The fall split season midget hockey season has crossed the halfway point, as teams work towards the Massachusetts and New England district tournaments in early November at the New England Sports Center in Marlboro, Mass.
For those unfamiliar with the process, Massachusetts is one district and comprised of teams from the Bay State. The other five states making up New England are in the New England District. Both national-bound tournaments also have the presence of full season midget teams.
The Beast Series hosts its championship event at UMass Amherst this weekend, while the Beantown Fall Classic is another big event on the calendar next weekend.
With almost two months of sample size, here are the top contenders to win the 18U titles next month at the Massachusetts District and New England District championships.
Massachusetts 18U
1. Boston Junior Eagles
The Junior Eagles are loaded with talent and have a very good goaltender in Dexter ’01 Derek Mullahy, a Harvard commit. Fellow Crimson commit, ’01 John Farinacci, also of Dexter, will be one of the top prep players for the 2019 NHL Draft.
Pittsburgh Penguins' draft pick Liam Gorman, a BU commit, is a solid, two-way center with size who will be back at St. Sebastian’s this winter. Dexter ’01 Chase McInnis (Northeastern) is underrated, but he hunts pucks and is relentless and gritty. St. Sebastian’s ’01s Liam Devlin (UNH) and Liam Connors (Boston University) are smaller forwards who keep their feet moving.
Another St. Sebastian’s ’01 forward who has an impact is Harvard commit Tommy Lyons. On defense, St. Sebastian’s ’01 Jayden Struble (Northeastern), Dexter ’01 Ben Meehan (UMass Lowell), Thayer ’01 Jake Flynn, and Belmont Hill ’00 James Perullo are key blue liners.
2. Neponset Valley River Rats
The River Rats have seven NCAA commits, including ’00 St. Paul’s goaltender Andy Beran, who's bound for Colby.
The team’s top prospects are Lawrence Academy ’01 forward Tyler Young (Providence) and Westminster ’01 defenseman Malik Alishlalov (UConn). Westy teammate and '01 Ignat Belov (UConn), Nobles ’01 forward Casey Severo (Merrimack), Belmont Hill ’01 defenseman Brett Bliss (Brown) and Lawrence ’00 defenseman Drew Bavaro (Bentley) are the team’s other committed players.
Top uncommitted players are Milton ’00 forward Quinton Fox and Dexter ’01 defenseman Mikey Adamson.
3. Springfield Rifles
The Rifles have some solid pieces, but the key to their success will be Kent ’00 goaltender Alex Contey. He’s big and has the physical tools to play Division 1, but needs to be more consistent.
Meanwhile, Williston ’00 Tim Rego brings a lot of skill to the blue line. Deerfield ’01 Eamon Doheny is a solid, pro-style defenseman who will play Division 1 down the road. Deerfield ’00 Sean McAvoy is skilled and will be highly sought after by the NESCAC schools.
The team has a good mix of prep players along with some key contributors from MIAA power Pope Francis. Brendan Nehmer has moved onto Williston, but Jon Tavella and Makem Demers will be back with the Cardinals.
4. Little Bruins
The Little Bruins, coached by Pete Masters, have a lot of talented players, but the results have been just average so far this fall. Still, there’s enough firepower to make a run for the championship come the second weekend in November.
Leading the way is late ’01 forward Sam Colangelo, a Northeastern commit from Lawrence Academy. Phillips Andover ’00 forward Christian Powers has had a strong fall. He’s smaller, but he scores everywhere he goes. Lawrence ’00 forward Connor Sweeney (UNH) is the team’s other committed forward. Lawrence newcomer Conor Lovett and former Tabor forward Hunter Brackett bring some jam at both ends.
On defense, Lawrence ’01 Braden Doyle and Rivers ’01 Cade Webber lead the way. ’00 Robert Radochia of Belmont Hill, Nobles ’01 Colby Bailey, and ’01 Matt Connor of Lawrence are solid blue liners. The goaltending duties are split between Lawrence ’00 Ian Graiff and Tabor ’01 Kyle Myer.
5. GBL Bruins
The GBL Bruins, coached by former Maine star Bret Tyler, are made up of mostly of players from Kimball Union. ’01 Arlo Merritt (Ohio State), ’01 Brian Carrabes (Boston University) and ’00 Kyle Penney (Cornell) are the team’s top players.
St. Mark’s ’00 Matthew Toporowski and Northfield Mount Hermon newcomers Grady Friedman and Reese Farrell, both from Maine, are solid forwards. On defense, ’00 Christian Felton leads the way. The team’s No. 1 goaltender is KUA newcomer Zach Paputsakis, a late ’01 from Ontario.
