With just about a month left in the prep school hockey season, the group of contenders has certainly separated themselves from the rest of the pack.
Winning a prep school title often requires a veteran-laden team with solid goaltending. There have been several teams to make deep runs over the last few years that weren't necessarily the most talented group, but they had an older team. Examples that come to mind are Gunnery and Milton in 2016.
Salisbury, looking to capture its first title since winning three consecutive from 2013 through 2015, is the heavy favorite, but even the Crimson Knights have some flaws in their armor.
Two-time defending champion Kimball Union, Lawrence, and Dexter are the other teams with the best chance of holding up the trophy come the first weekend in March.
Deerfield, with senior goaltender Thomas Gale and a cast of '99s and '00s, is the team most likely to sneak its way into a title, despite not having the myriad of Division I commits of the above mentioned teams.
Gunnery has a talented squad, led by Merrimack commit Alex Jefferies, but it has struggled to stay consistent this season. While the team can roll four lines, finding secondary scoring and a steady defensive effort has proven to be difficult.
Westminster has been on quite a run lately, and maybe they'll prove to be worthy of inclusion in the top four, but they're outside that top group for now.
While Avon Old Farms and St. Sebastian's have an abundance of talent, a lot of it is young or, for one reason or another, they haven't been able to make the push into the upper echelon this season.
Here's a look at the top four contenders and their strengths and weaknesses as the prep school hockey season enters the stretch run:
Salisbury
Why the Crimson Knights will win: Andrew Will's team has 12 NCAA Division I commits and there are probably one or two more players who could be committed down the line. The Crimson Knights boast an explosive offense that can score at will. Led by the likes of Matt Coronato (Harvard), Lucas Mercuri (Vermont), Justin Hryckowian (Northeastern), Jake Quillan (Quinnipiac), Michael Cameron (UMass), Nick Capone (Maine), Tom Richter (Union), Ilya Usov (UConn) and Cole Valesse (Providence), the offense can light the lamp with ease.
Why the Crimson Knights will fall short: Salisbury has three committed players on the blue line, Brown commits Luke Krys and Bayard Hall and Penn State commit Jarod Crespo, but there isn't quite the depth there as there is up front. While the goaltending of Jared Levine and Nick Haas has been good at times, it's been the most inconsistent part of the Salisbury arsenal.
Lawrence Academy
Why the Spartans will win: There might not be a more dangerous offensive player in prep school hockey this year than Northeastern commit Sam Colangelo. A highly regarded 2020 NHL Draft prospect, the Stoneham, Mass., native has a lethal shot and he sees the ice extremely well. The Spartans, the only undefeated team left in prep, has several other committed players up front. Providence commits Tyler Young and Riley Duran and New Hampshire commits David Sacco and Connor Sweeney are starting to round into form. Duran and Sacco are both prep rookies.
The third line has started to gel as well. Conor Lovett works extremely hard with Holt Oliphant and John Riggins flanking him on each wing.
Junior Braden Doyle is one of the more skilled, puck-moving defensemen in prep school hockey. Prep newcomer Kyle Furey has steadily improved and Bentley commit Drew Bavaro is a veteran. Matt Connor's play has improved and he's the most physical of the bunch.
Finally, Robby Barker's team was off to a subpar start last season, but turned it around down the stretch en route to a Small School title so most of the group knows how to play well when it matters most.
Why the Spartans will fall short: Lawrence doesn't play the most structured style and that doesn't always bode well for post-season success. Similar to Salisbury, the goaltending has been hit or miss. However, Ian Graiff made a bunch of saves in Saturday's 1-1 tie against Dexter.
Kimball Union
Why the Wildcats will win: Head coach Tim Whitehead, along with Will at Salisbury, is a top notch coach who can get his team prepared to win a title. There's something to be said for winning two in a row.
KUA has a couple of solid scoring lines with Arlo Merritt (Ohio State), Tomas Mazura (Providence), Brian Carrabes (Boston University), Kyle Penney (Cornell), Zach Taylor, Paul Dore and Drew Bennett.
Bentley commit Christian Felton is a talented, strong-skating defenseman and Teddy Griffin, Devan Newhook and Jack Clarner are solid on the blue line.
Why the Wildcats will fall short: The leadership group from the past couple of titles is gone, namely top two defensemen Jordan Harris and Bryce Dolan, who are now at Northeastern and Holy Cross, respectively, and UMass Lowell commit Andranik Armstrong, now skating in the AJHL.
The offensive production hasn't been as consistent as it probably should offensively and the team has fallen short in some big games, including the Flood Marr. The team also misses the services of goaltender Sean Dynan, who graduated after backstopping two prep titles.
Dexter Southfield
Why they'll win: Potential top 60 NHL Draft pick John Farinacci is a difference maker and can score big goals in big games. He's the driving force behind the scoring punch at Dexter. His linemate, Northeastern commit Chase McInnis, isn't the most gifted offensive player, but you'll be hard pressed to find a player who works as hard and hunts pucks as well as he does.
The team has plenty of depth on the blue line. UMass Lowell commit Ben Meehan leads the way. He's a strong, tough two-way defenseman. Another key veteran is Bobby Pearl, the son of BU associate head coach Paul Pearl. The younger Pearl is committed to playing hockey and baseball at Bowdoin. Kevin McKay is another defenseman who wears a letter on his sweater. Newcomers Patrick Morrissey, Mikey Adamson, and Jack Hughes have all played key roles. John and Matt Fusco round out the group of eight defensemen that get a regular shift.
Perhaps most importantly, Dexter has the best goaltender of any of the top four contenders. Scituate, Mass., native and Harvard commit Derek Mullahy is a very good goaltender who might be a little small for the liking of NHL scouts, but he's tough to beat at the prep level.
Why they'll fall short: With Farinacci's injury earlier in the season, the team was forced to come up with secondary scoring, but it's the potential downfall. Some of the team's second and third liners can do it, but will they be able to in a big post-season game remains a question.
