4/5/04
Joe Mahoney, N.J. Devils Scout, Dies After Long Illness
Joe Mahoney, a long-time New England regional scout for the New Jersey Devils, died of a diseased lung at Boston’s Beth Israel Hospital around 6:30 last night.
Mahoney, a South Boston native in his early sixties who lived with his family in Plymouth, Mass., had suffered from lung disease for quite a while. Even as his condition worsened, he could still be found at rinks whenever able. A true character, Mahoney always downplayed his condition, usually with a wry joke.
Mahoney was a hockey scout right to the end. Before the October 12th RPI at Providence game, Mahoney collapsed at the top of a stairwell. His conditioned worsened throughout the winter. Less than two weeks ago, despite the fact that he was strapped to oxygen tanks 24 hours a day and in significant pain, he asked his friend, NY Rangers scout Bob Crocker, to take him to the Beantown Classic. He was talked out of it, but, as Crocker says, “His heart and mind were still willing.”
Mahoney was born and raised in South Boston. An ironworker for most of his life, he hooked on with the Los Angeles Kings and scouted for them before joining the Devils organization, which deserves kudos for taking care of him right up to the end, keeping him on the payroll even as his health made it difficult and then virtually impossible to get to games.
In return, Mahoney was passionate about the Devils, and his three Stanley Cup rings were a source of immense pride. Among the current Devils he scouted for the organization were Brian Gionta and Jay Pandolfo.
Mahoney’s formal hockey-playing career was limited. So, too, was his schooling. However, he was sharp, versed in a wide range of subjects, and possessed a phenomenal memory for names, people, and places. If you walked up to him and asked him about some obscure jazz musician or minor leaguer from decades ago, Mahoney would likely be able to tell you the guy’s life story – and then some.
Mahoney’s range of contacts was extensive, and he knew everybody and managed to keep in touch with everybody. He truly enjoyed the company of the hockey community. The embodiment of the term “old school,” Mahoney is the kind of guy that is becoming almost a dying species as the NHL becomes increasingly corporate. He’ll be missed.
Mahoney escaped death about five years ago when a car he was driving was blindsided by a nun at an intersection. Mahoney was instantly knocked out, but his car, in gear, kept going forward across a backyard and right into a swimming pool, where it sank to the bottom. Luckily a passing off-duty officer saw the accident, raced to the pool, tossed a huge rock through the windshield and was able to pull the unconscious Mahoney from the wreckage. Health-wise, Mahoney was never quite the same after that accident, but he pressed on until he could press on no longer.
Mahoney is survived by his wife, Elaine, four children, and 10 grandchildren.
An autopsy is being performed. Once a time and date are set, Mahoney will be waked at O’Brien’s Funeral Home in South Boston, just as John Cunniff, another South Boston native and Devils employee, was in April 2002.
As soon as plans are finalized, we will pass along all wake and funeral information.
4/29/04
Pineault Leaves Boston College
Boston College 6’3”, 194 lb. freshman winger Adam Pineault, projected to go in the second round of June’s NHL draft, announced he was leaving BC today.
Playing primarily on the fourth line, Pineault had a 4-4-8 line in 29 games. He was a healthy scratch for the last six games of the season -- the Hockey East first round loss to BU (three games), plus NCAA regional wins over Niagara and Michigan, and the NCAA semifinal loss to Maine.
Look for Pineault, who accelerated his studies at Pioneer HS in Ann Arbor, Michigan while with the NTDP in order to come to Boston College a year early, to join the Moncton Wildcats, the team that drafted him in the first round (#4 overall) of the 2002 QMJHL draft. Ever since, Moncton has kept pressure on the Holyoke, Mass. native to sign.
Pineault, who turns 18 in a month, is being advised by Bobby Orr and the Orr Hockey Group.
4/29/04
Bowman Top Yank in WHL Bantam Draft
In today’s WHL Bantam Draft, held in Calgary, Alb., 14 U.S. players were selected, with 5’10” forward Drayson Bowman of Denver, Colorado being the top pick among the Yanks. Bowman, an highly-skilled offensive forward, was selected by the Spokane Chiefs with the eighth pick of the first round. Bowman played this season with the North Shore Winter Club Bantam AAA in North Vancouver, BC.
The top player overall was Lion’s Bay, B.C. native Ryan Kerr. A 6’2” defenseman, Kerr was drafted by the Prince George Cougars.
Americans drafted can come from the 20 westernmost states. That includes Minnesota straight down to Texas and everything west to the Pacific, including Alaska – and Hawaii, too.
All are ‘89s.
2004 WHL Bantam Draft, U.S. Selections:
1st Round: Drayson Bowman, C, Denver, CO/ NSWC Bantam AAA (Spokane Chiefs)
2nd Round: Matt Sokol, C, Los Angeles, CA/California Wave Midget AAA (Medicine Hat Tigers)
4th Round: C.J. Stretch, C, Irvine, CA/California Wave Bantam AAA (Kamloops Blazers)
4th Round: Evan Witt, C, Spokane Americans Under-16 (Spokane Chiefs)
7th Round: John Blum, D, Santa Margorita, CA/California Wave Bantam AAA (Vancouver Giants)
8th Round: Jim O’Brien, RW, Lake Angelus, MN/Little Caesar’s Midget AAA (Kamloops Blazers)
9th Round: Barry Parker, D, Scottsdale, AZ/DYHA Firebirds Bantam AAA (Prince George Cougars)
10th Round: Patrick White, C, Grand Rapids, MN/Grand Rapids HS (Seattle Thunderbirds)
11th Round: Kent Sauter, LW, Oklahoma City, OK (Red Deer Rebels)
11th Round: Jason Greenwell, G, Spokane, WA/Spokane Jr. B (Spokane Chiefs)
11th Round: Colin Long, C, Santa Ana, CA/California Wave Bantam AAA (Kelowna Rockets)
12th Round: Andrew Christ, RW, Spokane, WA/Spokane Americans Under-16 (Spokane Chiefs)
12th Round: Kevin Krause, D, Garden Grove, CA (Kamloops Blazers)
13th Round: Nick Jaskowiak, Minneapolis, MN/Benilde-St. Margarets HS (Vancouver Giants)
4/30/04
OHL Draft Set for Tomorrow
The OHL Priority Draft will, once again this year, be held in cyberspace, and only cyberspace, meaning that the OHL teams enter their selections electronically and it goes right up on the web in real time.
Nobody has to drive anywhere, no doors have to be opened to the public, no hotels have to be booked, no arena has to be used, no kids will leap with joy when their name is called out and they walk to the stage in front of friends and family, and no one has to suffer silently as the rounds roll by and their name isn’t called.
If the Internet does indeed foster virtual communities, it sometimes comes at a price.
For the OHL, the draft used to be an opportunity to market the league by raising the profile of the next crop of players, any league’s most tangible asset. The draft was something people would get excited about. Today, though, we did some Google searches on the draft, and found little that was of any interest. Apparently, reporters in Ontario just aren’t excited about virtual drafts.
Of couirse, that’s fine with us, as it means that some of the eligible kids might choose the NCAA route instead.
