EXETER, N.H. — The Phillips Exeter Invitational is consistently among New England boys' prep hockey's top early-season showcases.
This past weekend, Brunswick, Frederick Gunn, Hebron, Kent, Kimball Union, New Hampton, Phillips Exeter and Rivers participated.
It led to some high-end matchups.
Here's a full glimpse at the scoreboard:
SaturdayÂ
- Kimball Union 2, Rivers 1
- Frederick Gunn 5, New Hampton 0
- Brunswick 9, Phillips Exeter 6
- Kent 9, Hebron 2
SundayÂ
- Rivers 11, Hebron 0
- Brunswick 6, New Hampton 2
- Kimball Union 4, Kent 0
- Frederick Gunn 2, Phillips Exeter 2
Some of these teams were playing for the first time this season. There was certainly rust and many of these squads will take time to form. Kimball Union thoroughly outplayed Kent in a highly-anticipated matchup on Sunday. My guess is that if those teams met again later in the season, it would be much closer.
I was there on Sunday, so most of my takeaways will revolve around what I saw then. Still, some of Saturday's action will be incorporated.
Let's dive in.
1. Brunswick's Joseph Salandra is the real deal
Salandra opened this season as a Harvard commit. He led all players at USA Hockey's Select 16 Camp in scoring this summer. He tallied 104 points for Mid Fairfield's 15O team last season. Still, first-year prep players can take a bit of time adjusting.
That hasn't been Salandra.
Salandra tallied a goal against New Hampton. It was a missile that he made look effortless. The power play runs through him on the right flank of freshman defenseman Cameron Minella (Darien, Conn.), who we will get to later. Salandra's patience with the puck was impressive, as he never rushed a play and used his hands to dance around defenders. It helps that Salandra plays in all situations and is willing to play the off-wing on the first line.
He ranks second on his team in points with eight. In first is Mason St. Louis (Old Greenwich, Conn.). Now feels like a good time to say...
2. Mason St. Louis' hockey sense and partnership with Salandra was outstanding
After missing the end of his Mid Fairfield 15O season in the spring, St. Louis got a full summer to train and played a handful of games this fall.
Through four games, the '08 and first-year prep player leads his team in goals (five) and points (nine). He's been dominant as the team's No. 1 center between Salandra and '07 junior Owen Gibbons (Fairfield, Conn.).
On Sunday, he tallied a power play goal. He also assisted on goals by Salandra and Gibbons. His helper on Gibbons' was particularly nice as St. Louis gathered the puck in neutral ice, earned a zone entry and got a shot away that produced a rebound for Gibbons to knock in.
But it was St. Louis' hockey sense that was so impressive. St. Louis is the son of NHL legend and Montreal Canadiens head coach Martin and brother of Ryan and Lucas — two Division 1 players. It's not shocking that he plays the game with a high level of intelligence, but it doesn't make it any less remarkable.
St. Louis read plays so well high in the offensive zone as the third forward. Midway through the first period, St. Louis read New Hampton's breakout, kept the puck in and created two scoring chances for his team. Early in the second, St. Louis had a 3-on-2 with his linemates and was sort of in line with all of them. With no hesitation, St. Louis recognized what he had to do: he made a beeline for the net and didn't wait for his linemates to do it.
Brunswick boss Mike Kennedy had St. Louis and Salandra killing penalties together, which caused fits for New Hampton because both players are smart, responsible and have high-end chemistry.
St. Louis should have Division 1 interest for sure.
3. Kimball Union's depth is scary
Once again, Kimball Union's top line is really good. Head coach Tim Whitehead had Merrimack commit CJ Watroba (West Springfield, Mass.), Corwith Simmers and Xander Boutilier together against then-No. 10 Kent. The line produced two 5-v-5 goals and a power play tally all before the first period ended.
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But KUA's talent stretched deeper than just that top line. Postgrad Zach Phillips, his younger brother Josh and Alexis Gagne formed a dominant trio. Zach already has seven points on the season, while Josh has five. Seniors Max Kimelman and Mickael Tissier, as well as junior Jackson Davies (Meriden, N.H.) pushed the pace and earned chances.
On defense, it's all about seniors Lucas Siomos and Nick Evans (Malden, Mass.) stood out the most. Siomos showcased great rush defense, while Evans rifled in a goal from the point and added an assist. Both will compete for Division 1 eyes this season.
