MARLBOROUGH, Mass. — The most interesting storyline of this weekend's Mass. Hockey Festival was the 2008s.
This was the '08s' first go of this, so when I watched them Friday night, it was a bit sloppy. And these events can create sloppy hockey anyways — putting a bunch of players together from different teams in a tryout setting isn't going to create the most harmonious result.
Nevertheless, the cool thing about the festival was it gave onlookers a sense of who some of the top '08s were. They may be early in their careers, but prep schools, USHL teams and colleges are already doing their due diligence with them (if they weren't already).
No goalies are on this list. I know, I know. I hate to ruin the fun. It's just difficult to evaluate goalies when you're trying to watch countless players in three birth years over three days.
While 40 players made it to next weekend to try out for USA Hockey Select 15 camp, these 17 caught my attention in many ways.
Let's dive in.
David Bosco
Boston Junior Eagles/Belmont Hill, 2/8/2008, C, right shot, 5-10/154
Tournament jersey: 9 RedÂ
Bosco made a play Friday night that summed up his game best. He had an opportunity to try and blow past a defender for a breakaway but once he got over the blue line, he stopped, settled the play down and let Boston Junior Eagles teammate Noah Survilas catch up to him for a 2-on-1. Bosco still could've shot it but sifted a pass to Survilas for the goal. It's rare to see 14- and 15-year-olds make an unselfish play like that at a showcase, but Bosco did it. In my viewing of the '08s, he was easily one of the top players.
Thomas Broderick
Dexter Southfield, D, Left shot
Tournament jersey: 1 WhiteÂ
Broderick stood out to me more as the weekend progressed. He stands up to opposing forwards in the defensive zone and uses smart positioning to cut off plays before they happen. In the offensive zone, he gets shots through. There was a sequence Friday night when he settled the puck down at the point and ripped a wrist shot low glove and into the net. Is he the most dynamic skater? No. But he's reliable.
Michael Federico
BC High, C, Left shot
Tournament jersey: 10 GrayÂ
As a center, Federico drove play well and showcased a lot of skill. He's a good skater, which allowed him to close in on defenders quickly when forechecking. Federico played for BC High this past winter.
Aidan Fitzpatrick
St. Mary's, F, left shot
Tournament jersey: 11 RoyalÂ
Fitzpatrick started his weekend off with a bang, dangling through a defender and around the goalie for the first goal of the festival. In the offensive zone, he had confidence with the puck and drove play. The only knock was he sometimes looked to try and do too much, resulting in turnovers. He didn't make the Final 40, but he caught my attention when I was watching the '08s.
Ty Hymovitz
Boston Junior Eagles, St. Sebastian's, 2/13/2008, C, right shot, 5-11/155
Tournament jersey: 13 GrayÂ
Hymovitz showcased himself as a strong, two-way center this weekend. He hustled hard on the backcheck. On the forecheck, he closed on defenders quickly when he was the F1 and positioned himself well and took away passing lanes when he was the F2 or F3. While some of his plays were broken up off the rush, he still drove play well. Hymovitz's father, David, is the head coach at Thayer, runs the Boston Junior Eagles and played hockey professionally.
Matthew Krayer
Mount Saint Charles 14U, F, left shotÂ
Tournament jersey: 13 RedÂ
Krayer was great low in the offensive zone with the puck. He made defenders trying to cover him miss with his quick hands and used the boards well to gain space. He played with a lot of confidence and was great off the rush, making strong decisions in transition.
FROM PREP TO THE USHL: Inside the path that isn't always easyÂ
John Paul Messuri
Arlington High School, F, left shot
Tournament jersey: 16 RedÂ
As I watched the '08s this weekend, a smaller forward kept catching my attention, and it was Messuri. He was always creating offense off the rush and finding open space in the slot. He never wavered from going to the dirty areas and gaining space in front of the net. He even laid out a player in open ice. He comes from a hockey family — his father, John, is the head coach at Arlington (Mass.) High and older brother Anthony plays at Northeastern — so it will be interesting to see how he develops in the coming years.
