Wed. 7/31/19
BU Camp Report
Last weekend's camp at Walter Brown Arena featured '01s to '04s from all across North America -- and even Europe.
For us, the top player in camp, especially in terms of upside, was left-shot D Matthew Jovanovic, a late '04 from the Toronto Marlboros. Jovanovic, a sturdy, well-built kid who plays with poise that belies his age, is a strong skater with a low center of gravity, and an adroit stickhandler. We will likely be hearing a lot about him in the years to come.
The camp's star forward was Jake Manfre, also an '04. Manfre, who plays for the Long Island Gulls, simply scores, seemingly at will. If he's anywhere near the net with the puck on his stick, it's trouble for opponents. Stats weren't kept, but he had hat tricks in at least two consecutive games.
We were only at the camp for one of its three days (Saturday), and have 33 players on our list. There were eight teams in the camp.
While all the following stood out to us, some made a bigger impact, and their names are preceded by an asterisk. There are six players, so it's fair to say they constitute an all-star team. We admit it does skew toward younger players. The list below goes team-by-team, and in no particular order. The team listed after a player's name indicates where he'll be playing in the upcoming season. Enjoy!
RD Matthew Danziger (#2 Gold) '02, NJ Colonials U16 National -- Tall D -- 6'2"? 6'3"? -- from Potomac, Maryland is still growing into his body, but nonetheless moved well. Showed poise with the puck and used his size effectively.
*LD Matthew Jovanovic (#5 Gold) '04, Toronto Marlboros -- (see above)
LC Bradley Banach (#8 Gold) '03, Mississauga Reps/St. Michael's College School -- One more of a group of Toronto-area kids at the camp. Really strong on the puck. Never seemed to force the play.
RC Austin Fraser (#10 Gold) '03, St. George's School (BC) Elite 15s -- That would be the St. George's School in British Columbia, not Rhode Island. Fraser was consistently noticeable.
LF Ben MacDonald (#13 Gold), '04, East Coast Wizards U14 Elite -- Young, still on the skinny side. He's a playmaker. Will be going to Nobles. Was also good at Select 15s in Buffalo. Son of former Hobey Baker Award winner Lane MacDonald.
RF James Tepper (#15 Gold) '02, Proctor Academy/CC Whalers -- Hard competitor. One of the more physical players in camp. Going into his second year at Proctor.
LC Owen McLaughlin (#11 Green) '03, The Hill School/Valley Forge Minutemen U16 -- Strong skater. Good stick and sense of game. Was also at Select 16s.
RC Ty Toews (#13 Green) '02, Grande Peace Midget AAA (Alberta) -- Tall, rangy strong center.
RF Grady Friedman (#9 White) '01, Northfield Mt. Hermon -- Son of former BU forward and Kents Hill head coach Doug Friedman will be in his second year at NMH. Consistently noticeable.
LF Kurt Gurkan (#10 White) '04, Phillips Exeter -- Going into second year at Exeter. Didn't get a lot of playing time last year, but should be more noticeable this year. Will be a soph.
RF Josh Karnish (#11 White) '03, Virtua Hockey Premier 16U -- Quick stick and crisp passes.
*G Carel von Schoultz (#30 Red) '02, Espoo Blues (Finland) -- Drawing too many conclusions from one game is a dubious exercise, but von Schoultz was flawless.
LD Sean Keohane (#4 Red) '04, South Shore Kings Elite U14 Elite -- The '04 didn't look at all out of place here. Very solid performance.
RF Paul DeSaro (#9 Red) '03, Selects Academy -- Late '03 from Long Island played on Selects Academy's 15 team last year and averaged over a point a game.
RF Tyler Healey (#12 Red) '02, Victus Academy (Ontario) -- Small, skilled, and really scoots.
RD Matthew Biotti (#4 Gray) '04, East Coast Wizards -- Young, tall d-man still growing into body. His father and his uncle both played at Belmont Hill and Harvard. He's at Bel Hill, too.
