Aston, PA – The Philadelphia Little Flyers are proud to announce 1997 birth year defenseman, Evan Heldt has committed to attend The University of Massachusetts Boston in the fall of 2017 to continue his education and hockey career.  Heldt, a 6’3” 205lb native of Sylvania, Ohio is playing in his second full season for the Little Flyers in the Eastern Hockey League.  Heldt has played 72 games during his time with the Little Flyers, scoring 8 goals and adding 24 assists.  The UMass Boston Beacons, coached by Peter Belisle play in the New England Hockey Conference and recently made their only frozen four appearance in program history during the 2015-16 season.  “I’m very happy for Evan, proud of him for his commitment to UMass Boston, Coach Belisle and Coach Walsh run a great program there.  Evan has had a successful career with our Little Flyers program; he has grown physically, mentally and from a maturation standpoint.  As a player on the ice he has evolved from a depth defenseman to a top pair guy that is able to play in any situation.  He has taken on a leadership role as an alternate captain this year and I think this is a great opportunity for him after two years of junior hockey to move on to start his NCAA career and we certainly wish him all the best when he begins his career as an NCAA student athlete” said Little Flyers General Manager and Head Coach Rocky Russo.  As noted by Russo, Heldt is an Alternate captain for the 2016-17 season.

                “I’m excited to go to UMass Boston and be a part of the great program they have.  There are a lot of people I need to thank for getting me there.  First off I want to thank my parents for supporting me all these years, all the time and money it takes to get to this point I’m grateful for them.  Thank you to my friends for being there and supporting me.  I’d like to thank the coaching staff here at the Little Flyers; Coach Russo and Coach Lewis helped me get to this point and supported me through my time here.  Also, I’d like to thank the Little Flyers organization and the Giacobbo family for providing us with the means to succeed.  The program at UMass Boston is one of the best in the country and I’m super excited to be a part of it” said Heldt upon announcing his intentions for the fall of 2017. 

                  Heldt will be the fourth Little Flyer alumni on the Beacons roster next season, as current sophomores Drew Gannon, Garrett Gallagher and the EHL’s 2014-15 Defenseman of the Year Gabe Chuckran all played junior hockey for Coach Russo and the Little Flyers organization.