As we roll into the final week of the season there are some playoff breakdowns, major matchups and predictions from the staff at NZ Prep. We will break down some scenarios for players, fans, coaches to see what prep hockey has in store in the final week.
Key Games this Week
2/18/19
St. George’s vs. Tabor – If St. George’s wins it puts them at .500 which has RPI implications for all that teams that have beaten them this year in the playoff hunt; i.e. NMH, Rivers (2x), Proctor, Groton (2x) and Dexter. The teams most impacted will be Dexter and Rivers as they have two wins against St. George’s.
Proctor vs. Holderness – Holderness is .500; a loss to Proctor would dip them below, a win or a tie would keep them at .500 or better. It’s somewhat of a catch 22 for Proctor as a tie could statistically be more beneficial than a win. Teams rooting for Holderness will be Tilton, Exeter, Cushing, KUA and St. Paul’s.
2/20/19
Taft vs. Trinity Pawling – Taft is exactly .500 at this point and a win here would secure at least a .500 record on the season as they have just one more game after this against Hotchkiss. Team impacted by Taft would be most all the schools in Connecticut but most importantly for Deerfield, Avon, Kent, Westminster and Gunnery. The most impacted in Avon who has two wins over Taft and could use a boost in the final week.
St. George’s vs. St. Marks – St. George’s is a bubble .500 team and if they beat Tabor they will be .500 so this game could be important. Also, St. Mark’s is climbing up the ranks in the small school pool so a win here could solidify home ice advantage for the first round.
Holderness vs. Berwick – Holderness is a bubble .500 team fighting for placement in the Small School Tournament. A win here could help accomplish both.
Albany vs. Williston Northampton – Williston is on the outside of the Large School playoffs but they are one game under .500 so a win over Albany could have a ripple effect on the many teams they have played in playoff contention; particularly Gunnery, NMH, Nobles and St. Sebastian’s.
Pomfret vs. Kents Hill – These are two teams in the hunt for the Small School Playoffs and are both +.500 teams so the winner of this game will do a lot to help their playoff seeding.
#14 Andover vs. #6 NMH – This is one of the biggest games of the week given that NMH likely needs a win here to stay in the Elite 8 hunt and Andover is on the bubble but is likely a top seed in the Large School. Both teams would be significantly improved with a win in this game.
#4 St. Sebastian’s vs. #5 Lawrence Academy – This is the game to circle, underline, bold and star. A rematch game between #4 and #5 ranked teams where St. Sebastian’s mopped the floor with Lawrence two weeks back. Both of these teams are likely locks for the Elite 8 but a win would put one of them at home ice for the first round of the playoffs. There is a scenario that isn’t far off where these two teams play against one another in the first round of the Elite 8 playoffs; there where question may be answered by the winner in this game.
Hotchkiss vs. #1 Salisbury – The Salisbury Knights lost early in the season to Hotchkiss and this rematch game may not mean a ton for them as they have the Elite 8 home ice locked up, but it means a lot for Hotchkiss who is trying to keep their playoff hopes alive. They’ll likely need a win here to propel themselves back into the Large School Playoff scenario. Kent, Westminster and Deerfield would be positively impacted with a Hotchkiss victory.
Cushing vs. New Hampton – These teams are going to be +.500 teams so the game won’t have a ton of impact on other teams; however, both teams are trying to get into the Large/Small School Playoffs and need a win in this game to boost their resume.
#8 Westminster vs. #7 Gunnery – These two Connecticut teams will meet for the first time this season; both are playing great hockey and looking to make a final push to secure a berth in the Elite 8. Gunnery is in if the season ends today and Westminster is not; a win here could change a lot. This game likely has the most Elite 8 playoff implications of any other game throughout the week.
#9 Kent vs. #10 Deerfield – These are two teams with a chance of making the Elite 8; Kent’s chances aren’t nearly as good as Deerfield’s but a win in this game could do a lot for their chances. A loss here from Deerfield would likely bump them out and a win would likely secure their spot as a bottom seed. A lot on the line in this tilt. This is their first matchup of the season.
2/23/19
St. Mark’s vs. Groton – A battle of two hot teams heading into the Small School Tournament with a chance to run the table. The outcome of this game will be a nice preview of what we’ll see in that tournament the following week.
#14 Andover vs. #15 Exeter – The two teams faced off in the middle of the season and Exeter won that exchange but both squads are not going into the final week playing their best hockey so both teams could really use a confidence boost and some seeding help in the Large School Tournament in order to get some momentum.
Taft vs. Hotchkiss – This game, depending on how the two teams do earlier in the week, could have Large School playoff implications. It could also have .500 record implications for the RPI, so pending on their Wed games, this game could have quite a ripple effect across the league.
#10 Deerfield vs. #8 Westminster – This will depend on the earlier games this week and how the teams fared but if Deerfield comes into this with a win over Kent and Westminster comes into this with a win over Gunnery than this game could be a figurative play in game for the Elite 8. Both teams need this win and both will be coming off big tests. Running the table likely means Elite 8 for both or at least one, and anything short of that could likely bump them out. All eyes will be on this one on the final day.
Photo Credit: Dan Hickling/Hickling Images