LYNN– With the 2017-2018 winter season on the brink of starting, many coaches around the state are repeating the same mantra, “new year, new team.”
This is no different with the defending Division 1 state champions in boys hockey, the St. Mary’s Spartans, who are trying to find an identity with a new squad.
“Every year you have a new team, and this year is no different,” said Spartans coach Mark Lee, now in his 32nd season on the bench at St. Mary’s. “One thing working in our favor is that we have a good number of guys who are returning from that state championship team, but we’ve still got to find our identity with the new pieces.”
Last year’s Spartans team battled through a tough Catholic Central League schedule to finish the season 13-7-2 and earn a No. 6 seed in the Division 1 North tournament. From there, St. Mary’s got hot and rode the momentum to a North title before taking down Framingham to win the Division 1 state championship at the TD Garden.
That effort was largely led by a group of now-departed seniors like top scorers Mike Zampanti (34 points) and Dante Maribito (33 points) and star defensemen Andrew Kreamer and Marc Zampanti. And let’s not forget goalie Andrew LoRusso, who boasted a .920 save percentage with three shutouts last year.
“You’re talking about a great group of guys right there, a group that will be tough to replace,” said Lee. “It might not be a big loss in terms of number of players, but losing those high-caliber players is always tough.”
While it will certainly hurt to lose that kind of production and leadership, there is a group of players who appears ready to step in and fill the void. The senior captains this year are Anthony Bono and Nico Scali, a forward and a defenseman, respectively. Bono was the top goal scorer for the Spartans last year with 20 goals (31 total points), while Scali played a key role on the back end all year. Adding to that group will be veterans Colin Reddy (26 points) and Nick Napolitano (16 points) on the offensive end and the Ouellette brothers, Kyle and Kory, on defense. Freshman forwards Jaiden Moriello and Brady Carpenter are also expected to make an impact on offense.
As for goalie, that’s a battle in itself. Senior Kevin McMullen is the logical replacement after serving as LoRusso’s backup for the past two years, but guys like CJ Fusco, Greyson Payne and St. John’s Prep transfer Joe Pertell are all in the mix to win the starting job.
It will be another tough year in terms of strength of schedule for the Spartans, as is usually the case in the CCL. St. Mary’s will have to deal with the likes of conference foes Arlington Catholic, Austin Prep and Bishop Fenwick, but the Spartans also have a hefty non-conference schedule. With two games against Hingham and matchups with Central Catholic and Pope Francis on the docket, the Spartans’ schedule is full of Super 8 contenders once again.
“We’re very proud of the schedule we play every year, and we have another tough path this year,” said Lee. “We play in one of the most competitive conferences in the state, and I think it helps us prepare for a potential playoff run.”
Practice started on Monday for St. Mary’s, and a string of five scrimmages will start later this week. The Spartans will take on Woburn and St. John’s Prep on Friday and Saturday, respectively, before taking on last year’s Super 8 champion Arlington in the Garrett Reagan Summit on Sunday. Scrimmages against Marblehead and Danvers will come next week before the Spartans open up the regular season at home against Franklin on December 13.
“We’ll know a lot about our team after this weekend,” Lee said.