The 2019 Junior Battle of Boston took place this past weekend, July 26-28, at the Rodman Arena in Walpole, Mass.
The tournament was made up mostly of players born in 2003 and 2004, but there were a smattering of ‘05s who played up. While there weren’t as many high-end players as the Jr. Chowder Cup that was running at the same time, it was nice that the entire tournament was played under one roof.
Scott Fitzgerald’s Total Pro Evaluation (TPE) won the ‘03 Division while Casey Kesselring’s New Hampshire Knights won the ‘04 Division. TPE was coached by New Jersey Devils assistant coach Mike Grier and New Jersey Devils amateur scout Scott LaChance. Both BU alums had sons on the team. Kesselring, the former New Hampton head coach, had a son on his team.
Here are the standouts, broken down by division, from the 2019 Junior Battle of Boston:
'03 Division
Forwards
J.P. Turner
#24 TPE, Avon Old Farms, 1/31/03, Right Shot, 5-10.25/186
NCAA Commit: New Hampshire
Turner is heavy on pucks and is able to dominate below the dots. He has a hard shot and plays with an edge. He’s able to lower his shoulder and get to the scoring areas while protecting pucks.
Anthony Cafarelli
#16 TPE, Dexter, 4/16/03, Right Shot, 5-8/165
Cafarelli is transferring out of Cushing, according to the roster book. He was able to finish here and made some plays to step around opposing defenders and get good looks at the net.
Ryan Schelling
#28 Hockey Essentials, North Jersey Avalanche 16U, 4/29/04, Right Shot, 5-10.5/170
NCAA Commit: Providence
Schelling is a rugger, physically mature forward who is able to hunt pucks and win battles down low. He has a good shot and goes around the net to pick up some garbage goals.
Jayden Grier
#12 TPE, St. Sebastian’s, 12/12/03, Left Shot, 5-10/160
Grier has taken a step in his game over the last few months. He has always been an athletic forward who competes and keeps his feet moving. He scored a beauty of a goal, sniping one just under the crossbar on Saturday. He’s also a very good lacrosse player.
Brendan Gorman
#7 TPE, St. Sebastian’s, 2/17/03, Right Shot, 5-9/134
Gorman is still raw, but he has some hands and makes some plays. He scored a nice backhand goal from in close.
Shane LaChance
#11 TPE, Tabor, 8/30/03, Left Shot, 6-2/180
LaChance is a big, raw winger, who has displayed upside. His stride is a little funky, but that’s most likely because he’s growing into his tall frame. He has reach and protects pucks. He scored a goal by going to the net. His game could really take a step up at the prep level. His father, Scott, is a former first round NHL Draft pick and his grandfather is legendary, retired BU coach Jack Parker.
Eric Vivinetto
#94 Hockey Essentials, North Jersey Avalanche 16U, 10/8/04, Right Shot, 5-10/155
Vivinetto is a winger who does a good job from the circles down. He’s hard to knock off pucks and he goes to the net.
Cooper Flinton
#10 NH Knights, St. Paul’s, 8/16/03, Left Shot, 6-2/190
Flinton can really rip the puck and he’s a big body. He plays heavy on pucks. If his skating can take a step, he should follow in his father’s footsteps as a collegiate player. Eric Flinton played at UNH 1991-95 before a brief minor pro career.
Cam Bergeman
#22 Hockey Essentials, North Jersey Avalanche 16U, 2/11/03, Left Shot, 5-6/137
Coming off a productive week at USA Hockey Select 16 Camp, Bergeman once again found the score sheet often. He’s quick and has very good hands. He’s slick, both north-south and side-to-side.
Vitaly Levyy
#14 Hockey Essentials, Long Island Gulls 16U, 5/9/03, Right Shot, 5-9/157
Levyy had a nice weekend here with his above average hands. He’s quick, has good edges, and can make plays in small areas.
Ethan Ouyang
#18 NH Knights, Team Maryland 16U, 7/26/03, Left Shot, 5-11/180
Ouyang has above average speed and made a couple of plays while showing he’s strong and hard to knock off pucks.
Defensemen
Tyler Rubin
#19 TPE, Belmont Hill, 1/10/03, Left Shot, 5-8/134
Rubin has elite feet and recovery speed. He can move pucks up the ice and has a good stick. He was the top uncommitted prospect in this event and will likely get a commitment over the next month. The one area of his game that could use some improvement is his reads and angles when defending.
