The Blue Line Report
Phil Stacey
Have you noticed what's been going on over at Marblehead this winter? In case you've somehow missed it, here's a quick primer at some of the numbers that have jumped out at your faithful puck pundit:
The Headers are currently on an 11-game unbeaten streak (8-0-3) and haven't lost since skating under the lights at Fenway Park against Winthrop 32 days ago.
With an overall record of 14-2-3, the Headers sport a .816 winning percentage with three regular season games remaining. That's the best for an MHS team in 30 years, since the 1979-80 club finished up at 19-3-1 (.848 winning percentage).
In his first year on the job, goaltender Tony Cuzner has surpassed all expectations. The junior has a dozen wins, a goals-against average of 1.06 and has stopped 94.2 of the shots he's faced — which would break the school's all-time single season mark held by Scott Sumner (93 percent) for the last 44 years. With six shutouts, he's also two away from tying Sumner's 1967 mark for most in one season.
Defenseman Jake Kulevich leads his team in assists (18) and total points (28). He's already rocketed up to eighth all-time in career scoring among Header defenseman with 17-29-46 totals thus far, and should easily surpass second place Dennis Laing (63 points) before he's through. Barring a catastrophe, he should topple Tim Howes (34 points in 1973) as the school's single-season points leader among D-men.
Fellow blueliner Anders Gundersen, with four goals and 10 assists this season, is already perched in a third place tie with Craig Murray for all-time scoring at 55 points. The senior captain has 22 goals and 33 assists to date.
Five different players have better than a plus-20 plus/minus rating: Kulevich (+28), Gundersen (+27) and the all-junior first line of center Chris McLeod (+27), right wing Alex Whitmore (+24) and left wing Ryan Dempsey (+24). As a team, Marblehead sports a ridiculous +214 rating.
Dempsey, McLeod and Whitmore are getting hot at the right time. To date, they've combined for 31 goals and 70 points, with the majority of those coming in the second half of the season.
Six-foot-3, 262-pound defenseman Ben Koopman is back crushing opponents and clearing the front of the Marblehead net. He's also scored a pair of goals and dished out two assists to go with a +8 rating since returning 10 games ago from an injury suffered during football season.
To date, 19 different players have scored at least one point for the Northeastern Conference Small champions.
The Headers scored three shorthanded goals Monday night — including two on the same shift — in a 6-1 rout over Somerville. When's the last time you heard that happen?
The numbers don't lie. Marblehead is for real, a legitimate threat not only to win their second Division 3 North crown in three seasons — but also bring home the school's first ever state championship.
That's not wild-eyed optimism; that's a fact.
¢¢¢
Shake the hand of St. John's Prep senior winger Greg Tremblay if you're an Eagles' fan. He had the game-winning goals against both Xaverian (a 1-0 win) and Catholic Memorial (3-1) on back-to-back days to earn his team a state tournament — and perhaps, Super 8 — berth.
¢¢¢
He's done so in unassuming fashion, but defenseman Tom Conway has really stepped up his game for Danvers this winter, particularly in the second half of the season. The 6-foot-5 senior rearguard and tri-captain has been steady, provided a physical presence and shows excellent poise with the puck.
He's also added scoring to his repertoire of late; after not potting a varsity goal for his first three-and-a-half years of high school, he's had four in his last nine games. For the season, Conway has seven points.
The last of those four goals was undoubtedly his biggest. Moved up front to screen Winthrop's all-league netminder Pat Feeley, Conway "used his big body to make a crafty play" according to head coach Kevin Brown, knocking home a rebound with 16 seconds remaining as the Falcons tied the host Vikings, 2-2, last Saturday night at Larsen Arena.
¢¢¢
Speaking of unsung defensemen, how about Peabody's Ryan Noftle? Affectionately known as "Noodles", the junior has made himself a huge part of the Tanners' rugged, skilled defensive corps this winter along with captain Mike Broughton, fellow juniors Eric Muise and Nico DiSalvo, and steady seniors Mike Quealy and Nick Ciampa.
"I think Ryan's very underrated," said Peabody head coach Mark Leonard. "He's been arguably our best defenseman this year — and that's saying something. He's not flashy, but he's solid and tough. Noodles makes good decisions and is smart with the puck on his stick."
For his part, Noftle isn't much of a talker. He and his fellow blue liners don't mind that most of the spotlight falls upon the Peabody offense.
"We're not in it for the papers," Noftle said with a shrug. "We're in it for the wins."
¢¢¢
Consistent scoring has been a spur in the skates of Masconomet all season, but it appears as though the Chieftains may finally be getting untracked. Sophomore Vincent Zingarelli combined with first liners Ryan Dooley and juniors Sean Haines and Pat Crosby to produce a combined six goals and 10 assists in Masco's 6-0 blanking of Triton last Saturday.
Zingarelli, who skates on the power play with that trio (with Dooley, a senior, moving to the point on D) leads the team in scoring with 25 points (10 goals, 15 assists), followed in short order by Dooley (10-14-24), Crosby (8-16-24) and Haines (a team-high 15 goals and 20 total points).
Head coach Bill Blackwell also gives high praise to his freshman defenseman, Tyler Duval, for his ascendant play and physical presence defensively. Duval recently scored his first career goal against defending Division 2 state champion Newburyport and continues to grow as a player and leader for the Chieftains.
¢¢¢
If you see Danvers center D.J. Yost before or after tonight's scheduled clash at Peabody (weather pending, 5:15 p.m.), wish the senior captain a Happy 18th Birthday.
¢¢¢
The Blue Line Report, a column on North Shore high school hockey, appears each Wednesday during the winter sports season in The Salem News. Contact sports editor Phil Stacey at pstacey@salemnews.com.
