The last time Belmont Hill made a NEPSAC tournament appearance was March 2017.
After not having the chance to do so in 2021, the Belmont, Mass., prep school, under the direction of a new head coach, is reloaded and eager to compete for a playoff spot in 2022.
Former assistant Brian Phinney (Ripton, Vt.) was officially named head coach in March. The Middlebury College alum served in an interim capacity last season, stepping in for Jeremiah McCarthy (Boston, Mass.), who went remote for the duration of the Covid-shortened campaign. Phinney served the previous two seasons under McCarthy as assistant coach.
Like most ISL schools during the pandemic, Belmont Hill played as many games as possible but spent most of the 2020-21 season focused on development.
Without a true prep schedule, some players went out on their own to find meaningful games, skating for Midget clubs across New England.
Now, with things trending in the right direction in terms of the season's fate, the cornerstones of the revamped group are back and eager to set out on their first true campaign under Phinney.
“It’s a really good group,” Phinney, age 39, told New England Hockey Journal. “Coach McCarthy and some of the other people who have been involved with the program have done a nice job of getting good, quality kids. We’ve got a good senior class, there are some good young guys in the group, too, so it’s sort of across all grade levels.
"The other good thing is, these kids have a good mindset -- they love to work hard -- so I think that combined with having some good talent will really be a good thing for us.”
In addition to the seniors, Belmont Hill boasts a talented class of juniors, most of whom are skating split season with the East Coast Wizards 18-U in the fall.
Most notably, James Fisher, who levied his standout play with the Wizards into a Northeastern commitment over the summer. The '04 forward from Wilmington, Mass., didn't make national camp but is a local prospect of note in his first year of draft eligibility.
“He’s going to give us a lot of pop in our game," Phinney said of Fisher. "With those tools and his mindset, there’s a really great opportunity for him to step in and have a big effect on every single game we play."
Fellow juniors Ronan O’Donnell (Fairfield, Conn.) and Mason Daignault (Providence, R.I.), as well as senior Braden Reilly (Reading, Mass.), will look to bolster Fisher's efforts up front.
In the back end, senior defensemen Will Killoran (Charlestown, Mass.) and Jack Bosco (Winchester, Mass.) anchor the defensive group, in addition to junior blueliner Matt Biotti (Cambridge, Mass.).
A solid goalie tandem will compete for minutes and serve as the backbone of the team in net.
Sam Scopa (Lexington, Mass.), a summer standout who carried his rising play into the fall, is entering his sophomore season after carrying the load for most of last year's partial campaign. Aaron Matthews (Newton, Mass.), a senior, is the other goalie whose play will be relied on between the pipes.
“They’ll push each other to be better every day,” Phinney said of the tandem in net. “So, that’s going to be good for those two and then in terms of the team, they're going to have confidence in who’s behind them and I think that will allow them to play the game a certain way.”
With Tom Goguen (Weston, Mass.) filling the main leadership role, the team will look to its cast of newcomers to make contributions and impact play.
Among other additions, '06 forward Teddy Stiga (Sudbury, Mass.) and '05 forward Jake McManus (Winthrop, Mass.) join the squad from the Boston Junior Eagles 16-U.
“The league’s going to be tight and it’s going to have a lot of high skill. It’s going to be some nice hockey and it's going to be great to get back and start playing all of the ISL schools again," Phinney said.
“Everybody’s going to get excited knowing that those rivalry games are on the schedule again, and it was just so week-to-week this past year, so we’re really looking forward to it.”
(Previously in our prep school preview series: Brunswick, Gunnery, New Hampton, St. Mark’s, Tabor, Loomis Chaffee, Berkshire, St. George’s, Cushing)
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