Aidan Lyons
#10 TPE, Nobles, 2/26/03, Left Shot, 5-9/163
Lyons is a flashy, impactful, puck-moving defenseman. His skating and puck skills allowed him to make a huge impact in an event where his talent stood out above the rest.
Will Killoran
#9 TPE, Belmont Hill, 1/30/03, Right Shot, 6-2/190
Killoran is a big, physical defender who projects as a defensive defenseman. If he can improve on his feet and puck skills, he’ll be an even bigger threat for Jeremiah McCarthy’s team at the prep level.
Cam Marzilli
#80 Boston Hockey Club, Central Catholic, 6/3/04, Right Shot, 5-5/120
Marzilli is a small, offensive defenseman who got shots through from the point and looked to jump into the rush.
Tommy Tavenner
#18 TPE, Andover HS, 1/22/03, Left Shot, 5-7/130
After a standout sophomore season at the MIAA level, Tavenner showed his skating is good enough to make the jump to the prep school level.
Shawn Leary
#4 TPE, Jr. Eagles 14U, 1/1/05, Right Shot, 5-9/150
Leary didn’t look out of place at all, despite being two years younger than his teammates and most of the other players in this division. He’s a big, strong defender with a hard shot.
Goaltenders
Alex Mickanin
#60 TPE, Selects Academy 16U, 8/11/03, Catches Left, 6-1/190
Mickanin didn’t face much rubber in the game this observer saw, but he’s a solid goaltender who will be back at Selects Academy, despite a typo in the program book indicating otherwise.
'04 Division
Forwards
Mason Kesselring
#91 NH Knights, New Hampton, 3/15/04, Left Shot, 5-11/155
Kesselring is a player to keep an eye on over the coming years. He made a lot of plays here, including a couple of really nice passes in the Saturday morning game. Kesselring’s brother, Michael, is an Edmonton Oilers prospect who will be a freshman at Merrimack. Casey, his father, played at Merrimack.
Aaron Higgins
#28 NH Knights, Yarmouth HS, 1/1/04, Right Shot, 5-10/150
Higgins is expected to play high school hockey in Maine this upcoming winter. He was able to capitalize on several nice passes he was given from Kesselring, who was flanking him on the left wing.
Genaro Fronduto
#25 NH Knights, Mount Saint Charles 15, 5/22/04, Right Shot, 5-10/185
Fronduto is able to use his size to open space for his teammates as well as win a lot of puck battles below the dots. He’s making the move to play for Mount Saint Charles this upcoming season.
Bryce Terry
#40 NH Knights, Cardigan Mountain, 3/11/04, Right Shot, 6-0/175
Terry had a couple of really nice goals on Saturday. He sniped one, bardown and scored another on a hard wrist shot. He protects pucks and will be on a lot of prep school coaches’ radars after this upcoming season at Cardigan Mountain.
Christian Worrell
#41 NH Knights, St. George’s, 2/10/04, Right Shot, 5-10/170
Worrell is from Idaho, but will be playing for St. George’s in Middletown, R.I. He has good size and was noticeable a few times.
Defensemen
Ryan Philbrick
#22 NH Knights, Concord HS, 6/20/04, Left Shot, 5-10/150
Philbrick exuded confidence with the puck on his stick. He skated well, had a good stick, and gapped well. He should make a good prep player in a year or two.
C.J. Beals
#5 NH Knights, BB&N, 1/31/04, Right Shot, 5-4/130
Beals is an undersized defender who moves pucks well. He has good feet and can quickly transition from defense to offense.
Jack Hutchins
#49 NH Knights, Trinity HS, 5/23/04, Right Shot, 5-10/150
Hutchins had good size and played solid against inferior competition. He’s a player to keep an eye on, especially for prep coaches in the New Hampshire area.
Goaltenders
Jackson Irving
#1 NH Knights, Cushing, 2/3/04, Catches Left, 5-9/151
Irving split time in net for the Knights and didn’t face a ton of action as his team was clearly a few steps above the rest of the field. However, he’s an athletic goaltender with good fundamentals. He’ll be one of the better young goaltenders in prep hockey this winter.
