Neutral Zone staff breaks down the Large School playoff matchups, the key players, provides some background information and even predictions on all the tournament quarterfinal games.
#1 Cushing Academy vs. #8 Kent School
The Matchup: Cushing started the season with a 7-6-1 record throught the first 14 games of the season and looked like a team on the playoff bubble but really hit their stride in the second half of the year and was just barely beat out of Elite 8 by Berkshire. The Penguins have gone 13-1-1 in their last 15 games and have been out scoring opponents 86 to 30 during that stretch which is 5.7 goals per game of offense and 2 goals against per game of defense! One of preps hottest teams will face defending Large School champions Kent Lions. Kent is a tough matchup given their depth and size; they have one of the most challenging schedules in prep hockey and have wins over KUA, Millbrook and Avon. With the way Cushing is playing going 13-1-1 in their last 15 games versus Kent who is 4-9-1 in their last 15 games. Cushing has the edge but it won’t be an easy game for them.
Players to Watch: Lukas Gustafsson (Cushing)- Boston College Commit, Max Dorrington (Cushing), Jacob Banks (Cushing), Billy Norcross (Cushing)-Boston College Commit, Connor Wood (Cushing), Jake Hewitt (Cushing)- Army Commit, Cam Lund (Cushing), Nolan Hayes (Cushing), Jackson Dorrington (Cushing), Cody Sealey (Cushing), Max Bogdanovich (Cushing)-University of Maine Commit, Owen Paskowski (Cushing), Matthew Perryman (Kent), Jason Kleinhans (Kent), Aidan Cobb (Kent) – Cornell Commit, Jonas Passante (Kent), Nick Marciano (Kent), Dante Palombo (Kent)
Predictions: (4-0 Cushing)
Winner: Cushing
“Cushing has a great combination of size and skill, younger high end prospects as well as older, experienced players who can score. They can come from behind or play with a lead and have both the physicality to play with Kent but also the speed and skill to score.” – Murph
Winner: Cushing
“I haven’t seen Kent this season but I liked Cushings chances if they were in the Elite 8 let alone in Large School so for me it’s a Penguin win.” – Ian
Winner: Cushing
“Cushing is arguably the hottest teams in prep hockey, they have all the makings of a championship team; deep and talented roster, they are physical and hard to play against and have speed and talent up front. They can roll 3 lines all game. Only struggle could be a young, inexperienced goaltender but he’s very talented. Cushing will be too much of Kent team not playing thier best hockey right now.” – Brendan
Winner: Cushing
“The Penguins are firing on all cylinders heading into the playoffs and Kent seems to be struggling as of late. Kent could upset if they can keep it low scoring and take advantage of Cushings youth, but if the game becomes a shootout Cushing has a heavy edge. I like the Penguins here.” – Ed
#2 Brunswick vs. #7 Milton
The Matchup: Brunswick and Milton is an interesting matchup as they don’t have a ton of common opponents and had a different journey to get here. Brunswick started the year 6-2-1 and ends the season 8-2-1 so overall a very consistent team whereas Milton started the season 1-5-0 in the first 6 games and ended the season 7-3-1 in their last 11 games. Both teams are relatively young and rely on their youth in key roles. Brunswick is a bit faster, they have more skill and more depth but Milton is a little older, a little bigger and one of the better goaltenders in prep hockey in Chris Demers. Brunswick has an edge going 7-4-0 against playoff bound teams while Milton had a 5-9-1 record against playoff opponents.
Players to Watch: Will Forrest (Brunswick), Henry Dale (Brunswick), Shayan Farjam (Brunswick), Michael Salandra (Brunswick), Connor Welsh (Brunswick), Beanie Richter (Brunswick), Andon Cerbone (Brunswick), Matthew McGroarty (Brunswick), Jude Brower (Brunswick), Jakub Teply (Brunswick), David Chen (Milton), Jeffrey Lee (Milton), Tyler Crist (Milton), Will Van Der Veen (Milton), Ethan Mistry (Milton) – Brown Commit, Christopher Romaine (Milton), Max Cassella (Milton)
Predictions: (3-1 Brunswick)
Winner: Brunswick
“Brunswick is young team but very talented led by Andon Cerbone; Milton is coming off a great second half to the season but Brunswick is more proven agains the better teams and that will give them the edge here.” – Ian
Winner: Brunswick
“Last time I saw Milton was at Flood Marr and they didn’t look good there at all so I’m leaning towards Brunswick who can win a lot of different ways and have quality wins over top teams like New Hampton, Kent, St. Sebastian’s, Millbrook and Gunnery.” – Brendan
Winner: Brunswick
“I was at the Milton vs. Nobles games this past weekend and liked Milton’s effort and discipline to compete toe to toe with an Elite 8 team showing they are playing their best hockey at the right time but Brunswick has them beat in the talent department and in the depth department and for that I am leaning towards them in a close game.” – Ed
Winner: Milton
“Milton has gotten better and better as the season has gone on and are peaking heading into playoffs with a balanced attack. They are 7-3-1 in their last 11 games and showing they can play with some of the top teams in the league. Brunswick is talented but Milton pulls off the upset here.” – Murph
#3 Loomis Chaffee vs. #6 Deerfield
The Matchup: Loomis and Deerfield are very familiar with eachother having played twice already this season and typically facing eachother home and away every year. The two clubs are similar in that they are older and experienced with 22 seniors lacing it up for this game but their styles of play are vastly different. Loomis is a smaller lineup, skilled and play with a lot of pace where as Deerfield is bigger, more physical and strong on the puck. Loomis wants to play in open ice and transition and Deerfield wants to play below the dots, off the cycle and creates most of their plays in traffic. Loomis’ strength is their offense and their depth while Deerfields strength is their defense and their structured approach. Loomis is the higher seed but has lost both games to Deerfield this season; the Pelicans enter the game with a 3-3-1 recorde in their last 6 games while the Big Green is 6-2-0 in their last 8.