Tomorrow’s draft begins at 9 am, will run for 15 rounds. Looked at from a purely technological point of view, the league does an excellent job quickly getting the results on the Web. If you log onto www.ontariohockeyleague.com you can follow the draft in “real time,” which is really the yoking of an artificial reality to an abstract concept.
Anyway, so much for the soapbox.
The Belleville Bulls have the #1 pick and today officially announced that they will be using it to select Whitby Wildcats center John Hughes, a speedy, high skill center. The Saginaw Spirit, led by current GM -- and imminent coach -- Bob Mancini, the pride of Seaford, Long Island, will go second. The Peterborough Petes are third.
It is not considered a deep draft. However, one high first round prospect is forward Jordan Staal. The younger brother of Carolina Hurricanes center Eric Staal and Sudbury Wolves center Jordan Staal, will make it three first-round picks from one family.
Shortly after the draft’s conclusion, we will, as we do every year, draw up a separate list of American players selected and post it here.
Notes:
The Guelph Storm and the formerly feckless Mississauga Ice Dogs are battling it out in the best-of-seven OHL finals. The Storm went up in the series two games to none last night as center Martin St. Pierre, who's been lighting it up for the Storm, and Rochester, NY native Ryan Callahan each talled a goal in a 2-1 Guelph win. In Game #1 on Wednesday, the Storm won 4-1. In both games Mississauga has been badly outshot (44-19 and then 44-16). Their big story has been the play of first-year goaltender David Shantz, who's done an excellent job keeping his team in games.
In each of the previous three series, the Ice Dogs had to fight back after finding themselves down in games. They might be fried now.
The winner of the series will travel west to Kelowna to represent the OHL in the Memorial Cup, which gets under way on Sat. May 15th.
4/30/04
Expansion Team Reaches Finals in the Dub
The Everett Silvertips, a WHL expansion team coached by ex-International Falls HS and RPI goaltender Kevin Constantine, are, as they face off in the league championship series against the Medicine Hat Tigers tonight, just four wins from a berth in the Memorial Cup.
What's unusual here is that the Silvertips not only finished above .500, something no other WHL expansion club has ever done, but they finished way above .500, closing out the regular season with a 35-27-8 record.And to get to the finals, they had to knock off the Kelowna Rockets, the defending league champions. It wasn’t easy, either, as the Silvertips had to win three straight overtime games to get it done.
Not surprisingly, the 45-year-old Constantine, who’s been head coach of the Northwood School JVs, NAHL and USHL clubs, a couple of teams in the “I”, and three separate NHL clubs (San Jose, Pittsburgh, and New Jersey), was named WHL Coach of the Year yesterday in Calgary.
Reportedly there’s been some bellyaching around the league about the rule -- a relatively new one -- that allows expansion teams in the league to roster up to five 20-year-olds (other teams can only carry three). Never mind that the last expansion team to ‘benefit’ from this rule was the Vancouver Giants, winners of just 13 games as an expansion team two years ago. Never mind, too, that the 20-year-olds on the Silvertips were basically cut loose by other WHL teams. Rejects.
Only one of the Silvertips – Everett is in Washington state, north of Seattle --is an American. That’s Bryan Nathe, an ’83 from Elk River, Minn. Nathe played in the NTDP, then went on to Northeastern University before quitting school for the Dub in the middle of last season, his sophomore year.
Constantine’s assistants in Everett are 38-year-old John Becanic, who was the head coach of the NAHL champion Pittsburgh Forge last year; and Jay Varady, a former Union College player who was an assistant with the Forge last season. Constantine. of course, was the GM of that team.
Update:
Everett, playing on the road, bowed to Medicine Hat, 4-1, earlier tonight. Game #2 will be on Saturday night, also in Medicine Hat.
4/28/04
Coming to Harvard
St. Sebastian’s junior RW Nick Coskren has verbally committed to Harvard for the fall of 2005.
Coskren, who is 6’0” and 190 lbs., played 28 games for the Arrows this past season, and finished with a team-best scoring line of 23-30-53.
While Coskren isn’t the flashiest or fastest forward around, he is one of the smartest. His coach, Steve Dagdigian, describes him as “a very complete player,” adding that Coskren is “creative, scores, moves the puck, is very responsible defensively, and makes excellent decisions.”
Coskren, a 2/25/86 birthdate from Walpole, Mass, is one of a batch of hockey-playing Coskrens. He’s the younger brother of Holy Cross senior forward Tim Coskren, Holy Cross junior defenseman Tony Coskren, and St. Sebastian’s senior goalie Mike Coskren. A younger sister, Leanna Coskren, is a freshman defenseman for the Nobles girls team and projects to be a top Div. I women’s prospect.
***
Harvard is not known for bringing in transfers, but they’re going to do so this fall, as goaltender Justin Tobe of the Danville Wings (USHL) will touch down at the Bright Hockey Center.
Tobe, who will be a sophomore at Harvard, played as a 17-year-old freshman for Michigan State in 2002-03, Rick Comley’s first year there. Tobe never found his confidence under Comley, getting into only seven games, the last coming on Jan. 3rd, when he was yanked during a Spartan’s 7-1 loss at Lake Superior State. Then-sophomore Matt Migliaccio played every game the rest of the way. When Dominic Vicari committed to the Spartans last spring, Comley told Tobe there was a good chance he’d be the #3 goalie if he stayed on in East Lansing.
Tobe left, and joined the Danville Wings (USHL). This season, he played 53 games and finished with a 2.76 gaa and a .899 save percentage.
Tobe, who’s 5’11”, 170 lbs., is a 12/27/84 birthdate, and a native of Norville, Michigan. He came up through the Compuware organization, played with their midget team for a year, then joined the junior team for what would be his final year – he accelerated – in high school.
At Michigan State, Tobe was coming in on the heels of Ryan Miller’s departure for pro hockey. Those are pretty tough shoes to fill, especially for a 17-year-old.
Tobe, described by his junior coach, Josh Mervis, as “the most competitive athlete I’ve ever coached” is outspoken, cocky, and brash, and has been known to rub people the wrong way.
“Maybe I’m the most hated goalie in the USHL,” he recently told a reporter. “That’s what people say.”
“He just wants to be great,” Mervis says. ”He’s irascible, difficult, well-spoken, and well-read. He’s like Eddie Belfour, ornery and difficult – but a winner.”
As for style of play, Tobe is a hybrid goalie who squares to the shot very well. He’s a very good puckhandler -- he even scored a goal this season.
4/28/04
Hill’s Eccleston Steps Down
Tom Eccleston IV has stepped down as head hockey coach at the Hill School, telling his players of his decision last night. Eccleston will be heading south to take a position as director of admission at the St. Edward’s School, a K-12 day school in Vero Beach, Florida. St. Ed’s, in case you’re wondering, does not have hockey.
Eccleston, a Hill (’87) and Bowdoin (’91) grad, had completed his eighth season at the Hill with a 10-15-3 record. Included in that record was a 2-1 OT loss to Cushing, a 5-4 loss to Culver, a 4-2 loss to Upper Canada College, a 4-3 win over Nichols, a 5-4 win over the Boston Jr. Bulldogs, and a 5-5 tie against St. Sebastian’s.
