There's always something special about the Flood-Marr Tournament.
Maybe it's the history. This is the 58th edition of the tournament, which is played at both Nobles and Milton Academy. Maybe it's the amount of really good teams who show up. Maybe it's the generations of prep hockey fans and alumni who make the trek to Dedham, Mass., and Milton, Mass.
Maybe it's all of those reasons. And then some.
A Flood-Marr Tournament can go a long way in setting a tone for the rest of the season. Milton Academy won the event last season and went on to be the No. 3 seed in the Elite 8 Tournament.
Here's the complete schedule for the three-day tournament.
Friday, Dec. 15 (at Milton Academy)Â
- Hotchkiss vs. Milton, 9 a.m.
- Deerfield vs. Kimball Union, 11 a.m.
- Nobles vs. Phillips Andover, 1 p.m.
- Salisbury vs. Westminster, 3 p.m.
- Kimball Union vs. Milton, 5 p.m.
- Hotchkiss vs. Deerfield, 7 p.m.
Saturday, Dec. 16 (at Nobles)Â
- Westminster vs. Nobles, 9 a.m.
- Phillips Andover vs. Salisbury, 11 a.m.
- Milton vs. Deerfield, 1 p.m.
- Kimball Union vs. Hotchkiss, 3 p.m.
- Salisbury vs. Nobles, 5 p.m.
- Westminster vs. Phillips Andover, 7 p.m.
Sunday, Dec. 17 (at Milton)Â
- Seventh place game, 8 a.m.
- Fifth place game, 10 a.m.
- Third place game, 12 p.m.
- Championship game, 2 p.m.
Now, let's break down each team.
Deerfield
Deerfield enters the Flood-Marr hot. Despite losing to Avon Old Farms on Sunday, head coach Tim McVaugh's team rattled off three-straight wins against Groton, Northfield Mount Hermon and Choate to open the season.
Junior Justin Tavares leads the team in points (8) and is tied with fellow junior Lance Roberts (Weare, N.H.) for the team lead in goals (4). Tavares is building off a sophomore season in which he scored 14 goals and totaled 33 points in 26 games. Tom Molson, a senior, is doing the same thing. As a junior, Molson had 15 goals and 39 points in 26 games and has started his final campaign strong, potting two goals and adding five helpers. Senior Jakub Kohn seems to have taken another step, too, with his two goals and six points to begin the season.
Deerfield has enjoyed a good level of production from defense. Sophomore Nate Watson has impressed, scoring two goals and posting five points. Junior Zachary Chehade has been right there with him, averaging a point per game. Senior Ben Cook (Concord, Mass.) and junior Ryan Diffley (Old Saybrook, Conn.) have also started strong. Senior John Tolve (Duxbury, Mass.), an '04, seems to have the edge in net.
Hotchkiss
Hotchkiss enters the Flood-Marr as the weakest of the eight teams, as it lost its first three games. It hasn't been an easy schedule, however, with those games coming against Frederick Gunn, Canterbury and Salisbury.
Head coach Mike Doyle's team has three goals in three games. Senior Brennan Cail (Cheshire, Conn.) has scored two of them, with junior defenseman Thomas Malawski scoring the other one.
Junior Connor Towle (Fairfield, Conn.) has actually been solid in net. The '06 has a 3.06 goals-against average and a .923 save percentage. He will be vital for Hotchkiss if it is to compete at the Flood-Marr.
Kimball Union
Kimball Union enters this tournament as our highest-ranked team. Head coach Tim Whitehead's team began its schedule Nov. 18, so they have played more than most. At 7-1-0, the wins have come against The Hill School, Stanstead College, Vermont Academy, Kent, Proctor, Brewster Academy and St. Paul's. The lone loss came at the Exeter Invitational against Rivers.
Jack Sadowski (Arlington, Mass.) exploded for 24 goals and 42 points in his first prep hockey season last winter. The New Hampshire commit looks to be aiming to surpass those numbers with 11 goals and 17 points in his first eight games of this season. Senior Sam LeDrew has also taken the next step in his game, scoring seven goals and totaling 14 points through eight games. Junior Corwith Simmers is tied with LeDrew in points.
KUA also has a number of other forwards who provide depth scoring. Postgrad Nathan McLean is certainly one. Seniors Max Kimelman, Malcolm Baar and Kyle Murray-Smith (South Stafford, Vt.) are others. Juniors Mickael Tissier and CJ Watroba (West Springfield Mass.), a Merrimack commit, are intriguing prospects, too.
On defense, Andrew O'Sullivan has been even more productive than he was last season. The Scituate, Mass., native has two goals and 15 points in his first eight games. Senior Jack McMinn, also an '06, has one goal and seven points. A good performance at the Flood-Marr will be vital for both defenders, as well as some of the top forwards, as there will be plenty of college eyes in attendance.
Both senior Colby Boyce (White River Junction, Vt.) and junior Blake McMeniman (Revere, Mass.) have seen time in net, with McMeniman seeing more time and having better stats. His 1.30 GAA and .943 save percentage have been impressive.
Milton Academy
Under new head coach Jim Gaudet, the Mustangs enter their own tournament 2-2. After starting their season strong with a 7-2 win over St. Mark's, the Mustangs lost to St. Sebastian's and Lawrence Academy. Milton heads into the tournament fresh off a win, as it took down Governor's Academy on Saturday.