The Wildcats may not have the finishing abilities of Jack Sadowski (Arlington, Mass.) and Sam LeDrew anymore, but they're much deeper than last year. They're a fitting No. 1 team in the region right now.
4. Kimball Union forward Xander Boutilier is an intriguing college hockey prospect
Boutilier is in his first season with Kimball Union and opened some eyes at this showcase, especially against Kent. His first goal came off a 2-on-1. Simmers dished a pass over to Boutilier who cut middle and deked out Kent goalie Jacoby Weiner (Riverside, Conn.) for a nice goal. Boutilier's second came when he picked up a rebound and wrapped it around for a goal.
At 6-foot-1 and 175 pounds, Boutilier has great size for a left wing. He's an '08 junior, so there is still a while to go in his development. He's a good skater and has strong stick skills, especially around the net. Playing with Watroba and Simmers, Boutilier is going to post a lot of points finishing and producing chances by the crease.
The Flood-Marr Tournament is next week. Various Division 1 colleges will be there. I'd imagine many will be asking about Boutilier.
5. Brunswick defenseman Cam Minella looked like one of the more impressive '09s in the region
I write about the trio of Rivers '09s a lot (Carter Meyer, Finn Sears and Sam Pandolfo) because they're one of the best lines in prep and should have invites to at least try out for the U.S. National Team Development Program in the spring.
After watching Minella on Saturday, he should be considered too.
Minella, a freshman, runs Brunswick's top power play as the quarterback. He was calm with the puck and worked to open up passing and shooting lanes. That was the case on his goal against New Hampton when he ripped a laser from the point that went straight past New Hampton junior goalie Sam Zygulski (Coventry, Conn.). He added two assists in the game as well, bringing his season point total to four in four games.
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Before the season began, Kennedy mentioned that Minella was with the full-season Mid Fairfield 15Os, but still wanted to get prep reps. Minella could be one of the more dynamic defensemen in prep if he continues on this trajectory.
6. New Hampton's top line embodies its team identity
New Hampton didn't have the best go of it this weekend, getting outscored 11-2 over the two games. But the top line provided some glimmers of hope. Postgrad Luke Gerardi (Shrewsbury, Mass.), senior Connor Pierson and junior Matthew Homer (Norton, Mass.) played with a high compete. They pushed the pace and, against Brunswick, had the Huskies' best offensive zone sequences.
Gerardi hit the crossbar on a chance early in the first period against Brunswick. He was also active around the Bruins' net and produced chances. Pierson was involved offensively and Homer showed off solid vision, doing a nice job of finding teammates in the offensive zone off the rush and once engaged in the cycle.
The line's identity was rather scrappy and physical. As a team, New Hampton played the same way. An 0-3-0 start isn't fun, but if head coach Connor Gorman's team continues to embrace those traits, they will be tough to play against.
Another bright spot for New Hampton was senior defenseman Broden Wood. Wood notched a goal from the point against Brunswick. He was a nice puck-mover for New Hampton and was aggressive at the opposing blue line.
7. Kent may take some time to come together offensively
The Lions combined for 16 goals in two games against Hoosac and Hebron. But in their first real test, they failed to score against Kimball Union and only threw 24 shots on goalie Blake McMeniman (Revere, Mass.).
Entering the season, we knew this offense had countless new names and many have high-end potential. It's only natural that there are growing pains. Forwards like '07s Stefano Pietrantonio, Keegan Sears and Jack Broderick, as well as '08s like Aiden Grinshpun and Will Schlechtweg should make up the majority of the scoring this season.
It just might take some time.
One Kent forward who did impress on Sunday against Kimball Union was Richard Shin. He showed himself to be a very good skater and shifty down the middle. He has a high level of skill and patience with the puck, especially under pressure.
8. Despite the 4-0 loss, Jacoby Weiner still had a really good game
Things didn't look promising for Weiner, a Harvard commit, just over five minutes into Sunday's game against Kimball Union. The Wildcats were up 2-0 and making life difficult on Weiner in his first prep game.
But Weiner showed why he was an invite to NTDP's Evaluation Camp in the spring, recovering from a tough start and making 44 saves. In the second period, he made some huge stops in tight before robbing Simmers on a breakaway moments later. He made a big stop on Josh Phillips late in the second period as well. Even when Evans scored to make it 4-0, it came after a plethora of saves from Weiner.
