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2/29/00 Can Taft Do It? When Taft tied Hotchkiss last Saturday, it became the first Division I prep school team in 14 years -- and the second ever -- to go through the regular season with an undefeated record. Can they go all the way, and wind up the season undefeated with a title game win on Sunday afternoon? We looked to the past for some answers. As we mentioned above, it's been a long time since a Division I prep school has had an undefeated season. The most recent that we know of -- and bear in mind that prep hockey keeps sketchy records -- are Deerfield, in 1960; and, Exeter, which, during the George Crowe era, ran off a pair of undefeated seasons, going, respectively, 16-0-1 and 16-0-0 in prep competition from 1971-73. (The losses in those two seasons came against college freshman and JV squads.) In the quarter-century since, a number of teams have come close, most notably the 1985-86 Avon Old Farms team coached by John Gardner and featuring current N.Y. Rangers defenseman Brian Leetch. That year Avon went into the playoffs with a 24-0-1 record, but in the title game lost 6-4 to Thayer, coached by Arthur Valicenti. Thayer's big gun? Star freshman Jeremy Roenick. No other team since then has gone to the title game undefeated, and there is only one team that, along with Avon, has made it through the whole campaign with only one loss, that being the 1995-96 championship Cushing squad, coached by Steve Jacobs and featuring defenseman Tom Poti and the top line of Jason Philbin, Ryan Moynihan, and Nick Gillis. Cushing was 34-1 that season, with their only loss being a February home defeat to Andover (specifically, goaltender Greg Berard, who kicked out 60 plus shots.) Last year's championship Exeter team, coached by Dana Barbin, went 30-3, but only one of those losses -- to Lawrence Academy -- came against a Div. I prep team. The other two losses were to junior teams. There are two teams that we know of that went through the regular season with only one loss, but got tagged with a second L in the playoffs. In 1987-88 Hotchkiss, coached by Jeff Kosak, lost only to Deerfield in January, and to eventual champion Tabor in the first round of the playoffs The Jim Lindsay coached 1994-95 Deerfield squad featuring Marty Reasoner also went through a season with only two losses, once to Salisbury in the Flood-Marr Tournament and then again in the prep semifinals, this time to Cushing. Speaking of Cushing, this season they have only two losses so far -- to Holderness and Tabor, both coming when Ben Murphy was out of the lineup with mono in early January. Cushing stands an excellent chance of being the next team to play an entire season with only two losses. First off, they know what it takes to go all the way -- ten players remain from Cushing's 1997-98 championship team that beat Deerfield 1-0 in the title game that March. Secondly, Cushing doesn't have the burden of the undefeated streak that Taft does. Taft seemed tight at times in Saturday's tie at Hotchkiss -- there weren't a lot of passes being completed. Cushing, meanwhile, tuned up with a 10-3 revenge blowout of Holderness. These two teams have stood apart from the pack practically all season, so it would only be fitting were they to meet in a title game matchup. And if it does happen? We're putting our money on Cushing to skate off with their third title in five years. Final score? Cushing, 4-2. Note: Since this piece was written, we've learned that St. Sebastian's had back-to-back undefeated seasons in 1960-61 and 1961-62; and that St. Paul's, in 1983-84, lost only one game, that to Belmont Hill (in the Lawrenceville Tournament). The top player on that St. Paul's team was senior defenseman Don Sweeney, who was 33-26-59 in 22 games, was picked by the Bruins in the 8th round that June, and went to Harvard in September.
2/29/00 Foley Takes a Powder When the prep school seedings were announced on Sunday, Thayer Academy, which finished the season with a 12-6-1 record, just missed the "Elite 8." Rather than compete for the Sam Simmons/Charlie Huntington Trophy in the newly-expanded tournament set up by NEPSIHA for Division I teams finishing the season ranked #9-16, coach Jack Foley shut down the season for Thayer prematurely, a decision that has been met with anger and disappointment, both from fellow coaches who feel he's being, as one said, "a bit of a poor sport," to players who feel the decision taints a successful season. Reportedly, Foley had told his team a month ago that if they failed to finish in the top eight, they were not going to the tournament at all. Most of the players believed the hot-tempered coach was using it as a motivational ploy. However, Foley reiterated his stance a week ago and when his captains asked to speak with him about it, Foley reportedly yelled at them for doing so. Prep schools have to apply for post-season play, and applications, accompanied by a $200 check, were due last Friday. In his application, Foley noted that he would only accept an invitation if Thayer made it into the top tournament, otherwise his team wouldn't be showing. Interestingly, in the west there was a similar situation. Choate, which had started strong but struggled in January, announced that if they didn't make the Elite 8 they weren't going to go to the post-season either. It was pointed out to them in no uncertain terms by NEPSIHA that if they withdrew their application, there would likely be sanctions against them the following year, most likely including a suspension from the post-season. Choate relented. Will Thayer be allowed to play in the post-season next year? We're told they will be, primarily because NEPSIHA felt they weren't as proactive in the Thayer case as they had been in the Choate case. NEPSIHA is going on the assumption that if they had gotten to Foley earlier and warned him of the possible consequences of his decision, then the coach might have agreed to let his kids play. Some, citing the fact that ignorance of the law is no excuse, think Thayer should be barred from post-season play next year, anyway. At best, Foley's decision overshadows what was really a pretty decent year for Thayer. At the USHR we analyzed the team's personnel and picked Thayer to finish eighth in our pre-season rankings. One more win and perhaps they could have. Thayer, though hobbled by injuries to key players like Lou Eyster and Steve Greeley, played about as well as could be expected, and would likely have been the #1 seed in the Simmons/Huntington Tournament. There's a history of this stuff in the Keller Division, where Ken Martin at Belmont Hill reportedly did it in the late 80's, back when Belmont Hill routinely fielded top-notch teams. Foley, reached at his Scituate home, said, "I don't have anything to say. There is no story here." Editor's Note: Choate AD Ned Gallagher has some comments concerning the fifth paragraph from the top. Click here to read them.
