Sun. 3/5/17
Sunday's Prep Championships Results
Sun. Mar. 5, 2017
Finals
@ Saint Anselm College; Manchester, NH
Stuart/Corkery (Elite 8) Championship, 5:00 pm
Kimball Union 6, Rivers 2
Martin/Earl (Large School) Championship, 2:30 pm
Avon Old Farms 8, Albany Academy 1
Piatelli/Simmons (Small School) Championship, 12:00 pm
Pomfret 3, Cushing 2 (OT)
We -- many people, actually -- had technical difficulties at Saint Anselm College's Sullivan Arena, and were unable to get an internet connection. Also, some of our tweets went through, but most didn't, so we just bagged it after awhile. But we have notes and quotes aplenty, and will have full reports in the morning.
Sun. 3/5/17
Championship Sunday: KUA Tops Rivers
NEPSIHA Championship Games
Sun. March 5, 2017
At Saint Anselm College; Manchester, NH
Stuart/Corkery Tournament (AKA Elite 8)
Kimball Union Academy 6, Rivers 2
Manchester, NH -- Kimball Union blitzed Rivers for three first period goals, then found themselves in a tough game before pulling away with a couple of empty-netters at the end, bringing the school its first major title in 35 years with a 6-2 win here on Sunday.
KUA, which had won small school titles in 2010, 2012, and 2014, came into the postseason as a #3 seed and edged Thayer, 2-1 (OT), and Dexter, 2-1, to reach the finals. Rivers, the #4 seed, beat Belmont Hill, 3-1, and Exeter, 5-2, to get here.
The start was inauspicious for the Red Wings. It took KUA all of 1:34 to get on the board as senior Sean Thomson beat Rivers junior goalie Aidan Porter, with assists going to Thomas Samuelsen and Kyle Penney. At 5:08, with Rivers' Teddy Wooding in the box for a hit from behind, Wildcats' Finnish senior Roope Hirvonen, from Bobby Young, put KUA up, 2-0. The Wildcats kept pushing, but Porter kept them at bay until late in the period, when a shot from the left point by junior Bryce Dolan eluded him at the 16:42 mark.
Rivers came out for the second period rejuvenated, and the next 18 minutes featured good, solid two-way hockey with both goalies -- Porter and KUA senior Sean Dynan -- being forced to stay on their toes. Rivers, which had the edge in the period, finally broke through with 3:26 left in the period when sophomore D Tony Andreozzi, on a 2-on-1 with senior Charlie Parsons, finally solved Dynan.
In the third, Rivers again came out hard, with head coach Shawn McEachern urging them on, clapping his hands encouragingly after strong shifts. Roughly four minutes in, KUA's Bobby Young was called for interference and Rivers went to work on the power play, but for all their efforts and good puck movement, KUA managed to nullify it by blocking shots left and right.
With 8:08 remaining, and KUA up by two goals and the faceoff in the Rivers end, McEachern, knowing another goal was likely to put the game out of reach, particularly with the way Dynan was playing, called a time out to set his guys defensively. Of course, KUA coach Tim Whitehead and his staff had their chalkboard out too, looking to make it a three-goal game. Which is exactly what the Wildcats did, and it took three seconds, as Bobby Young, off the draw, tapped the puck between the opposing center's legs, curled around him, picked up the puck and passed it to Hirvonen, who beat Porter for his second goal of the game at 9:55, making it a 4-1 game.
If Rivers looked like their goose was cooked then, it looked doubly cooked a little over a minute later, at 11:08, when freshman defenseman Cade Webber was called for tripping. But this time KUA's power play went into reverse gear, as Rivers' senior D Michael Young, from Phillip Tresca and Charlie Lawerence, scored a short-handed goal to make it a 4-2 game with 3:24 left.
Rivers never stopped competing.
When Rivers' Wooding was called for boarding with under five minutes left, his teammates killed if off.
Rivers kept pressing, and pulled Porter -- with enough time to make something happen -- for the extra attacker. But there would be no rabbits to pull out of the hat, as KUA scored two empty-netters by, respectively, Kyle Shero and Andranik Armstrong for the final 6-2 margin of victory.