New England 18U
1. Yale
Steve Novodor and Jon Bellonio’s team boasts nine commits and a plethora of depth up front and on the blue line.
Late ’01 Kyle Chauvette, a Holy Cross commit who will be at Loomis Chaffee this fall, is a small, talented goaltender. Kent ’01 defenseman Ian Pierce is the big name on defense. He’s a swift-puck mover and can skate well. ’01 Kennedy O’Connor of Loomis Chaffee is one of the top uncommitted defensemen in the region.
Up front, late ‘01s Alex LaFerriere (Army) and Michael Posma (Air Force) are two newcomers to Kent who have been very good this fall. Gunnery ’01s Alex Jefferies (Merrimack) and Mark D’Agostino (UConn), Salisbury ‘01 Nick Capone (Maine), Loomis Chaffee ’01 Cody Hoban (Dartmouth) and Salisbury ’01 forward Ilya Usau (UConn) are the team’s other committed players.
Hotchkiss ’01 goaltender Henry Wilder is one of the better uncommitted goaltenders in the region.
2. Selects Academy
Selects Academy, a team made up entirely of ‘01s, is led by recent Boston University commit Ethan Phillips, a skilled forward from Nova Scotia. Primo Self (Michigan State) and William Margel (UNH) are the other committed forwards. Ryan Coughlin is a big, power forward with a good brain. Matthew Crasa has come on strong this fall and has a good blend of skill and speed. Stephen Kyrkostas has blazing speed.
On defense, Holy Cross commit Jack Robilotti has added some explosiveness to his game. He’s a big-time player who could play pro hockey someday. Garrett Sundquist is a strong, physical shutdown defender and Dominic Basse is a big goaltender committed to Colorado College.
3. Mid Fairfield
Mid Fairfield has a good amount of depth and is a solid team, but has been hurt by a lack of numbers at time this fall — whether it be injuries or players not being allowed out of prep school for the weekend.
Trinity-Pawling ’00 forward Joey Musa (Dartmouth) is the team’s most skilled player. ’01 Briggs Gammill, a Yale commit from Berkshire, has been really good and made steady progress in his game over the past two years. Brunswick ’00 forward Tom Richter recently committed to Union. Brunswick ’00 Charles Shaffer is a goal-scorer and he can play Division 1, but would be an elite NESCAC recruit. Avon Old Farms ’01 Tabor Heaslip brings a lot of energy and grit after coming up from the Dallas area. Trinity-Pawling ’01 Stephen Willey, Hotchkiss ’01 Gavin Puskar and Salisbury ’01 Michael Fairfax are three solid, north-south forwards.
On defense, the team is led by 6-foot-7 Providence commit Cade Alami, an ’01 from Berkshire. Trinity-Pawling ’00s Philip Waugh (Vermont), Gabe Blanchard, and John Garvey are all Division 1 players. Brunswick ’01 defenseman Cooper Moore is one of the more coveted recruits in the region.
In goal, Providence commit ‘01 Alex Aslanidis (Avon Old Farms) and ’00 Cam Fernandez (Millbrook) split time.
4. Northern Cyclones Prep
The Northern Cyclones Prep team, managed by New Hampton coach Casey Kesselring, is underrated. There might be only one committed player, New Hampton ‘01 forward Jake Dunlap (UMass), but there are several under-the-radar players worth watching.
Exeter ’00 forward Andrew Seaman is one of the faster players this observer has seen this fall. St. Paul’s ’00 forward Julien Menes is a heady, two-way forward. Exeter ’00 forwards Paddy Bogart and Michael Pitts provide experience and are hard-nosed around the net. ’01 Marcus Joughin, a New Hampton newcomer, is probably the most skilled player outside of Dunlap.
Choate ’00 Cooper Swift has been a pleasant surprise on the blue line. ’00s Paddy Mangan (Brooks) and Reese Popkin (Exeter) provide a veteran presence defensively. ‘01s Steven Ardagna (New Hampton) and Aidan Torres (Proctor) are both solid.
‘00s Ryan Welch (Exeter) and Matt Sayles (New Hampton) split the goaltending duties.
5. Yale Showcase
Yale’s second team is pretty solid, having gone deep into the playoff action at a few tournaments this fall season.
Hotchkiss newcomer Alexander Mozian, a postgraduate from Greenwich, Conn., is a forward NESCAC coaches will be watching closely. Bearcats' teammate Nick Traggio, a ’01 defenseman, is a good player as well. Loomis ’00 goalie Kohl Reddy is a very good goalie, especially for a second-tier team.
