A new and full hockey season is -- finally -- on the horizon in the Housatonic League.
Avon Old Farms ended Salisbury’s four-year run of league titles at the end of the last full campaign in 2019-20, but the latter club got the last laugh as Elite 8 champions just days before the COVID-19 pandemic put an end to the sports world.
The pandemic severely impacted last winter’s plans, though the two rivals were among the New England programs that played a good amount of hockey.
“We were on the ice and in the weight room a lot with the kids, and then we were still able to play 15 games,” Salisbury coach Andrew Will said of a year gone by during which his team practiced and played through fall, winter and spring “... It was far from ideal, but I feel very fortunate that we were able to provide a very positive and productive season that, I think, did a lot to further their development.”
Avon and Salisbury both return talented rosters dotted with college commitments and should be able to use last season’s experiences to their benefit. Like the Winged Beavers and Crimson Knights, Trinity-Pawling also played double-digit games last season.
Avon’s first win of the new season will mark the 800th in legendary John Gardner’s career. The 47th-year bench boss knows the Winged Beavers and their rivals are all chomping at the bit to play again.
“It will be an interesting year with many teams that look to be strong,” Gardner said. “We’ll have a deep forward group and an experienced goaltender” in Connor Callaghan, who will be playing his third full varsity season.
Loomis Chaffee never got to build upon capping its winningest season in several years with the 2020 NEPSAC Large championship. The Pelicans boast key veterans like UConn commit Oliver Flynn, who averaged a point per game during the playoff run. Also back on the ice after a year’s hiatus is a Westminster team that has a large core of seniors returning.
During last year’s shortened slate, Deerfield finished unbeaten (3-0-2) and Kent won four out of its five games. Taft also played a handful of games and now expects to put out the deepest roster that coach Ryan Shannon has had yet.
“We graduated a large and talented senior class last year and will look to our younger returners and incoming players to fill important roles on the team,” Deerfield’s Tim McVaugh said. “After making the playoffs in each of the last two seasons, we are excited to keep raising the bar” for the program.
Hotchkiss will be seeing its first action since an 18-win run to the Elite 8 two years ago, so its roster is almost entirely new to the prep level. As a result, early-season games will provide a measuring stick for the Bearcats.
“We will be hoping to gain confidence with every game, and our success will be determined by how quickly our new players can adapt,” coach Michael Traggio said. “We will learn a lot about our group in the three weeks of games in December.”
The situation is similar at Choate, where Jesse Minneman will take over as a new head coach after previously leading the Wild Boars’ junior varsity program. His team includes just one player with a full season of varsity experience.
Avon Old Farms
Coach: John Gardner
2019-20 record: 24-3
Players to watch: Nick Capasso, F; Liam Verdoni, F; Connor Brazil, F; Joe Connor, F; Brennan Ali, F; Brendan Fennell; F; Matt DiMarsico, F; Nikita Nikora, F; Jordin Palmer, D; Seth Robinson, D; Chris Aube, D; Hudson Miller, D; Magnus Turcotte, D; Sam Court, D; Jack Kennedy, D; Conor Callaghan, G
Outlook: The Winged Beavers, whose legendary coach Gardner enters the new season with 799 career wins since 1975, have plenty of firepower and a veteran goaltender returning as they look to defend their 2020 Founders and Housatonic championships. Capasso and Verdoni combined for 15 goals during that season and now return as two of the most experienced players. Callaghan will tend the net for a third full season after posting a .929 save percentage in 2019-20. Newcomers Court (New Hampshire), DiMarsico (Penn State) and Ali (Notre Dame) are already Division 1 commits. Fennell is a key post-graduate and former three-sport star from Melrose (Mass.) High.
Choate
Coach: Jesse Minneman
2019-20 record: 4-16-4
Players to watch: Primo Baldassarre, G; Dimitri Tzaferis, D; Tom Lynch, D; Evan Partridge, F; Jake Kavanagh, F, Liam Hodgson, F; George Pavlus, F
Outlook: The Wild Boars will have plenty of newness both on the bench and on the ice entering their first season in nearly two years. Minneman elevates from the junior varsity head coaching role to replace Pat Dennehy, who took on a new role at Choate away from athletics. Only one player (Lynch) has played a full season of varsity hockey in the program. Speed, skating and goaltending are expected to be the team’s strengths. The coach said, “We will go as far as Baldassarre and our tight D corps can take us.”
Deerfield Academy
Coach: Timothy McVaugh
2019-20 record: 12-10-4
Players to watch: Will Murphy, D; Spencer Gallant, D; Isaac Abbott, D; Max Abene, F; Drew Garzone, F; Owen Clifford, F; Tom Molson, F
Outlook: Following the graduation of a large and talented senior class, younger returners and incoming players will play important roles for a Big Green team that looks to keep raising the bar following back-to-back playoff appearances and a 3-0-2 mark during the pandemic-shortened campaign. The junior duo of Garzone and Clifford both made significant offensive contributions as freshmen during the last full season, scoring five and four goals, respectively.