Final shots favored Rivers, 41-30.
For the KUA supporters on hand, which included Woodie Haskins, the coach of that 1982 team, there was jubilation. In recent years KUA has had some very good teams, but the Elite 8 crown has always managed to elude them. This squad, while lacking the starpower of most of those teams, has enough skill and speed, especially up front, but won mainly through playing a strong team game. Forwards like Middlebury commit Alex Heinritz moved back to D this season to add necessary depth there; Ben Tardif and Chris Konin did the same thing for stretches. Rivers doesn't lack for scoring ability, experience, and depth. We've seen them obliterate teams that gave them too much time and room to operate in, and they don't stop coming. KUA, however, is a resilient bunch that won a pair of 2-1 games just to get to the finals. They also had an advantage in size and strength, and were thus able to play a heavier, college-like game, which made Rivers' attempt to come back from that 3-0 deficit an uphill battle. But there was no quit in Rivers. To the contrary, they dug deep and made KUA keep working until they put the game out of reach with the empty-netters.
We asked KUA coach Tim Whitehead about the fast start. "Down the stretch I felt we weren't bringing out our best in the first period," he said. "So when the tournament started we talked about how we felt we would have to come out stronger."
"But the second period was all Rivers," Whitehead added. "They made a great push. But Dynan was terrific."
"I thought we were solid in the third period, especially killing penalties."
KUA also blocked shots extremely well, especially in the the third period. "Kyle Shero has been really good at that," Whitehead said. "He's our best shot-blocker, and a great penalty killer. He's one of our unsung heroes. We have a bunch of them. "
"Mike Lombardi said it best," Whitehead added. "He said 'We have no superstars, just many spokes in a wheel.' "
As for the faceoff play that made it 4-1, Whitehead said that Hirvonen and Young had practiced it. He also said that he had used it once at Maine, with Ben Murphy and John Ronan pulling it off against BU.
As for BU -- and please forgive the transition -- McEachern, now in his seventh year behind the Rivers' bench (you may remember they lost to St. Mark's in OT in last year's Small School Championship game) was not at all downcast.
"I thought we came out tentative," McEachern said, "I told them between periods that we hadn't played our game, but once we got rolling in the second and third we played great. I was really proud of our guys. They left it all on the ice."
"These are special kids," he added.
***
Martin/Earl Tournament (Large School)
Avon Old Farms 8, Albany Academy 1
Avon Old Farms scored one goal in the first, two in the second, and then rolled in the third, adding five more en route to an 8-1 win over Albany Academy here today.
The Winged Beavers came out hard and junior Nick Wildgoose scored just 1:53 into the first period.
In the second, just 53 seconds in, senior John Giatrelis went bar-down on Albany Academy PG goalie Brandon Collett to make it 2-0 Avon.
Albany Academy responded strongly, cutting Avon's lead to 2-1 when junior Jericho Petkovich pickpocketed an Avon defender and raced the length of the ice for an unassisted goal at 5:23. Albany kept pressing throughout the period for the tying goal but just couldn't get another one past Avon sophomore goaltender Spencer Knight.
The backbreaker came with 18 seconds left in the second period when Giatrelis, who had a strong game, got the puck out front to junior Tyler Madden, who was all alone and fired a point-blank shot past Collett to make it 3-1 Avon at the second intermisssion.
Avon just rolled in the third, adding five straight goals for the final 8-1 margin of victory. Of Avon's six losses during the regular season, only one was lopsided, and that came in their season's first game, an 8-3 trouncing at the hands of...Albany Academy.
Avon's Spencer Knight, in what is almost certainly his last game for the Winged Beavers, was excellent, kicking out 31 of 32 shots for the win. Next stop for Knight, a BC commmit, will be the NTDP.
Brandon Collett (31/39) took the loss.
Giatrelis (2g,2a), Madden (1g,3a), Wildgoose (2g), Mac Wiseman (1g,1a), Matt Kirwan (1g,1a), Matt Allen (2a), Trevor Zegras (2a), Nick Keroack (1a), and Ryan Siden (1a) accounted for Avon's scoring.