* LD Joseph Sciabarra (#7 Gray) '03, Jr Islanders 16U -- Excellent, highly mobile D. Great feet, quick, accurate shot. Skilled puckhandler. Played hard. Fun to watch.
LC Maximus Marek Tortorella (#12 Gray) '03 Mississsauga Reps (Ont.) -- Great name! Also, a strong skater who was around the puck a lot.
LC Parker Sondag (#15 Gray) '01, Brooks School -- Was on the same line as Tortorella, and the two of them worked really well together. Will be a senior at Brooks.
G Frédérick Larochelle (#30 Blue) '03, Bishops College -- Big, poised.
LC Michael Bencivengo (#8 Blue) '01, Brooks School -- The leading scorer at Brooks last winter, Bencivengo was consistently noticeable. Strong on puck, moved to the right spaces, and didn't give up on plays.
* LC Hudson Foley (#10 Blue) '02, Grande Peace Midget AAA (Alberta) -- Excellent stick skills. Strong skater with a burst. Kept feet moving, and was strong on the puck. Scored GWG and was noticeable every time he stepped on the ice. Late '02.
RC Jake MacDonald (#12 Blue) '01, Berkshire School -- Good stick, good size, good stride. Consistently noticeable. Led Greely High to Maine Class B title. Will be a PG at Berkshire. Son of Colby College head coach Blaise MacDonald.
LD Matthew Harvey (#4 Orange) '02, Cornwall Colts (CCHL) -- Mobile D handled puck well and could skate it through a crowd. Good stretch passes.
LD Eddie Romano (#6 Orange) '04, Long Island Gulls -- An '04, we have a few checks next to his name. Played a solid game. Another '04 to keep an eye on.
*RF Arvega Hovsepyan (#9 Orange) '03, Shattuck-St. Mary's -- Big, strong winger with a long stride and a great wrister. Stood out consistently. That's what we wrote after last week's Harvard camp, and we saw the same here.
RF Johnny McMahon (#13 Orange) '04 Long Island Gulls -- Another good, young '04 from the Gulls.
RC Adam Teryek (#15 Orange) '04 Delbarton School/NJ Rockets -- He and Hovsepyan were teammates at last week's Harvard camp, and they were also on the same team here. Crafty player, good stick skills, won draws, and made plays.
*RF Ryan Tverberg (#16 Orange) '02, Toronto Jr. Canadians Jr. A -- Great hustle. Used his speed to create havoc on the forecheck. Created opportunities to keep the play moving.
RF Ziv Deener-Chodirker (#9 Black) '0s, Rivers School/Boston Jr. Eagles -- Really good skater who wins draws and is strong on the puck. We liked him at Rivers last winter and can only see him getting better.
*LF Jake Manfre (#11 Black) '04, Long Island Gulls -- (see above)
LC Michael Mitrione (#12 Black) ??, Pelham Memorial HS (NY) -- Smallish, but has good vision and competes hard. Will be a junior at Pelham HS. Certainly a good prospect for a New England prep school.
LF Casey Raffone (#15 Black) '03, Selects Academy U15 -- Great release. Can really fire it.
Fri. 8/30/19
Tier I Labor Day Rosters
Here are the rosters for the 138 teams competing in this weekend's Tier I Labor Day Tournament. All the schedules can be found in the article below.
18U Elite Rosters
16U Elite Rosters
15U Elite Rosters
18U Rosters
16U Rosters
Thurs. 8/29/19 -- updated Fri. 8/30/19 with program books. Here are the links: North Division Book and South Division Book
ECC Labor Day Cup Schedules & Rosters
The ECC Labor Day Cup, featuring 164 teams, gets underway Friday at numerous rinks in Southern NH and Eastern Mass., the majority of which have multiple sheets.
