Lawrenceville has already begun its schedule as it moves into a new conference and is making preperations to host the Lawrenceville Invitational Tournament at its new ice rink in the Tsai Field House as well as Princeton University’s Baker Rink. This 74th edition is the local can’t-miss hockey event in the area and is the oldest prep school tournament in North America.
Meanwhile, Princeton Day, which won the National Division crown in its inaugural season in the Gordon Conference will be moving up to the American Division this year.
In the CVC, last year’s Mercer County Tournament finalists, champion Notre Dame and runner-up Princeton, return with strong squads while Robbinsville hopes to return to its spot atop the conference after winning the CVC Tournament title in 2020-21.
On the girls’ side, Princeton Day will be looking to improve on its fourth place finish in the NJIGIHL last season when it went 14-7
Here are some of the top teams and players to watch and the important dates to keep for the 2022-23 season:
Players to Watch
Wolfie Meinhart, Pennington, Def., Sr.
Meinhart was a rock on defense for the Red Hawks last winter as they struggled through a 4-7-1 season. While he kept Pennington in games with his stellar defensive play, he also was key to the Red Hawk transition and contributed on offense as well, scoring three goals and leading the team in assists, with eight. His ability to contribute at the offensive end was never so evident as when he scored two goals and had three assists in a 9-4 win over Springside-Chestnut Hill.
JP Sferra, Robbinsville, Fwd., Sr.
Sferra emerged as the Ravens’ most potent offensive weapon last winter, leading the team in points, goals and assists. The Robbinsville forward registered seven multiple goal games in the 2021-22 season, compiling 48 points on 26 goals and 22 assists. While he led his team outright in points and goals, his 22 assists tied him for the team lead with Jack Battistelli. Heading into this season, Sferra has compiled a three year career total of 76 points on 40 goals and 36 assists.
Connor Strattman, Princeton Day, Def., Jr.
Princeton Day made the big leap into Gordon Conference competition last winter and it was sophomore Connor Strattman who played a large part in making the Panthers the National Division champs in their inaugural season. Few players in the conference could close off lanes and obstruct opposing skaters like Strattman and he was recognized for those efforts by being named to the honorable mention All-Gordon Conference Team. He also made significant contributions to the PDS offense, finishing one off the team lead in assists, with eight, and scoring a pair of goals.
Cole Werthman, Notre Dame, Goalie, Jr.
After a stellar freshman season when he split time in the goal, Werthman was the single biggest factor in Notre Dame’s MCT title run last winter. He had 100 saves in the MCT, including 42 in the final in a 7-2 win over Princeton. He stopped shots in the tournament at a .953 percentage and was named the MCT’s Most Valuable Player. All told last season, Werthman made 301 saves on 320 shots against for a save percentage of .941. He also scored five goals and had five assists on offense.
Cooper Zullo, Princeton, Fwd., Sr.
Last year’s Trenton Times Player of the Year, Zullo was a one man wrecking crew on offense for the Little Tigers, leading his team to a 16-5-3 season and a berth in the MCT final. Zullo led his team in all offensive categories, scoring 107 points on 39 goals and 32 assists. He had three different four goal games, seven when he scored three or more and 10 in which he scored multiple goals. Rather than simply padding his stats against weaker teams, Zullo had some of his best outings in his team’s biggest games. He scored three goals and three assists in the MCT semifinal win over Paul VI, and three goals and an assist in a season opening, 4-1 win over Notre Dame.
Teams to watch
Lawrenceville
After winning the Mid-Atlantic Hockey League title for the second year in a row, the Big Red will begin play in a new conference, the Two Nations Prep Hockey League this season. Conference opponents on the schedule for Lawrenceville this season include Stanstead College, Hill School, Upper Canada College, Ridley College, Albany Academy, Bishop’s College School and Nichols. To cope with that competition, fifth year coach Keith Dupee will be fielding a lineup that includes some solid returnees mixed with some talented newcomers. Dupee expects all of the newcomers to be able to contribute from day one. The Big Red looks to have some depth at the forward position with a pair of second season players returning in seniors Liam Matthews and Eric Vivinetto. Vivinetto is a dynamic player who is the team’s top returning point scorer from last season. Matthews is a solid, all-around player. They will be joined on the forward lines by a pair of juniors, Lucas DiMarco and Luke Benitez. DiMarco is a 200 foot player who can excel in all situations while Benitez has solid stick skills and a high hockey IQ. Lawrenceville will also be adding two accomplished newcomers to the lines this winter. Post graduate Sean Garrity, a hard working, two way player and goal scorer, will be new on the rink for 2022-23, while a talented junior, Porter Byrd-Leitner will also be part of the lineup. Byrd-Leitner is a nationally recognized talent who recently attended the national camp for his birth year. The Big Red has an overflow of talent at the defensive positions. In addition to reliable, four year player Lucas Robbins and skilled puck moving defenseman Harrison Bylin, both seniors, Lawrenceville also returns sophomore Ryan Ding. Add to that a pair of incoming junior defensemen in DJ Parouse and Stavros Tzougarakis, who is an imposing physical presence. Lawrenceville also returns two athletic goalies in senior Richard Smith and junior Kyle Ozgun.