Avon finished the season strongly, going 7-1-2 over their last 10.
This was Avon's first Large School title. They have eight Elite 8 titles, which they seem to prefer.
"We weathered the storm at the beginning of the second period," said Avon head coach John Gardner. "They outplayed us for most of the period."
"We could sort of feel it after the fourth goal (Kirwan's SHG at the start of the third)."
"We're a talented team and we showed that at the end," Gardner added, "but our relative youth cost us at times during the season as we were unpredictable and inconsistent."
Albany Academy third-year head coach Brett Riley, who has had three straight winning seasons and was making his first appearance coaching in the playoffs, said, "That third goal deflated us. We never really had a game like this, one where things didn't go our way at all."
"But," Riley added, "we overachieved and played as a team all year. I don't think anyone really expected that from us after we lost guys like Kevin O'Neil, Nick Boyagian and Jack Quinlivan to graduation."
***
Piatelli/Simmons Tournament (Small School)
Pomfret 3, Cushing 2 (OT)
Senior forward Ben Alofsin, who had assisted on both his team's goals in regulation, scored the game-winner at 13:43 of overtime to lead the Pomfret School to a 3-2 win over Cushing Academy.
The win gave the school its first hockey championship.
Third-year coach Matt Goethals, who took over a moribund program that had gone 3-21-2 the year before he arrived, had teams went 7-18-0 and 9-19-0 before breaking through with a 13-8-4 record this year and a #6 seed in the small school tournament. In the playoffs, Pomfret went on the road and soundly beat #3 seed Winchendon, 5-3, in the quarters, and #2 seed New Hampton, 4-2, in the semifinals to make it to the championship game against a Cushing team that entered the game on an 11-2-1 run and a seven-game win streak.
Cushing was a little tentative at the start, allowing Pomfret to have the edge in play in the first period. Cushing had some bursts late in the period, which ended 0-0.
In the second period, Pomfret had a couple of good power play chances but came up empty. They were carrying the play, but it was Cushing getting on the board first, at the 11:28 mark, when junior Matt McGrath picked up a Josh Labonte defensive zone turnover and raced the length of the ice, beating Pomfret sophomore goalie Peyton Durand to take a 1-0 lead.
Pomfret got it back quickly -- 37 seconds to be precise -- when junior D Alex Rondeau, on the power play, fired a shot from the right point that beat Cushing senior goalie Joey Halstrom top corner glove side to make it 1-1. And that's where things stood going into the second intermission.
In the third, Pomfret came out and hit the crossbar just seconds in. But they kept at it and connected to take a 2-1 lead when Alofsin made a nice pass to PG Phil Satin at the 6:28 mark.
With Pomfret's top scorer, senior Jon Beniers, off for interference, Cushing went to work on the PP. Junior D Nolan McElhaney got the puck over to junior Matt Guerra at the opposite point. Guerra's shot -- a laser -- beat Durand top corner to the stick side.
Shortly after, Cushing's Ashton Fry took a high-sticking penalty. After killing it, Cushing seemed to get a lift as they poured it on at the end of the period, swarming Durand, who stood his ground.
After the ice was resurfaced, a full 18-minute overtime period got underway. Cushing kept at it and had the edge in play for the first six minutes or so of OT. Goethals called a time out to settle his players.
Right after the time-out ended, Cushing's Dakota Mulcay rang one off the crossbar. After that the game settled into more of an up-and-down affair.
The winning goal came when PG Chris Kral carried it into the Cushing end and took a shot that was partially stopped, but popped up in the air before coming down behind Halstrom, inches from the goal line. Alofsin tapped it home and the Pomfret celebration began.
Pomfret goalie Peyton Durand kicked out 35 of 37 shots to earn the win.
After the game, Goethals said, "We went hard for two and a half periods and had some great scoring opportunities, then Cushing started to bring it. We got a little stale toward the end, but when we scrambled Peyton (Durand) came through. He held the fort in OT. He's consistently given us a chance to win every game."