The Red Division is the top division, and will feature Beast League games, the first-ever games for Mount St. Charles under its new set-up, and the defending National Champions at both the U18 (Selects Academy) and U16 levels (Pittsburgh Pens Elite). Red Division games will be played at Cyclones Arena, Skate 3, Haverhill, and the Salem Icenter. The division has 70 teams (28 U18s, 26 U16s, and 16 U15s).
The White Division will be at Essex, Chelmsford Forum, Skate 3, and Haverhill. There are 38 teams in this grouping (18 U18s, 10 U16s, and 10 U15s).
The Blue Division will be at the Worcester Ice Center, the Canton Ice House, Northboro, Wellesley Sports Center, and Thayer Academy. The division will consist of 34 teams (16 U18, 18 U16).
The U14 Division (22 teams) will be playing out of the Canton Ice House, Thayer Academy, and the Wellesley Sports Center.
If you toggle the tabs on each division's Excel spreadsheet below, you can jump between a list of teams in the division as well as the schedule.
ECC Red Division Schedules
ECC White Division Schedules
ECC Blue Division Schedules
ECC U14 Division Schedules
Note: We will have rosters when they are available.
Update Friday 8/30, here they are:
North Division Book & South Division Book
Mon. 8/26/19
Tier I Labor Day Faceoff Starts Friday
This year's Labor Day Face Off Tournament will run from Fri. Aug. 30th through Sun. Sept. 1st at various venues in Eastern Mass.
There will be more than enough teams to check out: 72 in the Elite Divisions, and 66 in the Tier I and Tier II Divisions. That's a total of 138.
All Elite Division games will take place at the Foxboro Sports Center (Foxboro, Mass.), the New England Sports Village (Attleboro, Mass.), Rodman Arena (Walpole, Mass.) and the Boch Ice Center (Dedham, Mass.).
All Tier 1 and Tier 2 Division games will be held at the New England Sports Center (Marlborough, Mass.)
Here are all the links you'll need:
Elite Divisions (U18, U16, 15U)
Elite Division Schedules
Tier I and Tier II Divisions (18U, 16U, 14U)
Tier I and Tier II Schedules
Note: We will have rosters later in the week. Thank you!
Thurs. 8/22/19
River Rats Jamboree Rosters
Here's the program book for the Neponset Valley River Rats Jamboree, scheduled for next Monday and Tuesday, August 26th and 27th. And the schedules, too.
River Rats Jamboree Program Book
Mon. 8/19/19
2019 River Rats Jamboree Schedule
Looks like fall hockey is here, and it's not exactly sneaking in on little cats' feet.
Seventy-eight teams, spread across four different levels, will be in action next Monday and Tuesday (Aug. 26-27), at the 2019 River Rats Jamboree. Ably presided over by Steve Needham, the tournament will kick things off with games at four rinks: Canton Ice House (Canton, Mass.), Rodman Ice Center (Walpole, Mass.), New England Sports Village (Attleboro, Mass.), and Thayer Sports Center (Braintree, Mass.).
All of those arenas -- except the brand-new Thayer Sports Center -- will have games being played simultaneously on two sheets. Thayer is a single-sheet venue.
So picking and choosing will be the order of the day. Here, to help with that, is this year's schedule.
2019 River Rats Jamboree Schedule
Rosters will be posted here when ready.
Sun. 8/18/19
'04s at Harvard
The '04 camp at Harvard early last week (Aug. 12-13) lacked the one dominant player the '05 camp had. But it had a dominant team: White Team #3.
That said, there were plenty of prospects, some of whom will be standouts down the line.
The structure of the camp was identical to that of the '05 camp we wrote up. Players with an asterisk preceding their name are our all-stars.
White (Team 1):
*F Tyler Wishart, #17, Westchester Express -- Plays hard in all three zones. Very good skater.
*F Connor Welsh, #3, Mid-Fairfield Jr. Rangers -- Made plays, scored a couple goals, and played a 200-foot game.
F Beanie (William) Richter, #4, Brunswick School -- Better on first day of play.
LD Eddie Romano, #11, LI Gulls U16 -- Smooth skater. Poised blueliner.
