NE Prep Playoffs: Avon Captures Sixth Title

What is dominance? Having six championships, while the next closest school has only two? Winning three of the last four titles? Avon Old Farms is simply dominant and returns to the top of the prep school rankings by taking home their sixth championship under coach John Gardner. It started with a 3-0 victory against Hotchkiss thanks to a two-goal performance by Cam Atkinson and a 26-save shutout performance by Patrick Enloe. Despite the shutout, Avon continued to rotate their goalies, which they have done all season, and the playoffs were no different. Senior Randy Wolcott was in net against Nobles and Avon won 3-1. Avon's opponent in the championship game was Belmont Hill, which got to the finals with wins over Lawrence Academy and South Kent. During the championship game, Enloe returned to the net for Avon and Belmont Hill could not contain the top line of Nick Bonino, Cam Atkinson, and Tom Atkinson. Avon won the game 3-0, with Bonino contributing two goals, and Enloe making 24 saves for the shutout.

Cam Atkinson (2007), F, Avon (JR)

Named Division I West All-New England Team .. compared to last season, his game has come a long way .. was an offensive talent last year, but wasted so much energy skating everywhere on the ice and caught out of position .. this year, he was second on the team in scoring and played a solid game in every zone .. his line (Nick Bonino and Tom Atkinson) was unstoppable throughout the playoffs as they were involved in eight goals of the nine Avon scored during the three games .. in total, Cam had two goals against Hotchkiss, one goal against Nobles, and one assist against Belmont Hill .. has great speed with and without the puck and makes good decisions with the puck .. has a strong shot while in stride .. really opens the ice for Bonino with his speed and dangerous stickhandling .. has another year at Avon and will be relied upon heavily to carry the offensive load .. in front of many NHL scouts this weekend, he may have increased his stock enough to be a surprise pick late in the draft .. committed to Boston College for 2008 .. Stats: (28-24-52)

Nick Bonino (2007), F, Avon (SR)

Named Division I West All-New England Team .. a leader for Avon and is used in every situation (PP, PK, and regular shift) .. very dangerous offensively and is a player who always wants the puck .. had a total of three goals and three assists (including two goals in the championship game) .. in the final game, he was dangerous every shift including his three scoring chances while his team was shorthanded .. protects the puck so well with his body and his hands are top-notch .. his second goal was very nice – at the faceoff (he is a center), he poked the puck between the opposing centers legs and shifted around him snapping a quick shot that went glove side .. displayed his talent at a high level in front of many scouts, which could only help his rankings for the upcoming draft .. according to coach Gardner after the game, "That was Bonino at his best," said Gardner. "Nick can snipe, but he is so creative with the puck and without the puck" .. committed to Boston University for 2007 .. Stats: (24-43-67)

Patrick Mullane (2008), F, Avon (SO)

Had a quiet playoff offensively, but relied upon to shutdown the oppositions' top lines.. despite Avon rolling all four lines during the playoffs, Mullane received a good amount of playing time and played on the second PP unit .. is one of the top penalty-killers .. needs to step-up his offensive game, as he will be relied upon next year to produce offensively .. Stats: (8-11-19)

Ken Trentowski (2007), D, Avon (SR)

His heart rate never seems to go up when the pressure is on .. his poise and hands allow him to slip by checks and find an open teammate .. has a strong shot from the point, but looks more for tips and deflections in front .. defensively, was solid throughout the playoffs and logged a tremendous amount of icetime .. one of the top offensive defenseman in prep school and does not get the attention he deserves .. would not be surprised if some teams made note of his performance and increasing his chances at this years draft.. committed to Yale 2007 .. Stats: (3-18-21)

Lee Moffie (2008), D, Avon (SO)

Showed a steady, reliable style of play that makes a coach comfortable playing him in any situation .. his skating with the puck and instincts to jump in the offense proves it will only be a matter of time before he puts up more points .. his game is developing a lot like teammate Ken Trentowski in that he is calm under pressure .. Stats: (3-6-9)