“Overall,” Eccleston said, “I think we have elevated the program to be competitive.”
Among Eccleston’s former players at the Hill are forward Chris Bala, formerly of Harvard and now in the Colorado Avalanche organization; goaltender Brandon Snee, a standout at Union College and a NY Rangers draft pick now playing minor pro hockey; and forward Pat Rissmiller, who went on to Holy Cross and made it to the NHL as a free agent, appearing in four games this season with the San Jose Sharks.
Hill is in the process of finding a replacement, and has a few names already.
Eccleston is the grandson of the legendary Tom Eccleston, Jr., who started coaching at Burrillville (RI) High School in 1938 and turned the small public school into Rhode Island’s first major hockey power, well before the reign of Mount St. Charles. After 18 years coaching Burrillville, Eccleston went on to coach Providence College for eight years, numbering NJ Devils GM Lou Lamoriello among his players. In the early ‘70s, eight years after retiring as the Friars’ coach, Eccleston returned to the bench, taking over the Hill program, a position he’d keep for 12 years. In the mid-'80s, his son, Tom Eccleston III, now the AD at Proctor, took over the Hill program, and the father returned to Burrillville HS for five more years of coaching before retiring for good at age 80! Eccleston died three years ago at age 90.
We just touched on the high spots in the paragraph above, but there’s more. We hope this hasn’t been too much of a digression, but having three generations of one family coaching at the same school is a rarity. It’s probably happened somewhere, but, if so, we sure don’t know about it!
4/27/04
Longtime Bowdoin Coach Sid Watson Dies at 71
Sid Watson, Bowdoin College head hockey coach for 24 years, died Sunday of a heart attack at his home in Naples, Florida. He was 71.
Watson, an Andover, Mass. native, went on to become a football star at Northeastern University, where he still owns school records for career and single-season points. While at Northeastern, Watson became interested in hockey, though it was a sport he never played competitively.
After graduation, Watson went on to play halfback in the NFL for the Pittsburgh Steelers (1955-57) and Washington Redskins (1958). When his final pro season ended, Watson served as a co-coach for Bowdoin hockey, along with C. Nels Corey. The following season, Watson took over at Bowdoin fulltime, holding the position for 24 seasons, winning four ECAC Div. II titles and compiling a 326-210-11 record before handing over the program to ex-BU star Terry Meagher in 1983. Two years ago, Meagher surpassed Watson’s win total.
Another Watson protégé was former Belmont Hill star forward Ken Martin, who has over 500 wins at his alma mater. Martin played for Watson from 1966-69, was a three-time All-ECAC player, and helped put Bowdoin hockey on the map.
Watson also served Bowdoin as athletic director.
4/26/04
UNH Wins Battle for Foster
6’1”, 155 lb. New Hampshire Jr. Monarchs (EJHL) standout goaltender Brian Foster has committed to UNH.
Foster, a 2/4/87 birthdate, put himself on the national map with an outstanding performance at last July’s USA Hockey Select 16 Festival in Rochester, NY, where he was the USHR top-ranked goalie and was selected for the US Under-17 Select team that would win gold at the Five Nations Tournament in Prievidza, Slovakia in late August.
Foster played at Bishop Brady HS in Manchester, NH as a 10th grader, then moved up to the Monarchs last winter and played in 12 games, posting a 2.14 gaa and a .927 save percentage.
Brady, a Pembroke, NH native, will play another year for the Monarchs while he finishes high school, and then go to the USHL for the ’05-06 season.
In the fall of ’06, when Foster arrives as a freshman at UNH, Jeff Pietrasiak will have graduated. So Foster will compete for playing time with Kevin Regan, who’ll be a junior, and A.J. Bucchino, who’ll be a senior.
Maine recruited Foster early, but the goaltender’s final three choices were UNH, BU, and Providence, and it went down to the wire, too.
4/24/04
USHL, NAHL Finals Set
Both the USHL and NAHL’s finals are set to get underway this coming week.
The NAHL Tournament (AKA Junior A National Tournament) will be held in Frisco, Texas, the home of the Texas Tornado. The four teams are the Fairbanks Ice Dogs, the Springfield, Il. Jr. Blues, the Bismarck Bobcats, and the Texas Tornado.
The series runs from Thurs. April 29- Sun. May 2. The first three days consist of round-robin play. After the completion of Saturday’s games, the teams shall be seeded according to their round robin records. On Sunday May 2, #3 and #4 play for the bronze and #1 and #2 play for the gold.
The USHL semis were completed last night when the Tri-City Storm beat the Sioux City Musketeers, 2-0, to win the series, three games to one. Tri-City goaltender Peter Mannino kicked out 23 saves for the shutout and Ryan Dingle and Bill Thomas each picked up a goal and an assist.
In the other semi, the Waterloo Black Hawks swept the Danville Wings, three games to none.
The USHL finals (aka the Clark Cup) get underway Thurs. April 29, a best-of-five series that starts out with a pair at Tri-City, which has the home ice advantage.
The Clark Cup schedule is:
Game #1: Thurs. April 29, Waterloo at Tri-City 7:05 pm
Game #2: Fri. April 30, Waterloo at Tri-City 7:05 pm
Game #3: Tues. May 4, Tri-City at Waterloo 7:05 pm
*Game #4: Wed. May 5, Tri-City at Waterloo 7:05 pm
*Game #5: Fri. May 7, Waterloo at Tri-City 7:05 pm
* If necessary
4/22/04
Mark Morris a Candidate for Prep Post
Mark Morris, who spent 14 plus seasons as head coach at Clarkson before being fired in Nov. 2002, is reportedly a candidate for the head coaching position at the Northwood School in Lake Placid, NY.
Morris, a 1976 graduate of Massena (NY) High School, has a connection with Northwood, having spent a PG year there before heading off to attend Colgate, where he played all four seasons. A defenseman, Morris also played three seasons of minor pro hockey before getting into coaching, first as an assistant at Union, then St. Lawrence. In 1988, Morris took over the Clarkson program and in 14 years – all winning seasons – led the Golden Knights to the NCAA tournament nine times.
Morris’ firing 18 months ago was the result of a well-publicized on-ice physical altercation with one of his players, then-junior forward Zach Schwan. Morris subsequently filed a lawsuit against the school, which was settled out of court.
Morris, 46, still lives in Potsdam, where his wife works as a lawyer. Lake Placid is about 90 minutes southeast of Potsdam.
After he was fired at Clarkson, Morris hooked on with the Vancouver Canucks, helping former minor league teammate Marc Crawford after the Canucks conditioning coach left the squad in mid-season. This past season, Morris was an assistant coach in major junior, working with the Saginaw Spirit (OHL), coached by Moe Mantha.
Another candidate for the Northwood job is former Lake Superior State goaltender Darrin Madeley, currently an assistant coach with the NTDP’s Under-18 Team. Madeley, 36, had a 39-game pro career after finishing up with the Lakers.
Former Union head coach Bruce Delventhal had also showed interest in the job, but has reportedly dropped out of the hunt.
