Playoffs? Let's talk about playoffs.
The NEPSAC released its tournament brackets for the 2024 Chuck Vernon Elite 8, Patsy Odden Large School and Dorothy Howard Small School Tournaments late Saturday night. Click or tap here for the full brackets.
This season's bracket is full of intrigue.
On one end you have Nobles and Williston, two girls prep hockey powerhouses looking to add to their legacies. Then, take Phillips Andover, last year's runner-up, who is playing its best hockey at the best time. The same can be said of Tabor at the other end of the bracket. The Seawolves have gotten hot at the right time.
It goes without saying that anything could happen when the puck drops on Wednesday.
Let's break down each team in the 2024 NEPSAC girls Elite 8 Tournament.
1. Nobles (20-0-4)
Record against teams in Elite 8: 4-0-1
The Bulldogs are determined to deliver coach Tom Resor a storybook ending in his final season behind the bench, entering the postseason undefeated.
They have been the best team in the NEPSAC wire-to-wire this season, boasting a plus-116 (134-18) differential. After opening the season with a tie against New Hampton, Nobles rattled off 19-straight wins. They enter the playoffs on a four-game win streak, coming out of a run of three ties in four games. In their last 10, they're 7-0-3.
Nobles will meet St. Paul's in the quarterfinals, who they've beaten twice already this season. The first was a 4-0 win for the Harrington Tournament championship, while the other was a 6-1 result in January. They also have wins over Elite 8 foes Loomis Chaffee and Tabor, plus a tie with Andover.
Four skaters are scoring over a point per game for the Bulldogs this season. Senior defender Olivia Maffeo (Canton, Mass.), a Boston College commit, leads Nobles in scoring for the second year in a row. She has 44 points (15 goals) in 28 games. Junior Calleigh Brown (Foxboro, Mass.) is having a massive breakout season with 35 points (17 goals) in 28 games. Yale commit and senior defender Sophia Levering (Westwood, Mass.) also has 35 points (14 goals), while junior Northeastern commit Molly MacCurtain (Reading, Mass.) has 29 points (14 goals).
Senior defenders Jaime Griswold (Concord, Mass.), also a BC commit, and Middlebury commit Ainsley Gray (Wellesley, Mass.) help round out an extremely deep defense group. In net, Anya Zupkofska (Braintree, Mass.) is one of the region's best with a .96 save percentage.
Nobles has dominated the last 20-plus years of NEPSAC girls hockey, winning 10 titles. Is one more run for Resor in store?
GIRLS BRACKETS: Elite 8 Tournament | Large School Tournament | Small School Tournament
2. Williston Northampton (19-3-1)
Record against teams in Elite 8: 4-3-0
Speaking of dominance, Williston is in the NEPSAC's top tournament for the 12th year in a row. Christa Talbot Syfu's team is trying to defend back-to-back titles in search of a three-peat. They'll face Tabor in the first round, who they beat 7-1 on Jan. 6.
Like Nobles, the Wildcats separated themselves from the pack throughout the season. They have the second-best differential in the NEPSAC at plus-82 (105-23). They also had an 11-game win streak from Jan. 2 through Feb. 9.
It came to an end on Feb. 10 when they fell to Andover in a rematch of last year's championship. They dropped their second of three in a loss to Loomis Chaffee a week later. But Williston responded with a gutsy overtime win over Deerfield and a shutout of Large School Tournament-bound BB&N to charge into the postseason. They're 8-2-0 in their last 10. In other regular-season Elite 8 matchups, Williston has a win and loss against St. Paul's, plus a win over Kent. They've battled through their share of injuries and adversity this season, too.
Four skaters are scoring over a point per game for the Wildcats. Senior Brown commit Monique Lyons (Bedford, Mass.) is second in the NEPSAC with 52 points (26 goals) in 23 games. Her linemates, junior Nora Curtis (17 goals, 37 points) and freshman Mia Daley (Lynnfield, Mass.; eight goals, 24 points), have had strong seasons, too. Junior Violet Caroll, who was a forward with Lyons and Curtis last season, has been on defense for most of this season. She has 24 points (six goals) from the blue line.
Williston also got a massive boost with the recent return of do-it-all defender and senior captain Caroline Auffiero (Belmont, Mass.), a Clarkson commit. In net, junior Olivia Ferebee was at her best in the postseason last year. She has a .92 save percentage so far this season.
3. Phillips Andover (18-3-2)
Record against teams in Elite 8: 5-2-2
No team in the NEPSAC is hotter than last year's runner-up, who made a charge to the No. 3 seed. Martha Fenton's squad draws Deerfield in the quarterfinals, who they beat 3-2 on Jan. 27. It's their fifth straight trip to the top tournament.
