Sacratini Makes Division I Commitment

Jan 12, 2021

The Janesville Jets, proud members of the North American Hockey League (NAHL), are pleased to announce that forward Jake Sacratini has committed to play NCAA Division I hockey for the American International College Yellow Jackets of Atlantic Hockey.

“It means the world to me, to be able to give back to my parents who have sacrificed so much for me to be here,” Sacratini said. “It’s a dream come true.” 

Sacratini’s is the Jets’ fourth Division I commitment this season and the fourth under head coach Parker Burgess.

“We are thrilled for Jake and his recent commitment to AIC. Jake has been here since August and day one of main camp. He’s made sacrifices to be here and toward his development, and we are beyond proud that he is being rewarded for those sacrifices and his commitment to the game of hockey,” a statement from Burgess and Associate Head Coach Lennie Childs said. “Jake is an excellent hockey player but more importantly, he is a tremendous person and teammate. He pushes himself and his teammates every day and always puts the team first. Congrats to Jake and his family on his commitment to the first-class AIC program.”

Sacratini is the second Jet to commit to AIC, following forward Chris Dodero, who played for Janesville in the 2016-17 season and is currently a senior with the Yellow Jackets. 

AIC’s program has been playing since 1948, but has entered a new era of excellence under head coach Eric Lang. Lang, an AIC alum, is currently in his fifth season at the helm and took the Yellow Jackets from an eighth place Atlantic Hockey finish in his second season to a conference championship in the following year, 2019. The Yellow Jackets also won their conference tournament in 2019 and thus qualified for their first-ever NCAA tournament appearance, and took down No. 1 St. Cloud State.

The Yellow Jackets won the Atlantic Hockey championship in 2020 as well to qualify for last year’s NCAA tournament, which was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. 

AIC also has family ties for Sacratini. His father, Vezio, played for the Yellow Jackets from 1987-90, and tallied 163 points in 70 games, ninth-best in program history. His 114 assists holds the record for fourth-best all-time. Sacratini was also an ECAC All-Star in the 1987-88 and 1988-89 seasons, and was inducted as a member of the Yellow Jackets Hall of Fame in 2015. After college, he played on the Italian national team and his professional career spanned 17 years with stops in Italy, the United Kingdom and Canada. 

“The coaching staff at AIC is unbelievable and I felt a strong connection with them,” Jake said. “And my dad attended AIC years ago, so for me to be able to follow in his footsteps is something I’ve dreamt of since I was a kid.”

Prior to his arrival in Janesville, Sacratini spent two seasons at the Williston Northampton School in Massachusetts, where he scored 44 points in 55 games. In his first year with the Jets, the Montreal, QC native has tallied two goals in seven games with a +2 rating so far. 

“Something I’ll take away from the Jets to college is that nothing is given to you,” Sacratini said. “Everything is earned, and that’s in all aspects of life.”


2020-21 College Commitments

Shane Ott (F) – Niagara University, DI

Jordon Halverson (D) – University of St. Thomas, DI

Xavier Lapointe (D) – Rochester Institute of Technology, DI

Jake Sacratini (F) – American International College, DI