2/28/00 NEPSIHA All-Star Teams Announced The New England Prep School Ice Hockey Association (NEPSIHA) has released its All-Star teams. Voting is done by coaches within their respective leagues. Div. I East consists of goaltenders Rick Massey (BB&N) and Artie Imbriano (Tabor); defensemen Brett Peterson (Cushing) and Stephen Wood (Lawrence); and forwards Tony Voce (Lawrence), Chris Owen (Nobles), and Ben Murphy (Cushing). All are seniors except Murphy, who's a junior. Div. I West consists of goaltender Kyle McNulty (Hotchkiss); defensemen Mick Mounsey (Avon) and Jeff Dwyer (Choate); and forwards Tyler Kolarik (Deerfield), Tim Pettit (Taft), Rob Fried (Deerfield), Scott Horvath (Avon), and Adam Foote (Hotchkiss). All are seniors except McNulty, who's a junior. Div. II 1st All-Star team: The goaltender is Shaun Matejcek (S. Kent). Defensemen are Paul Lynch (Brooks) and Craig Badger (Williston). Forwards are Paul Knight (Pingree), Matt McCarthy (Rivers), and Chris Mansfield (Tilton). All are seniors except Lynch and McCarthy, both of whom are juniors. Div. II 2nd All-Star team: The goaltender is A.J. Bucchino (Tilton). The defensemen are Jason MacDonald (Tilton) and Greg de Spoelberch (Brunswick). The forwards are Mike Horvath (Brunswick, no relation to Div. I all-star Scott Horvath), Steve LaBrie (Proctor), and Jason Sirois (Proctor).
2/28/00 Catholic Memorial Leads Field for Super 8 The times for the Mass. High School Super 8 Tournament were released this morning. As in the past, it's a double-elimination tournament. However, the finals will be single-elimination this year. Games will be played at Tsongas Arena in Lowell, Mass.; Boston University; and the Fleet Center in Boston Here are the times for this coming Sunday March 5 in Lowell (which, by the way, is about 20 miles from Salem, NH, where the prep finals will be that afternoon as well.) Teams squeezed out include Billerica (14-5-1), Waltham (16-3-1), Burlington (15-3-2) in the North; and Durfee (17-1-0), Norwood (16-2-4) and Dedham (14-1-5) in the South. The team that got the #8 seed, St. John's (S), only won half their games. The finals are Sunday March 19 at the Fleet Center, which should be torn down tomorrow and replaced by the Boston Garden -- or at least a modern replica. We see Catholic Memorial and B.C High in the finals (pretty bold prediction, huh?) with CM coming out on top, 3-1.
2/27/00 Taft, Cushing Top Seeds for Playoffs Here are the matchups for the prep quarterfinals, all games to be played this Wednesday March 1. We'll start with the top division (Scott Stuart Trophy) On Sat. in Salem, NH, the Cushing/Nobles winner will play the Deerfield/Hotchkiss winner at 5:50 pm, and the Taft/Avon winner will play the Lawrence/Tabor winner at 8:10. The title game is Sunday at 3:00 pm. The next division will be playing for the Sam Simmons/Charlie Huntington Trophy. On Sat. in Salem, NH, the St. Sebastian's/NMH winner will play the Choate- Winchendon winner at 1:10 pm., and the Westminster/Berkshire winner will play the Andover/Exeter winner at 3:30 pm. The title game is Sunday at 12:30 pm Division II (Larry Piatelli Trophy) On Sat. morning in Salem, NH, the Hebron/Williston winner will play the Brewster/St. George's winner, and the Brunswick/Brooks winner will play the Tilton/St. Mark's winner.
2/24/00 HoneyBaked '86s on Top of the World 12,000 fans watching 13 and 14 year olds battle it out? It happens, but only at the annual World Pee Wee Championships in Quebec City, where on Sunday HoneyBaked took the title game with a 3-2 overtime win over the Michigan Ice Dogs. Actually, HoneyBaked got two goals in OT -- the first was waved off, but the second, scored by Eric Condra from Todd McIlrath, stood. McIlrath, who was the MVP of the finals, is one of several top forwards on the team. A center and outstanding stickhandler, McIlrath also has extremely good vision. Team captain Brian Lerg, also a center, has great hands as well. He's also excellent on faceoffs and has a shot. Also coming up big was Taylor Raskza, a strong powerful skater with size. He can fire it, too. Top defenseman was Justin Johnston, who's extremely quick -- and already 5'11". Goaltending duties were split by Jeff Lerg, who's a quick, butterfly type; and Austin West, who's a bigger, standup type. In case you're wondering, Jeff Lerg is the son of Ken Lerg, who coached the team. Ken Lerg, who played at Ohio State, is the older brother of Dan Lerg, who played at Michigan and now coaches the HoneyBaked Midgets. Brian Lerg is his son.
2/24/00 National Coach's Mother Dies Everyone following the fortunes of the United States at the World Junior Championships in Finland will remember National Coach Jeff Jackson having to leave the team and return home to Ann Arbor, Mich. when his elderly mother suffered a severe stroke Jan. 2. Katherine Jackson subsequently improved enough to start rehabbing, but last week took a sudden turn for the worse. On Saturday night, her son left the bench between periods of his U.S. Under-18 Team's game against Des Moines to be by her side. Mrs. Jackson died early Monday morning at the University of Michigan Hospital. Her son, who's her only survivor, has set up a Memorial Fund for a hockey scholarship at Lake Superior State, where Jackson coached the Lakers from 1990-96, winning two NCAA titles and coming in second once. Donations in the name of Katherine Jackson can be made to the LSSU Foundation; 801 North Campus Court; Sault Ste. Marie, MI 49783. A memorial service was held last night in Roseville, Michigan
2/24/00 Mr. Hockey The nominations for the Mr. Hockey award, given annually to the top high school player in Minnesota, were announced this week. They are: The winner will be announced March 12. Paul Martin is expected to win it in a landslide. The winner of the Frank Brimsek Award, given to the top goalie in the state, has already been announced -- it's Jake Brandt of the Roseau HS Rams.