Players to Watch: Kennedy O’Connor (Loomis) – UMass Amhert Commit, Oliver Flynn (Loomis) – UCONN Commit, Ben Ritter (Loomis)- Dartmouth Commit, Cody Hoban (Loomis) – Dartmouth Commit, Anthony Cipollone (Loomis) – Vermont Commit, Alex Krause (Loomis) – Dartmouth Commit, Adam Martin (Loomis), Alex Robert (Deerfield), Will Holland (Deerfiled), Pierce Patterson (Deerfield), Alton Machen (Deerfield), Eamon Doheny (Deerfield), Connor Guest (Deerfield), Jarod Harrington (Deerfield), Jake Higgins (Deerfield)
Predictions: (3-1 Deerfield)
Winner: Loomis
“Loomis can be a bit perimeter at times but they have a lot of team speed, they are skilled and make plays. I think their speed will stretch Deerfield out and their depth will wear them down. It’s hard to beat a good team 3x in 1 season; Loomis wins in a close one. ” -Brendan
Winner: Deerfield
“Neither team scores a lot of goals and in a low-scoring, close matched game i’ll take the team with the size, the toughness and the blue line. Loomis is more talented but this isn’t a good matchup for them as evidenced in their two losses to them this season.” – Ed
Winner: Deerfield
“I liked Deerfield at Flood Marr, they are balanced and disciplined. I like that they went to Europe this year and bonded as a team. They’ll win as they’ve done 2x already this season.” – Ian
Winner: Deerfield
“The Big Green are bigger, stronger and more mature as a team. They get the lean becuse of their balanced attack, their leadership and being tough to play against in all three-zones.” – Murph
#4 St. Sebastian’s vs. #5 Thayer
The Matchup: This could be the most exciting game of all the prep playoffs because these two teams have become bitter rivals in the past few seasons and meet eachother yet again in the Large School playoffs. They have faced eachother twice this season and split; Thayer got the first win 5-1 at home and then St. Sebastian’s returned the favor in their barn by a score of 3-1. While these kids all grow up playing against eachother which fuels the rivalry, they play two different styles. Thayer is more physical, more in your face mentality and their best players are power forwards while St. Sebastian’s is more of a skill and puck possession team whose best players are playmakers and finesse forwards. Both teams have scored about the same amount of goals (110 to 107) but St. Sebastian’s has done a better job keeping them out of their net (60 vs. 72). Thayer may have the edge up front although that’s close because St. Sebastian’s has a lot of depth in their forward lines but the Arrows have noticeable advantage on the blue line. Both teams have losing records against playoff bound teams; Thayer is 4-7-1 and St. Sebastian’s is 4-6-1 but Thayer is 9-3-1 in their last 12 while St. Sebastians is 4-6-1 in their last 10. Should be a great game.
Players to Watch: Ryan MacDermott (St. Sebastian’s), Will Elias (St. Sebastian’s), Michael Callow (St. Sebastian’s), Liam Connors (St. Sebastian’s) – BU Commit, Brendan Dumas (St. Sebastian’s), Jayden Grier (St. Sebastian’s), Brendan Gorman (St. Sebastian’s), Connor Joyce (St. Sebastian’s), Tim Delay (St. Sebastian’s) – BC Commit, Mike Cataldo (St. Sebastian’s), Thomas Messineo (St. Sebastian’s), Sasha Teleguine (Thayer) – Northeastern Commit, Joseph Kramer (Thayer) – Providence Commit, Peter Kramer (Thayer) – Providence Commit, Nick Roukounakis (Thayer) – BU Commit, Michael Stenberg (Thayer) – Penn State Commit, Declan Loughnane (Thayer), CJ Foley (Thayer), CJ Monturio (Thayer), Shane Taddia (Thayer)
Predictions: (3-1 Thayer)
Winner: St. Sebastian’s
“Historically in prep hockey the teams with good team defense and depth win and St. Sebasitan’s has better team defense and more depth at all positions and for that reason they get the nod. Thayer is tougher to play against and I think they have a chance but the series has been won by the home team and St. Sebastian’s is home. ” -Brendan
Winner: Thayer
“If Thayer can play tough and hard but disciplined they’ll win this game. They are harder to play against and they won’t have a problem matching up with St. Sebastian’s speed.” – Murph
Winner: Thayer
“No love lost between these two schools and I give Thayer the edge becasue they play a grittier style and will win the 50/50 pucks and go hard to the net and blocks shots; all the things you need to do to win tight games.” – Ian
Winner: Thayer
“Thayer has all the components here to win; they are heavier, they have the goaltender and they can score. It’ll be an even game but Thayer has the edge despite being on the road.” -Ed
Photo Credit: Dan Hickling/Hickling Images