WALPOLE, Mass. — The last weekend in August was the River Rats Jamboree. This past weekend was the Eastern Alliance Kickoff. In other words, fall hockey is back in full swing.
Tons of hockey teams and players battled it out at rinks across Massachusetts in the Eastern Alliance Kickoff.
One of the levels I focused most on was the 14U group, taking in six different teams on Saturday. My slate of games was:
- Saturday: Boston Jr. Eagles vs. North Jersey Avalanche
- Saturday: Neponset Valley River Rats vs. Islanders Hockey Club
- Saturday: Mid Fairfield vs. South Shore Kings
I already covered the forwards in a separate story, so this one will focus only on defensemen and goalies who stood out.
Let's dive in.
Preston Abbott
South Shore Kings, 4/5/2009, D, left shot, 5-9/165
Hometown: Middleton, Mass.Â
The Kings spent the majority of Saturday's game in their own zone, as they lost 6-2 to Mid Fairfield. However, that meant Abbott got plenty of work defending. He had a couple of solid breakouts when he had possession of the puck in the defensive zone. When defending the rush, he used his good stick to break up plays and take away passing lanes. He was also extremely physical.
Owen Hughes
Islanders Hockey Club, 2009, D, right shot
Hughes showed himself as a very strong offensive defenseman on Saturday. He scored the first goal of the game on the power play early in the first half when he had a give-and-go with teammate Brian Fleming. Hughes got the puck back and fired a shot low past the right pad of the River Rats netminder. He moved the puck really well and made calm, composed plays to advance the play. His aggressiveness helped him defend well, too. Midway through the second half, he read a River Rats rush correctly and stepped up to intercept a cross-ice pass. Later, he broke up a 2-on-1 by directly challenging the puck carrier and ending any opportunity of a scoring chance.
Ethan Hung
Mid Fairfield, 8/9/2009, D, left shot, 6-1/157
Midway through the first half, Hung ripped a one-timer from the point that found its way to the back of the net. He proved himself as a strong puck-moving defenseman through the rest of the game and was responsible in his own zone. He also didn't shy away from contact.
Cam Minella
Mid Fairfield, 8/29/2009, D, left shot, 5-9/147
Of all the '09 defensemen I watched this weekend, Minella may have been the best offensively. He's a smooth skater who's very confident with the puck. He gained the offensive zone numerous times for his team and at the offensive blue line, was terrific at getting shots through and facilitating play. It was no surprise that he quarterbacked Mid Fairfield's power plays. In his own zone, he battled hard for loose pucks and showed composure on breakouts.
Colin O'Leary
Boston Jr. Eagles, 2/13/2009, D, right shot, 5-8/120
Hometown: Medfield, Mass.
Early in the second half of Saturday's game, O'Leary had a pass that many players older than him wouldn't have thought to make. He got the puck at the point and instead of shooting it, he faked the shot and threaded a high-to-low pass to Finn Sears (Medford, Mass.), who was standing right next to the net. Because the netminder fully committed to O'Leary's shot at the point, Sears was able to tap the goal right in. It's a strong hockey IQ like that that will take O'Leary far.
Jacoby Palmer
Boston Jr. Eagles, 8/9/2009, D, left shot, 5-11/162
Hometown: Holden, Mass.Â
Palmer didn't spend too much time in his own zone in Saturday's 9-2 romp of the North Jersey Avalanche, but he found a way to stand out in the offensive zone in a big way. He showed off a high offensive awareness, especially off the rush. In the first half, he noticed in the chaos of the neutral zone that if he jumped into the play, he could make it a 2-on-1 and did so. In the second half, he grabbed the puck at center ice, found a seam and broke through four defenders before depositing a goal below the goalie's glove. His shots from the point always seemed to find a way through the traffic in front of him, too, as was evident when his laser from the point was deflected into the net by Sam Pandolfo (Winchester, Mass.).
THE FORWARDS: 11 standout forwards from the 14Us at Eastern Alliance Kickoff
Alex Zihang Wang
Islanders Hockey Club, 1/28/2009, G, catches left, 6-1/159
Hometown: Concord, Mass.
The final score was 5-1 Islanders, but Zihang Wang faced a ton of shots, especially early in the game. In the first bunch of minutes, he denied River Rats forward Connor Hines (Hanover, Mass.) of a shorthanded breakaway and denied Zhu of two high-danger chances. He stoned Leo Zhu later in the game with a good blocker save, too. Zihang Wang was composed in net and never over-extended himself, allowing him to stay square to shooters — even on rebounds.