Miles Mireault
Boston Junior Eagles, F, right shot, 5-8/140
Tournament jersey: 16 WhiteÂ
What impressed me most with Mireault was his ability to drive the play. On one of his two goals Friday night, he found another gear while skating, zipping past the defender and scoring on the breakaway. He also showcased great hands, consistently using them to deke around defenders and gain space.
Casey Mutryn
St. Sebastian's, 2/1/2008, RW, right shot, 5-11/151
Tournament jersey: 16 RoyalÂ
Mutryn showed off his offensive creativity, setting up teammates and creating scoring chances in the offensive zone. He's a strong skater with a high hockey IQ and that was on display this weekend, as he made the Final 40.
Stephen Rousell
Rivers, 3/31/2008, F, right shot, 5-9/157
Tournament jersey: 17 RoyalÂ
Rousell had two goals in my viewing of him. One was when he batted a puck out of midair, while the other was a quick shot that went low glove. He's a good skater who showed off his good hands in tight and plays with a high compete level.
Benjamin Short
Winchendon, 5/14/2008, C, left shot
Tournament jersey: 17 RedÂ
Short showcased himself as a do-it-all centerman this weekend. He's a great skater who played with a high compete, especially on the forecheck. He has great hands, consistently making good decisions with the puck, especially in transition. He wasn't afraid of going to the dirty areas. I mentioned Bosco's play earlier and Short had a similar one in the same game. With the puck on the right side of the offensive zone, Short stopped and had his head up. He found Bosco open in the high slot, which is where Bosco sniped in a goal. It will be really exciting to see how Short progresses in his sophomore season at Winchendon.
SUMMER LEAGUE: Check out the rosters for the Foxboro Summer Prep League
Brady Sloper
Boston Junior Eagles/North Andover High, 5/21/2008, D, right shot, 6-1/175
Tournament jersey: 6 RedÂ
Sloper showed himself as a good, solid defenseman this weekend. He moved the puck well on breakouts but most importantly, he shut plays down in his own end.
Kristofer Soja
Nepsonet Valley River Rats, D, left shot
Tournament jersey: 7 RedÂ
If you were combing through film of the '08s this weekend, it would've been harder to find a sequence when Soja didn't join the rush. The defenseman was always active and jumping up into the play. He moved the puck well coming out of his own zone but because he took chances, sometimes that resulted in odd-man rushes the other way. He played with a lot of confidence and his skating and shot supported it.
Maximilian Sullivan
BC High, D, left shot
Tournament jersey: 7 WhiteÂ
As a defenseman, Sullivan was strong in a lot of different areas. In his own zone, he had good gap control and shut down opposing forwards using his stick. He broke the puck out well and showed no hesitations in joining the rush.
Noah Survilas
Boston Junior Eagles/Catholic Memorial, 12/27/2008, RW, right shot, 5-8/150
Tournament jersey: 18 RedÂ
Survilas was dynamic in my viewings of him this weekend. He was great at finding open space in the offensive zone and has a great shot. He's a good skater who had no issue separating himself from defenders off the rush. Survilas is headed to Dexter Southfield this fall. Even as an '08, his play style lends itself to stepping in and making an impact right away — even against older players.
Spencer Thornborough
Boston Junior Eagles/Masconomet High, 6/22/2008, LW, left shot, 6-0/170
Tournament jersey: 18 WhiteÂ
The biggest thing with Thornborough is he plays the game hard. His north-south speed, along with his size, was difficult for defenders to stop. He fought hard for loose pucks and was always in and around the slot. That resulted in him smacking in a rebound goal Friday night. Because of his size and speed, he shouldn't have too much trouble making an impact against older competition.
FINAL 40: Check out the 40 players who will compete for USA Hockey's Select 15 CampÂ
Lance Toland
Boston Junior Eagles/Burlington High, 2/11/2008, D, left shot, 5-10/170
Tournament jersey: 7 GrayÂ
The biggest thing with Toland is he's a strong, two-way defender. He showed that again this weekend. Against the top '08, Massachusetts-born talent, he broke up plays consistently in his own zone. He joined the rush and was active at the blue line for the puck.