"We've been pretty resilient throughout the year. Our captains -- Jon Beniers, Labonte, Chris Wright -- have been great. They set the tone."
Goethals was asked if there was a point during the season when he felt his team had a chance of reaching the playoffs.
"After the first week or two," he said. "We set that as our goal."
Before coming to Pomfret, Goethals was an assistant at Rivers for two years. "Shawn McEachern has been a great mentor. He's been a huge influence. Greg Osborne my assistant, has been a great recruiter. I guess you could say we had high ambitions. This first championship for us is a huge accomplishment. The kids really earned it."
Down the hall, Rob Gagnon had just finished his last game as Cushing head coach, as he will be replaced by Steve Jacobs in the fall.
"I'm really proud of my guys," he said.
Asked how his team was able to come back from an awful first half to finish the season 13-13-2, Gagnon said, "At the start of the season there was a lot of individualism. We tried to commit to being a team. The players gave up their egos and everyone bought in."
"We didn't play that well today, but I also thought that Pomfret might have been the best team we played all year. I give them a lot of credit. They were committed to their system, and didn't take unnecessary penalties. Their structure was great. We got a little undisciplined in our systems."
"I thought we were going to win it in OT. We had chance after chance. I thought we could bury it, but their goalie was really good. We may have had trouble scoring goals, but the effort was there today."
Sat. 3/4/17
Sat. March 4 Semifinals Highlights
Elite 8:
Rivers and KUA Advance to Championship Game
@ Rivers 5, Exeter 2 -- Exeter senior Noah Maercklein scored 2:09 into the first period to give the visitors a 1-0 lead, but they weren't able to enjoy it for long -- 1 min, 26 seconds to be precise -- before host Rivers went to work, with seniors Brett Rahbany and Charlie Parsons, and freshman Phillip Tresca scoring to give Rivers a 3-1 lead at the first intermission. In the second period, Rivers' senior defenseman Thomas Tresca scored just 2:33 into the period to make it 4-1. Exeter replaced freshman starter Ryan Welch with senior Pat Schena, and got a small lift, as junior Bobby Murray scored midway through the period to make it a 4-2 game. In the third Thomas Tresca scored his second of the game for the final 5-2 margin of victory. Rivers junior goalie Aidan Porter kicked out 23 of 25 for the win. For Exeter, Schena (18/19) was strong in relief of Welch (10/14). On Sunday, Rivers, which won a Div. II title in 1985, will attempt to become the first Eberhart team to win the Elite 8 title. To do so, they will have to get past Kimball Union. The two teams met once during the regular season, with KUA, on an Alex Heinritz goal with 22 seconds left in regulation, edging Rivers, 2-1, in a semifinal matchup at the Belmont Hill-Nichols New Year's Tournament. .
Kimball Union Academy 2 @ Dexter 1 -- In front of the largest crowd ever at the Thorndike Athletic Complex, host Dexter bowed to visiting Kimball Union, 2-1. After senior Roope Hirvonen, from Mike Lombardi, put KUA up 1-0 in the first, Dexter junior Ian Murphy tied it up at 1-1 just 1:16 into the second. But at 6:03 of the second KUA took a 2-1 lead when senior James Caras, who had plenty of net to shoot at, scored his third goal of the season -- and that was enough to send KUA to Sunday's Elite 8 title game. KUA junior Sean Dynan (18/19) got the win, while Dexter senior Aidan Murphy, without whom Dexter would never have had the season they did, kicked out 23 of 25, and finishes the season with a .933 save percentage.
***
Large School:
Chapman, Collett Lead Cadets to Finals
Madden Notches Hat Trick; Winged Beavers Soar
@ Albany Academy 1, St. Sebastian's 0 -- A Josh Chapman power play goal at 5:02 of the first period, assisted by Brendan Schneider and JJ Fecteau, was all the scoring needed to send host Albany Academy to a 1-0 victory over St. Sebastian's. This was a goalie's game: Albany PG Brandon Collett posted a 29-save shutout, while St. Seb's senior Alex Zafonte (40/41) was the hard-luck loser. Albany Academy will face Avon Old Farms Sunday for the Large School Championship. The two teams met once during the regular season, with Albany trouncing Avon 8-3 on Dec. 3rd. Albany, behind the Cavosie brothers, won a Div. II championship in 1998.
