12/19/03

Fri. Lawrence-Groton Tournament Scores

Worcester Academy 7, NYA 5
Berwick 2, Groton 1
NYA 7, Berwick 2
Worcester Academy 6, Groton 0

---

Culver 9, Lawrence 2
Cushing 2, Hill 1 (OT)
Culver 5, Hill 4
Cushing 6, Lawrence 3

In the nightcap, Cushing led 3-0 after one with goals by Ewing (2) and Berry. After the second period, in which Cushing let Lawrence back into the game -- goals by Yandle for CA; Richards and Jerusik for LA -- it was 4-2 Cushing. In the third, Richards’ second goal of the game cut Cushing’s lead to 4-3. LA had some good opportunities to tie it up, but a late goal by Bourque gave Cushing its two-goal lead back. A Wahler empty-netter iced it for the Penguins.

12/19/03

Fri. Exeter Invitational Scores

Pomfret 5, Holderness 2 (full box score submitted by school)

Northwood 6, Tilton 5

Gov. Dummer 3, Exeter 2 (full box score submitted by school)

12/19/03

Fri. Barber Tournament Scores

Middlesex 2, Ridley 1
St. Mark’s 8, Vermont Academy 1
Winchendon 5, Hoosac 3
Princeton Day School 3, Hebron Academy 1

12/19/03

Fri. Brooks-Pingree Tournament Scores

Brooks Division:

Portsmouth Abbey 3, Rivers 2 (OT)
Proctor 5, Brunswick 2

Brooks 4, DeMatha Catholic 4

Pingree Division:
Brewster 2, Kent's Hill 1

S. Kent 4, Rye CD 1

Pingree 5, Shady Side 2

12/19/03

Fri. Avon Old Farms Christmas Classic Scores

Tabor 5, Trinity-Pawling 0: Bower, Badeau, Brennan, Silva, and Kolb scored for Tabor and Ritter had a 22-save shutout. Lisi had 22 saves for Tabor.

St. Paul’s 5, Gunnery 0: Thomson, Kaiser, Bergeron (2), and Blossom scored for St. Paul’s, and Nipps had a 28-save shutout. Pellegrino had 18 saves for Gunnery.

Loomis 3, Berkshire 0: S. Gaffney (2) and Melancon scored for Gunnery, and Moise had a 26-save shutout. Azat had 19 saves for Berkshire.

Avon 10, Kent 1: DiMarzo, Davis (2), Percella, Arciero, Mori (2), Tesar, Moran, and Forschner scored for Avon; Sosenko scored for Kent. Donovan had 16 saves for Avon; Silver and Chateauneuf combined for 21 for Kent.

Trinity-Pawling 5, Gunnery 1: Pencinger (3), Tyll, and Randazzo scored for T-P, and Lisi stopped 27 shots. Pellegrino and Bergan had 23 saves between them for Gunnery.

Tabor 3, St. Paul’s 1: Lenes, Potts, and Burns scored for Tabor; Valenski for St. Paul’s. Ritter had 33 saves for Tabor; Smith had 34 for St. Paul’s.

Loomis 3, Kent 0: Melancon (2) and J. Gaffney scored for Loomis; and Silver had a 33-save shutout.

Avon 5, Berkshire 1: Davis, Warner (2), Backman, and DiMarzo scored for Avon; Cullity for Berkshire. Quick had 32 saves for Avon; Crowson had 24 for Berkshire.

Here is the schedule for Saturday:

8:30 am – 7^th Place Game: Kent vs. Gunnery

10:30 am – 5^th Place Game: Berkshire vs. St. Paul’s

1:30 pm – 3^rd Place Game: Trinity-Pawling vs. Loomis

3:30 pm – Championship Game: Avon vs. Tabor

12/19/03

Fri. Flood-Marr Tournament Scores

Hotchkiss 4, Deerfield 2: McLaughlin (2), Jackmuff, and Mitchell scored for Hotchkiss; and Kalemba was 29/27. Baier and Harris scored for Deerfield; and Redmond was 27/23.

Nobles 3, KUA 1:Rhone, Pridham, and Poli scored for Nobles. Harris scored for KUA. The goalies were Horgan (Nobles), and Dorr (KUA). No goalie stats available.