4/22/04
Dennehy Named Head Coach at Choate
Patrick Dennehy of the Holderness School has been named the new head hockey coach at Choate.
This season, Dennehy, who played prep hockey at Exeter and college hockey at St. Lawrence, guided the Plymouth, NH boarding school to its best record (17-11) since moving up to Div. I five years ago.
Dennehy, who spent one year as an assistant at Holderness in ‘97-98, took over as head coach in the fall of ’98, the school’s last season in Div. II. Dennehy was also the associate director of admissions at the school.
Citing Choate’s rich hockey history, Dennehy said his goal for the program was to get Choate back into the upper echelon of prep hockey. “I want to win,” he said, “but I want to do it with the right kids – classy kids who will represent the school well.”
Dennehy, 30, has coaching in his blood – his father is Bill Dennehy, who has been at Exeter for 33 years, and is the school’s head soccer coach, assistant hockey coach, and head baseball coach.
Taking over at Holderness will be Mark Traina, who spent the past season as Dennehy’s assistant. Prior to that, Traina spent two years as an assistant at Kent, and two years as an assistant at Taft. Traina, 27, played prep hockey at St. George’s, and college hockey and baseball at Wesleyan, from where he graduated in ’98. Traina teaches history at Holderness.
4/20/04
Danville Wings Bound for Indy
Yesterday, the Danville Wings (USHL) made official what has long been rumored: the franchise is moving to Indianapolis, Indiana in time for the beginning of the 2004-05 season.
Lou Mervis, the Wings’ owner, cited yearly operating losses of around $500,000 as the reason the team was moving. In Danville, a small city of 25,000, the Wings were able to draw an average this season of merely 964 fans a game, a figure that put them at the bottom of the league in attendance, which averaged 2,900 a game. On the ice, the Wings were more successful. An expansion team that moved over from the NAHL last spring, Danville finished the regular season 29-23-8, knocked off Cedar Rapids in Round 1 of the playoffs, and are currently down 2-0 to Waterloo in Round 2.
In Indianapolis, a city of 750,000 located about 90 miles east of Danville, the Wings – to be renamed the Indiana Ice -- will play mainly in the Pepsi Coliseum, an 8,200 seat old-style brick-faced arena sitting on the Indiana State Fairgrounds (some games will be played at Conseco Fieldhouse, the home of the NBA’s Indiana Pacers). The Pepsi Coliseum, built in 1939, is a few miles north of downtown. It had been home to the Indianapolis Ice, an IHL franchise until 1999 and, since then, a CHL franchise. The CHL franchise closed shop a couple of weeks ago, leaving the soon-to-arrive USHL franchise as the only game in town.
Mervis, a successful Danville businessman, will be partnering with Paul Skjodt, an Indianapolis businessman, in the endeavor. Skojdt, a former OHL and minor league player, will soon take over majority interest in the franchise, thus enabling Mervis tofocus on another project, relocating a mothballed USHL franchise he owns – the former Rochester Mustangs – to the Champaign-Urbana area. Located 35 miles west of Danville, Champaign and Urbana, with a combined population of 100,000, is suitable for a USHL team. However, an arena is needed first. Right now, the envisioned two-sheet rink will be funded by three parties: 1) the cities of Champaign, Urbana, and Savoy, 2) the University of Illinois, and 3) the Mervises. With such a partnership, there’s politics involved. The whole process is expected to take 14-24 months.
Mervis will also be working to repace the wings in Danville, though it will be in the form of a Jr. B team.
Skojt, the man who will be taking over the Indiana Ice, is a former OHL player who played minor league hockey, and is aiming at setting up a tiered system along the Compuware model for Indianapolis’ approximately 1,700 kids playing youth hockey.
Josh Mervis, Lou’s son, will stop coaching at the end of this season, but continue on as GM with the relocated franchise in Indianapolis. Mervis quit coaching last season so he could devote time to the above-mentioned plans, but went back behind the bench when former Wings coach Chico Adrahtas became ill in February.
4/17/04
Long Island Young Guns to Face off Monday Night
The New York Islanders-sponsored “Young Guns” exhibition game, featuring the top ‘87s-88s who played on the Island this season, will face off on Monday April 19th at 7:00 pm at Islanders Iceworks, the NHL club’s practice rink in Syosset, NY.
Contrary to popular opinion, not all of the rostered players are going to UMass, so come on down. For more information call Ron Kinnearat (631) 736-0201 or Wendy Liotti at (516) 817-8897.
The coaching staff consists of Dan Condon (NY Apple Core Minor Junior), Gerry Higgins (LI Royals Midget Minor), Frank Hillman (LI Gulls Midget AAA), Santo Macaluso (NY Bobcats Midget Minor), Aleksey Nikiforov (Suffolk PAL Midget Major AAA), and Jim Wright (Suffolk PAL Jr. B).
Please note that forwards James Marcou, Vladimir Nikiforov, and Nick Grasso, all three of whom have committed to UMass, will not be playing, having decided to give their spots to other players. Ditto for New England Jr. Coyotes (EJHL) defenseman Tim Kunes, a Boston College recruit who is in prep school in Connecticut.
