The Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association Division 4 circuit doesn't have the depth of teams or players that the upper divisions possess.
There is no denying that, but there were some good teams and players at the top. The top two teams in the state met in the MIAA Division 4 State championship game at TD Garden last month with Norwell knocking off defending champion Sandwich.
While those two teams had a number of talented players for this division, a few lower in the rankings also had standouts.
New England Hockey Journal has compiled a player of the year, coach of the year, and first and second All-MIAA teams for this division.
Player of the Year
Colin McIver
Sandwich, 1/7/05, C, left shot, 5-8/140
McIver scored 23 goals and had 28 assists in 25 games for the Blue Knights as the team advanced to the TD Garden for the state final for a second consecutive year. Despite falling short a year after winning it all, McIver was the most noticeable player in the game. His speed allows him to create offense, especially on the rush. He’s able to separate from opposing defenders and get to scoring areas. He will graduate from Sandwich in a couple of months with a career-scoring total of 47 goals and 56 assists for 103 points in 76 games.
Coach of the Year
Dale Dunbar
Winthrop
Dunbar helped guide his team from a 10-9-1 record in 2021-22 to 16-3-1 this winter. The former Boston University Terrier is a Winthrop native and longtime head coach of his alma mater. His team improved drastically on the defensive side, giving up a minuscule 1.77 goals per game, a whole goal less than a year ago. The Vikings won the Northeast Conference title and earned the No. 3 seed in the Division 4 tournament. Winthrop lost in the second round to Amesbury, but it was still a great season for Dunbar and the Vikings.
All-MIAA First Team
Colin McIver
Sandwich, 1/7/05, C, left shot, 5-8/140
Timmy Ward
Norwell, 11/13/04, C, right shot, 5-9/155
Ward will head to Providence College as a student in the fall with at least two state championships from high school. The senior won the state championship in hockey in March after helping his team to the lacrosse championship last spring. Ward amassed a whopping 33 goals and 41 assists for the Clippers. “Timmy is not only a finisher, but a facilitator. He moves the puck and sees the ice so well,” said Norwell coach James Casagrande.
Peter Silverman
Winthrop, 3/20/06, LW, left shot, 5-6/136
Silverman is not new to success. He was an NEC All-Star as a freshman before making the NEC All-Conference Team as a sophomore. This winter, he scored 27 goals and had 28 assists en route to winning the league’s MVP award. According to Dunbar, his head coach, “Peter is extremely skilled with great puck handling, very fast and shifty, and can take a game over with his scoring touch. He is a very coachable young man with great leadership qualities.” Silverman wore the ‘C’ for the Vikings as a junior and is expected to be a big part of the team’s drive to improve further in 2023-24.
CHAMPS: Pope Francis wins D1 | Canton wins D2 | Nashoba wins D3 | Norwell wins D4
Ronan Locke
Swampscott, 4/23/05, C, left shot, 5-10/160
Locke spent a few years away from Swampscott with Boston Hockey Academy but returned for his senior campaign. The tall, lanky center has skill, skates well and can make plays. He torched opposing goaltenders for 19 goals and 17 assists. Locke would be a valuable addition for a prep school looking to add a postgraduate student in 2023-24.
Kevin Leary
Norwell, 6/28/04, D, right shot, 6-1/170
Leary returned home to Norwell after spending time at Avon Old Farms on the junior varsity squad. Leary had the size, skating ability and physical tools to be a major factor on the blue line at this level. In 25 games, Leary scored nine goals and had 26 assists. He was effective on breakouts and helped Norwell create possession time.
Mitchell Norkevicius
Sandwich, 5/5/05, G, catches left, 6-0/160
Norkevicius was the best goaltender in Division 4. His team played up-and-down hockey, so he would face a decent amount of shots on many nights. He’s athletic with good size while kicking rebounds to the side and preventing second-chance opportunities. A two-time starting goaltender in the state championship at TD Garden, he’s a heck of a goalie at this level.
All-MIAA Second Team
Quinn Simmons
Norwell, 8/1/06, C, left shot, 5-9/160
Simmons is a talented player that longtime followers of the bantam and midget scenes in Massachusetts know from his time with the Cape Cod Whalers. He notched 16 goals and 21 assists for 37 points.
Austin Shea
Norwell, 10/2/04, RW, right shot, 5-9/145
Shea scored 28 goals and had 16 assists as he also captured his second state championship to be a multisport star at the high school level. Shea is off to college in the fall, but he’s a goal scorer who battled, competed and willed his way to finding the net.
Brady Keeler
Grafton, 1/8/05, C, right shot, 6-0/175
Keeler, who had been playing for the Junior Bruins full-season organization, notched 35 goals and 21 assists for 56 points in his senior season for the Gators. As his numbers would indicate, Keeler is a goal scorer who had success in the USPHL midget circuit, as well.
Chris Cardillo
Sandwich, 12/21/05, RW, right shot, 5-9/150
Cardillo, a junior, had a monster season for Sandwich. He scored 33 goals and had 18 assists for 51 points in 25 games. It marked a 16-point increase from his sophomore campaign. In the state championship game, Cardillo showed off his laser shot and was able to command a presence in the attacking zone.
Quinn Hitchcock
Swampscott, 1/1/06, D, right shot,
Hitchcock scored almost a point per game from the back end for the Big Blue. The junior tallied nine goals and 10 assists for head coach Gino Faia’s team. Hitchcock has good size and was solid in both zones.
CHAMPIONSHIP SUNDAY: All-Championship Team from all four boys MIAA finals
Nico Babine
Winthrop, 12/1/03, G, catches left
Babine was the starting goaltender for a Vikings team that dramatically improved its scoring defense year over year. Dunbar’s team allowed just 33 goals in 20 regular season games. Babine was a major reason for that and had several huge nights to keep Winthrop on the winning side of the scoreboard.
