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Rima is still high for NK after second place

Last season was, in a way, the end for the North Kingstown High School hockey team. Skippers finished second in Division II and then said goodbye to strong senior class and head coach Bob Nabb, who retired after a long stint at the helm.

But current skippers hope last year was just the beginning. The goal is to keep the bar high and make the competition an annual affair. In the midst of change, skippers continue their line.

“There are growing pains with new children. As a new coach, we’re trying different things in terms of strategy, head coach Cody Sellers said. “We see some things that require work, but we also see success.”

Sellers was Nabb’s assistant for six years and is now moving to the top position. Adam Nabb, Bob’s son, still works as an assistant coach. Nate Vandemoer is associated with the staff.

Sellers is a former skipper who was part of the first championship of the hockey program in 2007. Nabb also won the title with the team in 2010.

The ties to the program – and its best years – made the new coaching team a perfect fit.

“There’s a lot of hockey information left,” Sellers said. “Some things change and some things simply stay. We’re trying to create this community-based program that has a strong hockey program for kids in North Kingstown – which always has a lot of kids. My field is always ‘Make it so kids want to play hockey.’ with serious coaching and serious players. “

Seniors Evan Engelhardt, Conall Gately, Max Proulx, Bryce Shabo and goalkeeper Braeden Perry will set this tone this year. Everyone played a major role last year. Gately and Engelhardt are the two most scorers ahead, while Proulx and Shabo lead the defense. Perry takes on a full-time role after seeing a lot of activity in previous seasons.

Other returning players include Damian Maltezo, Marcus Macchioni and Will Brew. Many younger players get a chance and run for it.

“We have a lot of new kids this year and we got a lot of people on the ice tonight,” Sellers said after a game on Saturday in a draw with Cranston. “The positive is that everything has things to coach. Not necessarily the fact that it’s a new coach, a new year, 12 new kids on the program. Those are just small things we can do to practice and break the film.”

Chemistry is also a priority, and skippers are working to promote it in a coordinated manner.

“We’ve set up a kind of family program on the team, which makes it so that the entire 35-deep list is always tied to class and level,” Sellers said. “We have them in groups of six out of seven children. Cohesion, even from university to our JV program, is immediately visible. ”

Division II is smaller this year and includes some distinctive teams, including Cranston, who won the Skippers Championship last year.

It gives self-confidence and motivation from running, and skippers take advantage of it when trying to do another.

“The boys have put reminders about last season, the things we’re working on,” Sellers said. “The buzz that preceded the lights on Saturday night at Boss Ice Arena is back. The coaches were excited, the players were excited. You had two teams ready to fight. What’s better?”

Narragansett / Chariho ready to make a move

It wasn’t a full-length game, and it won’t count towards the standings, but last week’s injury fund match could fall at the time the Narragansett / Chariho co-op hockey team announced their presence.

With their rankings and soaring after difficult years, the Gulls are ready to fight this season and showed it by winning the South Kingstown 9-6 two-season Premier League at the Boss Arena.

“We’ve only had a couple of exercises under our belt,” head coach Ryan Meade said. “We really just had kids who have been here for the last three or four years, went out and continued where we left off. Get some new men and see what happens. I’m glad they were able to fight back and win.

This is the seventh year of a collaborative program and has the potential to be the best. The numbers are vastly higher compared to the team’s meager early years, and there is experience and talent in the growing actor’s mouth. Last season, the Gulls played in Extended Division II and managed against a bit tougher competition, winning 2-7 and making the playoffs.

“I think we faced good competition and saw where we stood,” Meade said. – We got to the playoffs and played a couple of good games. We got light years better as the year progressed. “

Matchups with South Kingstown also work as a good barometer. A year ago, the logs were blown up. This season started with a win over Rebels.

“In the first game of the year against them last year, we lost 9-2 or 9-3,” Meade said. “So it just shows the commitment and the time they spend. It’s worth it.”

The broad senior class includes Matt Beaudry, Nicolas Keegan, Adam Leander, Ben Avedisian, Rob McHugh, Sean O’Brien, Andrew Kanaczet and Bodhi Parks. Junior Jacob Correira, freshman Mason Kosiorek and junior Sean Lyons occupied the top line of the Injury Fund. Matt Beaudry and junior Jack Abrams anchor the defense. Junior Phil Brodeur comes back onto the field.

“This year, we’re in a situation where it’s finally a group of upper-class people,” Meade said. “For the last three or four years, we’ve been really heavily under-graded. The children, who are now seniors and juniors, got it for them during their first years. They are eager and hungry to come out and make a profit this year.

Division III is back this year and will also feature Gulls, South Kingstown, Ponaganset, Coventry, Mt. Hope / East Providence, Johnston / North Providence / Tiverton and West Warwick / EWG.

“Everything is balanced based on where people were last year,” Meade said. – It should hopefully allow us to be close to the top of the division.

A new era for the rebels

New coach, new division, lots of new faces.