Blue Team
Josh Roarke |
3/19/87 |
5'9" |
150 |
Goalie |
NY Apple Core Minor Junior |
| |||||
Michael DeMayo |
6/17/87 |
5'9" |
165 |
Defense |
LI Gulls Midget AAA |
| |||||
Michael Kavanaugh |
2/9/88 |
6'3" |
205 |
Defense |
NY Apple Core Minor Junior |
| |||||
Danny Markowitz |
3/11/88 |
5'10" |
150 |
Defense |
NY Bobcats Midget Minor |
| |||||
Matthew Dorsey |
7/5/87 |
5'10" |
185 |
Defense |
NY Bobcats Midget Minor |
| |||||
Bradley Nunn |
8/26/88 |
6'3" |
190 |
Defense |
LI Royals Midget Minor |
| |||||
Pasko Skarica |
1/24/87 |
6'3" |
198 |
Defense |
Suffolk PAL Midget Major AAA |
| |||||
Ryan Cantor |
5/27/87 |
5'10" |
160 |
Defense |
Suffolk PAL Midget Major AAA |
| |||||
Thomas Galiani |
5/29/87 |
5'6" |
140 |
Forward |
LI Gulls Midget AAA |
| |||||
Robert Pfeiffer |
9/16/88 |
5'10" |
152 |
Forward |
LI Gulls Midget AAA |
| |||||
Jason Remsbecker |
7/22/87 |
5'11" |
160 |
Forward |
NY Bobcats Midget Minor |
| |||||
Ryan Condon |
3/14/87 |
5'9" |
160 |
Forward |
NY Apple Core Minor Junior |
| |||||
Anthony Farina |
10/5/87 |
6'2" |
190 |
Forward |
NY Apple Core Minor Junior |
| |||||
Gary Medina |
10/5/87 |
5'6" |
160 |
Forward |
NY Apple Core Minor Junior |
| |||||
Jason DeLuca |
10/9/87 |
5'9" |
180 |
Forward |
NY Bobcats Junior Elite |
| |||||
Bill Vesce |
1/3/87 |
5'11" |
165 |
Forward |
NY Bobcats Junior Elite |
| |||||
Michael Fitoussi |
7/10/87 |
5'9" |
160 |
Forward |
Suffolk PAL Junior B |
| |||||
Bill Crinnion |
5/10/88 |
6'1" |
175 |
Forward |
NY Apple Core Minor Junior |
| |||||
Joseph Nadal |
8/14/87 |
5'9" |
150 |
Forward |
NY Apple Core Midget Major |
| |||||
Andrew Gagnon |
6/13/87 |
5'10" |
160 |
Forward |
LI Royals Midget Minor |
| |||||
Josh Stone |
8/10/88 |
5'8" |
175 |
Forward |
LI Royals Midget Minor |
| |||||
Kyle Rank |
8/13/87 |
5'9" |
160 |
Goalie |
Suffolk PAL Midget Major AAA |
| |||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |||||
Dan Rosen |
2/26/87 |
5'11" |
155 |
Goalie |
Suffolk PAL Junior B | ||||||
Michael White |
8/18/87 |
5'10" |
165 |
Defense |
NY Apple Core Minor Junior | ||||||
Chris Lloyd |
9/13/88 |
6'1" |
185 |
Defense |
NY Bobcats Midget Minor | ||||||
Garett Goodman |
2/25/88 |
6'0" |
195 |
Defense |
LI Royals Midget Minor | ||||||
Erik Burgdoerfer |
12/11/88 |
5'11" |
165 |
Defense |
LI Royals Midget Minor | ||||||
James Gorman |
2/6/87 |
6'2" |
180 |
Defense |
Suffolk PAL Midget Major AAA | ||||||
Justin Porpora |
6/27/87 |
5'10' |
185 |
Defense |
Suffolk PAL Midget Major AAA | ||||||
Michael Rossidis |
5/4/87 |
6'2" |
175 |
Defense |
Nassau County Midget Major | ||||||
Matt Jacabs |
7/10/87 |
5'9" |
155 |
Forward |
Suffolk PAL Midget Major AAA | ||||||
Chris Ryan |
2/8/87 |
5'10" |
165 |
Forward |
LI Gulls Midget AAA | ||||||
Zack Dobran |
7/21/87 |
5'9" |
160 |
Forward |
LI Gulls Midget AAA | ||||||
Danny Cassano |
7/29/88 |
5'9" |
155 |
Forward |
NY Bobcats Midget Minor | ||||||
Anthony DePietto |
5/18/88 |
5'9" |
150 |
Forward |
NY Bobcats Midget Minor | ||||||
Thomas D'Agostino |
2/29/88 |
5'8" |
150 |
Forward |
NY Bobcats Midget Minor | ||||||
Alex Satin |
11/25/87 |
5'10" |
165 |
Forward |
NY Bobcats Midget Minor | ||||||
David Quattrocchi |
8/31/87 |
5'10" |
175 |
Forward |
NY Apple Core Minor Junior | ||||||
Tony Romano |
1/5/87 |
5'10" |
161 |
Forward |
Suffolk PAL Midget Major AAA | ||||||
Gilbert Valdes |
1/17/87 |
5'8" |
160 |
Forward |
Suffolk PAL Midget Major AAA | ||||||
Adam Avila |
8/8/87 |
5'10" |
150 |
Forward |
Suffolk PAL Midget Major AAA | ||||||
Kyle Solomon |
8/21/87 |
5'11" |
170 |
Forward |
Suffolk PAL Junior B | ||||||
Brian Dew |
3/31/87 |
5'10" |
170 |
Forward |
Suffolk PAL Junior B | ||||||
Greg Burgdoerfer |
12/11/88 |
5'11" |
168 |
Forward |
LI Royals Midget Minor | ||||||
Kurt Pflumm |
8/18/87 |
5'10" |
155 |
Goalie |
NY Bobcats Midget Minor | ||||||
4/18/04
Model Camp, Massachusetts Style
A camp for ’86 to ’88 birthdates based on the popular and successful Minnesota Model Camp will run from June 17-20 at the Mullins Center on the campus of UMass.
Unlike the Model Camp, players arriving at the Mullins Center, which has two sheets, can come from any town, state, province, or country. The camp, per NCAA regulations, is being filled on a first-come, first-served basis.
The UMass camp will stress development. Every team, which will consist of nine forwards, five D, and two goalies, will be guaranteed three hours of practice and three games. Each team – there are eight in all – will be coached by a college coach. There will be symposiums each night, followed by a Q&A. Areas of discussion will include college admission, the NCAA clearinghouse process, and strength and conditioning.
The camp directors are Mark Dennehy (UMass) and Bruce Wolanin (Yale).
The camp, formally known as the U.S. College Hockey Advancement Camp, has a web site at www.uscha.net
4/18/04
U.S. Comes Close; Settles for Silver at World Under-18s
With Russia up 3-1 in the World Under-18 championship game today in Minsk, Belarus, U.S. forward Phil Kessel snapped a wrister past Russian goalie Anton Khudobin to cut the Russian lead to one goal with just 1:38 remaining and set up a frantic finish.
The U.S., with goaltender Cory Schneider pulled for the extra skater, then scored what initially appeared to be the game-tying goal with 13 seconds left on the clock. The goal, however, was disallowed due to a dislodged net, and Russia held on for the rest of what was a frantic finish, skating off with a hard-fought 3-2 victory
It was a 1-1 game going into the decisive third period. Earlier, the U.S. had gone up 1-0 on a powerplay blast from the point by Nate Hagemo at 15:57 of the first period. For the U.S., it was their seventeenth powerplay goal in the tournament's six games. The goal game on the fifth of six penalties the Russians had to kill in the first stanza.
In the second period, the U.S. had several defensive breakdowns, and relied heavily on Schneider. The only goal of the period was a game-tying tally by Russian defenseman Kirill Lyamin at the 6:53 mark.
The score stayed at 1-1 from that point until the third period, when Russia struck for a pair of goals 1:06 apart. The first came when Roman Voloshenko scored off a rebound at 4:54. The second, the goal that gave Russia the 3-1 lead and would turn out to be the game winner, came at the 6:00 mark. A power play tally off the stick of Dimitri Shitikov, the goal came 41 seconds after Nathan Gerbe was whistled off for a minor and misconduct for checking to the head.
The U.S. made it exciting at the end, but came up just a little short.
“This team can be proud they fought until the absolute last second of this game and all the games they played in the tournament,” U.S. head coach John Hynes said afterward.
Notes:
Russia outshot the U.S. 26-25, and Schneider had another outstanding performance, making 23 saves, as did Khuboin.Schneider finished the tournament with a 5-1 won-loss record, a .929 save percentage (2nd best), and a 1.71 gaa (3rd best). Marek Schwarz of the Czech Republic was the only goalie with better numbers.
The win gave the Russians their first victory here since 2001. The loss gave the U.S. their second medal here. In 2002, the U.S., with a core group of the same players that won gold in the World Juniors this past January – the ‘84s – beat Russia, 3-1, to take the gold.
