The 2026 NEPSAC boys Small School tournament is here, and it's definitely the most top-heavy of the three.
Holderness, with its win over Kimball Union for the Lakes Region championship, enters as the No. 1 seed. Winchendon snagged the No. 2 seed after the best possible second half. Canterbury surprised teams all season, finishing as the No. 3 seed. And Rivers, despite all the talent lost from last season's team, got the No. 4 seed in the Small School.
But there's no doubt that No. 5 Berkshire, No. 6 St. George's, No. 7 New Hampton and No. 8 Pomfret are formidable foes.
Here's why each team has a shot at winning it all.
1. Holderness (18-6-3)
Record against Small School teams: 3-3-0
Why they could win:Â Depth. Junior forward Michael Delaney has had a fantastic season with 38 points, but the Bulls can score in waves. Postgrad Sawyer Graubins, seniors Viktor Samal and Jack Welby (Windham, N.H.), and juniors AJ Jones and Henry Colbert can be relied on for offense. Also, don't sleep on senior goalie Mark Bierwirth (Chelmsford, Mass.). He's one of the more reliable netminders in prep with a 2.54 GAA and a .910 save percentage.
GIRLS BRACKETS: Elite 8 field | Large School field | Small School field
2. Winchendon (19-7-5)
Record against Small School teams: 4-1-2
Why they could win:Â Offense, offense and more offense. Winchendon is high-flying, ranking second in the region in goals (172). That's been led by Cornell commit and senior forward Charlie Puglisi, who ranks second in New England for points with 67. Seniors Jackson Smail (Milton, Vt.) and Cooper Ludwar (Chelmsford, Mass.) also finished the regular season north of 50 points. Head coach Mike Busconi's team has a plethora of secondary scorers, too. Something that also shouldn't be overlooked: How hot this team is. Winchendon is 14-1-1 since Jan. 21.
3. Canterbury (18-9-2)
Record against Small School teams: 3-1-0Â
Why they could win: I've said it all year: This team is old. Senior Cody Hew leads the charge in net. Up front, postgrads Jack Mceleney (Woburn, Mass.) and Jack Lee (Woburn, Mass.), and seniors Seamus McMakin (Burlington, Mass.), Gaines Clonts and Britton Bethard have provided most of the scoring this season. All are '07s. Senior Tommy Browne has been one of the best defenders, ranking second in the region with 40 points. Canterbury won the Small School tournament in 2024.
4. Rivers (13-8-3)
Record against Small School teams: 0-1-2
Why they could win:Â Rivers is a really hard team to play against. Head coach Freddy Meyer has the Red Wings structured well, which typically keeps scores low. You can bet they're going to try to do that this week. Fortunately for Rivers, it has two great goalies in senior Derrick Huang (Carlisle, Mass.) and sophomore Will Torres (Framingham, Mass.), who can make 40 saves and keep Rivers in low-scoring games.
READ MORE: Breaking down the Elite 8 | Why each Large School team could winÂ
5. Berkshire (19-9-2)
Record against Small School teams: 0-2-0
Why they could win:Â The big guns. Senior James McMurray leads the team in points (44), senior Jonah Rainsch leads the team in goals (24) and senior Matt Lacombe (Marlboro, Mass.) has been a top playmaker with 30 assists. If that trio is producing, Berkshire should make a real push for the title. Most of this core was there last year when the Bears lost in the Small School championship.
6. St. George's (13-10-4)
Record against Small School teams: 0-1-3
Why they could win:Â The Dragons need to tighten things up on defense. They rank near the bottom of prep in goals allowed (98), so getting high-end goaltending from Alex Wang (Concord, Mass.) and stingy defense will be the path for head coach Allie Skelley's team. It will be up to sophomore Jake Donatelli (Barrington, R.I.), seniors Payton Tracy and Owen Draddy, and junior Joel Thompson to help that happen.
7. New Hampton (18-13-1)
Record against Small School teams: 3-1-0Â
Why they could win: The Huskies play good teams really well and are a pain to play against. Some examples: beating Holderness twice (and then playing them close in the Lakes Region semifinals), taking down Winchendon in the first game of the season and tying Cushing. Their losses to good teams are also usually close, too. Head coach Connor Gorman's team has no issue playing up with better teams, which makes them a good sleeper team.
BOYS BRACKETS: Elite 8 field | Large School field | Small School field
8. Pomfret (14-10-3)
Record against Small School teams: 1-4-1
Why they could win:Â Pomfret has some legit big guns in senior Rich Cavanagh (Warwick, R.I.) and postgrad Giacomo Caliri (Cranston, R.I.). Cavanagh leads the team with 42 points, while Caliri has 41. The Griffins also have some strong secondary scorers in postgrad Cam Peltz (Simsbury, Conn.), senior TJ Swinson and Will Norton (Lynnfield, Mass.), and junior Nathan Dono (Sturbridge, Conn.). Pairing that with a strong, No. 1 defenseman in Sacred Heart commit Ian Sherman (Brooklyn, Conn.) and senior goalie Joey Mitchell, and I wouldn't be shocked to see Pomfret go on a run.
