MIDDLETON, Mass. – Four of the best teams in Massachusetts high school hockey hit the ice on Wednesday and Thursday at the Essex Sports Center to compete in the annual Pete Frates Winter Classic.
BC High won the 2022 edition of the Pete Frates Winter Classic by upsetting the host school, St. John’s Prep, 2-1, in overtime in the semifinal before prevailing in the championship game with a 4-3 win over Pope Francis.
The late Pete Frates, as most are aware, was best known for his advocacy for ALS. The Boston College baseball icon also played hockey at St. John’s Prep. This tournament is in his name and is put on to give the players competition and exposure, as well as promote continued awareness for ALS and the Pete Frates foundation, P3F.
BC High, St. John’s Prep and Pope Francis all look to be top 10 teams in the MIAA while the fourth team in the field, Central Catholic, should be lurking not too far below. A few Division 3 college coaches took in the games, as well as NHLPA agents and junior scouts.
Semifinal #1: Pope Francis 3, Central Catholic 0
In the first semifinal, Pope Francis blanked Central Catholic, 3-0. Junior right wing Mossy Kearney (Wilbraham, Mass.) scored a first period goal that stood up as the game-winner. Mossy’s quick release from the slot beat Central Catholic goaltender Timmy Briley (Boston, Mass.) up high. The assist went to sophomore Nick Petkovich who gave a great centering feed from the right wing corner.
Senior center Josh Iby (Springfield, Mass.) added a couple of insurance markers, including one into an empty net. Senior goaltender Vin Maggi (Springfield, Mass.) posted the shutout.
Semifinal #2: BC High 2, St. John’s Prep 1 (OT)
In the nightcap, St. John’s Prep got off to a hot start. SJP dominated the entire first period and took a 1-0 lead into the locker room thanks to a Christian Rosa (Lynnfield, Mass.) midair strike on the power play. On a wild scramble in front of the net, Rosa, a junior center, batted a second effort into the back of the net.
BC High was able to fend off the initial barrage and the ice became less tilted in St. John’s Prep’s favor as the game moved along. BC High didn’t have much to show for its improved play until senior defenseman Matt Cox (Braintree, Mass.) evened the score late in the third period. He stepped up and took a few strides inside the attacking blue line before sending a wrist shot to the twine.
It didn’t take long for BC High to end the game in the four-on-four overtime period. Cox gave a stretch pass to an awaiting Jackie Murphy (South Boston, Mass.), who was skating near the offensive blue line. The senior center skated in on net and rifled a low wrist shot that beat SJP senior goaltender Brian Cronin (Billerica, Mass.).
Credit goes to longtime BC High head coach John Flaherty (South Boston, Mass.), who is arguably the best motivator in high school hockey. He pushed all the right buttons to get his team back into the game after a first period in which it looked like the doors were set to be blown off the hinges. Junior goaltender Adam D’Errico (Norton, Mass.) also did his part, as he settled into the game after fighting the puck in the first period.
Consolation: St. John’s Prep 3, Central Catholic 0
St. John’s Prep avoided losing two straight with an easy 3-0 victory over Central Catholic in the consolation game. A night after being the hard-luck loser, Cronin posted a shutout. Senior Jimmy Ayers (Hamilton, Mass.) and junior Jake Vana (Boxford, Mass.) scored second period goals and senior Will Van Sicklin (Lynnfield, Mass.) iced it with an empty net tally in the third period.
Despite finishing third in their own tournament, the Eagles still look to be the team to beat in the MIAA this winter. Kristian Hanson’s (Salem, Mass.) team is deep with three strong lines. In addition to all of the talented returners, Hanson’s team has the luxury of slowly bringing along two skilled freshmen, Ethan Goodrich (North Hampton, N.H.) and Cooper Hosmer (Andover, Mass.). The forward group is definitely the strength of the team with a younger defense than last year’s state championship team, sans senior captain Aidan Holland (Topsfield, Mass.).
Central Catholic didn’t score a goal in the tournament, but the Raiders have a couple of intriguing young players. Sophomore left wing Max Gagnon (Byfield, Mass.), an '07, is a great skater who competes hard and is tenacious on puck pursuit. Playing his off-wing, he had a couple of flashes where he showed his puck skill and an ability to create offense on the rush. '08 freshman right-shot defenseman Keegan Hunt (Lowell, Mass.) skated well and had poise with the puck on his stick. Gagnon’s linemates, '05 senior Sean Gray (Lowell, Mass.) and '06 junior right wing Brady Rickenbach (Manchester, N.H.), had their moments.
Final: BC High 4, Pope Francis 3
After a poor start in its semifinal victory, BC High jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the final on goals from Owen Welch (Milton, Mass.) and Joe Feinberg (Needham, Mass.). On the power play, Welch tipped a point shot from sophomore defenseman Peter Luecke (South Boston, Mass.). Feinberg’s turnaround wrist shot from the slot off a rebound gave the Eagles the 2-0 lead. His goal was assisted by Chris Brennick (Milton, Mass.) and Murphy.
Pope Francis crawled back to even the score, 2-2. Sophomore left wing CJ Watroba (West Springfield, Mass.) redirected a centering feed from senior right wing Ryan O’Leary (Easthampton, Mass.) to put the Cardinals within one. In the second period, senior Sean O’Leary (Easthampton, Mass.) took advantage of a bad carom off the boards and banged a puck into an open net.
