New England Hockey Journal - December 2015 - 35

Dave Arnold/New England Hockey Journal

NEHJ'S TOP 25 PREP PLAYERS IN NEW ENGLAND
Here is New England Hockey Journal's list of the region's top 25 prep school
players heading into the 2015-16 season. Information was compiled from
surveys of New England coaches and staff scouting reports.
1. Patrick Harper, sr., F, Avon Old Farms | Undersized BU-bound talent the
brightest in a constellation of stars for the Winged Beavers
2. Jake Pappalardo, sr., F, Proctor | Sniper has put up 44 goals and 57 assists
in two seasons in Andover, N.H., and should add greatly to those totals
3. Patrick Daly, sr., F, Dexter | The 27 goals he scored last season were more
than touted teammate Ryan Donato
4. Taggart Corriveau, sr., F, Westminster | St. Lawrence commit and AllNew England player was big reason Westy reached Piatelli/Simmons final
5. Kevin O'Neil, sr., F, Albany | Yale commit scored 20 goals, assisted on 35
others during monster junior season
6. Luke Stevens, sr., F, Nobles | Fifth-round draft pick by Carolina this
summer, he's coming off an 11-18-29 season that reached the Elite Eight
7. Reilly Walsh, jr., D, Proctor | Exciting Harvard commit has made huge
strides since cracking the lineup as an undersized freshman
8. Ty Amonte, sr., F, Thayer | Playmaker and coach's son coming off a season
that saw him set up 30 goals and score 10 of his own
9. Johnny McDermott, sr., F, Westminster | Like teammate Corriveau, BU
commit was named to Central Scouting's prelim draft watch list
10. Mike Young, jr., D, Rivers | Future UConn blueliner impresses at both ends
11. Zach Tsekos, sr., F, St. Mark's | ISL coaches love his game and his smarts;
top gun on what could be a very good team
12. Matt Ladd, sr., G, Avon Old Farms | Touted senior joins an Avon program
that was shut out of the postseason last year, going 14-12
13. Luke McInnis, sr., D, Dexter | BC commit formed a nifty pairing last year
with another prospect, Jack Rathbone

with Sean Bellefeuille, Brendan Dawson,
Will Santangelli and Josh Loveridge to
protect a lead in front of goalie Ryan
Ferland with Westminster buzzing down
the stretch, where he drew raves.
"It was really the calmness that the
group brought to the table," said Corazzini, who was in his first year as coach after
Scott Young joined the staff at Boston
University. "They had to defend under
pressure and handle a lot of stuff."
Since being converted from a forward
three years ago, Housakos has handled
plenty. Corazzini knew, upon taking over
the team last year, that he would lean on
the player as a catalyst, even as his conversion to the blue line was still a work
in progress.
"Skill level is off the charts as far as
hands, shot," said Corazzini. "I think he
gets a bad rap as being a bad skater; I'm
not sure where that comes from. He's
strong and powerful and faster than people give him credit for."
Even with its blueline standout, it's
going to be a young blue line for St.
Mark's, which graduated three regulars.
"With Peter Housakos, we have one
But with Ferland, Housakos and a seasoned crop of forwards - 11 of 12 guys of best offensive defensemen in prep
are back up front - it hopes to lean on hockey," said Corazzini.
Four days after scoring his first NHL
those guys until the younger players
NiceRink-NE-Hockey-HP
7/30/14 6:35 PM Pagegoal,
4
Hanifin was back in the lineup
catch
up.

14. Patrick Shea, sr., F, Kimball Union | Another Maine commit, he
contributed 19 goals and 39 points for an Elite Eight team a year ago
15. Barclay Gammill, sr., F, Berkshire | Top talent is looking to get the Bears
back to another postseason tournament
16. Brian Matthews, sr., D, Belmont Hill | Yale commit is one of five
defensemen returning from a team that reached Martin/Earl finals
17. Jack McCool, D, St. Sebastian's | great size (6-foot-2, 209 pounds) for this
right-handed rearguard playing a fourth season with Arrows
18. Peter Housakos, sr., D, St. Mark's | Converted forward has a ton of skill,
one of best offensive defensemen in region
19. Jamie Armstrong, sr., F, Avon Old Farms | Northeastern commit
produced 40 points (11 goals) a year ago
20. Matt Dillon, sr., D, Cushing | Made a successful jump to preps last winter
after dominating the publics in Shrewsbury, Mass.
21. Houston Wilson, sr., F, Vermont Academy | Produced a robust 24-28-52
line as a junior as VA qualified for small-school playoffs
22. Jordan Kaplan, sr., F, Salisbury | Breakaway goal against Dexter in final
helped Crimson Knights win third straight Stuart/Corkery title
23. Trevor Turnbull, sr., F, Milton | When healthy is a point machine for Mustangs
24. Ryan Ferland, sr., G, St. Mark's | After posting .914 save percentage last
year, will look to cover up mistakes of a young defense early on
25. Marc McLaughlin, sr., F, Cushing | Physical tools and two-way game
stand out for this St. Lawrence commit
HONORABLE MENTION: Michael Brown, F, Groton; Ryan Boucher, F, Hebron;
Mike Callahan, D, Roxbury Latin; Trevor Cosgrove, D, Phillips Exeter;
Cameron Donaldson, F, Gunnery; Ben Finkelstein, sr., D, Kimball Union;
Adam Karashik, D, Avon Old Farms; Craig Needham, F., Lawrence; T.J. Walsh,
F, Cushing; Peter Christie, D, Phillips Exeter; Tyler Levine, F, Phillips Andover

when the Hurricanes hosted the Toronto
Maple Leafs. Just as we wonder what the
former St. Seb's star can do next at his
level, it should be neat to see what the
guys following in his blueline footsteps

can do this winter.
At both ends of the ice.
@MikeZhe603
mzhe@hockeyjournal.com

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December 2015

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New England Hockey Journal - December 2015

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