Through two seasons, Brian Phinney has proven to be an outstanding hire as the hockey coach at Belmont Hill.
The first year featured the Sextants going to the Elite 8 championship game. With a lot of new players in bigger roles, Belmont Hill made it to the Elite 8 semifinals last season.
"One thing you learn is that every team is different," Phinney said. "I think there's the idea that skill-wise or in terms of the product on the ice and where the strengths and weaknesses are changes year to year, but there's also a different vibe within teams too, a different personality amongst the group."
He noticed that quite a bit throughout last winter.
"It's not necessarily good or bad, but it's just different," Phinney said. "I think part of it is just different leadership styles within the team. Different captains and different ways of approaching problems. In a lot of ways, it was quite a bit different. I think part of what I'm learning as a coach is you've got to let that process of finding their personalities kind of take place and happen.
"You really want to try and control so much but just watching that group last year take on a different personality and it became theirs and it was unique to them but it was just so different from the year before."
Belmont Hill lost a good number of core players from last season. Once again, the Sextants will be in search of their new identity.
Replacing the offensive core
Since 2019, Ronan O'Donnell (Fairfield, Conn.) was a mainstay in the Belmont Hill offense. The Yale commit led the team in both goals (24) and points (45) last season. Brock Cummings provided strong two-way play down the middle, notching 32 assists and 40 points in 30 games. Daniel Markham (Winchester, Mass.) and Dane Carter (Concord, Mass.) pitched in with production of their own.
All four graduated. O'Donnell and Cummings play for the BCHL's Cowichan Valley Capitals, while Markham (Navan Grads) and Carter (Renfrew Wolves) skate for CCHL teams.
"Up front last year, we had a group that was really, really strong," Phinney said. "They obviously played some more of the critical minutes."
It's going to be on the returning players, now a year older, to step into those roles left behind.
That starts with senior Jake McManus (Winthrop, Mass.). The tenacious wing had 11 goals and 22 points in 30 games last season and will captain the Sextants this season.
"He's a phenomenal kid," Phinney said. "He's proven to be a really strong leader. He's somebody who is sort of put in this position where there's opportunity in front of him and we really hope he seizes that opportunity."
Along with McManus, junior Andrew Waugh (Norwell, Mass.) will be vital. The Norwell, Mass., native scored nine goals and tallied 16 points in 30 games last season. Other juniors to keep an eye on will be Michael Sullivan (North Andover, Mass.) and Jin Lee (Natick, Mass.).
Phinney's team also has two sophomores in Patrick Woods (Charlestown, Mass.) and Jake Tavares (Belmont, Mass.) who have the potential to take steps forward. Tavares was at USA Hockey's Select 15 Camp in 2022, while Woods went to Select 16s this past summer.
"Some of these younger guys now get that opportunity," Phinney said. "The hope is that they seize it and they run with it. I think they're poised to do it. You can imagine they're pretty eager to seize it."
Belmont Hill didn't bring in any recruits. Instead, like usual, there is plenty of talent at the seventh and eighth grade levels to feed the varsity team.
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"It's a little bit of like Christmas morning with tryouts at Belmont Hill in contrast to other places where I've coached," Phinney said. "You have these kids coming through the middle school. We have a few kids that have been strong players in the past. We've got a fair number of kids from the Jr. Eagles and whatnot. There are a lot of kids in those younger groups that could be ready to make an impact. I'm always cautious to say who it is because I really don't know."
Goaltending is the biggest strength, but there will be a new look on defense
Last season, then-sophomore goalie Keagin Wilson (Hingham, Mass.) suffered an injury in the first month, which paved the way for then-freshman JJ Thibodeau (Waltham, Mass.) to get a crack at the starting job.
Wilson came back and took on the brunt of the games down the stretch, finishing with a 2.83 goals-against average and .904 save percentage. Thibodeau, an '07, posted a 2.42 GAA and .893 save percentage. The duo helped Belmont Hill snag the No. 6 seed in the Elite 8.
Both are back this season.
"They'll have to push each other and I think with goalies, it's always nice to have competition," Phinney said. "I think it brings out the best."
It begs the question: Will they do a platoon and split the net or will one own it?
"I think it's probably the most frustrating thing to hear as a goalie, but I think it really is going to be a week-to-week thing," Phinney said. "I think we know that both of them have the ability to be really solid goalies. If it's a situation where it makes sense to alternate, we'll do that. If one of them rises to the surface, then great. That'll be something where we just have to read it as we go."
Both Wilson and Thibodeau benefited from having a stout defensive crew in front of them last season. There was Harvard commit Matt Biotti (Cambridge, Mass.), Sacred Heart commit Lenny Greenberg and Josh Doolan (Southboro, Mass.). All were big and could shut down opposing forwards. All are gone, as Biotti and Doolan graduated and Greenberg opted for the BCHL a year early.
Spots are open on defense, which means it's up to the returning players to elevate their games.
Juniors Jack Duffy (Walpole, Mass.), Grayson Cohen (Weston, Mass.), Lindan Verville (Needham, Mass.) and Evan Dresser (Everett, Mass.) are prime candidates for that. So is senior Stephen Kilcoyne (Belmont, Mass.).
"They're kids who've seen it done before," Phinney said. "But again, there's going to be some other kids that come up from the middle school and I know there are a couple of older kids vying for those spots too. We'll see if some of those kids can fill some of the critical minutes we need them to play."
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Last season, Belmont Hill went 5-4-2 through Jan. 7. The Sextants went 14-2-1 after that in the lead-up to the postseason.
It's entirely possible Belmont Hill will take some time to come together, but be dominant come the time that matters most: the end of the season.