Salisbury 2, Westminster 0: M. Atkinson and O’Hanley scored for Salisbury. The goalies were Gershon (Salisbury), and Levine (Westminster). No goalie stats available.

Andover 4, Milton 1: Kucharski, Martignetti, Foley, and Rolecek scored for Andover. Gerrity scored for Milton. No goalie stats available.

Kimball Union 5, Deerfield 3: Ryan (2), Dunkle, Riley, and Grace scored for KUA. Bayer, Baier, and Schmicker scored for Deerfield. The goalies were Naso (KUA) and Toomer (Deerfield).

Hotchkiss 3, Nobles 2: McLaughlin (2) and Wallace scored for Hotchkiss. Poli and McDavitt scored for Nobles. No goalie stats available.

Standings after Day #1:

Owen Division:
Andover (1-0)

Salisbury (1-0)
Milton (0-1)

Westminster (0-1)

Harding Division:

Hotchkiss (2-0)
Nobles (1-1)

KUA (1-1)
Deerfield (0-2)

12/18/03

Thurs. Avon Old Farms Christmas Classic Scores

Avon 9, Loomis 0. Arciero (2), Tesar, DiMarzo, Percella, Bradley, Sides, Backman, and Warner score the goals. 13-save shutout for DeMichael. (Full box score submitted by school -- see above)

Berkshire 5, Kent 3. Dorsey (2), Tommasiello, Dancey, and DeAntonio, score for Berkshire; Simoni, Edwards, Desjardins for Kent. Kent outshot 37-12

Trinity-Pawling 3, St. Paul’s 2. Stone, Tyll, Randozzo score for T-P; Kaiser and Blossom for St. Paul’s. TP out shot, 32-20.

Tabor 4, Gunnery 1. Silver, Buteau, Cook, and Lenes score for Tabor; Bange and Bokina for Gunnery. Gunnery outshot 54-14. 50 saves for Gunnery’s Pellegrino.

Thurs. Exeter Invitational Scores

Exeter 5, Culver 2  (Full box score submitted by school -- see above)
Northwood 2, Pomfret 1

Gov. Dummer 2, Holderness 0  (Full box score submitted by school -- see above)
New Hampshire Jr. Monarchs 5, Boston Jr. Bruins 4
 

Please Note:

The US Hockey Report is dependent on the participating schools for the above scores, for which we are thankful. However, none of the scores that we will be listing here this weekend go into the record as complete, official box scores. That has to be done by the individual schools. However, since virtually all schools and coaches are on the road, staying in dorms or motels, they are generally cut off from their Internet connections. Give the coaches time and you will begin to see the “official” box score appear in the drop-down menus above, though it might not happen as quickly as it would if it were a normal game.

Our goal is to give the best reporting possible on this weekend in order to create a full picture of the tournament for fans of today and the future. Enjoy! And thank you for your understanding and help.

If you see any missing scores, please send to information (at) ushr.com

12/17/03

Today's NMH at KUA Game Postponed

Today's NMH at KUA game, scheduled for 3:00 pm, has been postponed. It will be made up at a later date.

12/17/03

Ferriero, McGuirk Lead GDA Past St. Seb’s, 5-4

Needham, Mass. -- Linemates Benn Ferriero (2g,2a) and Brian McGuirk (1g,2a) led Governor Dummer to a 5-4 come-from-behind win over host St. Sebastian’s here today.

The game’s turning point came late in the second period, with St. Sebastian’s nursing a 3-1 lead, on the power play, and in position to put the game out of reach. Suddenly, McGuirk found Ferriero, who had snuck behind the Arrows defense. Ferriero, a junior from Essex, Mass. and a BC recruit – let it be noted that Eagles coach Jerry York was in attendance -- took a couple strides over the blue line and ripped a shot that beat St. Seb’s goaltender Mike Coskren stickside about two feet off the ice to cut the host’s lead to one.

Fifty seconds later, just as the penalty to GDA forward Brian Liu expired , but before the Governors could get their man anywhere near the play, Ferriero struck again, snapping one off from about ten feet to Coskren’s left that tipped off the goalie's glove and into the net to tie it up at 3-3.

With 1:06 left in the period, GDA sophomore forward Matt Lombardi picked up a loose puck in the slot and wristed it through a crowd to give the visitors a 4-3 lead going into the second intermission.