Avon Old Farms 7 @ Brunswick 2 -- Junior Tyler Madden had a hat trick, and sophomore linemate Trevor Zegras assisted on all three of the goals to lead the Winged Beavers past host Brunswick, 7-2. The game was tied 1-1 after one, but in the second Avon scored three unanswered goals to take control. Avon sophomore Spencer Knight (24/26) got the win, while Brunswick senior Strauss Mann (30/37), who has had an excellent season (.936 save percentage), took the loss.
***
Small School:
Cushing Rolls Into Finals
Durand Leads Pomfret
Cushing 4 @ Gunnery 3 -- Cushing, trailing 2-1 on the road late in the second period, got a pair of goals 28 seconds apart -- from Cam Recchi and Matt McGrath -- to take a 3-2 lead into the second intermission. Vilho Saariluoma (2g,1a) scored an usassisted goal 1:10 into the third to make it 4-2 Cushing. Gunnery defenseman Diarmad Dimurro scored a PPG at 6:23 to cut Cushing's lead to 4-3 but the Highlanders could get no closer. Cushing senior Joey Halstrom (32/35) got the win, while Gunnery junior Cedrick Andree (26/30) took the loss. Senior Matt Danner had a pair of goals for Gunnery. Cushing, which has been red hot in the second half (11-2-1 and currently riding a 7-game winning streak) faces Pomfret for the Small School Championship at noon Sunday.
Pomfret 4 @ New Hampton 2 -- Pomfret, trailing 2-1 entering the third period, struck for power play goals from Brandon Mitchell and defenseman Josh Labonte to take a 3-2 lead. Billy Berry added an empty-netter with 20 seconds left. Sophomore Peyton Durand (35/37) once again came through for Pomfret, who advance to the Small School Championship game against Cushing tomorrow. Pomfret has never won a prep championship at any level in hockey, the only school among the six in action on Sunday who haven't.
Sun. Mar. 5, 2017
Finals
@ Saint Anselm College; Manchester, NH
All three games live on NEPSAC.tv
Stuart/Corkery (Elite 8) Championship
Rivers vs. Kimball Union, 5:00 pm
Martin/Earl (Large School) Championship
Albany Academy vs. Avon Old Farms, 2:30 pm
Piatelli/Simmons (Small School) Championship
Cushing vs. Pomfret, 12:00 pm
Wed. 3/1/17
Wed. March 1 Quarterfinals Highlights
ELITE 8:
Rathbone Leads Dexter Past Salisbury
Brookline, Mass. -- #2 Dexter scored three power play goals en route to a 4-2 win over #7 Salisbury Wednesday before a packed house at the Thorndike Athletic Complex.
With the win, Dexter advances to the prep semifinals on Saturday. They will host Kimball Union at 4:30 pm.
Dexter scored the only goal of the first, a power play goal, as Sean Keohan knocked home the rebound of a Jack Rathbone shot from the point at the 9:30 mark.
In the second period, just 59 seconds in, Salisbury got on the board with a power play goal from junior defenseman Peter Diliberatore, assisted by fellow d-man Ryan Verrier.
Dexter then struck for two goals -- both on the PP -- less than four minutes apart. First, junior AJ Caprio scored to make it 2-1 Dexter, then Rathbone let one rip from up top that eluded Tyce Thompson's attempt to block it and sailed past Salisbury senior goalie Jonah Capriotti at 8:25.
A dust-up at the close of the second period resulted in Salisbury's Kevin Wall getting a major and misconduct for head-butting.
Early in the third period, Salisbury was able to kill off several minutes of a 5x3. As the period neared its midpoint, Salisbury's Capriotti make a sparkling save off of Dexter's Tommy Giandomenico. Immediately, the play headed the other way and Johnny Beecher, drifting down the left side, snapped off a short-side shot that found daylight between Dexter senior goalie Aidan Murphy and the post -- Murphy's only mistake of the game -- and allowed Salisbury to cut Dexter's lead to 3-2.
