No New England boys prep hockey team is ranked in the same spot they were in last week. This Monday's top 10 is almost unrecognizable from last Monday's top 10.
So go the aftershocks of the holiday tournaments.
The holiday tournaments were action-packed. The biggest surprise was certainly the Flood-Marr with Phillips Andover winning that tournament for the first time, while Salisbury played in the last-place, 8 a.m. game on Sunday. It was a stunning weekend.
But the other tournaments featured surprises, too, which heavily influenced this week's top 10.
The other common theme is parity. I was chatting with one prep coach this weekend who mentioned the parity felt much greater this season than it did last year — and I agree. Multiple teams outside the top 10 have legitimate cases to be in.
Let's dive into the craziest rankings of the year (so far).
1. Brunswick (9-0-1)
Previous ranking: 2
Head coach: Mike Kennedy
Next game: vs. St. Francis Prep, Dec. 28, 3 p.m. (at Nichols)Â
Brunswick won the Kevin Mutch Christmas Tournament for the third straight season. Wins over Williston Northampton, Rivers and Northwood catapulted it into the top spot, which is remarkable for a team that lost so many core pieces from last year.
One of my biggest takeaways from the Bruins so far is that Harvard commit and junior forward Joseph Salandra is one of the best players in prep. When you think of game-breaking players who can take over whenever they want, Salandra comes to mind. It was only fitting that he scored the game-winning penalty shot in overtime to win the tournament.
2. Kimball Union (10-1-1)
Previous ranking: 1
Head coach: Tim Whitehead
Next game: Gamesheet Cup, Jan. 3-5
While the Wildcats weren't in the Flood-Marr championship game, their only blemish this weekend (and this season) was a 3-2 loss to Nobles on Friday night. Outside of that, they handled Westminster, Hotchkiss and Deerfield with ease. They're still getting scoring from a talented, deep lineup and senior goalie Blake McMeniman's (Revere, Mass.) goals-against average is at 1.26. Yeah, they're still really good, which is why they only fell one spot.
3. Avon Old Farms (7-2-0)
Previous ranking: 5
Head coach: Mark Naclerio
Next game: vs. Taft, Jan. 11, 2:45 p.m.Â
The Winged Beavers entered their own tournament having lost two of their previous three games and hanging on to a spot in the top five by a thread. They responded by running the table this weekend, taking down Tabor, Trinity-Pawling, St. Paul's and Berkshire by a combined score of 19-7. The most impressive was a 5-2 takedown of Berkshire in the final. Junior forward Jacob Jett broke out with two goals and one assist against Tabor, two assists in the win over St. Paul's and a goal and two assists in the championship.
CATCH UP: Check out all the results from boys prep holiday tournaments
4. Dexter Southfield (6-1-0)
Previous ranking: 3
Head coach: Danny Donato
Next game: E.G. Watkins-Cushing New Year's Tournament, Jan. 3-5Â
Dexter fell one spot through no fault of its own. Other teams around it in the rankings beat other better teams. Still, Donato's team took care of business by beating Portsmouth Abbey, 3-0, and Brewster Academy, 10-0. The big win came over St. George's when Dexter beat the Dragons 4-2 on Saturday. Thinking out loud here: I wonder if Dexter being added to the Howard Invitational Tournament at St. George's draws more high-end teams in future seasons.
5. Phillips Andover (7-1-2)
Previous ranking: NR
Head coach: Paul Tortorella
Next game: vs. St. George's, Jan. 8, 3:15 p.m.Â
If Andover proved anything this weekend, it's that its season-opening of Cushing wasn't an anomaly. Andover won the Flood-Marr Tournament for the first time, taking down Nobles, 6-4, on Sunday. Before that, the Big Blue beat Milton Academy and Deerfield and tied Salisbury.
