It's time to have some fun.
While the New England boys prep hockey playoffs are fast approaching and every team is dead set on getting the highest seed possible, let's pull back for just one second.
The 4 Nations Face-Off wrapped up on Thursday night with Canada taking down the United States in an overtime thriller. The tournament was a smashing success as the world got to see best-on-best, international competition.
It got me thinking: What if there was something similar in prep?
The four teams most certainly would not be the United States, Canada, Sweden and Finland. There aren't nearly enough New England prep players from Sweden and Finland to make teams.
So, we'd localize it. One team would be Massachusetts. Another would be Canada. The third team would be the New England District, comprised of Connecticut, New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine. The final team would be New York and New Jersey put together.
This would take place the week after the season ends at a central location like Harvard. That way, there's more than enough space for people to watch. It would be a terrific event for colleges and junior coaches to scout — what better way to see if someone's good than when they're playing the best?
Since this fictional tournament is my idea, I decided to pick this year's teams. Each team has four lines of forwards, three defensive pairings and three goalies. I included substitutes as well.
Let's dive in.
Team Massachusetts
Finn Sears - Carter Meyer - Rian Chudzinski
Justin Graf - Billy MacAusland - Kyle O'Leary
CJ Watroba - Sam Pandolfo - David Bosco
Evan Nee - Will Manchuso - Noah Survilas
Extras: Jake Tavares, Joseph Covelluzzi
Evan Jones - Grayson Cohen
Freddy Meyer - Myles Brosnan
Tyler Russo - Brian McFadden
Extras: Ian Crowley, Matas Janulis
Anthony Palmer
Vinnie D'Urso
Blake McMeniman
ANALYSIS: This team is full of high-end talent. That first line would be unstoppable. It was a tough call moving Pandolfo away from Carter Meyer and Sears, but I think he serves a better role as a shutdown, two-way center. This team is also full of good, right-shot forwards as it was tough to put Survilas on the fourth line. It was also a hard decision to have Tavares, a Dartmouth commit, as an extra forward. I love keeping MacAusland and O'Leary together and Graf is such a good set-up man that those three would undoubtedly cook.
On defense, Jones and Cohen are my first pair. They play together anyway at Belmont Hill and balance each other out well. Meyer and Brosnan are two of the best two-way defenders in prep. I like Russo and McFadden together as a shutdown pair. Crowley has had an outstanding season with Governor's Academy and Janulis has a whole bunch of upside for Lawrence Academy. Both could fit in the lineup, too. Jones is definitely my first power play unit's quarterback, while Brosnan and Meyer would be on the second unit.
Palmer, D'Urso and McMeniman are three great options in net. I'd start with Palmer, but I'd have zero issue moving to D'Urso or McMeniman.
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Team Canada
Rui Han - Grayden Robertson-Palmer - Connor Davis
Liam Lefebvre - Justin Tavares - Duncan Thompson
Xander Boutilier - Matthew Itzkovitz - Stefano Pietrantonio
Matt Vohra - Drew Keiver - Adrian Mendoza
Extra: Felix Antoine-Parenteau
Ryland Randle - Zachary Chehade
Moussa Seydi - Nate Watson
Ludovik Gauvin - Zachary Fedele
Justin BriseBois
Elliot Lennon
Maksim Corovic
ANALYSIS: That is a stacked top six. That first line would be overpowering for almost any team and I like keeping Han and Robertson-Palmer together. That line could play in any situation. I know Thompson is normally a center, but I wanted to put those three together because they have such high offensive upsides. The bottom six is a mix. I've always been a fan of what Boutilier brings and I like him with Itzkovitz down the middle and Pietrantonio, a Dartmouth commit, on the right.
Randle would run the top power play unit. I love what Chehade, Watson, Seydi and Fedele bring as two-way threats who can be defensively responsible. Gauvin has been one of the top point-getters among defensemen this season. He deserves a spot.
I don't think you can go wrong with any of the three goalies. BriseBois has had the best season, so he gets the net first. But Lennon has been a force with Deerfield and should easily see some time. Corovic, an '08, would also be hard to keep out of the net.