2/22/00 Prep Playoff Primer On Sunday night Feb. 27, the New England Prep School Ice Hockey Association will be announcing the seedings and matchups for the post-season, and we'll have them for you here. How, you might be wondering, are the New England prep school seedings determined? It's a good question, and one we get dozens of e-mails about every year. So here goes. First off, there is no subjectivity involved. It's strictly mathematical. There are three criteria, and each is equally weighted. In other words, the results of games versus Division I schools from outside the NEPSIHA (Lawrenceville, Hill, Northwood, Culver, Nichols, Shattuck-St. Mary's, and a few others) count for nothing. They're essentially exhibition games. Needless to say, when the committee meets at St. Mark's School on Sunday morning they'll be packing some serious pocket calculators -- and maybe a computer, too. Sunday night, Salisbury Head Coach Matt Corkery, President of the NEPSIHA, will announce the seedings. The big change this season, as we wrote about last summer, is that the tournament -- on the Div. I level -- has expanded from eight to sixteen teams. In recent years it's been strictly an eight team tournament. This year, those top eight teams will be performing in an "Elite 8" or, if you prefer, a "I-A" tournament, and will be competing for the Scott Stuart Trophy. At the same time, the teams ranked #9-16 overall will be playing in the Division I bracket, competing for the Sam Simmons/Charlie Huntington Trophy. On Wednesday, there will be four Elite 8 games, all in the afternoon and all at campus sites. That means scouts/recruiters coming in from out of town will only be able to see one game -- maybe part of a second if they leave game #1 early and hustle. Here's the format. It's pretty standard. The next group, the teams ranked #9-16 overall, will be following the exact same format. The Division II tournament is set up differently. There's no East-West considerations. It's just #8 at #1, #7 at #2, #6 at #3, #5 at #4. How do you know which teams are in the east or west? Well, basically the Founders League and the western half of the New England Prep School Conference are in the west; and the Keller Division of the ISL and the west division of the New England Prep School Conference are in the east. (Right now, there's a little uncertainty as to where Northfield-Mt. Hermon would be placed if they were to get into the playoffs. In the New England Prep School Conference, Northfield is in the east and Winchendon is in the west, though if you look at a map you'll see that Northfield is 50 or so miles west of Winchendon. Clearly, Northfield is a team in the west. No wonder there are kids struggling with geography -- grownups are confusing them.) Here are some teams and the side of the draw they'll be on: If the season ended today, those 15 teams would likely be in. The 16th team? We're guessing, but it looks like it might come from among Winchendon, Milton, Holderness, or Berkshire. The winners next Wednesday advance to the Ice Center in Salem, NH for the semi-finals and finals on Sat.-Sun. March 4-5. The Salem Ice Center is about 50 miles northeast of Boston, right over the Mass-N.H. border. Elite 8/Div. I-A semis on Saturday will be at 5:50 pm and 8:10 pm. The title game will be on Sunday at 3:00 pm The Div. I semis on Saturday will be at 1:10 and 3:30 pm. The title game will be Sunday at 12:30 pm. The Div. II semis will be Saturday at 8:30 am and 10:50 am. The title game will be Sunday at 10:00 am.
2/20/00 No Suspense! For the seventh straight week, undefeated Taft (19-0-2) sits alone atop the USHR Prep Poll. To pull off an undefeated regular season -- or "run the table," as they say in basketball -- Taft must get by Trinity-Pawling at home on Wednesday and then knock off Hotchkiss on the road Saturday.
2/20/00 RPI Gets a Forward Exeter's Conrad Barnes has committed to RPI for the fall. Barnes, a 6'0", 190 lb. right-shot center from Greenwood , Colorado, likes to play the body as much as score and has done plenty of both in his four years on the Exeter varsity. Despite limited playing time as a freshman (Barnes scored only five points that year), he now has 169 points on his career. He needs nine points to pass Geoff Koch and take over second place on Exeter's all-time scoring list. #1? That would be Russell Bartlett, who is way in front with a career line of 102-173-275.
2/17/00 Gurry Stepping Down at Andover At the close of this season, longtime Andover coach Chris Gurry, after 26 years of coaching at the school -- twenty as the head man -- will be retiring. Gurry cited a need to spend more time with his family. He will stay on at Andover as a faculty member, teaching American History and International Relations. Gurry, who grew up in Andover, attended Andover from 1961-66, then went on to Harvard where he was the captain of the 1969-70 team. Gurry held both the single season and career scoring records for Harvard defensemen -- at least until freshmen became eligible to play varsity. Mark Fusco now holds both those marks. After graduation, Gurry was an assistant at West Point for four years, then returned to Andover as an assistant under Ted Harrison for six years. For the last twenty, Gurry's been the head coach. When asked to name his favorite team, Gurry cited the 1995-96 squad, which that February handed the Tom Poti-led Cushing squad its only loss of the season, but bowed to the Penguins, 7-1, when the two teams met in the Prep title game at Lowell's Tully Forum that March. Gurry's team that season featured goaltenders Greg Berard and Nick Rieser; defensemen Ben Barnett, Chris Warrington, and Sean Austin; and forwards Scott Turco, Niels Heilmann, and Ethan Doyle. Gurry said that, in looking for his replacement, Andover will be looking for someone who can teach, coach, and be a dorm father. "We'd like to get something done fairly quick," he said, "but we may open it up, too. There will, however, be continuity here. Dean Boylan will be staying on as an assistant and -- if we don't find someone -- he may stay on as the interim head coach." Boylan has served as Gurry's assistant the last two years. A former Yale forward who also played minor pro hockey, Boylan formerly was an assistant with the Valley Junior Warriors (EJHL). As for leading candidates, we've only heard one name on the grapevine -- Deerfield Academy assistant Brendan Creagh.