This is a season of change for the South Kingstown hockey team, but Rebels expects his position as a strong team to remain the same.

“I think we’re going to be more than competitive in our league,” head coach Rick Angeli said.

Angeli takes the lead from Tom Cauchon, who turned last winter after coach Toby Gibbons left. Angeli, a resident of South Kingstown, was a long-time assistant coach in Bishop Hendricken and is excited to take power. Assistant TJ Lynch will remain on the staff. Dave Cannon, a former head coach of the South County Storm girls hockey team, also serves as an assistant.

He inherits a team that is moving down to Division III despite having been successful in D-II over the years. Rebels was scheduled to play for the championship in 2020 when a pandemic struck and forced him to cancel the championship series. They won 2-5 in the shortened season of 2021 and lost in the playoff round.

The group, on their way to D-III, confuses some key holdings with numerous young players. The rebels rely heavily on seniors Ben Paskalides, Nick Peters and Colin O’Grady. Juniors Cody Granville and Eison Nee are also key players. Experienced include junior Robbie Dwyer and sophomore Shea Sullivan. Rebels have two senior goalkeepers Joe Bruno and Sam Wallin competing with freshman Hamilton Awe.

Goal scores are a strength. Supporting things at the other end is the main focus.

“We have a lot of attackers,” Angeli said. “We’ve shuttle guys back and forth and between D to try to figure out what we have. I don’t think scoring is going to be our problem. Trying to get a structure on the defensive end is going to be a big deal for us.

Rebels lost their hedge fund match with Narragansett / Chariho, but exploded back in the league opener and won the Ponaganset overtime. Granville got the game winning as part of a hat trick.

Get back to full speed

Over the past two seasons, as the numbers have fallen, Prouti’s hockey team has strengthened itself with a handful of Scituate High School players in a co-op.

It was a great installation, and Prout thanks it, but it’s no longer necessary.

The Crusaders have returned to their fighting weight and are eagerly awaiting the next one.

“We have a lot of friends,” head coach John Gaffney said. “It’s a bit cyclical with some of the birth years of hockey. Since I’m a hockey father myself with a couple of kids, you kind of see the ups and downs. In some years, you will have a lot of children. Those ’05 and ’06 years of birth were somehow skinny. It’s now in its 06s and 07s, and it looks like there are more kids playing hockey in the South. Kids who are looking for an opportunity to play at a high level and see that we are a viable option, if not a better place for some of these kids.

The years of cooperation were important, a time when Scituate’s arrival kept things afloat for Prout. Crusaders only considered playing outside of the league on schedule for 2019-20 due to low numbers when the opportunity to cooperate materialized. The team managed to win a few games each year, including a distinctive victory over Bishop Hendricken. It also allowed the Crusaders to stay in Division I where they want to be.

“It was great to work with the children of Scituate,” Gaffney said. “Good relationships with our Prout friends and the Scituate community. There was such a mutual relationship. I would do it again in an instant if need be. We really appreciate these children. They were great. ”

Scituate has joined a more geographically friendly joint venture with Cranston for the period 2021-22, while Prout has returned to its own. The numbers have grown, especially in the lower grades, as the program now has 24 freshmen and sophomores.

The only two seniors – Cam Fonseca and Billy Costello – serve as captains, as well as junior Nick Gamba.

“They’re great examples for our younger men, just showing everyone that this is big boy hockey,” Gaffney said. “You come to work every day, you’re in charge, and you play Crusader hockey.”

Junior Mark Roberts is back after making a strong impression in the first two years. He will be testing the defender this season and will move smoothly. The junior class also includes Jake Cox. The goalkeeper is Owen Glass and Mason Meloccaro.

All others are either sophomores or freshmen. It’s a youth movement that should eventually pay big dividends, but the Crusaders don’t just sit and wait for the experience to develop. They are excited to start making traces now.

“We have high expectations,” Gaffney said. “We’re going to play young guys because we have it. I think we’re a mainstay of Division I and we’re here to stay. I think we’re ready to keep making noise.”

While the championship round has remained in the realm of Hendricken, La Salle and Mount St. Charles, Division I has seen clues to equality over the past few seasons. Already this year, Burrillville owns a victory over Mount St. Charles. Barrington lost by just one goal to La Salle. This year, 11 teams will join the I division.

“I think it’s open. We expect us to compete overnight,” Gaffney said. “And if we can do that, we hope to be in the top five, get into the playoffs and gain experience for years to come.”

And this opportunity is appreciated, especially since last year.

“Given that we only had nine games last year, it was taken away from us,” Gaffney said. “One of the things we’ve been talking about is taking care of your teammates and just being grateful for what we have. Last year in our senior class, those guys said, “Is this what we need to deal with? OK, let’s go. ‘ I think we have to have the same attitude. We’ve told the kids that this is something special. You can have 24 games here, and some nice non-league games. Take the opportunity because it’s not a guarantee. “