D Timmy Busconi, #2, Boston Advantage -- Mobile D, makes plays.
LD Bryceon Lago, #15, North Jersey Avalanche -- Strong defensively. Good feet.
Crimson (Team 2):
F Antonio Arcaroli, #12, North Jersey Avalanche -- Power forward type guy. Played fast and hard. North-South player who likes to shoot it.
F Jake Manfre, #25, LI Gulls U16 -- Good-sized kid. Power forward type. Didn't stand out as much here as at BU camp.
LD Thomas Whitford, #15, Pittsburgh Penguins Elite -- A defenseman's defenseman. Keeps in simple.
RD Max Marr, #31, Selects Academy -- Tall. Good size and reach.
White (Team 3):
*F Noah Eyre, #9, Shattuck-St. Mary's -- The Bar-down Man. Scored a nifty one, and also hit a crossbar.
F Ian Spencer, #12, Chicago Fury -- A consistent presence. Every shift.
F James Shannon, #16, Brunswick School -- Strong forward, consistently noticeable. Shifty with good puck skills.
F William Moore, #20, Culver Academy -- Scored a hat trick in one game.
F Brendan Maher, #8, Long Island Royals -- Smallish player really scoots. Quick release on his shot.
F Dylan Thorn, #6, Team Maryland -- Scored a nice breakaway goal.
*RD Kazimier Sobieski, #19, Shattuck-St. Mary's -- Offensive guy, strong skater. Can hit. Strong wrist shot. Accurate passes. A lot of upside.
LD Anthony Khaimov, #23, Long Island Gulls -- Big guy, feet a little heavy,
*G Jackson Reda, #3, Chicago Fury -- Allowed two goals total -- one per game.
Crimson (Team 4):
F Ben MacDonald, #9, Nobles -- Smart player. Good puck skills.
*RD Matthew Biotti, #32, East Coast Wizards '04E -- Moves his feet well for a big guy. Biotti has a lot of upside.
*LD Luke Hause, #22, Hill-Murray HS -- Tall player. Like Biotti, he has a lot of potential.
Fri. 8/9/19
Assadourian Top '05 at Harvard Camp
Alex Assadourian wasn't originally signed up for this '05 camp, but after starring at the Harvard Combine against players as much as five years older, the Harvard staff wanted to see more of him, so he got an invitation.
He didn't disappoint. The Toronto native, a left-shot center who played for York-Simcoe Express last season, was on his game here, scoring 3 of his team's 4 goals in one game and, we're told, 10 of 12 overall. (Can't confirm; no one was tallying stats.) It's hard to take your eyes off Assadourian when he's on the ice. He plays with pace, always moving. He's quick. He's fast. He has great edges, and protects the puck. He positions himself to win the 1-on-1 battles along the wall. He's also deadly 1-on-1 in open ice. Best of all, he's a quick thinker, and has a great stick. He's young, but if he continues to work on his game, he should be able to stand out at every level he arrives at. Assadourian was our hands-down #1 prospect here.
But there were others, from across the US and Canada. No one at the camp looked out of place. We saw a lot of forwards we liked. On the blue line, things were a little thinner, though we expect a number will blossom later as they grow into their bodies.
In the player list below, we picked the players we liked by team, e.g., on the white team below, we felt Brian Nicholas was the top forward, followed by the other three, in the order is which we ranked them. Ditto for the d-men.
Game were played in two 25-minute runtime halves on the first day, which was raised to 30 minutes the next day. Penalties were treated as icing, with the puck brought back for a faceoff in the offending team's zone. The games were pretty wide-open, and cleanly played. Just good hockey.
Coaches were Jim Tortorella and Rob Rassey (Harvard), and Rod Braceful (NTDP). These camps are Rassey's final duties at Harvard, as he will be returning to his native Michigan to scout for the Red Wings.
The team listed for each player below is the team they played for in 2018-19. The six players (4 F, 1D, 1G) with an asterisk preceding their name are our picks for a tournament all-star team. There was no official all-star team.