Chris Wieland (2008), F, Avon (JR)

Had a quiet playoff and is lucky Avon's top line was unstoppable, as he did not produce much in the way of offense .. he does have the offensive talent, but needs to round out his game and play in all three zones .. works hard while in possession of the puck but is not very effective without it and needs to show greater commitment in this area .. will be relied upon heavily to produce some more goals now that Bonino is heading out to Boston University .. Stats: (15-10-25)

Tom Atkinson (2007), F, Avon (SR)

The older brother of Cam Atkinson may have benefited from playing with Avon's top two players, but his play throughout the year proved that he deserved to play on that line .. had an excellent playoff (in three games he had two goals and two assists) .. his goal against Belmont Hill displayed his offensive talent as he flew down the wing unleashing a slapshot from the top of the slot that went top corner .. he is a diminutive player with consistent movement and speed .. his playoff performance has upgraded his status from a potential walk-on at Boston College to becoming one of their recruits for 2007 .. will be joined at B.C. by his brother in 2008 .. Stats: (14-25-39)

Patrick Enloe (2007), G, Avon (SR)

The biggest surprise of the playoffs was coach Gardner's decision to play fellow senior netminder Randy Wolcott instead of Enloe after he posted a shutout against Hotchkiss in the opening round of the playoffs and was undefeated all season .. Enloe did not let this decision bother him, as he went out and shutdown Belmont Hill in the championship game .. very solid goalie who moves well post-to-post .. very difficult to beat down low and has good rebound control .. could be deciding on a division I school soon .. Stats: (12-0-2) 387 shots-against, 15 goals-against and a .961 save percentage.

Matt McCollem (StL), F, Belmont Hill (SR)

Word around the rink was that he is battling a shoulder injury, but nothing was going to stop him from playing for a championship .. failed to register a point in three-playoff games but was a threat on every shift in the semifinals against South Kent .. against Avon, it looked as if his game was off and he could not get much going against Avon's tight checking and showed a lot of frustration in the third being down 3-0 .. against South Kent (semifinals), Belmont Hill unleashed seven goals in a 7-0 win, and though McCollem was held off the scoresheet, he played a strong offensive game and showed his toughness .. a smooth skater who displays a tremendous burst of speed with the puck .. showed good hands in tight situations .. committed to Harvard for 2007 .. Stats: (16-19-35)

Jason Silvia (2007), F, Belmont Hill (JR)

It was a strange weekend for Silvia who had a hat trick and an assist in a 7-0 win against South Kent and looked to be unstoppable, but had a disappointing championship game against Avon were it seemed he could not get anything going .. his skills are top-notch among the prep players .. has good size and quick hands .. against South Kent, he physically overpowered players and all three of his goals displayed his tremendous talent .. against Avon, had a few good shifts, but was very quiet offensively .. made a great defensive play to break up Tom Atkinson's breakaway .. a definite prospect in the upcoming draft and since Belmont Hill went deep into the playoffs, his stock should only rise .. still has yet to commit to a college, but should be coming soon .. finished second in team scoring .. Stats: (21-15-36)

Kevin McNamara (2007), D, Belmont Hill (SR)

Besides goaltender Matt Gedman, he was the most consistent Belmont player .. the captain has solid poise with the puck and makes strong outlet passes .. really controls the play from the backend .. his shots from the point are meant for tips and deflections, as he does not look to shoot for the corners .. in three playoff games, he had one goal and two assists (his goal coming against Lawrence Academy in the opening round) .. hit the crossbar in the championship game .. it would not be a surprise to see him be drafted late this summer .. committed to Colgate for 2007 .. led the team in scoring during the regular season .. Stats: (14-31-45)

Jack McNamara (2008), F, Belmont Hill (SO)