The Big Blue are unbeaten in 14 straight (13-0-1) since Jan. 17. They've won three in a row, including a win over Loomis Chaffee, as they enter the tournament. After Nobles, their record against Elite 8 opponents is the best of anyone in the field with additional wins over Williston and Tabor (twice). They also tied Kent and Nobles on top of losses to Loomis and St. Paul's.
Junior Peyton Kennedy (Sudbury, Mass.) leads the Big Blue in scoring with 23 points (eight goals) in 23 games. Junior BC commit Emily Mara (Winchester, Mass., 10 goals) and sophomore Sarah Powers (Lynnfield, Mass.; 13 goals) are having career seasons with 22 points each.
Andover also boasts three of the best prospects in the region between junior defender and Yale commit Molly Boyle (Scituate, Mass.; 18 points), sophomore forward Caroline Averill (Wayland, Mass.; 17 points) and freshman defender Maggie Averill (Wayland, Mass.; 17 points). Each missed time in the middle of the season when they represented Team USA in its gold-medal run at the IIHF U18 Women's World Championship.
Between the pipes, Avery Rodeheffer (New Haven, Conn.) has gotten better as the season's progressed, holding a .94 save percentage.
BOYS BRACKETS: Elite 8 Tournament | Large School Tournament | Small School Tournament
4. Loomis Chaffee (18-5-2)
Record against teams in Elite 8: 4-3-1
The Pelicans are back in the top tournament for the 10th year in a row. They'll host Kent in the quarterfinals.
After a 1-3-0 start to the season, Liz Leyden's group won 10 in a row from Dec. 14 through Jan. 20 as part of a 16-game unbeaten streak (15-0-1) through Feb. 9. They had a tough schedule to finish the season, going 2-2-1 in their last five with a win over Williston, a tie with Deerfield and losses to Andover and Choate, the No. 1 seed in the Large School Tournament.
Loomis also beat Andover in the Patsy K. Odden tournament championship. As for other Elite 8 head-to-head matchups, they beat Kent and Tabor in addition to losses to Nobles and Deerfield.
The key for the Pelicans has been balanced scoring, even with some key skaters missing time at different points in the season. A total of 10 different skaters have hit double-digit points on the season. Ellie Lachance (West Hartford, Conn.) paces the Pelicans with 19 points (six goals), and Lindsay Stepnowski (South Glastonbury, Conn.) has 18 points (eight goals). Annie Schwarz (Fairfield, Conn.) leads in goals with 10 (14 points). Meanwhile, Grace Morin has 17 points (nine goals) in 17 games, and Chloe Obser has 17 points (eight goals) in 18 contests.
Like Nobles, Loomis boasts a deep defense, which includes Middlebury commit Emma Hannah (Newtown, Conn.), Carly Dann (Hanover, NH), Megan Hosman and Catie Collins (South Burlington, Vt.). Leila Fournier (West Kingston, R.I.) has had the majority of the workload in net. She's put up a .95 save percentage.
5. Kent (12-3-2)
Record against teams in Elite 8: 0-2-2
The 2019 Elite 8 champions are back in the tournament for the ninth straight season. They'll face Loomis Chaffee in the quarterfinals.
The Lions were also the No. 5 seed in 2019. They upset No. 3 Tabor in the quarterfinals, beat No. 8 Loomis in the semis and toppled No. 2 Nobles, 4-1, in the finals.
Kent battled through some ups and downs in the middle of the season under new coach Sam Ftorek. They were 1-3-2 from Dec. 14 to Jan. 20, including a three-game losing streak. But since then, the Lions have won seven in a row, including wins over top Large School teams Choate and Westminster. In head-to-head matchups with Elite 8 teams this season, Kent tied Tabor and Andover on top of losses to Loomis and Williston.
Despite playing the fewest games of any Elite 8 team, Kent's schedule was also one of the toughest. Their opponents' win percentage was .5815, the third-highest of the field.
Three skaters are over a point-per-game pace for the Lions entering the postseason. Sophomore Renee Bishop has 23 points (six goals) in 17 games, and senior RPI commit Mia Montanari (East Hampton, Conn.) has 20 points and a team-high 15 goals. Senior Dartmouth commit Megan Duplantie has 18 points (six goals).
On the blue line, senior Quinnipiac commit Sophie Rousseau (Kent, Conn.) has locked things down. Ftorek called senior goalie Lauren Ferrari the team's "security blanket" entering the season, and such is the case this season. She's posted a .92 save percentage up to this point.
BRACKET BREAKDOWNS: Large School Tournament | Small School Tournament
6. Deerfield (17-5-3)
Record against teams in Elite 8: 1-3-1
Deerfield was as high as the third seed in recent weeks, but a difficult schedule to close out the regular season saw them fall to No. 6. They'll get a much-anticipated rematch with Andover, who beat them 3-2 last month.