2/17/00 Barlow to Harvard Blair Barlow, a 6'1", 195 lb. left-shot D from the Nanaimo Clippers (BCJHL) will be heading to Harvard University in the fall. An offensive-type of D, he quarterbacks Nanaimo's powerplay. An '81 birthdate, Barlow was on the BCJHL's entry in this winter's Viking Cup, and the team's leading defensive point-getter until he separated his shoulder in the game against the U.S. Barlow got a good bit of interest from CCHA and WCHA schools, but in the end decided to go Ivy, narrowing his final three choices to Cornell, Princeton, and, of course, Harvard. Barlow is reported to be a strong presence in the locker room. He's a native of Strathmore, Alberta, which is about 50 kilometers due east of Calgary along Highway 1. His family runs a farm there, and one of the defenseman's major responsibilities is pulling calves from their mothers during the birthing process. Hey, it should make for interesting stories during road trips.
2/15/00 Michigan Snaps Up Another Star 11th Grader Yet another 11th grader who has made his college choice for the fall of 2001 is U.S. National Program forward Dwight Helminen. Helminen will be going to play for Red Berenson at the University of Michigan. A 5'9" left-shot center who's equally adept using his speed off the wing, Helminen is "a yooper," -- he was born and brought up on Michigan's Upper Peninsula, though his family now lives downstate, in Brighton, Michigan. Prior to going to the National Program, Helminen, a 6/22/83 birthdate, played in the Compuware organization. In the World Under-17 Challenge in Northern Ontario Dec. 26-Jan. 4, Helminen, in this typist's eyes, was the most productive U.S. forward. Helminen started this season with the Under-17 Team, and posted a 7-10-17 line in 30 games, but after Christmas was moved up to the Under-18 Team, where he has a 3-3-6 line in 15 games.
2/15/00 Whoops...Make that Silver The U.S. Under-18 team won the silver -- not bronze -- medal at the Five Nations Tournament, which concluded Sunday in Rauma, Finland. Right after the final game, we reported in this space that the U.S. had won the bronze and, indeed, that was how it was initally recorded on the scene. A subsequent reworking of the goal differential numbers moved the U.S. up a slot to second overall. Goaltender Nick Pannoni earned the Directorate Award as the top goaltender in the tournament. Forward Rob Globke, who had a 3-0-3 line, was named to the all-tournament team. Jake Fleming was the team's leading scorer with a 2-2-4 line.
2/15/00 Union College Gets a Sleeper 62", 175 lb. left-shot defenseman and 12th Grader P.J. Byrne has committed to Union College, where he'll play for coach Kevin Sneddon. Byrne, a native of Brewster, NY and an '80 birthdate, plays for the Trinity-Pawling School (Mo Vaughn's alma mater, for you baseball fans out there). He's an agile, smooth-skating D who has good hands, sees the ice well, and has a bit of an offensive edge. Because the team he plays for has struggled in recent years, Byrne doesn't get seen as much as players in the big-time prep programs. However, he's quietly and steadily improved, and could be a bit of a sleeper among this year's crop of east coast prep recruits. 2/13/00 U.S. Ties Czech Republic, Earns Bronze Rauma, Finland -- A goal by the Czech Republic's Martin Frolik with 54 second left in the game lifted his team into a 2-2 tie with the U.S. Under-18 Team in the finale of the Five Nations Tournament here this afternoon. The U.S. is flying home with a bronze medal, but -- if not for that last-minute goal -- it could have been silver. Before Frolik struck, the U.S. had been sitting on a 2-1 lead for a span of 32:18, ever since a Quinn Fylling goal at 6:48 of the second. And just when it looked like that goal would hold up as the game-winner -- bingo. In the first period, the two teams swapped goals, with the U.S, on a Jon Waibel powerplay goal, going up at 12:26, and the Czech Republic's Petr Vampola, also on the powerplay, scoring at 15:17. Nick Pannoni had 23 saves for the U.S. Russia, the only team to beat the U.S. in the tournament, won the gold, while Sweden, on goal differential, took second. Jake Fleming was the top U.S. point-getter in the tournament, finishing with four points (2g,2a). David Steckel, R.J. Umberger, Jeremy Jackson, and Rob Globke all finished with three points apiece. Box Score: U.S. 2, Czech Republic 2
2/13/00 11th Grader Commits Early to Notre Dame U.S. Under-17 Team defenseman -- and 11th grader -- Derek Smith will be going to Notre Dame in the fall of 2001. This one actually predates the two 11th grade verbal commitments -- those of Ryan Whitney and Michael Woodford -- that we reported in this space last week. However, we're reporting it here for the first time. Smith, a 6'0", 178 lb. native of Marysville, Michigan who came up through the Compuware organization, is a throwback type of defenseman. He's not flashy, but he's very steady, punishes with solid hits, and moves the puck out of the zone with passes that are quick and decisive. In 27 NAHL games he has a 4-4-8 line with 20 penalty minutes. Smith, who'll receive a full athletic scholarship, attends Huron High School in Ann Arbor. He's a top student, maintaining a 3.70 average. He'll become the eighth member of the U.S. National Program to go on and play for Dave Poulin at Notre Dame. The others are Paul Harris, Connor Dunlop, Brett Henning, John Wroblewski, and Michael Chin, who are already there; and Brett Lebda and Neil Komadoski, who'll be headed there this fall.