Just 1:09 into the third period, St. Sebastian’s sophomore center Doug Rogers scored a powerplay goal to tie the game up at 4-4. Junior LW Chris Murphy and senior defenseman Arthur Fritch picked up assists on the play.

The game remained deadlocked for a lenghty stretch that featured good scoring opportunities by both teams, most notably Arrows winger Nick Coskren, who had a wide-open net at one point but couldn’t get good wood on a shot.

Finally, with a little over five minutes remaining, GDA senior center Brian McGuirk, a BU recruit, broke in on a lone St. Seb’s defenseman, just blowing past him and snapping home the game winner at the 12:54 mark.

St. Seb’s appeared to have tied it up with about five seconds remaining. However, the referee had already blown the play dead after a GDA player pushed one of the St. Seb’s players into the crease, and the goal was disallowed.

Earlier, in the first period, Rogers, Tom Maregni, and Ted Brzek scored for St. Sebastian’s, and Chris Genovese scored for GDA.

For St. Seb’s, Rogers (2g), Brzek (1g,1a), Murphy (2a), and Fritch (2a) all had multiple point efforts.

To sum it all up, this was an entertaining, up-tempo game that featured a major reversal of fortune.     

12/13/03

Cushing Breaks it Open at Exeter

Exeter, NH -- With under four minutes remaining in the second period, Cushing and host Exeter were tied at 2-2. Then Cushing blew the doors off, scoring three unanswered goals and heading home with a 5-2 win under their belt.

The winning goal came at 14:52 mark of the second frame when junior RW Alex Berry, who transferred to Cushing from GDA over the summer, scoredto put Cushing up 3-2. Berry’s linemates, junior center Billy Ryan and senior LW Chris Bourque picked up assists.

Prior to that, the game had been a curious affair. In the first period Exeter went up 1-0 at the 7:49 mark when sophomore Evan Crosby picked up a loose puck off a faceoff and slid a softie by Cushing senior goaltender Keith Longo. However, Cushing came right back and tied it up 25 seconds later when Berry made a nice pass across the top of the crease to Bourque, who banged it home from in tight.

In the second, Exeter took the lead again, scoring just 24 seconds into the period when senior Dave Glynn picked up a rebound of a shot off the boards and banged it home to give Exeter a brief 2-1 lead. Brief is an understatement as, once again, Cushing needed less than 30 seconds to once again tie the game up. This time it was a blast by Brian Yandle, who committed to UNH earlier in the day, that rocketed by Exeter PG goalie Andrew Piekos’ glove side.

It looked like Cushing was on the verge of blowing the game wide open but instead 14 scoreless minutes ensued. It was a pretty hair-raising stretch for the hosts and particularly Piekos, who hung tough even though one shot went off a crossbar, another hit a post, and there were three or four other excellent Cushing opportunities. Finally, Berry, late in the period, picked up the game-winner.

In the third, Billy Ryan tipped home a Yandle wrister from the left point at 11:13. With 1:21 remaining in regulation Bourque moved in on the Exeter net, dipped his shoulder to the right to get Piekos moving and then dished it to defenseman Kyle Koziara stationed at the far post. Koziara banged it home for the goal that accounted for the 5-2 margin of victory.

Bourque (1g,3a), Berry (1g,2a), Ryan (1g,2a) and Yandle (1g,1a) all had multiple points.

Cushing played without senior forward Boomer Ewing (groin), senior forward Mike Rust (jaw), and sophomore forward Danny Rossman (shoulder).

“This is a tough barn to play in, and Piekos played well for them, but we just kept coming and stayed with the system,” Cushing coach Steve Jacobs said afterward. “We knew we’d get a couple eventually if we stayed on our game.”

“We played well enough to win,” Jacobs added.

12/10/03

Another Big Win for Belmont Hill

Belmont, Mass. -- Just two days after topping Nobles in overtime, Belmont Hill knocked off another Keller foe.

This time it was a little easier, as the young Belmont Hill team, skating just four seniors -- and no less than six ‘88s -- dispatched Governor Dummer, 4-0.

One of those ‘88s, talented RW Joe Whitney, who scored the OT game-winner Monday night, again led the way, notching a goal and an assist this time out. Meanwhile, senior goaltender Chris Mannix and sophomore Wes Vesperini combined for the shutout.