Kessel, one of six ‘87s in the U.S. lineup, tied for the tournament lead in goals with seven and, with 10 points, finished fifth overall in scoring. The other ‘87s on the U.S. squad were goalie Jeff Frazee, defensemen Zach Jones and Jack Johnson, and forwards Jack Skille and Nate Gerbe.The rest of the squad, all ‘86 birthdates, consisted of Schneider in goal; Hagemo, Jason DeSantis, Mike Brennan, Topher Bevis, and Joe Grimaldi on the blueline; and Kevin Porter, Matt Auffrey, Bryan Lerg, Nathan Davis, Jarod Palmer, Kevin Swallow, Tom Fritsche, Brandon Scero, Chad Kolarik and Geoff Paukovich up front. The coaching staff consisted of Hynes, along with assistants Darrin Madeley and John Lilley.
In the bronze medal game, the Czech Republic edged Canada, 3-2, with Roman Psurny scoring the game-winner with a little over 13 minutes remaining.
4/16/04 Update: Russia topped Canada, 5-2, in today's second semifinal, and will face the U.S. for the gold.
Under-18s Edge Czech Republic; Gold Medal Game Next
The U.S. Under-18 Team, despite being outshot 36-21, edged the Czech Republic 3-2 in today’s first semifinal in Minsk, Belarus.
With the win, the U.S. moves on to Sunday’s championship game (10:00 am EST) vs. the winner of the Russia-Canada semifinal, currently underway. A win in that game would give the U.S. its second IIHF Under-18 Championship in two years. In 2002, the U.S. won its first-ever gold medal at the event, beating Russia. Last April, the U.S. reached the bronze medal game but lost to Russia.
The U.S. scored the only goal of the first period, a powerplay goal. Nathan Gerbe, from behind the net, hit Bryan Lerg with a perfect pass. Lerg fired it past Czech goaltender Marek Schwarz at the 10:25 mark.
After the Czechs tied it up on a Michal Gulasi goal early in the second period, the U.S responded with two goals roughly five minutes apart in the middle of the period. On the first, a powerplay goal, Tom Fritsche knocked home the rebound of a Kevin Porter shot from the blue line. Brandon Scero also picked up an assist on the goal, which gave the U.S. the lead for good. At 13:42 Phil Kessel scored his sixth goal of the tournament off a two-on-one with Jack Skille. Also picking up an assist on the goal was Matt Auffrey. The Czechs added a powerplay goal late in the period to cut the U.S. lead to 3-2, but that was as close as they came: U.S. goaltender Cory Schneider shut them down the rest of the way, making 14 of his 34 saves in the final period.
Notes:
The U.S. Under-17 team opens second round NAHL playoff action with road games tonight and tomorrow night against the Springfield Jr. Blues.
In the opening round, the U.S., which finished the regular season fourth in the NAHL’s North Division, upset the first-place finishers, the Soo Indians. The U.S., coached by David Quinn, lost the playoff opener, but then won three straight – against a team that lost only six times during the regular season -- to take the best-of-five series.
4/13/04
Home Improvement
For the past couple of days, and the next few days to come, there will be fewer news items than normal here on the U.S. Hockey Report.
The reason? We’re making improvements and doing some administrative stuff. In the busiest months of the season we never have time for that, and the to-do list piles up.
We ask for your patience.
4/14/04
Schneider Leads Under-18s Past Canada
Phillips Andover goaltender Cory Schneider kicked out 38 of 39 shots as the U.S. topped Canada, 2-1, Tuesday at the World Under-18 Championship in Minsk, Belarus on Tuesday.
With the win, the U.S., which was outshot 39-23, finishes round-robin play with a perfect 4-0 record, gains the top spot in Pool A, and, with the bye, moves directly into the semi-finals on Friday. They will play the winner of Thursday’s quarterfinal matchup between the Czech Republic and Sweden. As for Canada, they will have to beat Slovakia in Thursday’s other quarterfinal matchup in order to move on and face Russia, the Pool B winner, in the semis on Friday.
After a chippy first period which produced no goals but a combined 38 penalty minutes, the Canadians struck for the first – and only – time when Frederick Cabana of the Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL) surprised Schneider with a bad-angle goal just 1:28 into the second period. Notre Dame defenseman Wes O’Neill picked up the assist on the goal.
The 1-0 Canadian lead held until the 2:28 mark of the third period, when Phil Kessel tied the game at 1-1. On the goal, Kessel drove to the right face-off circle, pivoted away from a Canadian defenseman, and snapped one underneath the crossbar.
Six minutes later, U.S. defenseman Brett Bevis scored the game-winner on the powerplay, taking a pass from Jarod Palmer and firing one through traffic. The shot ricoched off a Canadian defenseman and past goaltender Devan Dubnyk.
With 1:45 remaining, Dubnyk, of the Kamloops Blazers, was pulled for the extra attacker as Canada, needing a win – a tie wouldn’t do it – to advance, poured it on.
Schneider, though, barred the door.
Notes:
Schneider, who started all four games, finished round-robin play with a .937 save percentage and 1.30 gaa in 230-plus minutes played. Jeff Frazee played nine- plus minutes in the tournament, stopping the only shot he faced.
Phil Kessel finished round-robin play as the tournament’s leading scorer with a 5-3-8 line in the four games. Also in the top 20 were Brandon Scero (2-5-7), Bryan Lerg (1-6-7), Kevin Porter (2-4-6), Matt Auffrey (2-2-4), Tom Fritsche (1-3-4), and Chad Kolarik (1-3-3).
The U.S. scored a whopping 13 goals in 28 power play opportunities. Against Canada, however, they were 1-for-9.
The U.S. penalty killing was the second-best in the tournament, trailing only Slovakia. The U.S. shut down Canada, which went 0-for-8 on the powerplay.
Finals Standings:
Group A
1. USA (4-0-0)
2. Canada (3-0-1)
3. Sweden (2-0-2)
4. Denmark (1-0-3)
5. Belarus (0-0-4)
Group B
1. Russia (2-2-0)
2. Czech Republic (1-3-0)
3. Slovakia (1-3-0)
4. Finland (1-2-1)
5. Norway (0-0-4)
Quarterfinal Matchups:
Canada – Slovakia
Czech Republic – Sweden
The USA and Russia get byes and advance directly to the semifinals.
Belarus, Denmark, Finland and Norway drop to the relegation round.
4/14/04
NCAA Suspends Opt-in Rule
The NCAA has agreed to Notre Dame coach Dave Poulin’s proposal requesting that draft-eligible players already in college be allowed to enter the NHL draft without sacrificing their NCAA eligibility.
We don’t have the exact text of the ruling, but have been told that it’s more of a “stay” while permanent legislation is drafted. It’s also possible that any new CBA that the NHL and the NHLPA comes up with could contain changes to the draft rule that might make it unnecessary for the NCAA to even draft permanent legislation. But we’re getting into speculation here.
The bottom line for now is that twelve current NCAA players – eight of whom were on Central Scouting’s mid-term rankings – are now free to get drafted while retaining their college eligibility.