Admittedly, I overlooked the Big Green entering the season, but they quickly became hard to ignore. Brooke Fernandez's team came out firing with a 15-1-1 record through the first month and a half. That stretch included wins over Loomis Chaffee, Small School contender New Hampton (twice) and Large School favorite Choate. They also had a 12-game win streak from Dec. 15 through Jan. 24.
Against other Elite 8 foes, Deerfield tied Loomis, lost to St. Paul's and fell to Williston in overtime. They had perhaps the toughest finishing stretch of anyone, going 2-4-2 in their last eight games, a run that featured matchups with Andover, SPS, Williston, Loomis and Westminster. Perhaps, they'll be better off for it and battle-tested for the tournament.
Deerfield also boasts one of the most potent attacks in the field. Their 92 goals-for are the third-most among Elite 8 teams, trailing only Nobles and Williston. They have a plus-57 differential, overall (92-35), also third-best.
Annie Dinges (Woodstock, Conn.), a senior committed to Harvard, is one of the region's most dangerous skaters. She paces the Big Green with 37 points (22 goals) in 25 games. Sophomore Sophie Frost is also having a huge season with 10 goals and 25 points. Freshman Olivia Austen (Darien, Conn.) has also made a big-time impression with 22 points (seven goals).
Sophomore Keira Austen (Darien, Conn.) leads a young blue line that features one senior, one junior, two sophomores and two freshmen. She has 2o points on the season. In goal, junior Campbell Krotee (Darien, Conn.) has had a fantastic season with a .93 save percentage. She's faced 466 shots, the second-most of any Elite 8 goaltender.
7. Tabor (16-7-3)
Record against teams in Elite 8: 1-5-1
Make it seven straight Elite 8 trips and 15 in the last 16 seasons for Tabor, who is riding a second-half surge into the postseason.
The Seawolves struggled at the start of 2024, going 1-4-2 after the calendar flipped. Since then, Eric Long's team has been one of the hottest teams in New England. They're 9-2-0 in their last 11, including wins over No. 8 St. Paul's, Westminster, Dexter and BB&N.
It is worth noting, however, that outside of the victory over SPS, Tabor's record against Elite 8 teams is the worst of the field. They've tied Kent and lost to Andover (twice), Williston, Loomis and Nobles. The loss to Williston, who they'll face in the quarterfinals, was a 7-1 result on Jan. 6.
But if anything, the Seawolves have plenty of experience, momentum and bulletin board material entering the playoffs.
Amherst commit Ayla Abban (Duxbury, Mass.) is at a point-per-game clip with 26 points (18 goals) in 26 contests. Meanwhile, Lizzy Greeley (Hyde Park, Mass.) has 10 goals and 25 points on the season.
Junior Adeline Paskowski (Plymouth, Mass.) and senior Kaitlin Sullivan (Needham, Mass.) make up a strong one-two punch on the blue line. Paskowski has a career-high 24 points this year, and Sullivan, a Holy Cross commit, has 19 points and a career-best nine goals.
Junior Avery Olson has taken on the biggest workload in net, posting a .90 save percentage. The 412 shots she's faced is the third-most among Elite 8 goalies.
BOYS PREVIEWS: Elite 8 Tournament | Large School Tournament | Small School Tournament
8. St. Paul's (17-8-1)
Record against teams in Elite 8: 3-4-0
It was close, but St. Paul's, the reigning Large School champions, held onto the No. 8 seed to reach the Elite 8 for the first time since 2022 and the fourth time in six tournaments. They won it all in 2015.
The Big Red took care of business down the stretch, going 4-0-1 in their last five games, including a big win over New Hampton in the finale to solidify their spot and claim the Lakes Region title. In their last 10, SPS is 7-2-1, which includes a loss to Tabor.
St. Paul's also has wins over Williston, Andover and Deerfield as well as losses to Nobles (twice). They'll face the Bulldogs in the quarterfinals. Kelli Mackey's squad is surely eager to not only try to hand Nobles its first defeat in a massive upset but also get revenge for the previous two losses. They've also faced one of the most difficult schedules of the Elite 8 teams. The Big Red's opponents' win percentage is .6022, the highest in the bracket.
Someone who certainly helps the cause is senior captain and Yale commit Cami Bell (Barre, Vt.). She leads the Big Red with 23 goals and 30 points this season. Behind her, junior Maude Niemann is having a big breakout this season with 18 points (12 goals). Freshman Erin Flaherty has also been solid with 15 points (12 assists).
On the blue line, Georgia Bussey has been strong this season, while Chelsea Bell (Barre, Vt.) has facilitated offense with 10 assists.
The biggest key to an upset likely lies in goal, though. Ally Martiniello (Salem, NH) could make a case to be the NEPSAC's best goaltender. The senior Colby commit has a .94 save percentage, facing 654 shots this season. That's the fifth-highest total in the NEPSAC and by far the highest of any Elite 8 goalie. She was at her best in the postseason last year with shutouts in the Large School semifinals and championship.
