Since this decade began, Holderness has become an Elite 8 threat in New England boys prep hockey.
The Bulls broke out in 2021-22, finishing as the No. 8 seed in the Elite 8. They were a top seed in the Small School Tournament the next year, before catapulting into the Elite 8 in 2023-24 when they were led by Caeden Herrington (Manchester, Vt.), a future fourth-round pick of the LA Kings.
Holderness was good again last season and flirted with the Elite 8 down the stretch, but finished as the No. 3 seed in the Small School Tournament and got bounced in the semifinals.
So, Elite 8, Small School, Elite 8, Small School...are the Bulls due for another Elite 8 appearance?
One thing is for sure: It's a team with many newcomers.
Who came back
Head coach Alan Thompson said goodbye to his top seven point-getters from last season. They were seniors (and one postgrad). That was the heart of the team.
The Bulls bring back eight players — three forwards, two defensemen and all three goalies.
"A lot of new bodies to try and learn our system," Thompson said. "And get acclimated to prep hockey."
Henry Colbert, Viktor Samal and Jack Welby lead the charge for returning forwards. Colbert, an '08, put together a strong sophomore season with 16 goals and 27 points in 30 games. The Henderson, Nev., native is 5-foot-7, 160 pounds, but lethal.
Samal was a player NHL scouts watched last winter and played for Team Czechia in last summer's Hlinka-Gretzky Cup. He posted 10 goals and 19 points in 23 games last season. The '07, who is known for his playmaking, should be motivated for a monster senior year. Welby, also an '07 senior, had eight goals and 16 points in 30 games last season. He will be one of the captains.
On defense, Henry Prowse returns after posting 22 points in 30 games, quarterbacking one of the power play units. The '06 will be a senior. Tegan Gregory, an '08 junior, is also returning and should play a legitimate role on the back end.
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Holderness's big strength will be in net. Now-senior Mark Bierwirth (Chelmsford, Mass.) shouldered most of the load last season, posting a 2.20 goals-against average and a .918 save percentage. Along with Henry Li, who is back, junior '08 Vincent Vitale should compete with Bierwirth for time.
"I think he's going to be a good 1B if not compete for time with Mark in an even split," Thompson said of Vitale. "I don't know how it's going to go. They're both playing well this fall. We'll probably lean on Mark early to give him a shot to be the guy again. But Vinny will get more starts than he did last year."
Newcomers
It's rare for Minnesota high school players to make their way east to prep. Sawyer Graubins is the exception.
Graubins, an '07, will be a postgrad for Holderness this season after posting 15 goals and 36 points in 25 games for Holy Family in Minnesota. According to Thompson, he did Middlebury College's camp this summer, and they liked him a lot.
"He's smaller, kind of shifty," Thompson said of Graubins. "He should be a top-line guy for us. He'll probably play with [Samal] and we're trying to figure out who the third will be on that first line."
A top defender will likely be Brody Nies. The 6-foot-1, 161-pound defender from Centennial, Colo., was on Okanagan's 16U squad last season.
"If you had to pick one forward and one defender, those two guys have been exciting this fall," Thompson said. "But we have a number that are going to be good prep school players. We did bring in a fair amount of new juniors, which will help give us some age, even though they're mostly going to be new."
Nies will have interesting newcomers around him, too. Max Sullivan (Hingham, Mass.), an '08 who was with South Kent last season, will join him. Tucker O'Neil is another newbie on the back end. The Duxbury, Mass., native is an '08 who played for Duxbury High (MIAA) last season, as well as the Cape Cod Whalers 16U squad.
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Thompson will balance a lineup with likely one freshman, four sophomores, seven seniors and a whole bunch of juniors.
"We'll be pretty balanced this year throughout the lineup," Thompson said. "Next year, we'll be a little more senior-heavy and hopefully have good experience."
An advantage
When Holderness opens its prep slate in mid-November, it won't be the first time the team has played together. The crew plays as the Islanders Hockey Club West squad all fall. It's nothing new, but it gives new players September, October and the first half of November to acclimate.
"With regards to the hockey and the competition and making sure they're getting good quality games — that's been very positive," Thompson said.
They play in all the big showcases around Boston, meaning a logistical issue pops up: missing events on campus on fall weekends. There aren't many days off.
"I think all of our players would tell you they'd rather have the good hockey and give up doing a weekend activity, at least for the fall season," Thompson said. "It's been positive."
Holderness has used a strong fall to propel itself into a strong start to the season. This year should be no different.
But have expectations changed?
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"I think we have the ability to at least contend for a Small School playoff spot," Thompson said. "I think if I had an expectation to make the Elite 8, I don't know that this would be the year, but I think we'll at least be a competitive team within the league and have a shot at playoffs."
Keeping expectations (relatively) low only to shock everyone when you exceed them. The oldest trick in the book.