2/13/00 Taft Tightens Grip on #1 Spot in USHR Prep Poll For the sixth straight week, undefeated Taft sits alone atop the USHR Prep Poll.
2/12/00 Woodford Commits to Michigan Michael Woodford, Cushing Academy's high-scoring forward, has become the second 11th grader to commit to a major Div. I college this week. Woodford will be attending the University of Michigan in the fall of 2001. Woodford, who's 6'1" and 185 lbs., is a native of Westford, Mass., outside of Boston. In 25 games this season, Woodford has a 27-27-54 line. Seven of his goals have been game winners, and two are short-handed goals. He's a right shot playing RW on Cushing's top line, which is centered by Ben Murphy and has Brian Doherty on the left side. Woodford, who's an October 1981 birthdate, played at the Cardigan Mountain School, then attended Lawrence Academy for a year before transferring to Cushing where he won the USHR Most Improved Prep Player of the Year Award last season. This season, he's continued that improvement, and now he's bound for one of the top Division I programs in the country. "It's a tribute to his effort," said Cushing Coach Steve Jacobs. "He works like a dog, day in and day out." Michigan assistant coach Billy Powers watched Woodford in the Lawrence-Groton Christmas Tournament Dec.17-18. Woodford was also interested in Michigan State.
2/11/00 U.S. Under-18's Defeat Sweden, 4-3, at Five Nations Laitila, Finland -- The U.S. Under-18 team beat Sweden, 4-3, at the Five Nations Tournament here tonight, evening its record at 1-1-1. Nick Pannoni, who had 23 saves, is undefeated in the tournament, having also been in the net when the U.S. tied Finland on Wednesday. The U.S. has a day off tomorrow and plays its final game Sunday afternoon against the Czech Republic, which defeated Russia today, 6-5. 2/11/00 Eden Prairie Still on Top This week's USHR Minnesota High School Hockey Rankings were released today, and Eden Prairie is still holding down the top spot. Minnesota HS Poll: 11 Feb 2000
2/10/00 Whitney Commits to BU 6'3", 185 lb. Thayer Academy junior defenseman Ryan Whitney, who would have had Div. I college recruiters camped out at his Scituate, Mass. house when July 1st came around, side-stepped that by committing to Boston University today. Whitney, who also seriously considered Boston College, and, to a slightly lesser degree, Michigan, described the Terriers as "a great fit for me," adding, "I love the coaches and the players -- plus I think they have as good a chance as anyone else to win a National title in the next few years." An '83 birthdate, Whitney, who turns 17 a week from Saturday, is the top defense prospect to come out of New England since Cushing Academy's Tom Poti a few years back. Whitney, a left shot, is a player we've described as having Chris Pronger potential. The most striking aspect of Whitney's game is his long stride and his ability to make long tape-to-tape outlet passes from his end, consistently hitting forwards breaking through the neutral zone. There's a good chance that in the fall Whitney will head out to Ann Arbor and join the National Team Development Program for his senior year. A year there would enable him to fine-tune his game, add strength, and set himself up to be an impact freshman when he arrives on Babcock Street in September 2001. Assuming there's no change in the opt-in rule, Whitney's draft year won't be until 2002. Early projections have him going high in the first round. Interest in him was such that when Whitney played the Prospects Tournament with the USHR.DotComs last spring, every game was packed with agents and scouts. If Whitney had opted into the OHL draft he probably would have gone second, behind center Jason Spezza. Three years ago, Whitney played for the South Shore Kings team that won the International Pee Wee Tournament in Quebec City. Current U.S. National Team Development forward Brian McConnell was a teammate on that squad. In 1998, Whitney was rated the top prospect at USA Hockey's Select 15 Festival in Ann Arbor. More recently, on Dec. 27 through Jan. 4, Whitney played for the U.S. at the World-Under 17 Championships in Ontario.
2/10/00 Russia Tops U.S. Under-18 Team, 5-3 Rauma, Finland — Team Russia scored four goals off six shots in the first period en route to a 5-3 victory over the U.S. National Under-18 team at the Five Nations Tournament here tonight. Team USA’s goals came in the first period, when Kris Vernarsky scored an unassisted power-play goal, and in the third period, when Rob Globke and Jake Fleming each scored power-play goals to cut the Russian lead to 5-3, which is where it ended. U.S. goaltender Travis Weber recovered from a tough first period to finish the game with 21 saves, including 11 in the second. The U.S., 0-1-1 at the tournament, plays Sweden tomorrow at 11:30 p.m. EST. 2/9/00 U.S. Under-18's Take Away Finns' Home Ice Advantage
2/9/00 Eric Werner Breaks Leg in Car Accident A car crash Saturday night in Ann Arbor, Mich. has knocked U.S. Under-17 Team defenseman Eric Werner out for the season with a broken leg, and caused forward Jake Riddle to be suspended from the team for the remainder of the season. Riddle, who was sent home to Minnesota on Monday, suffered only a bump to his head. He was reported to have been drinking. Werner, it appears, was the "designated driver." The crash, which took place in the early evening near the Ann Arbor Ice Cube, came when Werner swerved to avoid a pothole and lost control of the car, which flipped over. The only reason Werner and Riddle were in Ann Arbor at all was because they were on academic suspension. Their teammates on the Under-17 Team were off on a three-game road trip consisting of two games against the Springfield Jr. Blues (Werner's older brother, Frank, is a forward for the Jr. Blues) and a Sunday matinee against the Chicago Freeze. Players in the National Team Development Program are not allowed to dress or travel for games if their grades fall below a certain level. Werner, a 5'8", 145 lb. right-shot D from Grosse Pointe Woods, Mich. who played for the Little Caesar's Midgets in 1998-99, is a quick, highly-mobile D with excellent hands. He appeared in last month's NAHL All-Star game. Werner, a junior in high school, is ticketed to Michigan, where his father, Frank, played in the '70s. Werner led all Under-17 team defenseman in scoring, by a wide margin. His numbers at the time of the accident were 8-7-15 in 29 NAHL games. Riddle, who played last year for Minnesota Class A state champions Benilde-St. Margaret's High School, had a 7-6-13 line in 33 NAHL games. He's is the younger brother of the Des Moines' Buccaneers' Troy Riddle.