But less than two minutes later, Dexter got an insurance goal from freshman John McElaney, with assists going to Rathbone and fellow freshman -- and linemate -- Chase McInnis.
Rathbone, who was a force throughout, finished the game with a goal and two assists. Senior John Femia had three assists.
Dexter's Murphy (19/21) got the win, while Salisbury's Capriotti (16/20) took the loss.
Power plays were a factor. Each team was called for six penalties. Dexter scored three times on the PP, and Salisbury was able to capitalize just once.
"I thought our speed would have to be a factor," Dexter head coach Dan Donato said. "It allowed us to get on the power play and force them to move their feet. Plus it allowed us to get our best player in the game, Jack Rathbone, on the ice in man-up situations."
"Aidan Murphy was outstanding in goal," Donato added. "They have a deadly power play and he made a save in the second period -- the toe save -- that was as good as any I've seen, a ten-bell save."
"As a team, I thought we played well. They (Salisbury) are scary and are a very well-coached team. It could have gone either way."
Salisbury coach Andrew Will said the major factor in the game was the power play and special teams. "I give credit to them. They scored three power play goals and their goalie was terrific. I thought on 5-on-5 play we were better. Credit for them for capitalizing on their opportunities. I thought Rathbone was the difference in the game."
"I was pleased with our effort," Will added. I am proud of our guys overcoming a bunch of adversity this season. The group gave as much as they were capable of giving. In a one-game situation like this it comes down to capitalizing on opportunities. And Dexter did that very well."
KUA Edges Thayer on Samuelsen OT Goal
Meriden, NH -- A Thomas Samuelsen goal at 4:07 of OT lifted #3 Kimball Union to a 2-1 win over #6 Thayer, and a slot in Saturday's semifinal at Dexter (4:30 pm). After a scoreless first period, KUA senior Bobby Young scored the game's first goal on a power play with one minute left in the second period. Thayer senior Casey Carreau, from junior defenseman Jayson Dobay, answered with a 5x3 ppg in the third to even it at 1-1 and send it to OT. Over the course of the game, KUA had four power plays and Thayer had five, including 1:50 of 5x3. Both goalies, KUA's Sean Dynan (29/30) and Thayer's Jimmy Scannell (38/40) were excellent.
Rivers Tops Belmont Hill, 3-1
Weston, Mass. -- #4 Rivers got goals from Brendan Hamblet (ppg), Charlie Parsons, and Tyler Capello in a 3-1 win over #5 Belmont Hill. Rivers will host #8 Exeter at 3:30 pm on Saturday.
#8 Exeter Stuns #1 Lawrence
Groton, Mass. -- #8 Exeter stunned #1 Lawrence Academy by scoring three goals -- from Paddy Bogart, Collin Shapiro, and Paul MacDonald -- in a 97 second span in the second period. A goal at 1:53 of the third from Austin Magera cut Exeter's lead to 3-2, but that was as close as the top seed would get. Exeter added two empty netters in the final minute of play. Exeter will be at #4 Rivers at 3:30 pm Saturday.
***
LARGE SCHOOL:
Albany Strikes Quickly, Beats Taft, 3-1
Watertown, Conn. -- #5 Albany Academy topped #4 Taft with three goals -- from Remy Parker, Jericho Petkovich and Joseph Pasquini -- in a four-minute span of the second period. Brandon Collett (28/29) got the win and Andrew Farrier (34/37) took the loss. The game was the last behind the Taft bench for Dan Murphy, who has guided the Rhinos for 13 seaons, since 2004-05. Murphy will be taking over at St. Paul's in the fall.
