A pair of Housatonic League clubs will be looking to follow up championship performances when they take the ice this winter.
Salisbury was the No. 1 team in New England for much of last season, but the Crimson Knights lose 17 players from a team that went 25-2-1 and lost the NEPSAC open title to Kimball Union. Head coach Andrew Will’s team does return Hockey East commits Nick Capone and Ilya Usau up front, while eight newcomers also have Division 1 futures.
“We are very excited about our leadership corps, and the motivation, drive and focus of the group,” said Will. “Our goal is to play a fast, aggressive and up-tempo style, and we feel our forward group has the ability that will allow us to do that effectively.”
A big, strong defense looks to be the strength for reigning Founders League champion Trinity-Pawling, which had 13 wins before losing to Thayer in the large-school tournament. Among the returning defensemen is Gabe Blanchard, who was ranked on NHL Central Scouting’s mid-year list last season.
“We think we’ll be tough to play against because of our size, commitment to defense and special teams, and of course, veteran goaltending,” said T-P coach Robert Ferraris, whose team also has several newcomers up front to join leading scorer Joey Musa.
Fifteen wins and a postseason appearance give an experienced Westminster team some confidence entering the new year. Four junior defensemen and a third-year leader up front in Jacob Monroe are among the Martlets’ veterans.
Avon Old Farms and Loomis Chaffee were the other Housatonic clubs to finish last season with double-digit wins. Providence commit Alex Aslanidis returns to provide experience in goal for the Winged Beavers.
“Many of our guys have played north of 50 games in our league, which should give us the confidence to perform to our ability in every game,” said Westy head coach Timothy Joncas. “Our players know that if you want to be there at the end of the season, you need to win at least 16 out of the 25 games. The margin for error in our league is very small.”
Taft could be the most veteran of the returning teams as five of the Rhinos’ top seven scorers return for Ryan Shannon’s second season behind the bench. The top two offensive producers are back for Deerfield.
Kent has a returning goaltender on which to lean while it looks to find a new offensive corps in Alex Contey, while Hotchkiss and Choate look to rise up the standings.
