James Baker stood out at the Mass. High School Showcase. (Brian Kelly/NEHJ)
WOBURN, Mass. — From Friday to Sunday, Arlington boys coach John Messuri hosted many of the top MIAA boys for games, practices and seminars.
The season is still a few months away, but it gave players a chance to get back into the swing of things as fall hockey quickly approaches.
The event also gave local prep coaches a chance to check out potential recruits.
I caught all six teams on Friday. The games also gave me a chance to see which players may be ready to break out this winter.
When I was at this event last year, I wrote extensively about defensemen being way too jumpy with the puck. Chipping pucks off the glass and out, dumping pucks in and just getting rid of the puck to get rid of it at a showcase is crazy.
There wasn’t a lot of that this time around. I was actually more impressed by the defensemen this year than the forwards — and there were some very good forwards. Various defenders rushed pucks and took their time on breakouts to make a proper read and deliver a solid first pass. Sure, there were some turnovers. But at least they were trying to make plays.
Let’s dive in.