Finn Sears needs no introduction in New England hockey circles.
The Medford, Mass., native is coming off a productive U17 season with the U.S. National Team Development Program, posting 35 points (18 goals) in 55 games. It followed a standout prep career at Rivers and a great run with the Boston Junior Eagles. The 6-foot, 187-pound winger put up 87 points (35 goals) in 58 games across his eighth-grade and freshman seasons at Rivers, including a 53-point freshman campaign.
The Boston College commit is set up well for his U18 season next year, and he could go in the early rounds of the 2027 NHL Draft.
Freddy Meyer, his coach with Rivers and the Junior Eagles, breaks down Sears’ skill-set.
Offensive skillset
“Finn is a very talented kid with the puck on his stick, and he has the ability to see the ice at a high level and make plays that a lot of guys don’t see. He’s got a good shot as well if that presents itself, and he’s in shoot mode with his ability to score goals. This year at the national program, he was pretty balanced in terms of goals and assists, which shows his versatility as a player.”
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Hockey IQ
“Finn plays the game at a high level with his ability to anticipate pucks, whether defensively in terms of trying to angle and turn pucks over, or offensively. We’ve done a lot of work over the years in the offensive zone on puck protection and in little cycles, on how to create 2-on-1s and find quiet space. I saw him utilizing those skills this year at the national program as well.”
Skating & Strength
"In the last 12 months, he’s grown in terms of height and strength. He’s at that prime age where it’ll be a really important summer for him to keep getting stronger. With that, his skating has continually improved. We spent a lot of time on fine-tuning that, and I think, overall, he’s got the tools in the toolbox. It’s a matter of just keeping putting in the hard work and chasing the ultimate dream.”
Improvements
“I think (he’s improved) in all aspects of his game, to be honest. He’s always been a talented kid offensively. I think his spending a couple of years with us here at Rivers and playing against older talent really helped with his development, as in the natural transition to the U.S. national program, playing in the USHL and being comfortable playing in those situations against bigger, faster and stronger players.”
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Translating to the higher levels
“Selfishly, I think prep hockey is very good for those players who are in their earlier high school years. He was in eighth and ninth grade, competing and practicing day in and day out against players who were a couple of years older and obviously bigger and stronger. I think getting those reps in as early as you can allows you to make big steps in your game when you play against junior-A talent or in college or pro hockey at some point.”
