One year ago, London prospect J.J. Piccinich picked Boston University over the Knights.

Undeterred by the recruiting setback, then-GM Mark Hunter uttered the phrase the rest of the OHL and NCAA has come to hear so often: "But things do change."

It certainly appears they have.

Numerous reports are suggesting the 19-year-old right winger from New Jersey has informed his school he will leave Beantown and forfeit the final three years of his scholarship to play at Budweiser Gardens this fall.

The Knights won't confirm his signing at the moment, but go ahead and connect the dots.

Piccinich, in his freshman season at Boston University, only appeared in 25 of 41 games, scoring one goal and four points with a minus-6 rating. Last April, he didn't appear in the NCAA Frozen Four championship final when the Jack Eichel-led Terriers were upset by Providence for the national title.

In London, the 6-foot, 184-pound Piccinich has the potential to be a top six forward right away with an opportunity to chip in on the power play.

He was a fourth-round pick (103rd overall) of the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2014. The Buds are loaded with London connections -- from president Brendan Shanahan to Hunter and scout Lindsay Hofford down to their most recent first-rounder Mitch Marner, the Knights current scoring star.

Before playing in Boston, Piccinich spent two years with the Youngstown (Ohio) Phantoms of the United States Hockey League. One of his teammates there was Kiefer Sherwood, whose younger brother Kole, a Columbus Blue Jackets forward prospect, is on the verge of joining London.

The arrival of he and Piccinich would boost the Knights offseason signings of American forwards to five -- following Matt Tkachuk, Max Jones and Sam Miletic.

London took Piccinich in the sixth round (118th overall) of the 2012 OHL draft. It's starting to look like it was worth the risk.

ryan.pyette@sunmedia.ca

Twitter.com/RyanatLFPress