BC High regained the lead later in the middle frame when Murphy scored his second of the tournament. It was a broken play on the rush that gave the Eagles the 3-2 advantage. Murphy rushed it up the left wing before passing it back to a trailing Frank Shediac (Winchester, Mass.). It got back to Murphy who quickly spun around and flung a wrist shot along the ice and into the net.
The momentum was short-lived as Pope Francis potted the equalizer on the first shift of the third period. Kyle O’Leary scored on a rebound goal off good forecheck pressure from the first line. Watroba and Iby picked up assists.
The game-winner came off the stick of Andrew teDuits (Charlestown, Mass.). From a few steps inside the blue line, he rifled a wrist shot that went blazing into the net just under the crossbar.
The tournament win came at a good time for BC High after a tough loss to Arlington before the Christmas break. Flaherty’s team doesn’t have a true superstar, but there’s a good amount of depth for an MIAA team. Like the Eagles did last year, expect this group to continue gelling and improving. The 2021-22 squad peaked at the right time and made a run to the state semifinals.
Brian Foley’s Cardinals don’t have any elite players like they’ve had in the past. There are no John or Ryan Leonards on the 2022-23 edition of Pope Francis. However, the first two lines are good. This is a team that should earn a top-eight seed when the state tournament field is announced in late February.
NEHJ’s Pete Frates Winter Classic All-Tournament Team
Jackie Murphy
BC High, 10/7/04, C, right shot, 6-1/181
Murphy has good size and had the puck on his stick a lot over the course of the two games. He’s strong, lowers his shoulder, and can use his length to protect pucks. He’ll be even more impactful if he uses his teammates more and plays with his head up. His overtime tally in the semifinal was obviously huge. His go-ahead goal in the second period of the final came at a key moment, as Pope Francis had gained a ton of momentum.
Jake Vana
St. John’s Prep, 9/1/05, RW, right shot, 5-11/170
I debated giving this to Vana or Van Sicklin. Both were good, but I went with Vana. He’s not the prettiest skater in the world, but he exudes hockey sense and athleticism. He has that uncanny ability to find loose pucks and be in the right position to score goals. Simply put, he’s an athlete. He also stars on St. John’s Prep’s soccer and lacrosse teams. A quick shoutout to Van Sicklin, the other right wing in the top six, who brought a physical presence and had two points in the consolation win.
CJ Watroba
Pope Francis, 2/2/07, LW, left shot, 5-11/168
Watroba was dynamic at times in the final. He scored a goal, redirecting a centering feed into net, and had an assist on the third goal. Beyond that, he forced a turnover and got himself a shorthanded breakaway bid that was denied. He had a couple of other golden chances to score. He’s quick and was effective in small areas, especially along the boards and down low.
Matt Cox
BC High, 2/4/05, D, left shot, 6-2/190
Cox scored the tying goal and assisted on the overtime game-winner in the semifinal, or BC High wouldn’t have been in a position to capture the championship. He had an assist in the final. He was denied on a penalty shot attempt after a Pope Francis player covered the puck with his hand in the crease. Cox is a big, strong, veteran defenseman. He’ll be a nice pickup for a prep school looking for a postgraduate defenseman in 2023-24.
Peter Luecke
BC High, 1/10/06, D, right shot, 5-10/155
Luecke had two assists in the final, but his inclusion on the All-Tournament Team goes beyond that. He did a good job keeping pucks in at the point. One particular play in the first period along the wall near the Pope Francis bench stood out. He used a good angle and rode Watroba into the wall to prevent a scoring chance in the second period. In the third period, he made a pass that was more impressive than either assist he had. From his position on the right point, he slid a pass to the backdoor to set up the weak-side winger for a quality scoring chance. He was strong on retrievals and is the most consistently reliable defenseman I’ve seen in the MIAA this season.
HOW IT STARTED: The preseason MIAA hockey rankings
Adam D’Errico
BC High, 1/7/06, G, catches left, 5-11/161
The tournament started inauspiciously for D’Errico as he gave up a first period goal and struggled with rebound control in the semifinal against St. John’s Prep. Whether it was nerves or something else, he calmed down and closed the door on a potent SJP offense. In the final, he made a couple of key saves. The most memorable were back-to-back stops on CJ Watroba and Kearney, who came in all alone on a shorthanded breakaway. With the score tied 2-2, he made a big kick save to keep a Watroba shot out of the net.
NEHJ’s Pete Frates Winter Classic MVP: Peter Luecke
BC High lines
Federico - Welch - Williams
Brennick - Murphy - Feinberg
O’Sullivan - teDuits - Shediac
Christian - McClory - MacDonald
Luecke - McCarthy
Degnan - Joyce
Hurley - Kinneen
Schuhwerk
D’Errico
Pope Francis lines
Watroba - Iby - O’Leary
Petkovich - Petrin - Kearney
McGrath - Wegrzyn - DiMichele
Fitzgerald - Trigilio - Kenyon
O’Leary
Bolduc - Foyle
Buffone - Jarrell
Russ - Shea
Maggi
St. John’s Prep lines
McGilvray - Ayers - Van Sicklin
Blaeser - Rosa - Vana
Tighe - Umlah - Hosmer
White - Santosousso - Goodrich
Holland - Doherty
Plaza - Brandano
Goldstein - Lomasney
Cronin
Central Catholic lines
Gagnon - Gray - Rickenbach
Godfrey - Duval - Winship
Maiuri - Norris - Jankowski
McCarthy - Pinet - xx
Furry - Lydon
Morse - Songini
Lane - Hunt
Briley