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It was a trial-by-fire first prep game for Weiner, but he survived and did well. I'd expect he gets the bulk of the workload this season.
9. Phillips Exeter's Lucas Mesika turned in the best goaltending performance on Sunday
Frederick Gunn was the more skilled team on Sunday. Head coach Craig Badger's team peppered scoring chances early. But Mesika kept his team in it and was the biggest reason for the 2-2 tie.
In the first period, Mesika gloved down a point-blank chance from defenseman Dylan Hall. He turned away forward Travis Rugg (Hingham, Mass.) with his blocker later in the period. Forward Will Jackson had two chances in the second period that normally would've gone in, but Mesika turned them aside. One of his biggest saves came when he slid post to post, denying Ian Kuisis of an open net on the power play.
He continued to be incredible in the third period and in overtime.
Mesika has started all five of Exeter's games so far and the junior '08 has a 2.11 goals-against average and a .926 save percentage. He should start to get some attention.
10. Tyler Kelly looked like Frederick Gunn's best player
Kelly was with Thayer from 2021-23. He played for BK Selects' 18U team last season before opting to return to prep with Frederick Gunn this season. The Quincy, Mass., native is an early '06. He's old by prep's standards.
That shouldn't take away from his early success, especially on Sunday.
He scored Frederick Gunn's first goal, toe-dragging around a defender and rifling a wrister past Mesika's blocker. Kelly showcased great hands throughout the game, navigating through Exeter defenders. When he had the puck at the point on power plays, he was patient.
It's no surprise that Kelly has two goals and leads his team in points with five. The 5-foot-11 and 174-pound forward is someone junior teams should be watching this winter. He was drafted by Madison in the 13th round of the 2022 USHL Phase 1 Draft.
11. Not much to take away from Rivers-Hebron. But Rivers-Kimball Union...
Don't you love that? A takeaway to tell you there was nothing to take away.
Hebron had a rough weekend, getting outscored 20-2 against Kent and Rivers. That came after a 13-0 loss to Holderness. New head coach Zach Goodman definitely has his work cut out for him, but he did get a season-opening, 5-3, win over North Yarmouth Academy. That's a positive.
For Rivers, I can't take too much from how the Red Wings did in an 11-0 win over Hebron, although it was great to see senior forwards Will Hatten and Will Irving put up two goals and an assist each.
The big result was Saturday's matchup with Kimball Union. Last season, Rivers stunned KUA, 4-2. The game put the Red Wings on the map as a top threat in prep. Even with the 2-1 loss on Saturday, Rivers got a goal from Sam Pandolfo (Winchester, Mass.), as his line with Carter Meyer (Winchester, Mass.) and Finn Sears (Medford, Mass.) continues to hum. Junior goalie Derrick Huang turned in a strong day, too, making 35 saves.
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The Red Wings will be a borderline top 10 team all season. The big question is whether they can remove the "borderline."
Leftover thoughts...
- I wasn't there on Saturday when Brunswick goalie Dylan Lee-Stack allowed six goals to Phillips Exeter. But Lee-Stack rebounded nicely on Sunday against New Hampton, making 29 saves in his two periods of action. The 6-foot-2, 175-pound netminder was technically sound and strong on low shots, using his legs to take away any options for shooters. New Hampton had a power play late in the first period and had Lee-Stack under siege, yet he turned away every shot.
- McMeniman wasn't super busy against Kent, but still got a 24-save shutout over the defending Large School champs. He's had a great start to his senior year with his 0.80 GAA and a .964 save percentage. Shooters try to go high on the 5-foot-9, 160-pound netminder, but he doesn't go down easy and takes away top corners well.
- The Frederick Gunn-Phillips Exeter game reminded me of when a private school faces a public in the MIAA. For those who aren't up on the MIAA, private schools typically have a lot more individual talent and skill, while the publics will just be overly physical and play scrappy to win. While Frederick Gunn had more skill, Exeter's structure stifled the Highlanders.
- Like Kent, Frederick Gunn will need some more time for its new forwards to gel. Badger's team will face Kent and Williston Northampton before the Avon Old Farms Christmas Classic.