Notre Dame
After winning the Mercer County Tournament last winter, the Irish lost a couple of key pieces of their lineup to graduation as Will Celli and Michael McVey have both departed. But Notre Dame returns a lot of moving parts this winter in hopes of improving on last year’s 13-7-1 record. Maybe the key elements will be in goal as junior goal tender Cole Werthman, who was the Most Valuable Player of the MCT last season, will be back in the net. He recorded 301 saves in 2021-22, including 42 in Notre Dame’s 7-2 win over Princeton in the MCT final and had a save percentage of .94. It’s an embarrassment of riches for the Irish in goal as Werthman has been splitting time with another returning junior, Nathan Mayer, who has been almost as tough on opposing teams, recording 217 saves last winter and logging a save percentage of .90. Also returning at goalie is sophomore Griffin Schaefer. The Irish will be returning a pair of veteran defensemen to play in front of the talented goalies as seniors Ty Watson (1g., 6a.) and Joey Matticoli are back. While two of the team’s top two goal scorers have departed, coach Mike McVey has his No. 2 scorer from a year ago back in the lineup. Sophomore forward Gavin Frith scored 37 points as a freshman, pumping in 22 goals and adding 15 assists. He will be joined by junior forward Trey Guire. Guire came on at the end of his freshman season and continued that progress into his sophomore campaign last winter when he finished third on the team in points with 24, scoring 11 goals and adding 13 assists. Expect sophomores Darin Urstadt (2g., 3a.), Andrew Gasiewski and Michael Busa to add some depth to the forward lines as well as junior Nicholas Ahlers.
Princeton
The Little Tigers have lost just two players that were still in the lineup at season’s end in 2021-22 when they won 16 games, won the CVC Colonial Division title, reached the MCT final and qualified for the state tournament. Forward John Zammit and defensemen John O’Donnell will be tough to replace but first year coach Rik Johnson will see no shortage of talent when he looks down the PHS bench this season. Maybe most importantly, Princeton returns senior forward Cooper Zullo, the team’s go-to offensive player last season and the Trenton Times Player of the Year. He led the Little Tigers in all offensive categories, scoring 71 points on 39 goals and 32 assists. In addition, Princeton will return three more of its top six point scorers from a year ago. Sophomore forward Brendan Beatty had a big year as a freshman last winter, when he was the team’s third highest point scorer with 33, on 13 goals and 20 assists. He will be joined on the forward lines by seniors Gabe Silverstein, who scored 10 goals and had 14 assists last season, and Julian Drezner who had eight goals and 12 assists. Senior Graham Baird (2g., 4a.) will be returning on defense. Princeton may also get some additional defensive help from returnees Jack Zimet (1g., 5a.), T.T. Zhao (3g., 8a.), Ed Zhao (4a.) and Oisin O’Dell (1g., 2a.). While the graduation of Daniel Prokoshin casts some uncertainty on Princeton’s strength in goal, senior Nico Vitaro had 174 saves last season. The Little Tigers look to be strong enough to compete once again for the MCT title and a divisional crown as well as earn another berth in the state tournament. Their state tournament quest is complicated somewhat by the fact that Princeton has been moved from the NJSIAA Group B, where it competed last year, up to Group A. PHS will be the smallest school in Group A this season.
