MARLBORO, Mass. — Forty Bay State '05s converged on the New England Sports Center over the weekend looking to secure a coveted spot at the USA Hockey Select 17 Player Development Camp in June in Amherst, N.Y.
The third and final portion of the Massachusetts Hockey CCM High Performance Festival was the "Final 40" where that number of players competed in front of college coaches and NHL scouts with the hope of making national camp. The added incentive for the '05s is the chance to make the USA Hockey roster for the Hlinka-Gretzky Cup, following the conclusion of the national camp at the Northtown Center.
There’s no sugarcoating the fact that the 2005 birth year in Massachusetts takes a huge nosedive without the three NTDP players from the Bay State. Forwards Will Smith (Lexington), Ryan Leonard (Amherst) and Will Vote (Arlington) are all ineligible for national camps. Also missing from the Final 40 was the best goaltender in the state, Sam Scopa (Lexington), and the fourth-best forward, Will McDonough (Duxbury), a USHL player who sat out the festival with an injury. Scopa was given a pass to the national camp by virtue of being named to the USA Hockey National Goaltending Camp, run by former UNH and Dartmouth assistant coach Dave Lassonde.
This isn’t a knock on any of the observers or Massachusetts Hockey, but something needs to be done so that tryouts like this can be conducted without rewarding players for bad hockey. Pushing players through to national camp who go minus-5 and give up countless breakaways isn’t doing anyone any favors.
The college coaches, Jerry Keefe (Northeastern), Brendan Buckley (Boston College), James Tortorella (Harvard), and NHL scout Derek Richard (Vancouver Canucks) were tasked with finding seven forwards, five defensemen, and one goaltender. It was not easy to come up with that many deserving players in this birth year. Below are evaluations on 20 noteworthy players from the '05 group from the Mass. Final 40.
Chris Battaini
South Kent U16, 6/27/05, LW, left shot, 5-9/155
Battaini, who was the first line left wing for South Kent, is a little bit of an unknown to many in this district. From Pittsfield, he played the previous two seasons at Shattuck-St. Mary’s. Battaini’s skill stood out over the course of the two days. His stick is his best attribute and it showed with three goals. His hockey sense and play away from the puck are the areas of his game that will need to get better, for him to get the most out of his ability. He was certainly one of the top five forwards in the tryout.
Cole Blaeser
St. John’s Prep, 4/6/05, LW, left shot, 5-9/155
Blaeser showed well here. This was my first viewing of him outside of MIAA. While he wasn’t in the top half of the forward grouping, he was in the middle. Blaeser, from Boxford, skates well, competed, and was around the puck some.
Tyler Bloomfield
Nobles, 3/31/05, catches left, 5-11/175
Without Scopa, Bloomfield was the top goalie here. He moves well and has solid fundamentals in the net. From Hudson, he stole some playing time in the crease down the stretch for Brian Day at Nobles.
Will Cannata
Milton, 5/17/05, C, left shot, 6-0/165
Cannata (Milton) is a hard-working center who hunted pucks and blocked shots all weekend. He’s limited offensively, but his compete and defensive side of the puck are solid.
Matt Cataldo
St. Sebastian’s, 5/19/05, LW, left shot, 5-11/195
No other player here outworked Cataldo, as it usually is when the Norfolk native is on the ice. He picked up an assist, was heavy on pucks, and won quite a few battles.
Cullen Emery
Dexter Southfield, 8/2/05, C, right shot, 5-10/180
Emery had a good half during one of the days, scoring a goal and an assist. From Reading, he skates well and can make plays with the puck. He’s a Division 1 hockey player down the road after aging out from juniors.
Ryan Flaherty
BC High, 4/25/05, C, right shot, 6-1/165
Flaherty works hard and keeps his feet moving. He had a big second day on Sunday, scoring a couple of goals and adding a few assists. The Milton native has good size, skates well, and plays the game with an edge.
Jake Freelove
Winchendon, 1/4/05, D, right shot, 6-1/165
Freelove, from Tyngsboro, is a tall, offensive-minded blue liner with a good stick. He can make plays in transition. He still needs to figure out that he can’t be caught up ice and ahead of the play, but there is potential if he can reel it in after prep and junior hockey.