The officiating left a little to be desired in this game, with GDA being called for ten penalties, while Belmont Hill was called for just four. However, the penalties weren’t the difference maker, as GDA coach Peter Kravchuk pointed out after the game. Quite simply, the Governors were outplayed in every facet of the game by a Belmont Hill team that showed a lot of skill, particularly in their puck movement. By the time the third period rolled around, the ice appeared tilted as Belmont Hill moved freely into the visitor’s end, taking shot after shot on beleaguered GDA goaltender Dan Galajda. At the other end, GDA struggled to mount an attack. The go-to guys, Brian McGuirk and Benn Ferriero, were non-factors.

After a scoreless first period, Belmont Hill got on the board at 4:16 of the second when a shot from the point by senior Matthew Tosto hit Galadja’s skate – he appeared to have his leg extended before the puck was there – and deflected home. Senior Greg O’Connell probably got a stick on it somewhere as he was given credit for the goal.

With 27 seconds left in the period, Ryan Young, another ’88 and the cousin of former Belmont Hill/Harvard star C.J. Young, tapped in a rebound from the corner of the net to send Belmont Hill into the second intermission with a 2-0 lead.

The third period was all Belmont Hill. A Whitney goal a minute into the frame was waved off for offsides, but at 4:21 Whitney, a left shot playing the off-wing, backhanded one past Galajda to give Belmont Hill a 3-0 lead. Tosto picked up an assist on the play.

With 5:11 left Chris DeBaere, a right shot playing the off wing, fired home a the rebound of a Whitney shot from the slot to put his team up 4-0, the final margin of victory.

Shots on goal were Belmont Hill 36, GDA 18.

The line of DeBaere-Young-Whitney was a going concern all night. On defense, junior Brian McCafferty, who missed all last season after undergoing total reconstruction of his knee in the wake of a football injury, showed that he was back with a strong game.

As these guys mature together over the next few years, they should be fun to watch. No matter what they do this year – and they could be the surprise of the Keller Division – they have the potential to restore Belmont Hill as a prep powerhouse. In many ways, watching them recalls watching the Arrows in the year or two prior to their taking off on their run of back-to-back championships and three straight title game appearances. It would be very premature to say that Belmont Hill can repeat that feat, but there is definitely something there that bears watching.

On Saturday, Belmont Hill has to go on the road and face Lawrence, which topped BB&N, 6-3, today in Cambridge.

12/10/03

Div. II South Kent Makes a Statement

Kent, Conn. -- The South Kent School hockey team defeated the Kent School 8-5 Wednesday in a hard-fought game that reflected the strength of the cross-town rivalry.

Kent took an early 3-1 lead after the first period, but South Kent came roaring back in the second, scoring two goals in the first minute en route to taking a 6-4 lead into the second intermission. South Kent was bolstered by a large partisan crowd that traveled across town to root for the Cardinals.Indeed the visiting South Kent fans frequently drowned out the Kent supporters. 

South Kent was led by Russian forwards Andrei Urayadov, Michael Pompa, and Tony Morrone, all of whom scored two goals.Adrian Sosenko had a hat trick for Kent.

Kent dominated the first period, outshooting South Kent by a margin of 15-8.Brett O'Neil scored the first goal for Kent by knocking in a second rebound on a power play. South Kent tied the game when Urayadov broke in alone on Kent goalie Evan Chateauneuf and tucked it in the lower left corner.Sosenko put Kent up 2-1 by knocking in a rebound from a scramble in front of South Kent goalie Jeff Hill, then added to Kent's lead less than two minutes later with a power play goal. 

But South Kent came out skating strongly in the second period, while Kent seemed to lose steam. Michael Pompa scored only 29 seconds into the second period to bring the Div. II school within one, and Tony Morrone quickly followed up with another goal to tie the game just 19 seconds later.

Kent was to regain the lead when Sosenko deflected home a slapshot five minutes into the period, but South Kent tied the game up again six minutes later when Morrone, off a rebound, notched his second goal of the day. South Kent took the lead for good on a short-handed goal when Pat Melillo recovered his own rebound and scored cleanly into the upper right-hand corner. South Kent extended the lead to 6-4 lead when Russ Grubin scored with just over a minute left in the period on an assist from Stanislav Vylet, a defenseman from Czechoslovakia.South Kent outshot Kent in the second period 18-7.