Princeton Day
While they weren’t firing on all cylinders at all times last season, the Panthers made the most of their debut in the rough and tumble Gordon Conference, winning the National Division and making the move up to the American Division this winter against the likes of Delbarton, Don Bosco, Christian Brothers Academy, Gloucester Catholic and Bergen Catholic. Fortunately, coach Scott Bertoli has a deep and talented group of returnees in the lineup for this season, which should make PDS competitive. There’s a ton of talent back at the forward positions, including seniors Rosh Nissangaratchie (3g., 3a.), Ace Ewanchyna (1g., 5a.) and Oliver Hall (5g., 8a.). Also returning is last year’s team assist leader, junior Riley Schmidt, who had nine, along with six goals. Junior Liam Jackson (6g., 5a.) returns as will sophomore Wyatt Ewanchyna (2g.). Princeton Day also has a trio of talented freshmen who may provide production on the forward lines in Brady Logue, Jake Harrison and Filip Kacmarsky. All three were proven scorers at the club level. The Panthers look just as strong on defense as juniors Connor Stratton and Han Shin return. Since they took the ice as freshmen, the pair have played with a skill and intensity beyond their years and will be essential to Princeton Day’s chances this season. They will be joined on defense by a pair of experienced seniors, Will Brown and Cole Fenton. While PDS lost the services of last year’s goalie, Tim Miller, due to graduation, there are a pair of solid goaltenders, junior Mason Watson and sophomore Calvin Fenton, to take his place.
Robbinsville
After having won the CVC Tournament title in 2020, the Ravens suffered a pair of tough losses late in the season in 2021, first falling to Notre Dame in the MCT semi 5-3 after having beaten the Irish 4-2 a week earlier. Then they bowed out in the round of 16 in the NJSIAA Group C Tournament to Marlboro 3-0. But there is no time to rehash those losses for Robbinsville as the team embarks on its most ambitious non conference schedule yet while recovering from the loss of five of their top nine forwards to graduation. Ravens coach Dan Bergan has added St. John Vianney, Middletown South and Ridge, among others, to the schedule for this season and there is optimism in the Robbinsville camp that the grueling schedule will pay off come tournament time in February. Defense should be Robbinsville’s strong point this winter as the Ravens have a deep defensive unit, including a front four as solid as any in the conference. The returning four defensive starters include senior captain Raymond Corneau and juniors Colin Rubin, Jack Morgan and Brendan Goddeyne. They will be joined on defense by sophomore Evan Novik and junior Craig Weltner. Rookies Michael Buchannan, Amelie Perez and Shane D’Auria will compete for time on the back line. The goaltending corps is solid and deep with last year’s All-CVC First Team player Zander Wiley being joined by senior Carmen Capone and sophomore Caden Valentine. Although many of last season’s forwards are now gone, there should still be a lot of talented upperclassmen returning. The team’s leading scorer from 2021-22, JP Sferra, will return. Sferra scored 48 points on 26 goals and 22 assists. Senior Jaiden Gingras (6g., 12a.) and junior Luke Gensinger (8g., 12a.) are proven impact players who Bergan hopes will grow into a statewide presence this year. Juniors Charlie Luizza (8g., 10a.), Jamison Pike (5g., 5a.) and Skyler Moore and senior Anthony Toto all return. They will be joined by sophomore Zach Duggan (2g., 4a.) and freshmen Jack Lawrence and Jake LaChance. “In all honesty, last year’s Marlboro loss in the round of 16 was a particularly bitter pill for us,” Bergan said. “We must be a team that brings it every night, grinds on offense and prioritizes defense in a structured game plan. If we can stay healthy, we hope our brutal non conference schedule has us battle tested and wins redemption in February.”
Dates to keep
Dec. 8: NJSIAA opening day
Dec. 12: Notre Dame vs Princeton at MCP, 3:30 p.m.
Dec. 16-18: Lawrenceville Invitational Tournament
Jan. 6: Robbinsville vs Princeton at MCP, 3:30 p.m.
Jan. 18: Princeton Day at Lawrenceville, 6 p.m.
Jan. 24: Hun at Princeton Day, 6 p.m.
Jan. 25: Delbarton at Lawrenceville, 5 p.m.
Jan. 30: Notre Dame vs Robbinsville at MCP, 3:30 p.m.
Feb. 9, 14, 16: Gordon Conference Tournament
Feb. 15: Mercer County Tournament Final at MCP, 5 p.m.
Feb. 19: NJSIAA State Tournament opening round
Feb. 23: NJSIAA Girls State Tournament opening round
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