BELMONT, Mass. -- Thursday night’s prep school hockey game between Belmont Hill and Milton Academy was far from a thing of beauty.
In a battle of two programs that are certainly down this season, Belmont Hill emerged victorious with a 3-0 shutout of the visitors from Milton. ‘02 sophomore center Ryan McGuire had a goal and two assists to pace the offense.
‘01 right wing Luke Khozozian and ‘00 defenseman James Perullo notched the other goals and ‘02 Michael Hauswirth picked up his second career shutout.
The highlights were few and far between far Milton, but ‘00 goaltender Erik Voloshin did his best to keep the Mustangs in the game. He made a couple noteworthy saves, including a sprawling glove save in the second period.
Scoring Recap
McGuire gave the hosts a 1-0 lead at the 12:25 mark of the first period when he banged home a rebound goal. The score came after a nice transition play that started with ‘03 defenseman Will Killoran making a drop pass after gaining entry down the right wing side.
The score stayed 1-0 in favor of Belmont Hill until the 7:10 mark of the third period. Khozozian scored on a turnaround wrist shot from the high slot following a broken play.
Just under a minute later, Jeremiah McCarthy’s team put the game out of reach with a goal that would make the score 3-0. Perullo took what looked like a harmless wrist shot from the right point, but it hit off some bodies and found its way into the back of the net.
Five standout prospects
Ryan McGuire
#8 Belmont Hill, 7/27/02, C, Right Shot, 6-1/180
Even though he factored in all three of his team’s goals, this wasn’t McGuire’s best game. His hockey sense and vision is what allows him to impact the score sheet. He’s smart and does a lot of the little things like win face-offs and play well away from the puck. He’s already generating Division I interest, but that will intensify if he can improve his stick skills, foot speed and become a little heavier on pucks. Ryan’s father Pierre McGuire is a NHL Analyst on NBC Sports Network.
Will Killoran
#9 Belmont Hill, 1/30/03, D, Right Shot, 6-2/180
This was a solid game for Killoran who is in his second season of varsity play. He has good size and has good length to defend. He made a really nice pass to start the first period goal on a transitional play. Killoran sometimes chases the play and doesn’t have a lot of poise, but he has a solid foundation and could certainly become a Division I hockey player down the road.
Tyler Rubin
#19 Belmont Hill, 1/10/03, D, Left Shot, 5-9/150
Rubin is another youngster benefiting from Belmont Hill’s lack of veterans. He’s starting to gain the confidence of his coaching staff and is earning more ice time than he had earlier in the season. His skating and footwork are both very good, which affords him the ability to possess pucks and make plays. If his hockey sense and poise with the puck on his stick improve, he could become a coveted offensive, puck-moving defensemen among Division I recruiters.
Drew Blackwell
#15 Belmont Hill, 1/2/03, LW, Left Shot, 5-10/170
Blackwell seemed to get more ice time in the first period than he did in the latter two. He’s a solid player who could blossom into a good prep player once his game matures further.
Emmett Powell
#8 Milton, 6/14/00, D, Right Shot, 5-10/170
Powell was the only skater on Milton to garner any positive recognition from this game. He’s small, but he made some plays and broke pucks out of his own zone. He projects as a puck-moving defenseman at the NESCAC level.
Belmont Hill Lines
15 Drew Blackwell - 8 Ryan McGuire - 18 Luke Khozozian
14 Liam Kelly - 2 Michael Hayes - 17 Zephan Kraus
20 Robby Griffin - 16 Paul Halloran - 7 John High
X RW - 13 Joseph Goguen
22 Brett Bliss - 9 William Killoran
19 Tyler Rubin - 10 James Perullo
5 Robert Radochia - 4 Grant Litchfield
31 Michael Hauswirth
Milton Lines
23 Quinton Fox - 6 Shane O’Sullivan - 22 Tyler Crist
26 Max Andrade - 18 Brandon Tang - 11 Mitch Cassella
12 Nate Garrett - 25 Ben Goddard - 20 Jack Crowley
8 Emmett Powell - 4 Will Van Der Veen
7 Jeffrey Lee - 5 Max Cassella
1 Erik Voloshin
