From new coaches, new top prospects and familiar contenders, here are some of the storylines on the radar for the upcoming NEPSAC boys hockey season.
Back-to-back champs
Standing at the top of the heap is nothing new for Salisbury.
Despite going just 5-4 at the start of the season, the Crimson Knights won the championship again and will enter the new season as reigning Elite Eight champions. They have won seven of those titles since 2006 and back-to-back after there was no 2020-21 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Reigning NEHJ Most Valuable Player Dylan Hryckowian is off to the USHL after logging a team-leading 43 points during the championship run that finished with nine consecutive wins. Fellow Northeastern-bound forward Ben Poitras also was among the team’s top upperclassman scorers. But, longtime coach Andrew Will’s teams always reload and will look to contend again.
There’s little doubt that it will compete. Salisbury has won five titles in 10 years and finished as the runner-up two more times. In that span, Kimball Union is the only program that has won more than once.
Newcomers to watch
The two aforementioned programs will add to their talented rosters as they look to compete for another New England crown.
After a standout season at the Mount St. Charles Academy, Salisbury is set to add Liam Kilfoil to the fold up front. The New Brunswick native was a prolific scorer logging 49 goals and 133 points for Mount’s 14-U AAA team.
Ryan Staples is a Rhode Island native who will continue his journey at Loomis Chaffee.
At Kimball Union, former Arlington High (Mass.) standout Jack Sadowski and Boston Advantage product Andrew O’Sullivan will be key contributors to coach Tim Whitehead’s group up front.
Look for these players to make an immediate impact even as they adjust to the increased level of play in the prep ranks.
Hearts of Lions
Being the No. 2 seed in the NEPSAC Large bracket in March didn’t stop Kent from making a run to a championship last year. Dale Reinhardt’s team rode sophomore goaltender Aidan Hopewell to the title, as he allowed just five goals in three postseason games after splitting time for the majority of the season.
Kent had key pieces at the top of its forward lines and will have pieces to fill offensively, but the team’s championship run was even more impressive considering it boasted just two senior defensemen. Six of the team’s eight regulars on the back line were underclassmen, including Jacob Ingstrup and Alex Bales, who are both '06s.
Encore?
Considered one of the top 2007 prospects in the country, St. Mark’s forward Richard Gallant was many coaches’ pick as the top freshman in NEPSAC hockey during the 2021-22 season after he scored 16 goals and 43 points in just 24 games.
Gallant, who skated at this summer’s USA Hockey Boys Select 15 Development Camp, played a major role for coach Carl Corrazini’s Lions team, skating on the top line and receiving top power-play minutes.
In a postseason survey of the region’s coaches, Thayer forward Gavin Cornforth, Nobles goaltender Thatcher Bernstein, Belmont Hill’s Teddy Stiga and Milton Academy defenseman Dylan Hunt also were considered among the best rising sophomores who will look to continue making an impact.
Austin Prep joins NEPSAC
New England’s prep school programs gain a new challenger as Austin Prep becomes a NEPSAC independent during the 2022-23 school year. While the Cougars’ girls program was an undefeated Mass. state champion last season, the boys team is no slouch, as it captured the Catholic Central League title and advanced to the state’s Division 1 quarterfinals.
While competing against some heavyweights from all around the region, Austin Prep will be joining the prep ranks with a new head coach in John MacLean, whose teams at nearby former rival Malden Catholic captured four Super Eight state titles.
Switch behind the bench
There will be a new head coach at Hotchkiss as Mike Doyle makes the move from Brewster Academy to replace Mike Traggio, a graduate of the program who had served as the bench boss since 2011.
Doyle is a former Choate captain and Connecticut College alum. He had led Brewster since 2016. Taking over his old post will be Billy Rivellini, a Colgate grad who also coaches the school’s baseball program.
