Students are finishing up mid-term exams and heading into the Christmas break this upcoming week but not before the New England Prep Holiday Tournaments throughout the Northeast. Here we will highlight the Top 10 teams and some key upcoming matchups this week.
- Kimball Union (7-0-1) – The defending prep champions have started the season off unbeaten in the first eight games of the season, despite a lot of turnover from last year’s roster and new faces in the fold. The Wildcats are already building up a nice resume with quality wins over Rivers and Kent School at the Exeter Invitational. They’ll have a tough test ahead at the Flood Marr with Westminster, Nobles and Hotchkiss. It is no secret that the Flood Marr champion has gone on to win the Elite 8 more than any other Holiday Tournament.
- Brunswick (5-0-1) – The Bruins entered the season as a Top 10 selection but have climbed their way to the top after several quality wins to open up the season – all teams that could factor into the playoffs and going on the road and earning a tie against a talented St. George’s team. Averaging just shy of 6 goals per game they have the team speed and depth upfront that will make them a tough matchup for anyone they face this upcoming week in the St. Sebastian’s Holiday Tournament.
- Berkshire (6-0-0) – Last season was Kevin Czepiel’s first behind the bench at Berkshire after an impressive turnaround he constructed at Northfield Mount Hermon. With an off-season to go get his players – he’s starting off Year #2 with an undefeated record with a strong win over a Taft team that tied Salisbury and beat Avon Old Farms. They have allowed just 8 goals against over the first six games of the season for an average of 1.33 GAA to make them one of the most defensively disciplined teams in the league. They head down to Avon for the Christmas tournament where they’ll face many of the top teams in the prep hockey and will reveal where this team stands heading into the break.
- Deerfield (4-0-0) – The Big Green have been the biggest suprise to open the season with wins over Avon Old Farms, one of the most talented teams in the league and an emerging Choate Rosemary. Deerfield is a big, physical team that is tough to play against and outscoring teams by over 3 goals per game. They’ll have their hands full this upcoming week against Salisbury, Milton and Andover at the Flood Marr.
- Pomfret (4-0-2) – The Griffins hada tough start to their season last year going 2-6-1 in their first 9 games but finished strong with 7-3-1 in the final 11 games of the season. They have picked up where they left off and currently unbeated through the first five games with a 4-0-2 record with ties against a ranked Andover team and Noble & Greenough. They’ll face steep competition at the Lawrence Groton Holiday Tournament this upcoming week.
- Salisbury (2-1-1) – Their most recent game was a tough loss on the road to Kent but if you take a closer look they outshot the Lions 46-27. The Knights will have a tune-up games before Flood Marr against Canterbury and then a challenge facing ranked opponents #3 Deerfield and Andover as well as home team Milton. This team has a lot of potential this season with talent up and down the lineup and they play a winning brand of hockey.
- St. George’s (2-1-1) – The Dragons opened up the season with a tie against #2 Brunswick and then proceeded with wins against a talented Thayer team and Roxbury Latin before falling to Avon Old Farms. They host the William Howard tournament and will then head to Cushing for the Joshua Weeks after new years so their schedule doeesn’t get any easier in the coming weeks.
- Taft (1-1-1) – You couldn’t have a tougher start to the season than the Rhinos facing Salisbury – Avon Old Farms – Berkshire in their first three games of the season two of which were on the road so starting 1-1-1 is quite an accomplishment. They will head to New Jersey for the Lawrenceville Tournament which will be a great test to see if this team is worthy of it’s top 10 placement.
- Andover (3-1-1) – The Big Blue opened the season against defending runner up for the Elite 8 in Cushing and defeated them 4-1 at home. They went on to tie Pomfret (which looks better now than it did at the time) and back to back wins before being knocked off by a pesky New Hampton team. They have allowed just nine goals against through five games this season for a 1.8 GAA which should serve them well going fowrard. Tough matchups ahead at the Flood Marr where they’ll face Milton, Salisbury and Deerfield but a strong showing there will prove what they are a capable of.
- Millbrook (5-1-0) – Millbrook is one of only a few five win teams and their only loss thus far was to #6 ranked Salisbury so they have earned the final spot in the poll. They have a weaker strength of the schedule at this point in the season but we’ll learn more after the Brooks-Pingree tournament where they’ll be face Tilton, Berwick and Brooks in the play-in games.
Honorable Mentions: Dexter, Kent, Avon Old Farms, Frederick Gunn, Noble & Greenough
Key Matchups this Week:
12/19 – Kent vs Berkshire @ Avon Christmas Classic
12/19 – Holderness vs. Pomfret @ LA Groton Holiday Tournament
12/20 – Berkshire vs. Frederick Gunn @ Avon Christmas Classic
12/20 – Frederick Gunn vs. Kent @ Avon Christmas Classic
12/20 – Salisbury vs. Deerfield @ Flood Marr
12/20 – Brooks vs. Millbrook @ Brooks Pingree Tournament
12/20 – Noble & Greenough vs. Kimball Union @ Flood Marr
12/21 – Choate vs. Taft @ Lawrenceville Tournament
12/21 – St. George’s vs. Dexter @ William Howard Tournament
12/21 – Andover vs. Salisbury @ Flood Marr
12/21 – Brooks vs. Tilton @ Brooks Pingree
12/21 – Tilton vs. Millbrook @ Brooks Pingree
12/21 – Andover vs. Deerfield @ Flood Marr