New England Hockey Journal readers will tell their future children and grandchildren about when I had Winchester as my sixth of six teams who could upset top seeds in the 2024 MIAA D1 boys hockey tournament.
It was a I-remember-exactly-where-I-was moment. Like being told in 1981 to invest in Apple or being advised to put your life savings on the New York Giants winning Super Bowl XLII after the 2007 season (sorry, my fellow Patriots fans).
Winchester didn't win the whole thing...but it came pretty darn close. At the very least, it should've gone to overtime tied, 2-2.
I joke, of course, about it being up there with being told about investing in Apple or the Giants winning that '07 Super Bowl (although I assume you will still tell your future grandkids about my story).
This season, the parity has been prevalent since the early days of December. While Pope Francis was the clear No. 1 team, the squads from No. 2-10 constantly jockeyed for positioning.
That means it's possible we see a new team follow in then-No. 11 Winchester's lead.
The biggest upset in last season's tournament was then-No. 28 Weymouth taking down then-No. 5 Archbishop Williams in the Round of 32. Then-No. 18 Arlington Catholic went all the way to the Final 4, where it fell to Winchester in overtime.
Will we see similar seeded teams go deep again? Let's dive in with seven options.
