a few weeks later, in May, he was picked by the Omaha Lancers in the seventh round, 104^th overall, in the United States Hockey League draft, which is the United States’ equivalent to the CHL.

There were serious options in front of him to weigh.

“Hockey’s getting real at this point. That was the first summer I took it very seriously,” he said. “I locked in. It’s a lot, but you just gotta push through it, I guess. You gotta love it. You just gotta play your best, every time, going to camps. Scouts are watching.”

The junior attended rookie camp in Kitchener not long after being drafted in May. USHL camp in Omaha followed in June. Then came the National U16 Camp for USA Hockey in Buffalo at the end of June before his first full training camp back in Kitchener in August.

“It was a lot of games, some practices,” Hriczov said of the U.S. development camp. “It’s great competition. It’s some of the best kids who didn’t make the national team, and guys have to work. A lot of scouts there. There were games I don’t think I played my best, but you just gotta work.”

Players from the National U16 Camp were chosen to play for the United States U17 Select Team that participates in the annual Four Nations Tournament every summer.

Hriczov didn’t make the cut.

“After that camp, I was like, I’m going to the gym every day. I put on a lot of muscle. I put on a lot of size,” he said. “When I went to rookie camp for Kitchener, they told me, you gotta get bigger. I kind of waited until after USA camp. I didn’t get to make the cut and I felt I just gotta take off now. And that’s what I did.”

Hriczov doesn’t like to remember bad things on the ice and loves forgetting about them. He kept that experience at the USA camp in the back of his mind, but he went straight to work. He had roughly seven weeks to make a plan and go on attack to make a strong showing at camp with Kitchener in late August.

All of the work added about 15 pounds to his 6’2” frame. Hriczov had reason to believe the team only wanted to keep him around for a cursory look at camp before sending him home. Hriczov was determined to make things go another way.

Once he hit the ice, he put on a show.

“Going up there was great. I go up there, play a great couple games. They tell me you’re going to stay for the week.” Hriczov said. “They had no intentions of keeping me, but I played, worked my butt off and got to stay there for the week and (then) they’re like, ‘We’re going to keep you for preseason. You did really good. We weren’t going to keep you after the first couple of days.’ So, I had a big summer.”

He wasn’t going to be the team’s starting goalie, or the backup, but his performance at training camp helped Hriczov make key moves up the depth chart for Kitchener. He is now next in line after the backup goalie, should anything happen. It almost became the best of both worlds for the time being. He can jump to Kitchener should he be needed and he returned to New Jersey for the 2025-26 season.

Hriczov still gets ample playing time with the Woodbridge Wolfpack U16 AAA team and the Morristown-Beard team welcomed him back with open arms.

After a whirlwind of a summer, the star junior still juggles playing club and high school hockey and the prospect of being called up to the OHL hovers above his head on a daily basis. For some, that might be too much to handle, but not for Hriczov.

“It’s great. They’re always watching you. The goalie coach (Jordan DeKort) is telling me, he’s always watching me. Just got to bring your A game every day. It’s great going up there, it’s fun. Kids are great, coaches are great, just got to enjoy it.”

In four games with Morristown-Beard so far this season, Hriczov owns a stellar .943 save percentage and also has a pair of assists.

He’s already one of the top goaltenders in the state. Now, he has a chip on his shoulder and that’s been bad news for everyone else in the Mennen Division and could mean the same for the Non-Public bracket once the state tournament rolls around.

“I think it’s been good. I mean, I think I could do better for club but I’m doing really well right now,” he said. “I have high expectations here for Mo-Beard, so I just got to live up to them.”