In the final period, South Kent's Pompa scored his second goal of the game to put the visitors up by 7-4. Kent closed the margin slightly on a power play goal by Denis Desjardins who poked a rebound between Hill's legs. But South Kent built its lead to 8-5, the final margin of victory, on a goal by Dillon Duncan with just four minutes remaining. 

Total shots on goal were 51 for South Kent, and 29 for Kent in the hard-hitting game. South Kent had 12 penalties for 24 minutes, while Kent had 13 penalties for 34 minutes that included a 10-minute misconduct to Harry Edwards.

South Kent is clearly in a mode to expand its athletic presence.A Division II team, South Kent has obviously recruited some top talent under Coach Geoff Marottolo.A similar rebuilding process is underway with the South Kent basketball program.

-- T.M.

12/7/03

Holderness Caravan Turns for Home

Hazardous driving conditions on Rte. 495 have forced Holderness to ditch their trip out to western Mass. for a makeup game with Deerfield, scheduled for this afternoon.

Holderness played at Exeter late yesterday afternoon, stayed there overnight, and then headed out this morning only to be stopped by an ice and snow covered roadway. The call for a u-turn and the slow trek north was made by Holderness' AD.

As of now, there is no makeup date.

12/7/03  --  Updated 11:00 am Mon. 12/8

Postponements Postponed

Monday's Milton at St. Sebastian's game, rescheduled from Saturday, has been postponed again. No makeup date has been set.

Thayer at Gov. Dummer has also been postponed again. Again, no makeup date has been decided on.

However, Nobles at Belmont Hill, scheduled for 5:00 pm, is a go.

12/6/03

Fluke Goal Lifts Holderness to OT Win

Exeter, NH -- At 1:32 of overtime Holderness senior forward Dan Hale took a pass from linemate Phil Farrow and fired a shot on Andrew Piekos, Exeter's PG goalie from Medford, Mass.  Piekos got a piece of it, but the puck popped up out of his glove, whereupon his defenseman,  Ian Drummond,  tried to bat it to the side -- or over -- the net. Instead, Drummond knocked it past his own goaltender and Holderness picked up a 3-2 win.

Earlier, the bulk of the action was in the first period, with Holderness jumping on the board early -- just 20 seconds in -- when senior forward Evan Williams scored. At 4:08 Exeter tied it up on a goal by sophomore Phil Negus and then went ahead, 2-1, on a goal by Dan Rohrer just 1:32 later. Neither were particularly tough chances for Holderness junior goalie Andy Murison.

After the second goal, Murison settled in and was tough the rest of the way, shutting Exeter down. Exeter held the edge in play until roughly the middle of the second period, at which point the territorial edge began to even out. 

There was no scoring until the 8:16 mark of the third period, when Holderness tied it at 2-2. With the puck deep in the Exeter end, Holderness' Hale, behind the net, passed it to junior Jason Merritt, who found senior Phil Farrow out front. Farrow, stationed in the slot, fired it, beating Piekos at the 8:16 mark. 

There was no scoring the rest of the way, and the game went into OT with Holderness skating off with the win.

Notes: This was the only game in Div. I boys today. Holderness is staying overnight in Exeter and leaving in the morning -- weather permitting -- for Deerfield, where they face the Big Green at 2:30 pm. 

Holderness senior forward Alan Thompson, a UNH recruit, missed the game. Thompson suffered a soccer injury in the fall and isn't expected to be ready for game action until January.   

12/5/03 -- Updated 12/6  10:15 pm 

Snowstorm Slams Saturday Slate

All Div. I games scheduled for Saturday have been postponed. There will, however, be one game, as Holderness will travel down to Phillips Exeter for a 3:30 pm start. (This game will take the place of the Holderness at Exeter game scheduled for Mon. Feb. 9).

Holderness will also play tomorrow (Sun.) afternoon at Deerfield. That game, scheduled for 2 pm, is a makeup from today.

Hotchkiss will not be traveling to Canterbury today, after all. No word on a makeup date.

