Make that two Anthoines committed to Hockey East Schools.

Connor Anthoine, a 14-year-old St. Dom's freshman from Auburn who plays hockey for the Portland Junior 'B' Pirates of the Metropolitan Junior Hockey League, announced this week a verbal commitment to play for the University of Vermont, with plans to join the Catamounts in the fall of 2011.

Anthoine, a 5-foot-9-inch, 165-pound left wing, is believed to be the first 1993-born player in the country to commit to a Division I college team.

"It's fast, but there was a lot to it," Anthoine said Tuesday. "I went for a visit, and that's when they offered me a scholarship. That was almost a month and a half ago."

Anthoine said he'd also been to the University of Maine.

"I wanted a small-town feel," Anthoine said. "I didn't want to be in a bigger city, like in Massachusetts, and I wanted to play in Hockey East, so I could be close to my family so they could come to watch me."

Another piece to Anthoine's decision-making puzzle was his brother, Mark, who verbally committed to Maine last winter.

"Obviously, it would have been unbelievable to be able to play hockey with him," Connor said. "But at the same time, I can't always be following in his footsteps, I can't always be Mark Anthoine's little brother."

Plus, he added, "Burlington (Vermont) is a great place. I loved it there."

Kevin Sneddon, the Catamounts' head coach, is not allowed by NCAA regulations to comment on a recruit until they sign a national letter of intent, which typically occurs in the fall of the player's senior year in high school. The player must also be admitted to the school.

According to a compliance official at the University of Maine, contact is allowed between coaches and potential recruits at any time, as long as the player initiates the contact.

Through 26 games with the Pirates this season, Anthoine has nine goals and 12 assists for 21 points.

"We are excited for Connor and his commitment," Junior Pirates' president and head coach Sean O'Brien said in a release posted to the team's Web site. "He has a special skill set that we know will only get better. UVM is very fortunate to nab someone with his skill and passion for the game."

Anthoine's team and the players against which he plays are usually 18 or 19 years old. He's only 14.

"You try not to think about that when you're playing," Connor said.

Last summer, Anthoine was selected to the U-14 Team New England team and competed in the USA U-14 National Camp. This April, Anthoine is scheduled to compete for the North American East Coast Selects team, which will compete in tournaments in Russia, Finland, and Sweden.

His goal later in the summer is to try out for the USA U-16 National team. He's also eligible as a 1993 birthday for this year's USHL draft, and could end up in that league, where his brother plays for the Chicago Steel.