Hotchkiss School
Coach: Michael Traggio
2019-20 record: 18-6-2
Players to watch: Charlie Kerrigan, F; Nate Brockington, F; Luke Johnson, D; Nelson Smith, D; Shayne Bjorn, F; Zach Bye, F
Outlook: A NEPSAC Elite 8 participant two seasons ago, Hotchkiss has a pretty inexperienced team returning as the majority of its players are new to prep hockey. Brockington, Kerrigan and Johnson will be the main players expected to provide experience and leadership to the rest of the roster, as they were all varsity contributors during the team’s latest playoff run that ended with a quarterfinal loss to Dexter. Beyond the leadership group, the competition to replace a number of notable departures will be wide open.
Kent School
Coach: Dale Reinhardt
2019-20 record: 12-13-1
Players to watch: Jake Kraft, F; Cole Watson, F; Max Resnick, F; Michael Hurst, F; Dante Paolombo, F; Geno McEnery, F; Joey Sciabarra, D
Outlook: Kent expects to put out an explosive offense and build upon a shortened season during which it went 4-1. Leading the way will be six senior forwards, all of whom the coach expects to play college hockey at some level. A young but talented back end looks to replace captain and Princeton commit Nick Marciano, who is currently playing in the BCHL. Reinhardt said five defensemen could be freshmen or sophomores.
Loomis Chaffee
Coach: J.R. Zavisza
2019-20 record: 17-7-4
Players to watch: Oliver Flynn, F; Charlie Andriole, D; Rory Andriole, F; Cam Miranda, D; Chris Hibson, F
Outlook: The Pelicans had 13 seniors on their NEPSAC Large School Tournament title team from 2019-20, but several of that group’s key players are back this season. As a result, Zavisza expects the team to enter the year with strong chemistry. Flynn, a UConn commit, is a proven scorer at the prep level who netted 11 goals during a 24-point sophomore season. Hibson and Rory Andriole are the team’s captains. Zavisza considers Hibson to be the heart of the roster as a consistent, four-year player, which is a rarity during his time as head coach.
Salisbury School
Coach: Andrew Will
2019-20 record: 24-3-1
Players to watch: Ryan Walsh, F; Ben Poitras, F; Dylan Hryckowian, F; Alex Zakrzewski, D; Connor Driscoll, F; Oliver Frontini, F; Cole Eichler, F; Dane Westen, D; Liam Chapman, D; Austin McNicholas, G; Andrew Palena, G
Outlook: Unlike the majority of New England programs, the Crimson Knights were able to have a productive season in the midst of the pandemic, playing a 15-game schedule that will help the team’s development as it enters 2021-22 still defending the Elite 8 title. Salisbury boasts a strong mix of returning players including both of its goaltenders, three defensemen, and a pair of Northeastern commits up front in Poitras and Hryckowian. Will expects a number of solid newcomers to contribute on the blue line, led by a future Brown Bear, Zakrzewski.
Taft School
Coach: Ryan Shannon
2019-20 record: 8-15-1
Players to watch: Thomas Ricciardelli, F; J.J. Lemieux, F; Jackson Holl, F; Archer Brown, F; Justin Fernet, D; Ben Phillips, D; Connor Colucci, D; Mikey Roberts, G
Outlook: The Rhinos look to build off of their “committed approach to development” during the five-game COVID season. Shannon says the team’s deepest roster and newcomers will foster internal competition, especially for special teams roles. Up front, Ricciardelli is the team captain who scored five goals during his second season of varsity experience. Roberts, a Dartmouth commit, will play behind three senior defensemen as he backstops the team for a fourth season.
Trinity-Pawling
Coach: Robert Ferraris
2019-20 record: 9-14-2
Players to watch: Gavin Bloder, F; Tyler Fogu, F; Ryan Walker, F; Jackson Graber, F; Ethan Fehrenbaker, G; Justin Bello, F; Dario Cantini, G; Tobias Iantorno, F; Michael Santonelli, F; Cristobal Tola, F
Outlook: While 10 former players graduated to become freshmen in college this season, the Pride expects to boast a strong mix of youth and experience. The team will have a deep forward group with its top pair of scorers returning from a season ago. Walker and Graber both reached double digits in points, teaming up for eight goals and 32 points in 11 games. Walker’s 17 points were tops on the 6-4-1 club.
Westminster
Coach: Timothy Joncas
2019-20 record: 7-17-1
Players to watch: Danny Judge, F; Alex Mendelson, F; Luke Holyfield, F; Vic Barakett, F; Wade Volo, F; Rowan Masse, F; Ryan Shaw, F; Daniel Lurie, D; Justin Chaput, D; Matt Hanscom, D; Jacob Osborn, G; Matteo De Luca, G
Outlook: Eager to return to the ice after a year off from game action, the Martlets will be an older group with a large senior class this season. Among the team’s leaders, Barakett scored 14 points and finished tied for second on the team with seven goals during the most recent season. Judge, a fellow rising senior, also recorded double-digit points. Lurie is the top returning defenseman.
This article appears in the November/December print edition of New England Hockey Journal.