Another thing: It feels like there's a breakout goalie from the Flood-Marr every year. It was Nobles' Thatcher Bernstein (Brookline, Mass.) in 2021, Milton Academy's Sam Caulfield (Needham, Mass.) in 2022 and McMeniman in 2023. This year, it was Andover's Chase Anderson. The senior won Flood-Marr MVP and was outstanding throughout the four games.
6. Holderness (6-1-1)
Previous ranking: 8
Head coach: Alan Thompson
Next game: vs. Rivers, Jan. 11, 2:30 p.m.Â
The Bulls moved up two spots after winning the Lawrence/Groton Tournament for the second straight year. Holderness had a bit of a close call against Pomfret on Thursday, going up 7-1 in the second period before giving up four quick goals in the third period, which made things a bit too close for comfort. Thompson's team still won 7-5 and then beat Cushing, 4-3, in a shootout. The Bulls followed that up with a 4-0 win over Thayer, which beat St. Andrew's College the day before, in the championship. Those are three impactful wins.
7. Berkshire (9-1-0)
Previous ranking: 9
Head coach: Kevin Czepiel
Next game: at St. Sebastian's, Jan. 3, 11 a.m.Â
If Berkshire won the Avon Old Farms Christmas Classic, it would undoubtedly be in the top five. But Czepiel's team fell to Avon Old Farms in the final, 5-2. The Bears still moved up two spots, given a 9-0-0 start that featured wins over Kent, Frederick Gunn and Loomis Chaffee this weekend. Sometimes, teams get a big boost in the rankings after the holiday tournaments, only for them to fall back down to Earth. Given their consistency, depth and veterans throughout the lineup, that shouldn't be the case with Berkshire.
8. Nobles (4-2-1)
Previous ranking: 7
Head coach: Brian Day
Next game: vs. Williston Northampton, Jan. 3, 1:15 p.m.Â
Nobles was the hardest team to gauge this week. After losing to Westminster, 3-2, and Phillips Andover, 6-4, at the Flood-Marr, the Bulldogs had a case to be out of the top 10 entirely this week. But...they beat Kimball Union, 3-2, on Friday night, which was a massive win and why they only fell one spot. The top line of seniors Ethan Cox (Westboro, Mass.) and Kyle O'Leary (Medfield, Mass.) playing on both sides of junior Billy MacAusland (Westwood, Mass.) continues to be the team's biggest strength.
9. Deerfield (6-2-0)
Previous ranking: NR
Head coach: Tim McVaugh
Next game: vs. Salisbury, Jan. 11, 4:30 p.m.Â
Deerfield was the second-hardest team to gauge this week. The Big Green fell to Phillips Andover, 3-0, and Kimball Union, 4-1, at the Flood-Marr Tournament. But...they beat Salisbury, our preseason No. 1 team, 3-0 in their first game and took down Milton Academy, 6-3, on Saturday. The Salisbury win came six days after McVaugh's team beat Avon Old Farms, 4-3. Deerfield's tendency to beat high-end teams is why it debuted at No. 9 this week.
FLOOD-MARR FINAL: 11 standouts and takeaways from Phillips Andover's title win
10. Tilton (8-1-1)
Previous ranking: NR
Head coach: Brooks McQuade
Next game: vs. Vermont Academy, Jan. 10, 6 p.m.Â
It was hard to knock St. Mark's out of this spot after the Lions won the Barber Memorial Tournament, but Tilton got the edge this week after winning the Brooks/Pingree Tournament. The Rams rolled through Berwick, Millbrook, Brooks and New Hampton to win the title. Tilton also entered the Brooks/Pingree Tournament having beaten Holderness, 1-0, on Dec. 13. Defensively and in net, Tilton has been stout, which is the biggest reason it's a top-10 team.
DROPPED OUT:Â Salisbury (4-3-2; 4); Cushing (5-3-1; 6); St. Mark's (7-1-1; 10)
IN THE HUNT:Â St. Mark's, Cushing, Salisbury, Kent, St. George's, Belmont Hill, Thayer, Rivers, Frederick Gunn, Pomfret
