Salisbury has become accustomed to winning prep school championships. The Crimson Knights have won seven Elite 8 titles since 2006.
This year’s championship team was different and had to battle a lot more adversity en route to being the team to skate off the ice with a trophy in the final game of the prep school hockey season.
Salisbury started off 5-4, sending shock waves across the prep school hockey landscape. The team was limping into the Christmas break after a tough loss to Kimball Union in the consolation game of the Flood-Marr Tournament.
“In some ways it helped that we had a slow start. We came back from the break committed to taking it one game at a time. We had that mindset,” said longtime head coach Andrew Will.
ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM: Salisbury players dot the list
After the calendar turned to 2022, Salisbury lost just once, a 4-3 overtime setback against Housatonic League rival Kent. Winning 15 of 16 heading into the postseason had the Crimson Knights believing and opponents fearful of one of the heavyweights of prep hockey.
However, due to that slow start, Salisbury knew the tournament was going to be a grind. All three wins in the playoffs came on the road. In the quarterfinals, Salisbury drew Dexter Southfield, a team coached by Will’s predecessor at Salisbury, Dan Donato. In front of a raucous and partisan crowd supporting the home team, Salisbury jumped out to a 2-0 lead on goals from leading scorers Dylan Hryckowian and Ryan Walsh. There were a few precarious moments in the second period where momentum was switching toward Dexter Southfield, but Salisbury pulled away for a 4-1 win thanks to goals from Ben Poitras and Lee Parks.
“Our confidence took a bit of a bump by beating Dexter,” said Will.
Next up was a trip to Meriden, N.H., to face Kimball Union, the one equal to Salisbury over the past decade. Once again, Salisbury got a lead with a goal by Parks. The Wildcats forced overtime with a late third-period goal. That set up the chance for Poitras to play the hero as he threw a puck on net for a somewhat flukey goal in the extra session.
“That was a lot of fun. It could have gone either way," Will of his team’s 2-1 overtime win at KUA. "I was really happy for our kids because we certainly had chances to win that game, so I was glad the bounce went our way. Good things happen (when you get pucks to the net).”
That set up a chance to play for the Stuart/Corkery Elite 8 title at Belmont Hill on the final Sunday of the season. As the team had done all postseason, the Crimson Knights jumped out early with goals from Oliver Frontini and Walsh. Will’s team was up 2-0 just 3:33 into the game.
“Getting a couple of goals early was huge. Belmont Hill is a heck of a team and with that goalie (Sam Scopa),” said Will.
Salisbury held a 2-1 lead until midway through the second period when Hryckowian scored a beauty of a goal after a nice keep-in at the blue line by Alex Zakrzewski. Poitras scored his third goal of the playoffs with the net empty in the third to seal the victory.
“It was a heck of a week for us. Three road games against three really good teams,” said Will.
“It feels amazing. We worked so hard all year. To win it after going 5-4 to start the year is so exciting. I have no words,” said Hryckowian, a Northeastern commit.
Salisbury has had some talented teams over the years with future first-round picks and NHL stars having passed through the school on the hill. This year’s team featured just three players with commits to a Division 1 school. In addition to Hryckowian, Poitras also is committed to Northeastern and Zakrzewski is slated to play for Brown.
Hryckowian, Poitras, Walsh and Parks had been the team’s go-to players in terms of offensive production all season. Those four certainly lived up to their lofty standards in the three playoff games.
Another key element to the postseason was the play of goaltender Austin McNicholas. He had his ups and downs over the course of the year, but the Buffalo Junior Sabres product saved his best for last. He stopped 79 of 82 shots he faced in the wins over Dexter Southfield, Kimball Union and Salisbury. Giving up just one goal in each playoff game is a feat to behold.
While McNicholas certainly played well and made the saves he needed to, a big part of that success can be attributed to the team’s defensive structure and overall attention to detail and playing disciplined hockey in all three zones.
“That’s something we try to preach with our guys. They bought in and committed to that. It gives us a chance. I’m so thrilled that we took advantage of it,” Will commented.
Salisbury will enter the 2022-23 prep school season as back-to-back champions, due to there being no season in 2020-21. Since Gunnery’s title in 2016, Kimball Union and Salisbury have won all five championships at the Elite 8 level.
While Avon Old Farms, Belmont Hill, Dexter Southfield, Kent, St. Sebastian’s and Lawrence Academy have had success, there remains a clear-cut top two atop the mountain in prep hockey. As long as Will and Tim Whitehead are at the helm at their respective schools, it would seem there is little chance of Salisbury or Kimball Union being dethroned.