Pomfret at Lawrence, postponed
Tilton at Cushing, postponed
Albany Academy at Avon, postponed (makeup date Jan. 22 at 3:00 pm)
BB&N at St. Paul's, postponed
Trinity-Pawling @ Loomis, postponed
Williston at Salisbury, postponed (Sunday makeup date a possibility).
Thayer at GDA, postponed (makeup date Mon. Dec. 8 at 5:00 pm)
Westminster at NMH, postponed
Nobles at Belmont Hill, postponed (makeup date Mon. Dec. 8 at 5:00 pm)
Choate at Gunnery, postponed
Hill at South Kent School, postponed (ditto for Sunday's Lawrenceville-SKS game)
Milton at St. Sebastian's, postponed (makeup date Mon. Dec. 8 at 4:45 pm)
Holderness at Deerfield, postponed (makeup date Sun. Dec. 7 at 2:00 pm)
Tabor at Exeter, postponed (possible makeup date of Wed. Dec. 17)
Winchendon at Millbrook, postponed
Andover at St. Mark's, postponed
Lawrenceville at Kent, postponed
Berkshire at Taft, postponed (makeup date Wed. Jan. 7 at 3:00 pm)
Bridgton at KUA, postponed
Winchendon at Millbrook, postponed

Please send any info on cancellations/postponements or makeup dates to information@ushr.com and check back frequently. 

12/3/03

Nobles Escapes with a Win

Dedham, Mass. -- Noble & Greenough edged Pomfret, 6-5, here this afternoon behind the offensive efforts of junior Matt Nelson (2g, 1a) and senior Erik Pridham (1 shg,1a).

 In a losing cause, Pomfret got their production from junior Patrick Welch (3a), senior Matt Lowell (1g,1a), and junior defenseman Patrick Bowen (2a).

This was a sloppy, early-season type of game, with both teams doing a poor job defensively. In the first two periods particularly, the forwards coming back weren’t picking up their guys, the defensemen weren’t clearing out in front, and both goalies were allowing way too many rebounds. Roughly half the game’s goals were scored on rebounds.

After the first it was tied 2-2; after the second it was 5-4 Nobles. In the third things tightened up a bit on both sides, with each team scoring just one goal. Nobles’ goal, which turned out to be the game winner, came 2:30 into the period, a shorthanded effort by Pridham, who broke in alone down the right side, and beat Pomfret goalie Mike Albert cleanly to make it 6-4.

Pomfret made it interesting with 27 seconds remaining in regulation when senior Garrett Daigler potted a rebound goal to cut Nobles’ lead to one. After the ensuing faceoff, Pomfret pulled their goalie. At one point there was a loose puck sitting in front but the Pomfret players, swarming the net, were unable to get a good poke at it before it was batted away and time expired.

Nobles outshot Pomfret, 32-29. Rob Horgan had 24 saves for Nobles, while Albert had 26 for Pomfret.

Nobles’ other goal scorers were seniors Chris Trovato and Chris Poli; and sophomore Ben Shellington. Pomfret’s other goal scorers were Michael Robinson, Paul Mazzapica, and Josh Rich.

Fourteen-year-old Josh Franklin skated a regular shift at RW for Nobles. An ’89 and a freshman, he looked right at home. We’d seen him before, but never against a group of players all older than he. Franklin has the potential to be a big-time player in the years ahead of him.

In other games, a good number of box scores can be found by clicking on “Game Results” above.In one game that was reported to be fun to watch, with a lot of up-and-down action, Hotchkiss tied up Salisbury, 4-4 despite trailing by two goals going into the third period. We don’t have much in the way of specific details (look in the box scores shortly), but we can tell you that Salisbury PG Brian O’Hanley, a BC recruit, was phenomenal offensively, notching at least a goal and an assist and pulling away for three breakaways. Torrey Mitchell, centering Brandon Jackmuff and Pat McLaughlin, was excellent, notching what was described as an unbelievable shorthanded goal. Salisbury’s top line consisted of freshman Chris Atkinson, junior center (and older brother) Michael Atkinson, and junior RW Gerry Pollastrone.Also, Salisbury was reportedly shaky in their own end at times… The most lopsided game of the day was in Div. II, where Brunswick shut out Kingswood-Oxford, 6-0, with freshman Michael Squires notching the hat trick. Brunswick outshot K-O 55-6.