Lyons, Zafonte Lead Arrows
Andover, Mass. -- Sophomore Tommy Lyons had two goals (one short-handed, one even-strength) to lead #8 St. Sebastian's to a 4-1 win over #1 Andover. Sophomore Rory Casey (1g,1a) and senior Brendan Goostray also chipped in offensively. Arrows senior goaltender Alex Zafonte (40/41) earned the win. Andover PG Kyle Martin (43/47) took the loss. St. Seb's will travel to Albany Academy Saturday for a 1:00 pm semifinal matchup.
Too Much Mann for Milton
Wallingford, Conn. -- In a neutral site game played at Choate, #2 Brunswick trounced #7 Milton, 6-1. Edward Glassmeyer (1g,2a), Nick VanBelle (2g), Brendan Gregoire (1g,1a) and Christian LeSueur (2a) led the Brunswick attack and senior Strauss Mann kicked out 29 of 30 shots for the win. Brunswick will host #3 Avon Old Farms at 2:30 pm Saturday in the first-ever playoff game at Hartong Rink.
Winged Beavers' Offense Soars
Easthampton, Mass. -- In a neutral site game played at Williston-Northampton, #3 Avon Old Farms topped #6 Proctor, 8-5. Ryan Lanchbury (3g,1a), Will Christensen (1g,2a), John Giatrelis (3a), Trevor Zegras (1g,1a) and Tyler Madden (2a) all had multiple points for Avon. For Proctor, senior D Reilly Walsh (1g,3a) and younger brother Ronan Walsh (1g,1a) were the leading point-getters. Avon senior goaltender Brandon Schellin (28/33) got the win.
***
SMALL SCHOOL:
Pomfret Edges Winchendon
Winchendon, Mass. -- #6 Pomfret got goals from four different scorers -- Jon Beniers (pp), Chris Wright, Billy Berry, and Phil Satin -- to take a 4-0 lead by the middle of the second period. #3 Winchendon came back with goals from Mike Hardman (ppg), Johnny Mulera (ppg) and Matt Fawcett (and unnassisted shorty) to cut the lead to 4-3. Pomfret added an empty-netter with three seconds left. Pomfret sophomore Peyton Durand (29/32) got the win. Winchendon senior Brandon Graf (32/36) took the loss. Pomfret visits #2 New Hampton for a Saturday semifinal (4:00 pm).
Cushing's Halstrom Blanks Tilton
Tilton, NH -- #5 Cushing blanked #4 Tilton, 5-0, behind goals from five different scorers -- four coming in the third period when Cushing blew the game open. Senior Joey Halstrom (32 saves) posted the shutout. With the win, Cushing moves to .500 for the first time this season. The Penguins will travel to #1 Gunnery for a semifinal matchup Saturday at 2:00 pm.
Gunnery Too Much for Roxbury Latin
Washington, Conn. -- #1 Gunnery got an 18-save shutout from junior Cedrick Andree and goals from four different scorers in a 4-0 win over #8 Roxbury Latin. Senior G Bryan McGrath (51/54) was the hard-luck loser. Gunnery will host Cushing on Saturday at 2:00 pm.
New Hampton Rolls Over Holderness
New Hampton, NH -- #2 New Hampton got goals from seven different scorers in a 7-3 win over #7 Holderness. Senior F Chris Lemay (1g,2a) and senior D Luke Albert (4a) had big games. Sophomore goaltender Matt Sayles (30/33) got the win. Senior Logan Bateman (30/37) took the loss. New Hampton will host Pomfret in a semifinal matchup at 4:00 pm Saturday.
***
Upcoming:
Sat. March 4, 2017
Semifinals
Elite 8:
#8 Exeter @ #4 Rivers, 3:30 pm
#3 KUA @ #2 Dexter, 4:30 pm
Large School:
#8 St. Sebastian's @ #5 Albany Academy, 1:00 pm
#3 Avon Old Farms @ #2 Brunswick, 2:30 pm
Small School:
#5 Cushing @ #1 Gunnery, 2:00 pm
#6 Pomfret @ #2 New Hampton, 4:00 pm -- Livestream in HD at www.livestream.com/nhs
Sun. Mar. 5, 2017
Finals
@ Saint Anselm College; Manchester, NH
Piatelli/Simmons (Small School) Championship, 12:00 pm
Martin/Earl (Large School) Championship, 2:30 pm
Stuart/Corkery (Elite 8) Championship, 5:00 pm
Wed. 3/1/17
Wed. March 1 Quarterfinals Results
We'll have recaps of all the games Thursday.