Ethan Gardula
Cushing, 2/28/05, LW, left shot, 5-11/175
There’s no question Gardula was the best player here, in terms of potential and past body of work. This wasn’t his best showing, but he was better Sunday. He had an assist, protected pucks, and drove the net. From Princeton, he needs to accept his identity as a power forward and play a hard, north-south game all of the time.
Brad Guden
King Phillip, 8/29/05, D, left shot, 5-10/165
Guden was the best defenseman here, for my money. Others might have been flying all over the ice, trying to make plays. The Norfolk resident skates well, makes efficient plays, and is going to keep getting better.
Matt Hanscom
Westminster, 1/25/05, D, left shot, 6-1/188
From Hadley, Hanscom has the size, skating and physical prowess to impress at an event like this. I like his strength, hard shot, and physical tools that he showed here. He needs to be taught to reel it in and be more sound positionally, especially if he’s going to find his way to Division 1.
Jonathan Lanza
Dexter Southfield, 3/10/05, D, right shot, 6-0/180
Lanza was certainly in the top five for defensemen here. From Winthrop, he’s got the ability to produce offensively from the backend. He scored a goal during one of the games and has gotten better in terms of running around. The coaching he’s received from Danny Donato shows in that regard.
Shawn Leary
Lawrence, 5/12/05, D, right shot, 5-11/200
Leary, from Dorchester, was flying all over the ice on Saturday. He had a goal and made plays with the puck on his stick. He still needs to accept coaching and reel it in, so he’s more reliable defensively. His skill set was certainly the best here for defensemen.
James Lyver
St. Mark’s, 2/12/05, C, right shot, 5-11/175
Lyver was good in the festival two weekends ago, but didn’t perform quite as well here. He was better Sunday, scoring a goal. From North Grafton, he’s a strong skater who is hard to knock off pucks. As he showed on Sunday, he seems to get the most out of his ability. Atlantic Hockey schools, such as Holy Cross and Sacred Heart, should be watching him closely over the coming years.
Isaac Mitchell
St. Sebastian’s/Jr. Eagles U16, 2/28/05, LW, left shot, 5-8/170
Mitchell, a Harvard resident, had a strong game on Saturday, scoring a goal and adding an assist. I like his skating, skill and moxy on the ice. He’s one of the more underrated '05s in the area. One day he’ll find his way onto a Division 1 roster.
Landan Resendes
Cushing, 12/10/05, RW, right shot, 5-9/150
Resendes wasn’t as productive here as he’s capable of. He showed off his skating and he was around the puck a decent amount. From Marlboro, expectations are high for Resendes. His body is certainly stronger than how he showed over the weekend, as I think he’s a Hockey East player in the long run.
Michael Ranaldi
Governor’s, 8/2/05, LW, left shot, 5-11/180
Ranaldi, from Newburyport, had a good festival tryout two weekends ago. He was solid here, scoring a goal and playing hard throughout the two games. He has good size and plays a hard, heavy game. While not necessarily deserving of going through to Buffalo, his play certainly earned him recognition from coaches and scouts in attendance.
Cam Russo
Governor’s, 1/3/05, RW, right shot, 6-1/155
Russo produced more than any other player here, as he did at last summer’s national camp. From Middleton, his stick is elite. He has good size and can be a Division 1 player, if he improves his play away from the puck.
Ryan Shaw
Westminster, 1/29/05, C, right shot, 5-10/169
Shaw had a goal and played well throughout the entire weekend, as he had done in the previous portions of the festival. The East Longmeadow native has a good motor, keeps his feet moving, and can provide a spark offensively. He was around the puck a lot and was clearly a top-five forward here.
Joey Zheng
Phillips Andover, 9/8/05, RW, right shot, 5-10/165
Zheng is a speedy wing who can buzz around the ice. His quickness and ability to get to pucks are qualities that will help him going forward. He’s improving, but needs to keep getting better in terms of playing in the middle of the ice and skating through traffic.
