Melrose has lofty goals
The Melrose boys hockey program has a long history dating back to the 1940s, when the Red Raiders won multiple state and New England championships under the legendary Henry Hughes.
IN THE SLOT
Current coach Vin Mirasolo said he doesn’t dwell much on the tradition of the program, but there is one piece of history he makes sure his current players know. “What we are aware of, one of our team goals is to win the Middlesex League,” Mirasolo said. “It’s been close to 40 years since Melrose has done that.” Mirasolo also is quick to point out the regular season barely is one-third done, but the Red Raiders entered the weekend at 7-0-2 overall and one of seven remaining unbeaten boys teams in Eastern Mass. And yes, their 4-0-1 Middlesex League mark tops the Freedom Division. “I think we came into the season with a lot of potential,” said Mirasolo, in his seventh season with the program. “We have a nice mix. We’re very young, but we have a lot of experience.” Melrose’s top two lines feature four sophomores and two juniors, but several of them were key parts of last year’s squad, which went 11-9-1 and fell to ML rival Belmont in the first round of the Division 1 North tournament. Junior Andrew Calvert centers sophomore Brendan Fennell (LW) and junior Cam Marks (RW) to form one of the league’s most potent lines, a trio that is in its second season together. Sophomores Quinn McCarthy, Charlie Haggerty and Sean Senier were asked to step into key roles in preseason. The Raiders are more experienced on the back end with seniors Liam Crovo and Adam Bain on the blue line along with junior Joe Lucien. Senior Mark Dewing also is a veteran in goal. For Mirasolo, who previously coached at Lynnfield and has more than 250 career victories, this year’s squad has a different feel from the teams when he took over in 2012-13. His first three seasons produced 12, 13 and 12 wins, the best three-year stretch since the mid-1970s. “My first couple of years here I walked into a good group of athletes,” he said. “This is a group of hockey players, first and foremost.” While many Middlesex coaches pointed to Melrose as a team to watch entering the season, that message was driven home early when the Raiders battled to a 1-1 opening-week tie with powerful Arlington. “From the kids’ perspective, seeing what they did against Arlington, when we were up 1-0 with eight minutes left, we played with them the whole game,” Mirasolo said. “That let them know they can play with pretty much anyone.” Melrose also has a key 4-3 victory against Stoneham last weekend when Marks scored the winning goal with 56 seconds to play. But the road gets tough from here, beginning with Wednesday’s first of two meetings with defending ML Freedom champ Burlington. Melrose also has nonleague matchups against St. John’s Prep and Xaverian. “The toughest part of our schedule is yet to come,” Mirasolo said. “That will be telling.”
Foxboro makes point
Foxboro fielded its first boys hockey team in 1999 and the Warriors began competing against their regular Hockomock League rivals in 2002-03. In the 15plus seasons since, Foxboro never had come close to beating Hockomock power Franklin. Until Wednesday night. The Warriors picked up their first-ever point in the series when they battled Franklin to a 3-3 tie. Even more significant is that Foxboro carried a 3-1 lead into the third period before Franklin rallied late. “It was a great game,” Foxboro coach Mark Cedorchuk said. “Our guys played well and executed defensively what we were asking them to do.” Foxboro is coming off its best season in program history, a 10-9-2 record that matched its most wins ever (2003-04). “Even though we had a successful season last year, best in team history, our players are not satisfied,” Cedorchuk told the Herald in preseason. “They are hungry to improve on that.” Sophomore forward Kirk Leach (8-10-18) and junior forward and captain Ronnie MacLellan (8-9-17) have led the way along with senior captain Brendan Tully, a dynamic two-way defenseman who is third on the team in scoring (7-8-15). Each had a goal Wednesday against Franklin. Senior captain Tanner Kennedy (1-5-6) is another veteran, while freshman Jack Watts (4-2-6) has bolstered the offense. Junior Espen Reager has been a standout in net with a 2.17 GAA and .932 save percentage, including more than 50 stops in a loss to Oliver Ames. Foxboro, which earlier this season won the championship of the St. John Paul II Christmas Tournament, took a 4-3-1 record into last night against Stoughton. After a nonleague game tomorrow vs. Norton, the Warriors return to Hockomock play Wednesday against unbeaten Canton. By the way, Foxboro never has taken a point from Canton.