Who is the current boys hockey Player of the Year?
Ryan Lanigan, HockomockSports.com: At the halfway point, it has to come down to Attleboro’s Zack Dragun and Mansfield’s Brendan Murphy. Both have put up impressive numbers so far and the tiebreaker might have to go to Murphy based on the Hornets’ success this season. I’ve been impressed with his ability to create plays for teammates and for himself via his skating. If he continues his current pace, he can help lead Mansfield to a deep run and himself to a Player of the Year award.
Josh Perry, HockomockSports.com: Brendan Murphy, Mansfield - The Hornets are back up near the top of the Kelley-Rex division and looking to challenge for the D2 South title that they came so close to winning a year ago. One of the main reasons behind the team's success is forward Brendan Murphy, who just reached double digits in goals scored. Murphy almost singlehandedly beat KP last week with a hat trick and may be the fastest skater that I have seen in the league this season. Big goals at big times, when his team needs it the most has been Murphy's trademark, which is why he gets the nod for the first half of the season.
Jim Clark, The Boston Herald: I probably would go with Brian Brooks at Canton. The Bulldogs are the only unbeaten team in the league and Brooks has made the smooth transition to center. He had a solid sophomore season, but Brian Shuman was looking for someone to step up after losing Nick O'Connor to prep school and Brooks certainly has done that.
Which Hockomock team has been the surprise team of the year?
Lanigan: It’s been a recent turn around, but it looks as though King Philip might be getting back on the right track. Dylan Unger has played solid in net while forwards Jack Riley and Gavin McIntyre have paced the offense. Nick DAmico has competed well on the defensive side of the puck. They will have to play on the road against Franklin and Canton, but will host some winnable games in the coming weeks.
Perry: North Attleboro has been a huge surprise in the first half with a 9-2 start to the season, now 10-3-1. Sean Young and Marshall Blackman are big reasons for the Rocketeers great start, but more consistency from the second line has helped North get the edge in tight games. I can see there being a little regression from North in the second half with a tough schedule ahead. They still have to play Franklin and Mansfield (twice), as well as rematches with OA, Attleboro, Feehan, and Milford, which were all beaten by a single goal the first time around.
Clark: Attleboro really has opened my eyes. Coming off a four-win season, the Blue Bombardiers already have blown past that, and while they likely would qualify for the tournament under the "Sullivan rule," they have a legit chance to get to the 20 points anyway. They've even hung tough with the league powers like Canton, Franklin and Mansfield.
Hock 5 First Team
Lanigan:
F – Brendan Murphy, Mansfield
F – Zack Dragun, Attleboro
F – Sean Young, North Attleboro
F – Brian Brooks, Canton
F – Connor Ladino, Taunton
G – Matt Raposo, North Attleboro
Perry:
F- Zach Dragun, Attleboro
F- Brendan Murphy, Mansfield
F-Brian Brooks, Canton
F- Sean Young, North Attleboro
F- Mike Patjane, Franklin
G- Jimmy Tierney, Oliver Ames
Clark:
F - Zack Dragun, Attleboro
F - Brian Brooks, Canton
F - Brendan Murphy, Mansfield
D - Kurt Leavitt, Canton
D - Ryan Burns, North Attleboro
G - PJ Sheehan, Stoughton
Having not seen all the teams, I'll try not to just base it on the stats. Obviously Brooks belongs there, and his teammate Kurt Leavitt has been one of the league's top two-way defensemen. Zach Dragun has been a big key to Attleboro's rise this season after leading the team in scoring a year ago, and Brendan Murphy has come up big time and again for Mansfield. North Attleboro has some young forwards who can score, but you can't overlook the senior leadership of Ryan Burns on the blueline.
As far as goalie, I am going to go off the board a bit. There obviously are some very good ones in the Hock like Rich Nee, Rich Shipman, Devon Maloof and Jimmy Tierney, but I have to give a lot of credit to Paul Sheehan at Stoughton. It seems he is under constant siege and even though his numbers aren't great and the Black Knights have struggled all around, you have to tip your hat (or mask) to that kind of performance.
Which player has surprised you this season?
Lanigan: At this point, I'd say I've been most surprised by Taunton's Connor Ladino. The Tigers are an incredibly young team, stocked with sophomores, freshman, and eighth graders. Ladino has been an offensive force, despite getting the most attention from opposing defenders. He continues to impress despite Taunton's record.
Perry: Zack Dragun, Attleboro - Dragun is the league's surprising top scorer. As far as talent, Dragun's scoring rate is not surprising, but he is the Bombardiers star on offense and one if its few weapons. It has been surprising to see him spearheading the league's top attack, despite drawing most of the attention from opposing defenses. His growth (both in size and talent) is the main reason that Attleboro is headed for another playoff berth this year.
Clark: I figured Mike Donadio would be the top goalie for Franklin after leading the Panthers back to the state final a year ago, but Devon Maloof has grabbed the reins and had the bulk of the playing time so far. Maybe Chris Spillane goes back to his rotation at some point, but we all know Franklin's success always is from the goal out. I feel bad for not having any Franklin players in my Top 5, but as always, they're a team that has a lot of balance and no real go-to guy, but some very solid forwards like Cam Curley, Troy Donahue and Aiden Isberg. But if Maloof stays hot, the Panthers could ride him back to the Garden again.
At this point, which team will be going the furthest in the tournament?
Lanigan: It looks as though Canton will have the depth and skill to make a strong tournament run. Their quest last season was stopped short via rival Oliver Ames but they seemed to have figured them out with their 3-1 win just recently. Rich Nee has played solid in net while players like Brian Brooks, Pat Ward, and Kurt Leavitt are taking turns being the focus of opposing defenses. Their depth will prove key in their postseason run.
Perry: This season Canton has the look of a team that can make a deep postseason run. Rich Nee is an underrated goalie and the Bulldogs are tenacious defensively. These are good traits heading into the pressure cooker of the playoffs and the improved offensive play of Brian Brooks and Pat Ward will give them plenty of confidence. Canton will be happy to avoid Oliver Ames, which has knocked them out of the playoffs each of the past two season and don't count out two-time defending sectional champs Franklin either because they always step up a gear in the postseason.
Clark: It's tough to go against either Canton or Franklin. As for which one of them it will be, I'll have to dig a magic coin out of my pocket. Franklin won the early meeting, and Canton got the one that counts for the league standings. It would be silly to think we won't see them face off again at Gallo sometime a month from now, but I couldn't tell you which way that will go. But I like the Hock to have a team in the Garden again on March 17.
Which team is going to surprise people in the second half of the season?
Lanigan: It might not be a big surprise, but Oliver Ames could throw together a strong second half of the season. They started off strong but have recently struggled on offense. They just scored nine goals against Stoughton earlier this week, and a match up with Brockton should help continue their offensive rhythm. They won 7 of their last 9 games last year, averaging over 3 goals a game. If they can start playing on both ends of the ice, they could be a team no one wants to see in the tournament.
Perry: King Philip has raced out to a 5-2 record in the league and has improved leaps and bounds from the opening game when I saw them struggle in a tie with Dartmouth to the team that nearly knocked off Mansfield last week. KP still has games against Franklin and Canton as well as rematches with North Attleboro and Oliver Ames, but the Warriors will go into those games with confidence and I can see them adding to the league's playoff representatives in D2.
Clark: I think King Philip has kind of snuck up already, sitting at a game over .500, and the Warriors have some very winnable games over the second half of the season. Mark Homer has done a nice job in his second year stabilizing the program after it went through three different coaches in three seasons, and it wouldn't surprise me at all to see KP return to the postseason for the first time since 2008.