Elite 8:
(#8) Exeter 5 @ (#1) Lawrence Academy 2
@ (#2) Dexter 4, (#7) Salisbury 2
@ (#3) KUA 2, (#6) Thayer 1 (OT)
@ (#4) Rivers 3, (#5) Belmont Hill 1
Large School:
(#8) St. Sebastian's 4 @ (#1) Andover 1
@ (#2) Brunswick 6, (#7) Milton 1 (@ Choate)
@ (#3) Avon Old Farms 8, (#6) Proctor 5 (@ Williston)
(#5) Albany Academy 3 @ (#4) Taft 1
Small School:
@ (#1) Gunnery 4, (#8) Roxbury Latin 0
@ (#2) New Hampton 7, (#7) Holderness 3
(#6) Pomfret 5 @ (#3) Winchendon 3
(#5) Cushing 5 @ (#4) Tilton 0
Sat. March 4, 2017
Semifinals
Starting times TBA
Elite 8:
#8 Exeter @ #4 Rivers, 3:30 pm
#3 KUA @ #2 Dexter, 4:30 pm
Large School:
#8 St. Sebastian's @ #5 Albany Academy, 1:00 pm
#3 Avon Old Farms @ #2 Brunswick, 2:30 pm
Small School:
#5 Cushing @ #1 Gunnery, 2:00 pm
#6 Pomfret @ #2 New Hampton, 4:00 pm
Sun. Mar. 5, 2017
Finals (@ St. Anselm College)
Piatelli/Simmons (Small School) Championship, 12:00 pm
Martin/Earl (Large School) Championship, 2:30 pm
Stuart/Corkery (Elite 8) Championship, 5:00 pm
Wed. 3/1/17-Most recent update: 2:15 pm
Live Streams of Quarterfinals
If your school is live streaming any of today's games, please send a note to staff@ushr.com and we'll add it to this list.
So far, we have:
Elite 8:
#7 Salisbury @ #2 Dexter, 4:30 pm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dNAmOEmMEGk&feature=youtu.be
(Salisbury stream)
Large School:
#8 St. Sebastian's @ #1 Andover, 4:30 pm
https://livestream.com/northpeakstudios
(Andover stream)
Large School:
#7 Milton @ #2 Brunswick, 4:30 pm (@ Choate)
www.nsnsports.net/colleges/brunswick/
(Brunswick stream)
Large School:
#6 Proctor @ #3 Avon Old Farms, 4:00 pm (@ Williston)
https://livestream.com/proctor2/events/6712629
(Proctor stream)
http://www.avonoldfarms.com/athletics/live-stream
(Avon stream)
Small School:
#6 Pomfret @ #3 Winchendon, 3:30 pm
http://thecube.com/event/the-winchendon-school-vs-pomfret-school-boys-varsi-720318
(Pomfret stream)
***
Today's Prep Quarterfinals Schedule
Elite 8:
#8 Exeter @ #1 LA, 5:30 pm
#7 Salisbury @ #2 Dexter, 4:30 pm
#6 Thayer @ #3 KUA, 4:30 pm
#5 Belmont Hill @ #4 Rivers, 4:30 pm
Large School:
#8 St. Sebastian's @ #1 Andover, 4:30 pm
#7 Milton @ #2 Brunswick, 4:30 pm (@ Choate)
#6 Proctor @ #3 Avon Old Farms, 4:00 pm (@ Williston)
#5 Albany Academy @ #4 Taft, 3:30 pm
Small School:
#8 Roxbury Latin @ #1 Gunnery, 4:00 pm
#7 Holderness @ #2 New Hampton, 5:15 pm
#6 Pomfret @ #3 Winchendon, 3:30 pm
#5 Cushing @ #4 Tilton, 3:30 pm
New England Prep Hockey News
Around the Rinks
