John Gardner boasts 799 wins and eight New England championships entering his 47th season behind the Avon Old Farms bench.
On Wednesday, the Wesleyan alum, who's coached the Avon, Conn., prep school since 1975-76, can join the prestigious 800-win club when the Winged Beavers travel to Williston Northampton for game one of the 2021-22 campaign.
With good depth at forward and a proven goalie in net, AOF looks to continue its long-standing tradition of being among the top teams in New England with their longtime bench boss at the helm.
“I’m looking forward to it,” Gardner said of the new season, which comes on the heels of last year's makeshift 16-game campaign. "It was a tough year but we persevered and hopefully we’ll be better for it."
The Winged Beavers will feature a solid mix of returners and talented newcomers up front.
In net, experienced ‘03 goalie Connor Callaghan returns for his post-grad year, marking his third full varsity season between the pipes.
Senior defensemen Seth Robinson (Haverhill, Mass.) and Chris Aube (Avon, Conn.), and junior Jordin Palmer, also return in the back end, along with sophomores Magnus Turcotte (North Haven, Conn.) and Hudson Miller.
’04 defenseman Sam Court, a UNH commit from Winnipeg, M.B., and Jack Kennedy, an ’04 Pope Francis product from Granby, Mass., are the newcomers on the blue line.
“We needed to add two pretty high-end skill defensemen and I think we did that,” Gardner said. “Defensively, I think we’re in pretty good shape.”
Seniors Liam Verdoni and Connor Brazil, as well as juniors Nick Capasso (Northford, Conn.) and Alex Pelletier (Manchester, Conn.), are the returning upperclassmen up front.
Sophomores Joe Connor (Amherst, N.H.), Chuck Blanchard (West Hartford, Conn.) and Tate Pecknold (Fairfield, Conn.) are also back for their second seasons with the team.
Those younger forwards got some much-needed experience with the prep-style game last season, Gardner said. Especially, when three forwards left for juniors as a result of the pandemic.
“Everybody says it was a lost year but it really wasn’t,” Gardner said. “When you’re on the ice six days a week doing skill development, you’re going to get better. And when you get a kid who’s willing to work hard like Joe Connor, you’re going to make some good strides.”
Brennan Ali, an ’04 from Glencoe, Ill., joins the Winged Beavers by way of the Chicago Mission and highlights the newcomers at the forward position.
Pittsburgh, Pa., native Matt DiMarsico (Penn State) and Russian forward Nikita Nikora (Dartmouth) are other notable senior additions, while Toronto-born '04 Charlie Gollob is a new junior.
Also new to the forward group is local '02 Brendan Fennell, a multi-sport star at Melrose High, who joins the team for his post-graduate year.
“He’s sort of a throwback type of athlete," Gardner said. "I think he’ll really prosper in our system."
More than 20 months since the team played its last official game, puck drop on the winter campaign can’t come soon enough for Garnder and Co.
“There are a lot of unknowns out there because a lot of people didn’t play last season, so it’s going to be interesting, but we’re looking forward to it,” Gardner said.
“It will be nice to get back to some degree of normalcy.”
(Previously in NEHJ’s prep school preview series: Brunswick, Gunnery, New Hampton, St. Mark’s, Tabor, Loomis Chaffee, Berkshire, St. George’s, Cushing, Belmont Hill, Middlesex, Pomfret, St. Sebastian’s, Nobles, Dexter, Salisbury)
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