12/4/03

Winter Storm Threatening Saturday Games

The National Weather Service has issued a winter storm watch for Friday night into early Sunday morning. The possibility exists for six or more inches of snow. 

If all this comes to pass, there could be a large number of games affected. We urge all coaches to email information@ushr.com  and let us know ASAP if a game is scratched. We will post it here. Hopefully, we can keep people from driving in bad conditions to games that have been cancelled. 

As the time gets closer, check back frequently.

In addition to the dozen or so games that are listed under Game Results above, we have some scores of other Wednesday games:

St. Sebastian's 3, NMH 2
Thayer 8, St. George's 2
BB&N 3, Middlesex 0
Pingree 5, NYA 1
Kents Hill 6, Berwick 0
Westminster 8, Kent 1 (scrimmage)

Note: A handful of coaches had difficulty entering their box scores yesterday, partly because we have a newly-revamped system here, but also partly because there was one spot in the process that isn't totally clear. The most technically-savvy, it seems, had no problem with it, but others did. Our whole approach has been to make inputting information as simple as possible, but in this case it didn't turn out quite that way.

We're correcting it right now and it should be fixed shortly. Thank you for your patience.

12/3/03

We’re Getting There

Today, we’re a little behind where we have been on this date in past seasons, mainly because we expanded the site by adding girls and Div. II boys. This required extensive behind-the-scenes work on the web site. This went on until a couple of days ago – and is actually still going on, as we tweak things here and there.

We mention this because, as you may have noticed, we only have about ten schools with rosters and schedules up. We’ve sent out info to all the coaches with instructions on how to do it, so look for many more to appear.

Right now, coaches (or their proxy) can enter box scores even though their team’s rosters aren’t up. When the box score is submitted, it will only show the players’ uniform numbers. Once the rosters get posted, though, the players’ names will automatically appear – in a nanosecond. And not just in the box scores, either, but various other areas as well, like scoring leaders. It’s all dynamic and interlinked.

Anyway, we’ve put in many hours on improvements, and now it’s just a matter of getting all the information up to date. Any help is appreciated.

If anyone has any general questions, please call the USHR office at (617) 497-1659 and ask for Chris Warner. If anyone has any technical questions about inputting information, please call (413) 585-8536 and ask for Noah.

If anyone notices any missing scores or has further information about today’s games (or anything else of interest) please email information@ushr.com

Thank you.

12/2/03

Proctor Tops USHR’s Div. II Poll

In last year’s Div. II title game, Proctor, behind Josh Robertson, topped St. George’s, 4-1, to give head coach Mike Walsh his fourth straight Div. II title, three of which came with Tilton. Walsh will be going for his fifth straight Div. II title (and second with Proctor), and we think he’ll get it.

The clear cut favorites:

1. Proctor – Robertson, a Northeastern recruit and NHL draft pick, is back and is the best player in Div. II. Word is that the defending champs have some good recruits and are better than last year.

2. South Kent -- Geoff Marottolo, younger brother of Yale associate head coach C.J. Marottolo, has gotten this program rolling. Last year’s team lost in the semi's to a team (St. George’s) many thought they should have beat. This year’s team is a veteran team with outstanding depth. 

These two are the class of the league and likely better than a number of Div. I teams.

The Next Group:

3. St. George’s – They return a lot, including an outstanding goaltender, Matt Dickson,
who was largely responsible for the "upset" over South Kent in the semis last
year.  Forward Shea Guthrie is as skilled as any player in DII. 

4. Pingree --  They also return a lot, like forward Chris Higgins, from last year’s team that was upset in the opening round of the playoffs.  That should help them get motivated for this year.  A senior-laden team with an unproven goalie. Forward Danny Rossman has transferred to Cushing.

5. St. Mark’s  --  Strong incoming group, deepest team in Eberhardt Div., and likely to win the ISL title. Senior Hans Williams is the team’s top goal-scoring threat.

6. Brewster -- Another older team, with the bulk of their forwards being returning seniors. They have been close, but have faltered at year’s end in the past few seasons.

The following are long shots, but with some help and some surprises, could contend:

7.  Kents Hill -- Kevin Potter has done a great job building the program. Were fast and strong last year, and they did not graduate much. 