Senior Will Cannata (Milton, Mass.) and junior Luis Valencia have been the offensive leaders. Both have three goals and seven points. Junior Anthony Sergeyev (Dover, Mass.) has also been productive, scoring one goal and notching four assists. Senior Ryan Shea (Norwell, Mass.) is averaging a point per game.
Gaudet's team is fortunate to have a deep core on defense. Senior Curt Heath (Bridgewater, Mass.) has one goal and three assists through four games, while junior blueliners Dylan Hunt (Marlboro, Mass.) and Nick Brandano (Lynnfield, Mass.) both have one lamplighter and two helpers apiece. Junior Danny Lee is a solid member of the crew, too.
Sam Caulfield (Needham, Mass.) is the go-to option in net, and for good reason. He was named Flood-Marr Tournament MVP last season, which kick-started an outstanding season for the '06. Now a junior, he carries a 3.25 GAA and .924 save percentage into this season's tournament.
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Nobles
Nobles started its season strong, taking down Pomfret, Belmont Hill and Tabor, but recently lost to Dexter and fell to No. 8 in our top 10 rankings. Head coach Brian Day's team should be fine.
Up front, the trio of juniors Dennis Davidson (Newton, Mass.), Kyle O'Leary (Medfield, Mass.) and Teddy MacAusland (Westwood, Mass.) have been highly productive. Davidson is at 11 points in four games, while O'Leary sits at nine and MacAusland has eight. MacAusland is scoring more goals than he was last season. The set-up man had six last year, but already has five this winter. Sophomore Billy MacAusland (Westwood, Mass.) is also over the point-per-game threshold with three goals and two assists.
Kris Soja (Ludlow, Mass.) has been a nice addition to the back end. The freshman '08 has one goal and three points to begin his prep career. Junior Lou Munger (Dedham, Mass.) has been a reliable defender for Day. So, too, has senior Andrew Higgins (Weston, Mass.). Sophomores Jack Hartwell (Cohasset, Mass.) and Tuck Gilbane (Chestnut Hill, Mass.) have shown promise.
Senior Tyler Bloomfield (Hudson, Mass.) has taken over the starting job well. Through four games, he has a 3.03 GAA and a .908 save percentage.
Phillips Andover
Andover enters the Flood-Marr red hot, having won its first five games. Those wins came over Pomfret, Proctor, Thayer, Brewster Academy and New Hampton. Before heading south to Milton and Nobles, Andover faces Groton on Tuesday.
It's no surprise that Grayden Robertson-Palmer is leading the team in scoring with three goals and 10 points in five games. The Dartmouth commit has all the tools to be one of the best players in prep. Senior Ethan Skowronek leads Andover in goals with seven and fellow senior Jake LeDoux has nine points. Senior Sam Myles (Westboro, Mass.) and junior Peyton Militello have both contributed significantly, too.
The Skowroneks highlight the back end, too. Zachary Skowronek has two goals and five points from the blue line, while Ben Skowronek, a goalie, has seen the majority of minutes and has a 2.33 GAA and a .934 save percentage. Junior Chase Anderson (Marblehead, Mass.) has played in two games, posting a 2.00 GAA and a .923 save percentage.
Salisbury
Head coach Andrew Will's team enters the Flood-Marr as our second-highest ranked team. The Crimson Knights opened with wins over Taft, Millbrook and Hotchkiss before falling to Kent on Saturday. Before making the trip up to the Flood-Marr, Salisbury has one more tune-up at Canterbury.
It's been a pack of juniors leading the offense so far. Ryan Hedley leads the team in points with six, while Connor Davis has three goals and four points and Oliver Morris has potted two goals and totaled three points. Will also has a slew of seniors like Duke Gentzler, Jared Rothman, Seamus Latta and Nicolas Petrut who provide depth scoring and necessary leadership.
On defense, it's no surprise that postgrad Zach Walsh has four points in four games. Walsh is fresh off a 13-goal, 33-point season at Millbrook last winter. Senior Anthony Biakabutuka has one goal and three points, taking another step in his game. Ty Creech's move back to playing defense has worked out, as he has two goals.
Senior Cooper Flemming carries a 2.01 GAA with a .910 save percentage. Junior Steven Luciano (New Canaan, Conn.) has also seen time, stopping 12 of 14 shots in a 5-2 win over Millbrook.
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Westminster
Like most of these teams, Westminster enters the Flood-Marr Tournament hot. The Martlets won their first three games, taking down Northfield Mount Hermon, Trinity-Pawling and Choate. In its most recent game, Westminster tied Brunswick, 2-2.
Senior Michael Bianco leads the team in goals with three, while junior forward George McCaffrey, a UNH commit, has one goal and two assists. Head coach Tim Joncas' team hasn't gotten a high level of scoring yet, especially from last season's top contributors. Senior Brian Judge has one assist through four games, while junior Blake Burke has no points in three games. Once those two get going...oh boy.
The Martlets also have a slew of depth forwards who can be impactful such as juniors Cullen Horn and Quinn Pine, sophomores Jake Pleau, Tommy Coccaro and Gus McGarvey and freshman Timmy Donohue.
On defense, seniors Patrick Dotson and Eric Elbery have contributed early. Both have one goal and two assists. Senior Matteo De Luca is having a strong start with his 1.29 GAA and .952 save percentage. Sophomore Jack Fichthorn, an '07, has also seen time in net.