White (Team 1):
*F Brian Nicholas, #21, Westchester Express -- Nicholas grabbed our attention when he undressed a d-man, went wide, and scored on a low hard shot near side. Was impressive here. Good size, good hands.
F Eli Friedman, #7, Mid-Fairfield Rangers -- Grew on this observer. Has that scoring touch.
F Cam Russo, #23, Boston Jr. Eagles -- Around the puck a lot. Good size -- and used it well.
F Joseph Hurton, #32, BC High -- Big, strong power forward. Used his size to protect the puck, and drive to the net.
D Andrew Wycisk, #6, Vaughn Kings (Ont.) -- Smallish, puck-moving D. A quick, accurate passer who is also confident enough to take off through center ice if he sees a lane.
D Andrew Lanni, #11, Vaughn Kings (Ont.) -- Good stick!
Crimson (Team 2):
*F Alex Assadourian, #17, York-Simcoe (Ont.) -- (See above)
F Ben Yurchuk, #11, NJ Colonials -- Good shot, good stick, makes plays.
F Jake Lewis, #12, LI Gulls -- Similar type of player as Yurchuk. Plenty of check marks next to his name!
F Benjamin Picard, #24, San Jose Jr. Sharks -- Plays hard. Consistently noticeable.
D Charlie Kinsman, #3, Buffalo Jr. Sabres -- Tall, and a good skater. Carries the puck confidently. Good feet for his age and size.
D Hoyt Stanley, #15, St. George's (Vancouver) -- Smart, effective d-man. Sees the ice well.
D Tristan Bertucci, #27, Toronto Marlies -- Skilled puck mover.
D Beck Majdell, #30, Hockey Montreal -- Big, strong, and played hard. Slightly heavy feet.
*G Stephen Peck, North Jersey Avalanche -- Probably the best goalie here. Allowed 4 goals total.
White (Team 3):
*F Michael Hagens, #18, LI Royals -- Second best forward in camp. Great stick, quick, and skilled. Has a nice burst of speed.
F Joseph DiMartino, #1, Boston Advantage -- He can shoot it, and quite successfully at that. Very dangerous down low. Tough for opposing d-men to handle.
*D Kai Janviriya, #3, Belle Tire -- Excellent feet and quickness. Small but fearless. Could be a top prospect if he grows a bit.
G William Baker, Mid-Fairfield Rangers -- Solid in both his games.
Crimson (Team 4):
* F Stephen Forgione, #21, Vaughn Kings (Ont.) -- Consistently noticeable. Has a hard shot, and uses it. Physical player.
F Colby Barlow, #28, Toronto Marlies -- Plays hard and physically. Power forward type.
F Duncan Shin, #26, LA Jr. Kings -- An adroit playmaker.
D Nico Pasquale, #4, Team Illinois -- Big, but agile. He carries the puck with confidence, but also holds it, buying time until a teammate gets open.
Sun. 8/11/19
Beantown Summer
The 2019 Summer Beantown started this afternoon with a light schedule at the New England Sports Center (Marlborough, Mass.). The real action will come tomorrow morning, and then wrap up on Tuesday with a day of playoffs.
The levels of play are as follows:
-- The Committed Division: Four teams of '99-02 birthdates. Each team will play three games.
-- The Pro Division: Also '99-'02 birthdates. There will be eight teams, and each will play four games.
-- The Futures Division: '02-'04 birthdates. There will be six teams, with each playing three games.
-- The Prospects Division: '05-08 birthdates. There are four teams in total. Two will be comprised of '05s and '06s and the other two will consist of '07s and '08s. There will be no crossover. In other words, the '05s and '06s will play each other only; likewise for the '07s and '08s.
A link to the rosters is below. The schedule can be found at the tournament site, which is: http://beantownclassic.com/events/summer-classic/
Here are the rosters for all teams.
2019 Summer Beantown Rosters