2/8/00 HoneyBaked '84s Romp in Cornwall The Detroit HoneyBaked '84's, the best American bantam team we've seen this winter, took the 37th annual Cornwall Invitational this past weekend. On the bank of the St. Lawrence River in Cornwall, Ontario, in the same barn where Dale Hawerchuk and Billy Smith played their junior hockey, HoneyBaked, which lost to the North York Canadiens, 1-0, in the semifinals of Toronto Marlies tournament Dec. 30, went the distance this time, knocking off the Gloucester (Ont.) Rangers, 6-0, in the title game. For the weekend, HoneyBaked outscored their opponents, 33-10, and only one of their five games was a close one -- that being a 7-6 semi-final win over Lac St. Louis, Quebec that wasn't nailed down until Ryan Kesler scored with 1:30 left. In that game, HoneyBaked saw a 4-0 lead disappear when Lac St. Louis scored four straight times during a five-minute powerplay late in the second. Early in the third, HoneyBaked got two quick ones, but Lac St. Louis came right back with two of their own, setting the table for Kesler's game-winner. Kesler, a center, has size -- he's 6'0" -- plus he's a graceful skater who can score. His numbers for the weekend were 8-9-17, which had to make the OHL scouts in attendance sit up a little straighter in their seats. Kesler is a player you may be hearing about for a long time -- but that applies to a good number of the HoneyBaked kids. Chris Wright is one such player. A burner who forechecks like mad and creates opportunities with his speed, Wright had an eight-point weekend (6g,2a). A center, Wright is quickly coming into his own as a scorer. Center David Booth is a late '84, which should help his OHL draft position. Booth has decent size already, and should be a six-footer in time. On top of that, he has good speed, anticipates well, and is strong on his skates. Booth had a 4-1-5 line over the weekend. 5'10" winger Rob Nowinski had a big weekend, too, with a 5-5-10 line. He's rugged, can hit and take a hit, and, as the numbers indicate, has a touch around the net. Center Jason Paige is another top prospect. He has better than average size and strength, plus he can skate. The team captain, Paige is also a hard worker who'll mix it up and drive to the net to create chances. . On defense, HoneyBaked is so deep that they can move one of their top blueliners, Jamie Milam, up to forward and still shut opponents down. As a forward, Milam, who has perhaps as hard a shot as any 15-year-old this typist has seen, had two goals and four assists on the weekend. The two stars on the blue line are Chris Trick, a right shot, and Brian Lee, a left shot. Trick, who's 6'3" already, uses his great wingspan to keep forwards out of scoring range, and then corrals the puck neatly and turns the play back up-ice. Basically, Trick keeps it simple, but he also has an accurate, low shot and the ability to move the puck up ice with a sharp outlet pass. Posted some big offensive numbers on the weekend (5g,2a). Lee is 6'1" and an excellent skater with mobility rarely seen in players of his age and size. He can go end to end with it if needs to, but generally looks to make the pass. In net, Justin Tobe suffered a Grade One concussion around the eight-minute mark of the tournament's first game and had to sit out the rest of the weekend. Dominic Vicari stepped in and held the fort. We mentioned earlier that HoneyBaked would contend for the crown at the Bantam Nationals in Edina, Minn., April 5-9. Well, we were wrong. HoneyBaked is only considered bantam major in Canada. In the U.S., they're midget minor. We see and hear about most of the U.S. teams by way of Canadian tournaments, and sometimes get crossed-up on classifications.
2/7/00 Reading High Hockey Hit by Scandal Mass. Div. I hockey power Reading High School, ranked #4 in last week's Boston Globe state high school hockey poll, has been shaken by an incident in which two senior players on the team reportedly roughed up a sophomore goaltender in the team shower room last week When Reading High took the ice for a game at Belmont High on Saturday afternoon, neither senior goaltender Travis Mustone nor senior forward George Brooks were in uniform. Bobby Rossi, the sophomore goaltender to whom Mustone had been losing playing time recently, started for Reading and picked up an 8-3 win in the game. Lieutenant-Detective Kevin Patterson of the Reading Police confirmed that a report had been taken in the case, but no charges filed. "It appears to have been resolved through the high school," he said, and referred all comments on the case to Reading School Superintendent Dr. Harry K. Harutunian. Harutunian acknowledged only that there had been an incident involving the hockey team and a violation of school department rules. When informed of this reporter's findings, Harutunian offered no comment. When asked if there was any possibility of the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association (MIAA) getting involved in the case, Harutunian said, "At this time, no." The MIAA governs Mass. high school athletics, including the state high school playoffs. Right now, the possibility of Reading being taken out of the postseason picture appears remote -- sources close to the scene describe the Reading High administration's handling of the incident as "extremely proactive." Reading, which is undefeated (10-0-3) in 13 league games features the two most explosive high school players in the state in linemates Sean Collins (21-30-51) and Stephen Saviano (16-34-50). Collins, a junior, will be among the most highly-sought members of this upcoming recruiting class. Saviano, a senior, will be playing at the University of New Hampshire in the fall. Reading coach Peter Doherty would not comment on the case. Mustone and Brooks are reportedly expelled for two weeks.