Despite his two assists in the South Kent game (7-0 win), Jack was almost invisible against Avon .. needs to be more aggressive and battle for loose pucks more .. handles the puck well and has good vision in the offensive zone .. will need more development, but could turn into a solid player .. Stats: (7-12-19)

Dawson Luke (2008), D, Belmont Hill (SO)

Has good size at 6-foot-3 and 195 pounds .. physical in the corners, but did have a tough time handling Avon's quicker forwards .. has a strong shot from the point .. tough to beat 1-on-1 .. can over handle the puck at times and tries one too many moves in the neutral zone .. has time to develop and could be Belmont's top defenseman next year .. Stats: (2-11-13)

Matt Gedman (2007), G, Belmont Hill (SR)

He quietly put together an excellent season and stole many games to help Belmont Hill get into the playoffs .. against South Kent, had a lot of offensive support, but did stop numerous scoring chances .. strong down low and has an unorthodox style .. very strong post-to-post and always remains square to shooter .. made a great pad save going post-to-post with a South Kent player right on the doorstep .. in the championship game, he was the main reason the score was only 3-0 .. Avon's coach Gardner had nothing but praise for the Belmont goalie saying, "He played great, particularly in the first. What we tried to do was get in close and to the blocker side on him. He was excellent. I was impressed with how hard Belmont Hill played. It was a great prep game" .. Stats: 1593 minutes, 43 goals-against, 771 saves and a .947 save percentage.

Players to Watch: Joe Tierney (2007), F, Belmont Hill (JR), Jake Moscatel (2007), F, Belmont Hill (JR), Luke Arnold (2007), F, Belmont Hill (SR) – Committed to Amherst College (Div. III).

Sergei Sorokolat (2007), G, South Kent (SR)

It is hard to evaluate a goalie whom you can tell was off his game, but Sergei has lots of potential .. goes down a little too early and makes some risky decisions with the puck .. the fourth goal he let in deflated the team as it went off his glove and trickled in .. will most likely need a year of juniors to attract more interest from the College level .. Stats: 1157 minutes, 54 goals-against 745 saves and a .932 save percentage.

Joe Pereira (2007), F, South Kent (SR)

A shifty forward with good hands and vision .. he is very explosive with the puck showing quick moves to get around checks .. hustles every shift and despite the score against Belmont Hill, he never stopped working .. needs to get stronger .. made a great saucer pass on a 2-on-1 that led to a good scoring chance .. aggressive on the PK .. committed to the University of Connecticut for 2007 .. Stats: (25-25-50)

Joe Diamond (2007), F, South Kent (JR)

A similar player to teammate Joe Pereira .. has good vision in the offensive zone and a quick release .. has quick feet and can really move up the ice with the puck .. showed a chippy side when the game was out of reach .. has great offensive talent, but will need to work on his defensive game .. committed to Maine for 2008 .. Stats: (12-18-30)

Players to Watch: John Tague (2007), F, South Kent (JR), Nick Lampson (2007), F, South Kent (SR)

ALL NEW-ENGLAND TEAMS

DIVISION I EAST

John Muse (2007), G, Nobles (SR)

Kevin McNamara (2007), D, Belmont Hill (SR)

David Warsofsky (2008), D, Cushing Academy (SO)

Brian Day (NYI), F, Governor's Academy (SR)

Broc Little (2007), F, Cushing Academy (SR)

Matt McCollem (StL), F, Belmont Hill (SR)

DIVISION I WEST

Andrew Margolin (2007), G, Taft (SR)

John Yanchek (2007), G, Hotchkiss (JR)

Tommy Cross (2007), D, Westminster (JR)

Kevin Miller (2007), D, Berkshire (SR)

Kevin Quick (TB), D, Salisbury (SR)

Cam Atkinson (2007), F, Avon Old Farms (JR)

Nick Bonino (2007), F, Avon Old Farms (SR)

Alexander Killorn (2007), F, Deerfield Academy (JR)

Austin Smith (2007), F, Gunnery (SR)