Those players are:
Drew Stafford, F, North Dakota
A.J. Thelen, D, Michigan State
Wes O’Neill, D, Notre Dame
Adam Pineault, F, Boston College
Steve Birnstill, D, Northeastern
Jeff Caron, D, Merrimack
Jonathan Sigalet, D, Bowling Green
T.J. Hensick, F, Michigan
Matt Cohen, D, Yale
Steve Hartley, G, Miami
Paul Szczechura, F, Western Michigan
Sean Bentivoglio, F, Niagara
The NCAA opt-in rule was adopted in 1995, but came to a head last year when the NCAA, for some strange reason known only to them, ruled that players not yet in college could opt in without sacrificing NCAA eligibility, but that players already in college would have to give up their eligibility in order to do the same.
Basically, Poulin and his fellow college coaches are trying to protect their players – and, by extension, their programs -- from agents and NHL clubs who may be encouraging players to opt in and go the major junior route.
Now, kids – in Poulin’s case, it’s 6’4” defenseman Wes O’Neill -- will be able to stay in college and improve against older and more experienced players. It’s also good for NHL teams, who get to follow their draft picks and watch them develop in college before committing large sums of money to them. And it’s good for fans of college hockey as it lessens the chances that high-end prospects will leave the college game prematurely.
As long as we’re on the subject of the draft and college, it’s a good time of year to remind everyone that where one gets drafted doesn’t mean much in the long run. There are former ninth rounders playing in the NHL and there are former first rounders who aren’t. It’s not a race. If you’re good enough to play in the NHL you’ll get there; if you aren’t you won’t. But you only have four years in college, and it never comes again. Enjoy it.
4/9/04
Perhaps They Should Have Kept Lenny?
Earlier this week, Princeton recruit Nick Dodge, a center from the Oakville Blades (OPJHL) switched his college choice from Princeton to Clarkson.
Now, a second Princeton recruit, Jean-Francois Boucher of Upper Canada College, has bailed on Princeton.
Boucher will be attending Yale instead of Princeton. The March 8 firing of Len Quesnelle was integral in Boucher’s decision to head to New Haven.
A key recruit for Princeton, Boucher is a 6’0”, 195 lb. power forward who loves physical play and has a bit of a mean streak. A LW, he’s a 12/1985 birthdate and hails from Rosemere, Quebec. Boucher, who led UCC in both scoring (42-58-100 in 41 games) and penalty minutes this past season, was also the team’s captain.
Boucher’s father is Gaetan Boucher, a four-time Canadian Olympian in speedskating. Gaetan won a silver medal in Lake Placid (’80) and a double gold in Sarajevo (’84). Boucher’s mother, Karin Fleige, was a German Olympic speedskater. It’s safe to say the genes are good.
It’s been a month and a day since Quesnelle’s firing. The two assistants – Brian Wiseman and Mike Bois – are gone as well. There’s no one in the hockey office except a secretary.
The Princeton AD, Gary Walters, had, shortly after Quesnelle’s firing, indicated that the interview process would not be beginning until this month, when the NCAA’s men’s basketball committee, on which Walters sits, has wrapped up its work.
We attempted to reach Walters, but the AD’s office is closed today. We left a message, but haven’t heard back.
Both Dodge and Boucher were key recruits for Princeton. Quesnelle and his staff worked hard to get them to Princeton. Now, look for them to make Princeton’s life miserable for the next four years.
4/8/04
Two for UMass for ‘05
A pair of Bay Staters -- RW Alex Berry and LC Cory Quirk – have committed to UMass for the fall of ’05.
Berry, who’s 6’2”, 190 lbs. and a native of Danvers, Mass., played his sophomore year at Gov. Dummer, and his junior year at Cushing Academy. This fall, he’ll move again, to the Boston Junior Bruins (EJHL). He’s big and strong, with a decent scoring touch. In January, Central Scouting ranked him in the sixth round of North American skaters. He’s a 3/6/86 birthdate.
Quirk, a senior and the leading scorer on the Super 8 Championship-winning Catholic Memorial squad this winter, is a 5’10”, 175 lbs. native of Brockton, Mass. Quirk, a 7/3/86 birthdate, will play for the Sioux Falls Musketeers (USHL) next season.
Last summer, Quirk and Berry were teammates on the Mass. team at USA Hockey’s Select 17 Festival in St. Cloud, Minn.
4/8/04
Norton to be Named New Coach at Tilton
Pat Norton, an assistant at Northeastern University this past season, will be the new coach at the Tilton School.
Norton, a Concord, NH native, played for Dick Umile at UNH from 1992-96. After graduation, he served four years as an assistant at Norwich, then three as an assistant at UVM.
Norton, who’s the son of former UNH assistant and current college hockey TV analyst (and Woburn High School principal) Bob Norton, has also coached a number of New England teams at USA Hockey Select Festivals.
4/8/04
U.S. Opens World Under-18s with Win Over Denmark
The U.S. opened play at the IIHF World Under-18 Championships in Minsk, Belarus with a 5-2 win over Denmark today.
After a scoreless first period, the US took a 3-1 lead after two, and never looked back.
Scoring for the U.S., who outshot Denmark 33-11, were Kevin Porter (1g,2a), Phil Kessel (1 ppg, 2a), Buzz Fritsche (1g,1a), Nate Davis (1g,1a), Matt Auffrey (1g,1a), Bryan Lerg (2a), and Brandon Scero (1a). In net for the U.S. was Cory Schneider, who made nine saves.
Schneider, from Phillips Andover Academy, is the only player head coach John Hynes brought in from outside the program. It’s an exceptionally young team, with six ‘87s on the roster.
After an off-day tomorrow, the U.S. meets Sweden on Saturday, host Belarus on Monday and Canada on Tuesday. Playoffs begin Wed. April 15, with the first place finishers in each division getting a bye. The title game is scheduled for Sun. April 18.
The U.S. is in Group A, which also includes Belarus, Canada, Denmark, and Sweden.
Group B consists of Slovakia, Russia, the Czech Republic, Finland, and Norway.
2004 U.S. Under-18 Team Roster
4/7/04
Updated List: NCAA Players Signing Pro Contracts
With BU's 6'4 junior defenseman Ryan Whitney forgoing his last year of eligibility to sign with the Pittburgh Penguins, there are now 31 NCAA players who've signed pro contracts in recent weeks.
Please click below for the updated list.
2004 College Players Signing Pro Contracts
4/7/04
Dodge Switch
In the wake of the firing of Len Quesnelle, the coach to whom he had earlier commmitted, Oakville Blades (OPJHL) forward Nick Dodge has switched his college commitment from Princeton to Clarkson.
A dynamic, playmaking center, Dodge, who's 5'9" and 160 lbs., captained his team to the Provincial League Western Conference finals. He finished the season with a 33-45-78 line in 45 games, making him his team's leading scorers. He also had 69 pims. Last season, he was named league rookie of the year.
A 5/1/86 birthdate, Dodge is a right-shot centerman.
4/7/04
Another Prep Coach Fired
BB&N head coach Angus Means has been fired.
Means, who will continue teaching at the Cambridge, Mass. day school, was reportedly told that he had not done a good job recruiting.
The team improved, though. BB&N was 9-11-1 in Div. I play this season. The season before, they were 2-14-2.