8. Brunswick -- They are young, with just one senior forward and one senior D. Have a pair of very talented freshmen in forward Greg Squires and defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk. Goaltending a question mark.  

The rest ...

9. Hebron -- Lost most of the team to graduation. A lot of new players. A lot of questions marks.

10. Vermont -- Has improved, but playoffs might be a long shot.

11. Berwick – Very young.

12. Hoosac -- Hard to write anything good about them. They got into the playoffs last year because they won a lot of games against bad teams. They have no rink, the coach smokes between periods and they lead the league in penalties.  They have some good one-on-one players, but drive everyone nuts with their Charlestown Chief-type antics.

12/2/03

Cushing Heads Up USHR Div. I Poll

Back on March 2, Deerfield, behind a Dan Travis goal 32 seconds into OT, edged St. Sebastian’s, 3-2, in a taut, well-played game at Salem, NH. Seems like a long time ago now, doesn’t it? It’s a new season, and here’s our pre-season top 10.

1. Cushing – They’re always in the Final Four, but the Penguins haven’t won a title since 1998. With forwards Boomer Ewing, Chris Bourque, and Billy Ryan; and defensemen Keith Yandle, and Kyle Koziara, there’s a very good chance that could change. The hands-down favorites.

2. Taft – After Cushing, it looks like a real scrum. Taft returns all noteworthy players except forward Casey Ftorek – and both goaltenders. If  the Rhinos are to contend for the top spot again, someone will have to stand out between the pipes. The core group of d-men is extremely solid, and primarily composed of seniors. Center Alex Meintel is one of the top players in prep hockey and will be leading the offense. Seniors Todd Johnson and Keith Shattenkirk will need to have big years.

3. Andover – They have the best goalie in prep hockey in Cory Schneider. However, they lost their top three scorers to graduation, and yet another, Chris Cahill, to the NTDP. Losing Cahill hurts, but the other slots can be filled from below. Look for junior Kyle Kucharski to have a big year. Tommy Dignard, a soph, is the top d-man.  

4. Salisbury – Hard to say how they’ll do, but they came close to knocking off Deerfield in the quarters last year and may be out to prove something. With Michael Atkinson and Jerry Pollastrone they have two guys to build an offense around. Top incoming player is PG Brian O’Hanley, a Boston College recruit out of BC High.

5. Deerfield – Lost a lot of the key players from last year’s title-winning squad. New head coach Brendan Creagh will be counting heavily on forwards James Guay and Scott Bartlett, and big defensemen Paul Baier and Will Boardman. Probably won’t have enough to repeat, though.

6. St. Sebastian’s – Losing four NHL draft picks hurts, but there’s a lot of depth remaining, particularly up front. Colin Young, only a soph, is the top defenseman.

7. Nobles – A lot of observers feel the time has come for Nobles to K.O. St. Seb’s from the top spot in the Keller Division. And they may be right. After all, Nobles has the league’s top player in defenseman Dan McGoff,  and some skilled forwards headed by Chris Poli, Matt Nelson, and Erik Pridham.

8. Hotchkiss – Likely to be the #4 team out of the west, but could surprise and move up. After all, they have a top goaltender in junior Zane Kalemba, who gives the Bearcats a chance in every game. And UVM recruit Torrey Mitchell is back to lead the offense.  The defense, headed up by sophomore Corey Toy, is a question mark.

9. Gov. Dummer – Coach Peter Kravchuk has three Hockey East recruits in forwards Brian McGuirk (BU) and Benn Ferriero (BC); and D Kevin Kapstad (UNH). Those three guys will have to have huge seasons for GDA to get back to the playoffs.  Forward Alex Berry is gone, having transferred to Cushing.

10. Avon Old Farms – Not exactly loaded with stars, but a team with a lot of depth and a couple of reliable goaltenders. Could surprise.

12/1/03

Weekly Div. I Schedule

In the upper left-hand corner of this page is a drop-down menu titled "game results." Click on it and select "Click for Schedule."  Doing so will bring you to the composite schedule for this week (Dec. 1-7). Every Monday throughout the season, that week's composite schedule of Div. I games will be posted here. If you wish to have the whole season's schedule in this format, as well as all individual team and holiday tournament schedules, it's available in book form through the link on the front page.