Every road to Division 1 college hockey is different.
Compared to most New England-based players, Merrimack junior Alex Jefferies (Lunenburg, Mass.) and sophomore Matt Copponi (Mansfield, Mass.) took the road less traveled in moving straight from the prep school ranks to the rigors of Hockey East.
Of course, so many of our region’s prospects hone their skills at the prep level, but junior hockey often is an intermediate step where players aim to get stronger, shoot harder and develop their overall skill set before settling into the faster-paced college game.
“They both had really big years (as prep seniors), so we said, ‘Why would we want them playing junior hockey? We needed the (offensive skill) on our team and they’d be playing and not watching,’ ” Merrimack coach Scott Borek (Swampscott, Mass.) said. “In both situations, it was partly because of the work they had done the year before but also where we were as a program at the time.”
The bond between Jefferies and Copponi has benefitted the Warriors and has grown even stronger this season, as the duo skates on a productive line with Otto Leppannen, a former 30-point scorer and assistant captain for Rensselaer. Leppanen provides the group with a most veteran presence, as he is one of five graduate transfers on the roster.
Jefferies is an elite-level player, a 2020 fourth-round draft pick of the New York Islanders who remained true to his commitment to Merrimack even after a 33-goal, 69-point senior season at The Gunnery (now Frederick Gunn School) triggered offers from other prominent programs.
Although he was recruited by previous coach Mark Dennehy’s (Dorchester, Mass.) staff, Jefferies noticed the culture of the program continuing to shift after the arrival of Borek, now in his fifth year.
It was a change he wanted to be a part of, and making that choice allowed him to see significant playing time right away.
“I didn’t have a lot of interest when I was 16 or so, but I liked where this program was heading and that it’s close to home. I wanted to be a part of this team … and now we’re working toward achieving something great together,” Jefferies said. “(Playing in 12 games during a COVID-shortened freshman season), you need to mature real quick and it definitely helped me make the transition (to college). I was the youngest kid playing against grown men. It helped me become a better player, fast.”
Copponi was a Borek recruit who arrived in North Andover straight out of Dan Donato’s (Dedham, Mass.) successful Dexter Southfield program, but he credits his college choice to one person: assistant coach Josh Ciocco, who died suddenly just days before this season began in October.
Like Jefferies, the growing culture of the Merrimack program was apparent in Ciocco’s recruiting pitch and as he began his college tenure. There was no turning back.
“He is the main reason I’m here,” Copponi said of Ciocco, who played on and eventually captained New Hampshire teams coached by the legendary Dick Umile (Melrose, Mass.) and Borek. “The biggest part of recruiting is your relationship with the coaches and the trust that they have in you. From my first step into this rink, I knew Josh and the coaches trusted me and that this was the place I’d find where I needed to go in the hockey world and grow as a person and as a player.”
Borek’s trust in Ciocco paid off in the program successfully landing Copponi and developing both of the former prep standouts throughout their time on campus so far.
The head coach’s first exposure to Copponi came in what he described as an “awful” blowout of a game. Copponi wasn’t at his best that day, but Ciocco convinced him to go back for another look.
That trust had an impact on both Copponi and Jefferies.
“Josh made me go back, and he stayed on him,” Borek remembered. “(Assistant coach Dan Jewell) and I went back together and we were like, ‘Holy cow, I’m glad I didn’t listen to myself.’
“Alex is a very quiet kid. But, Josh earned the trust of both of them and they were very comfortable with him. Josh had a way about him, especially with offensive players, and he made sure we didn’t squeeze that skill out.”
Borek and the Warriors certainly are glad that was the case, but Copponi’s assimilation to the college game came with even greater challenges after his senior year of prep school was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
While Jefferies came into college with a noticeable level of strength, Copponi used this past offseason to develop that area of his package to a higher level. It led to him scoring a pair of goals and five points through the first five games, only four points shy of his entire freshman total.
“He was always really smart and had good vision and skill, but getting stronger and faster has allowed him to use those traits a lot more,” Jefferies said of his linemate.
Playing together has only upped Copponi’s game — and the team’s overall speed. As Borek said, “They can all push each other’s pace.”
“It’s obviously special playing with someone like Alex,” Copponi said. “He’s one of the best players in the league, and you don’t find many guys who can create space, shoot the puck and find you in areas when you might not expect the puck.”
When Jefferies began his freshman year, it was no secret where he had the most room for growth.
Most players with his level of skill aren’t necessarily brought in to do dirty work in the defensive zone, but Borek now considers him one of the team’s most trusted 200-foot players.
Jefferies himself admits that wasn’t the case a couple of years ago. Those around him, too, have noticed that change in his all-around development.
“The physical strength is where it starts. He’s strong on his feet, and he’s got a high-level release and vision,” Frederick Gunn School coach Craig Badger said. “When he was in high school, if he didn’t score, he thought he played badly and he was letting his teammates down.
“We still talk pretty regularly, and last year he hadn’t put up the same numbers as his freshman year. Probably a month in, I remember him saying, ‘I’m getting some opportunities and I haven’t been able to cash in, but my line hasn’t been scored on yet.’ That was real growth, being able to see the value in the 200-foot game.”
The duo’s growth has helped Merrimack put together a strong early season résumé, winning four of its first five Hockey East games to rise into the top-20 national rankings. The Warriors swept a weekend series against Boston College for the first time since 1997.
With two familiar faces from New England’s prep ranks up front, there is something special coming together in North Andover.
Could Merrimack’s first NCAA tournament appearance since 2011 be coming in March? That would be just another rung in the ladder.
“I didn’t want to go to a program that had everything they needed,” Copponi said. “With the steps we’ve taken, we’ve gotten that losing mentality away and we do expect to win every night. (Borek) told me (in the recruiting process) that we’d be able to turn the program around, and we could do it together. I wanted to be a part of it.”