2/6/00 Taft Holds #1 Spot in USHR Prep Poll For the fifth straight week, undefeated Taft sits alone atop the USHR Prep Poll.
2/5/00 U.S. Under-18's Heading to Finland Tomorrow (Sun. 2/6), the U.S. Under-18 Team flies out of Detroit for the Five Nations Tournament in Rauma, Finland. Last year, the U.S. won the tournament, which is the last major international tournament leading up to the big one -- the World Under-18 Championship in April. The squad that is going to Finland consists of 17 players from the U.S. National Team Development Program augmented by five additions: forwards Jeremy Jackson (Chilliwack Chiefs -- BCHL), Gregg Johnson (New England Coyotes -- EJHL), and Kris Vernarsky (Plymouth Whalers -- OHL); and defensemen Joey Schuman (Benilde-St. Margaret's -- Minn. HS) and Noah Welch (St. Sebastian's -- Mass. Prep). The tournament, which is round-robin and without playoffs, starts on Wednesday Feb. 9, with the U.S. meeting Finland. On Thursday they play Russia, and, on Friday, Sweden. Saturday is an off-day and on Sunday they'll meet the Czech Republic before flying home.
2/4/00 NTDP Staying in Ann Arbor Over the past couple of months, various proposals over the immediate future of the National Team Development Program have been zipping back and forth within the USA Hockey hierarchy. While the program's continued existence was never in question, there were definite questions concerning next year. Specifically, would the program stay in Ann Arbor or move to Lake Placid? Would there be one team or two teams? While the issues were generally more complicated than that, those were the two questions most observers were looking for answers to. Yesterday it came -- Jeff Jackson, U.S. National Coach and director of the NTDP, learned from USA Hockey Executive Director Doug Palazzari that the program will remain in Ann Arbor with two teams, just the way it has been since the program's inception three years ago. Look for an official announcement sometime next week. Palazzari made his decision after talking earlier in the week with USA Hockey's Junior Council, representatives of the USHL, and the NTDP staff. One of the things the program was looking for -- and which now appears likely to happen -- is a reduction in the number of USHL games for the older team. The U.S. Under-18 team, which has a 28-10-3 USHL record right now, is looking to play a reduced 24-36 game schedule in the USHL next season and then use the freed-up dates to add international, Div. III, and also some Div. I games. (In October, look for the Under-18 team to play in the University of Maine's Dexter Classic.) The Under-17 Team will continue on as a full league member in the NAHL. It's felt that there's no reason to change that. The younger team has all they can handle -- and then some -- in coming out of high school, prep school, and bantam and midget leagues and going up against older Junior A players for the first time. Stay tuned for more details.
2/3/00 Kleespies Comes Through A powerplay goal by Kevin Kleespies with 30 seconds remaining in regulation gave the American squad a 6-5 win the EJHL All-Star game, played tonight at Lawrence, Mass. The American squad, which led 5-2 early in the third, allowed the Nationals -- on goals by Matt Owens, Mark Hathaway, and Mike Mantenuto to tie it up and force Kleespies, who plays for the Great Northern Snow Devils, to bail out his teammates as the clock wound down. The New England Coyotes' Gregg Johnson, who'll be leaving tomorrow to represent the U.S. at the Five Nations Tournament in Finland, picked up an assist on the winning goal.
2/3/00 UVM Hazing: The Attorney General's Report Today, the office of Vermont Attorney General William H. Sorrell released its report on the Vermont Hockey hazing incident of October 2. For those interested in more reading on the subject, today's Washington Post has a major article. It can be found at: http://washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/sports/daily/feb00/02/vermont2.htm The New York Times has an article today, as well. It can be found at: http://www.nytimes.com/library/sports/hockey/020300hko-burlington.html
2/3/00 AWHL Struts its Stuff The American West Hockey League held it's showcase and all-star game the weekend before last (yes, we know) at the 3,400-seat Valley Ice Center in Bozeman, Montana. There, in the shadow of the Bridger Range, each AWHL team played two league games, followed Sunday by the AWHL All-Star Game. The Fernie Roughriders, dominating the AWHL regular-season standings, placed eight players in the game. They were followed closely by the Bismarck Bobcats and Great Falls Americans with seven players each. Next came the Kimberley Dynamiters with six players, the Butte Irish with four, the Billings Bulls and Bozeman Icedogs with three each, and the Helena Gold Rush with two. In Sunday’s AWHL All-Star game, the International team asserted their dominance from the start and registered an 11-3 win, led by a four-goal performance by Fernie's Charlie Mattersdorfer, who was named the game’s MVP. Here are the AWHL All-Star rosters: AWHL International Team Goaltenders: Jeremy Glasgow (Devon, Alberta/Kimberley), Grady Hunt (Vernon, BC/Fernie) Defensemen: Marion Csorich (Poland/Bismark), Miika Huczkowski (Finland/Great Falls), Sean Streich (Kimberley, BC/Kimberley), Brandon Upstone (Kimberley), Brian Youngson (Coquitlam, BC/Fernie), Nick Whittaker (Calgary/Fernie) Forwards: Jozef Budaj (Slovakia/Butte), Marc Fournier (Quebec City/Kimberley), Charlie Mattersdorfer (Fernie, BC/ Fernie), Troy Newton (Kimberley, BC/Kimberley), Kevin Olson (Pincher Creek, Alberta/Fernie), Ryan Pollock (Regina/Great Falls), Konrad Reeder (Vanderhoof, BC/Bozeman), Glenn Thoben (Wetaskibin, Alberta/Kimberley), Trent Ulmer (Bethune, Saskatchewan/Fernie), Cameron VanSandt (East End, Sasketchewan/Billings), Adrian Wong (Richmond, BC/Fernie), Alec Parez (Czech Republic/Bismarck) Head Coach: Fred Harbinson (Fernie) AWHL U.S. Team Goaltenders: Casey Beauvais (New Richmond, Wisconsin/Great Falls), Mike Matich (Chicago/Bismarck) Defensemen: Mark Cole (East Islip, NY/Great Falls), Matt Paluczak (St. Louis/Bismarck), Ryan Vieau (Proctor, Minnesota/Fernie), James Jernberg (St. Cloud, Minnesota/Great Falls), Jesse Minneman (Chicago/Bismarck), Matt Reker (New Brighton, Minnesota/Butte) Forwards: Jon Booras (Billings/Billings), Phil Cohen (Levittown, Pennsylvania/Helena), Brendan Donovan (Boston/Billings), Brent Halverson (Cloquet, Minnesota/Bozeman), Jess Johnson (Bloomington, Minnesota/Great Falls), Richard Kisskeys (Lino Lakes, Minnesota/Great Falls), Marco Peluso (Bovey, Minnesota/Bismarck), Matt Wavra (Red Lake Falls, Minnesota/Butte), Kyle Worner (Sioux City, Iowa/Helena), Nathan Ronning (Detroit Lakes, Minnesota/Bismarck), Chris Roland (Tacoma, Washington/Bozeman), Dustin LaValley (Superior, Wisconsin/Butte) Head Coach: Bliss Littler (Billings)
2/3/00 EJHL All-Star Game, Take 2 The Eastern Junior Hockey League All-Star Game, snowed out two weeks ago, will take place tonight (Thurs. Feb. 3) at 7 p.m at the Valley Forum in Lawrence, Mass. Here are the rosters. 1999-200 EJHL All-Stars American Team Goaltenders: Mike Wolfe (SnowDevils); John Yaros (Applecore). Defensemen: Eero Vartiainen (SnowDevils); Kevin Kleespies (SnowDevils); Brian Escobedo (Applecore); Scott Brien (Warriors); Jeff Mason (Coyotes); Achim Lootens (Breakers). Forwards: Derek Seal (SnowDevils); Derek Damon (SnowDevils); Justin Postiglione (SnowDevils); Ryan Vesce (Applecore); Ken Turano (Applecore); Vincent Hellemeyer (Applecore); Gregg Johnson (Coyotes); John Luszcz (Coyotes); Peter Zingoni (Coyotes); Jeremy Garrison (Warriors); Shane Coleman (Harborwolves); Greg Horan (Harborwolves); Joe Lovell (Boston Breakers). National Team Goaltender: Robert Silvia (Stars); Jeremy Redquest (Warriors). Defensemen: Jeremy Cormier (Stars); Ryan Glenn (Stars); Bob Gillon (Bruins); Tim Songin (Huskies); Neil Dombrowski (Huskies); Peter Hams (Bandits). Forwards: Matt Owens (Stars); Mike Mantenuto (Stars); Paul Falco (Stars); Greg Mauldin (Bruins); Chad Pillsbury (Bruins); Jaymie Harrington (Bruins); Mark Hathaway (Bruins); Mike Curtis (Huskies); Lars-Peder Nagel (Huskies); Zach Schwan (Cap District); Jay Latulippe (Cap District); Nate Gagnon (Cap District); Shane Relihan (Bandits). QMJHL Looks to New England This morning, the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League's Scouting Bureau issued its February rankings of players eligible for the league's June draft. For those of you who don't know, the CHL last summer reapportioned Eastern Canada and New England, ceding the latter to the QMJHL. This year, for the first time, New Englanders can only be drafted by QMJHL teams. They cannot be drafted by the OHL or the WHL. Now that the league has exclusive rights to New England players, it's only a matter of time until the league places a franchise in the region. Vermont and Maine have always been assumed to be the most likely places for a franchise, but there's now talk of placing one closer to Boston. Look for it to happen fairly soon. This fall, QMJHL scouts have been feeling their way through New England's prep and junior ranks. Today, we went through their rankings and pulled out the 58 New Englanders that caught their eyes. 10 of them are from St. Sebastian's. To be eligible for the 2000 QMJHL draft a player must be born between October 1, 1982 and December 31, 1984. However, there are five players on the list born before then, so here's a heads-up from the USHR to the QMJHL: Noah Welch, Ben McManama, Brandon Rogers, Michael Walsh, and Pat Walsh are all ineligible by dint of their being born in the first nine months of '82. There might be a couple others, too. We didn't check all birthdates.
2/1/00 College Commitments Here are some new ones: Mike Klema of the Fargo-Moorhead Ice Sharks (USHL) has committed to Yale. Klema, 19, was a top forward for the Roseau Rams, the winners of the Minnesota State High School Championship last winter. In 39 USHL games this season, the 6'1", 185 lb. Klema has a 6-16-22 line. Defenseman Jon Krall of the Cleveland Barons (NAHL) has committed to the University of Wisconsin. Krall, 18, a native of Temperance, Michigan, is 6'1", 180 and in his seond season with the Barons. In 36 games this year, he has a 4-23-27 line and leads all NAHL defensemen in both assists and points. Krall played on te NAHL team that won the Top Prospects/King of the Hill title the week after Thanksgiving. Brian Canady of the Waterloo Black Hawks (USHL) will be going to the University of North Dakota. Canady, who's from Kenai, Alaska, is 6'0", 190 lbs. and has a 19-9-29 line this season. Canady played on the gold-medal winning US Team at the Viking Cup last month. 6'1", 200 lb. Salisbury defenseman Tucker Veenis has committed to Colgate. Veenis, a right shot, is from Pittsburgh, PA and one of Salisbury's captains.
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