Team New England
Max Dineen - Mason St. Louis - Indiana Grossbard
Ethan Travis - Danny Buckley - Ryan Lucarelli
Blake Burke - Zach Baker - Tommy Coccaro
Max Donatelli - Oliver Czaja - Lucas Husted-Edwards
Extras: Nico Ciardiello, Colin Walsh
Marco Senerchia - Everett Baldwin
Ryan Poirier - Jeremy Poirier
Oskar Drabczynski - James Odyniec
Extras: Cam Minella, Nathan Walsh
Jack Fichthorn
Steven Luciano
Connor Towle
ANALYSIS:Â This team is sneaky deep. Up front, Dineen, St. Louis and Grossbard have produced at absurd rates this season. Putting Grossbard and St. Louis together would certainly please Dartmouth since both are committed there. Travis and Lucarelli have been high-end producers as well, and Buckley gives them some toughness down the middle. Burke and Coccaro are both from Westminster so I like them together, and Baker has quietly been outstanding for Groton this season. That's an offensive third line for sure. For the fourth line, I like the idea of a defensive center with Czaja. Husted-Edwards has 22 points in 22 games this season and Donatelli adds offense to that line, too.
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Senerchia and Baldwin are a safe bet for the top pair. Baldwin is one of the best players in prep, while Senerchia is a terrific puck-mover. Both are committed to Providence. Ryan Poirier is a good-skating, puck-moving defenseman and committed to Harvard, while Jeremy Poirier has been one of the top defenders in prep and a two-way force who would be huge for Team New England. I like Drabczynski as another two-way defender on the third pair and Odyniec is rock-solid steady.
In net, this might be the strongest goalie trio of the four teams. Fichthorn has been lights out for Westminster this season, while Luciano has proven to be a big-game goalie throughout his career. Towle is committed to Holy Cross and has faced a whole bunch of pucks at Hotchkiss over the last three seasons.
Team New York and New Jersey
Jacob Jett - Joseph Salandra - Cooper Snee
Andrew Migliore - JT Rothstein - Nick Peragine
Jack Broderick - Rowen Sang - Will Schletweg
Liam Donnelly - Connor Pierson - David Ambuhl
Extras: Sam Gero, Richard Shin
Colin Feeley - Tommy Bleyl
Gus Chong - Noah Jettelson
Matthew Koch - Kristopher Richards
Extras: Chris Baird-Gajdos, Justin Garvey
Brady Morris
Dylan Lee-Stack
Brendan Petraco
ANALYSIS:Â The top six is this team's best asset. Salandra has arguably been the top player in prep, while Jett brings high-end offense and Snee, a Providence commit, provides two-way play, physicality and leadership. I like the idea of putting Migliore and Peragine together on the second line due to how much both have produced with Trinity-Pawling this season. Rothstein, a Harvard commit, is a phenomenal play-driver. Broderick is committed to Cornell and Schletweg is a high-end '08 for Kent. Sang, also an '08, has been productive for Kimball Union this season. The fourth line is big on potential. Donnelly, an '08 for Avon Old Farms, has a heavy shot and the ability to produce. Pierson is just shy of a point-per-game player with New Hampton and brings leadership, while Ambuhl also brings leadership and leads Millbrook in goals (13) and is tied for the lead in points (27).
The right side on defense is stacked. Bleyl is committed to Michigan State, Jettelson is committed to Holy Cross and Richards is committed to St. Lawrence. All three can play in any situation. Feeley is 6-foot-6, committed to Harvard and has high-end offensive upside. Koch also has an offensive touch, while Chong is defensively responsible.
Morris has earned the starter's net given how good he's been for Taft the last two seasons. Lee-Stack has been a revelation for Brunswick, while Petraco has been outstanding for Phillips Exeter of late.
Final thoughts
While this is a fictional idea, I actually really like it. It would be a fun way to end the season. In some ways, it would be like an intense All-Star game with NHL scouts, college coaches and junior coaches converging on Harvard throughout the week to view the games. It'd be a marquee event with most of the best prep players on one sheet. Maybe instead of calling this 4 Nations, it's 4 Regions. It would be a big deal to play for your region and come out the champ.
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So, who wins?
I think all four of these teams would be able to compete with one another. Still, I think the U.S. vs. Canada matchup in this tournament would be Massachusetts vs. New England. New York/New Jersey and Canada would be formidable, hard opponents. But I think Massachusetts and New England are filled to the brim with high-end talent. The championship would be a coin flip. My final prediction, however, would be Massachusetts over New England in overtime.