Notes:
Former Lawrence Academy head coach Charlie Corey has accepted a teaching position at Bishop Brady HS in Concord, NH. Corey, who will teach history, will not be the head hockey coach, though it's possible he'll become an assistant both in hockey and soccer.
The principal at Bishop Brady is Jean Barker, the mother of former Lawrence Academy and current UNH defenseman Robbie Barker.
Corey will also be helping with the Greg Carter hockey camps.
4/6/04
Joe Mahoney Wake and Funeral Info
The wake and funeral information for Joe Mahoney follows. Please note that the wake will be held in Plymouth, and not in South Boston (as we wrote yesterday).
The final funeral arrangements for Joe Mahoney are:
Tel.(508) 224-2252
4/4/04
GBL Jr. Bruins Top Shattuck for National Midget Title
The Greater Boston League Junior Bruins topped Shattuck-St. Mary’s 6-2 today to win the National Midget (17 and Under) title at Marquette, Michigan.
The Junior Bruins got goals from Cory Quirk, Billy Ryan, Chris Bourque (shorthanded), and Steve Smolinsky (powerplay), then added a pair of empty netters late.
BC High’s Joe Grossman kicked out 28 of 30 shots for the win. Shattuck outshot the Junior Bruins 30-28.
The Junior Bruins lineup boasted six Hockey East recruits in Bourque (BU), Ryan (Maine), Boomer Ewing (BU), Keith Yandle (UNH), Danny McGoff (BU), and Matt Greene (BC).
Bourque led the tourney in scoring, notching 22 points in six games, while Ryan was second, Smolinsky third, and Quirk fourth. Grossman was the tourney’s leading goaltender with a .944 save percentage and a 1.23 gaa.
4/4/04
Buffalo Saints Upset Shattuck for National 16-U Title
The Buffalo Saints upset Shattuck-St. Mary’s 4-2 to take the National 16-and-Under title in West Chester, PA today.
Shattuck, a powerhouse squad which outscored opponents by a 44-12 margin over the tournament’s six games, found themselves down 3-0 when, after a scoreless first period, the Saints got second-period goals from Matthew Bessing, Brian Keane, and Matthew Rang.
By the final buzzer, Shattuck had outshot the Saints 39-21, with the Saints’ William Sauer kicking out 37 shots, while Bryce Eberwein stopped 17 for Shattuck.
The tournament’s leading scorer was Pat Kane, a Buffalo native playing for Honeybaked. Kane had a 12-3-15 line. Tying him in points was Angelo Esposito, Shattuck’s ’89 from Montreal, who had a 6-9-15 line. Shattuck’s Garrett Roe was third in scoring with a 2-12-14 line.
In the 14-and Under Division, played in Pittsburgh, Honeybaked edged the California Wave, 3-2.
In the 12-and-Under Division, also played in Pittsburgh, Little Caesar's topped the Los Angeles Hockey Club, 4-1.
4/2/04
Palmer Steps Down at Brewster Academy
Brewster Academy hockey coach T.J. Palmer, who has been at the Wolfeboro, NH, prep school for 17 years, has stepped down as hockey coach. He will continue at the school as a history teacher, and soccer and baseball coach.
He will continue coaching hockey, but at a younger level, with his 10-year-old son's traveling team.
Brewster was one of the top Div. II teams this past season, spending a good chunk of the season as USHR's #1-ranked team.
Any coaches out there looking for a prep job in one of New England's more scenic areas should call A.D. Doug Algate as soon as possible. Algate's office number is (603) 569-7115.
Notes: NY/Mid-Atlantic won the Hockey Night in Boston title game on Wednesday night, shutting out the EJHL All-Stars, 2-0. NY/Mid-Atlantic, which actually had kids from all over the map, was led by the goaltending of Casey Tuttle of Augusta, Maine and the Kent's Hill School and Stephan Grauwiler of Switzerland and the National Sports Academy. In the second period, Northeastern-bound Carter Lee of the Canterbury School put his team up 1-0. Jeff Beck of Warrington, PA and the Hill School added an empty-netter for the final margin of victory. The EJHL All-Stars, which played without any members of the Junior Bruins, spent a large part of the game killing off penalties.
4/3/04
Wheeler Commits to Gophers
6'4", 195 lb. Breck School junior RW Blake Wheeler, the top-rated U.S. high school/prep player for June's NHL draft, committed to the University of Minnesota this afternoon.
Wheeler, who had a 44-56-100 line in 31 games this year, made his final choice from between Boston College and the Gophers.
Wheeler told us that it was a tough decision. "I don't really see too many major differences between the two schools," he said. "What it really came down to was the chance to play in front of the home folks and family."
Wheeler said that particular aspect was brought home to him during the Minnesota State High School Tournament three weeks ago. "During the semi vs. South St. Paul it hit me that I could have this every night. It definitely had an impact on my decision." Breck, led by Wheeler's 11 points (in three games), went on to win the Class A title, finishing with a 28-1-2 record.
Another factor in his decision, Wheeler said, was his hope of being accepted into the U's prestigious Carlson School of Management.
As for how long, given NHL pressure, that he might be staying with the Gophers, Wheeler said, "I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. At least three years would be great, but I'll just wait and see. Certainly not before I'm ready."
Wheeler will join the Gophers in the fall of '05. He says he will wait until after June's USHL draft before making up his mind as to whether he returns to Breck for his senior year or joins the Green Bay Gamblers, who selected him in last summer's USHL underage draft.
Wheeler, a big power forward who's an excellent skater, was projected 46th overall among North American skaters in Central Scouting's Mid-Term Ranking in January. An 8/31/86 birthdate, he's from Wayzata, Minn., where he helped lead the Wayzata Bantams to the Tier I Nationals in Colorado Springs. There, over the course of his sophomore year, his stock shot up dramatically. A large contingent of NHL scouts could be found at virtually every Breck game this season.
4/1/04
With Nikiforov, Minutemen’s L.I. Militia Grows
5’6”, 145 lb. Suffolk PAL Midget AAA forward Vladimir Nikiforov has committed to UMass.
Currently in the tenth grade, Nikiforov will arrive in Amherst in the fall of ’06.A left wing, Nikiforov is a small but superbly skilled and imaginative player with high-end puckhandling skills.
Nikiforov is the third young Long Islander – all Suffolk PAL players -- to have committed to UMass in recent weeks. Preceding him were forwards James Marcou (Suffolk PAL Midget AAA) and Nick Grasso (Suffolk PAL Jr. B). Behind them, there’s an additional batch of Div. I prospects on the Island.
Nikiforov, a 10/7/87 birthdate, is the son of Aleksey Nikiforov, a former Dynamo Riga player who, in his native Lithuania, coached the likes of NY Rangers Darius Kasparaitis and Washington Capitals RW Dainius Zubrus. The elder Nikiforov, 46, studied under the “Grandfather of Russian hockey”, the late Anatoly Tarasov, and moved to the U.S. from Lithuania in 1994, settling on Long Island.Nikiforov coached Long Island natives Michael Komisarek and Chris Higgins (both in the Montreal Canadiens organization) in their younger days.