Little Bruins ready to go
Kick off season Labor Day weekend

FRAMINGHAM, MA- The Boston Little Bruins, who won the EMJHL playoff championship a season ago will crank up the season Friday night when they take on national power Pittsburgh hornets in the MA. Select League Labor Day Classic at NESC.
     The B's have ten players returning from last season who join the eight newcomers.  Goalie Justin gates returns for another season with the Bruins organization.  Gates will have additional size to go with his athletic style of goaltending that has served him well in past seasons.  Massie is coming off a strong summer and relies on positional play to make saves.
     The blue line returns Nick Vecchia, Tommy Monteiro and Mike Wolff.  Vecchia is a team leader who is strong on his 1-1 play and makes the smart play to keep his team out of trouble.  Monteiro is also coming off a good summer and his additional size and confidence has him in line to have a big fall.  Wolff was last year's Most Improved Player and he is expected to make a contribution right off the bat this season.  Joining the B's at the blue line will be '88 Jon Wolter and 89's Mike Vasilchuk and Garrett Collins.  Wolter is a big, strong d-man who is a physical presence on the ice.  Vasilchuk is another strong player that brings size, strength and toughness to the line-up.  Collins is a smooth skater who will bring an offensive presence to the team.
     The Little B's will have speed, size and offensive fire power in their forward core.  Steve Morra brings his blazing speed back to the Bruins for another season while fellow '89 Josh Franklin looks to build on the point per game season he had a year ago which was good for second on the team in points behind leader Pat Brosnihan.  Colin Moore is posed for a breakout season as his skating and offensive creativity always makes him a threat.  Andrew Glass is another of the six returning forwards.  Glass has some of the best edges at any age level.  His skating, coupled with his ice vision, make him dangerous to opposing teams.  Ben Smith is back with the Little Bruins where two seasons ago he set records for both goals scored and points.  Smith, along with his production, in as complete a player as you will find.  Jason Schneider will be joining the Bruins once he recovers from minor surgery that will keep him sidelined till the beginning of October.  Schneider has a ton of speed and a potent wrist shot and his presence will be missed till he recovers.  Jason Molle, who had the game winning goal in the championship game a season ago, is back and with a year of playing at this level under his belt he will be ready to make an immediate impact.  The Little Bruins has three players from Lawrence Academy.  Gates and Schneider will play both their fall and winter season with Little B's newcomer John Simpson.  Simpson is a sneaky player who opposing teams must pay attention to.  He has good speed and puck skills and always has his feet moving.  Rounding out the forwards are Jeff Fanning and Oliver Koo.  Fanning is a mountain of a player who can be a force in the corners and in front of the net.  Koo, a '90, is smart with the puck and knows how to find the back of the net.
     "This is always an exciting time of the year," assistant coach Andy Powers said in anticipation of the season kicking off Friday night, "and with what we saw at Training Camp this will be a fun team to be involved with.  There is a ton of talent."

Junior Bruins to make debut
Jr. B Bruins open '05/'06 campaign

FRAMINGHAM, MA- The defending 2004-2005 EMJHL Regular Season Champion Junior Bruins will take the ice Friday night in their season opener at the Navin Arena against the Pittsburgh Penguins.  The season opener is also the team's first game in the MA Select League's Labor Day Classic.
     The team, formerly know as the Junior Bruins Midget AAA, is now a Jr. B team and will compete in the Empire Jr. B League.  In addition to the league schedule and shot at the Jr. B National Championships in Philadelphia in April the B's will play in 4-5 major tournament throughout the year at the junior and midget level.
      Taking the team this year for the black and gold will be...
      Returning for his third season with the Bruins organization is '87 goalie Peter Cox.  Cox has great size and uses good angles and positioning to make saves.  Cox will be joined by rookie Eric McGuirk.  McGuirk' style is different than Cox' in that he relies more on reflexes and athleticism to make saves.  McGuirk, a '90, will benefit from the experience that Cox is able to provide.
     The Bruins will have a completely new set of rearguards this season.  While they are all new to this team, they are not new to the B's organization as two Little Bruins have moved over to join the B's on a full time basis leaving both Worcester Academy's team and Nobles.  Josh Burrows, an '88 who has converted to defense from the wing position, will be a leader for the Bruins on the blue line and has a huge upside.  His skating, nerves of steel and ice vision are his best assets.  Mike White also made the move to the full season team and he brings his intelligence, strong skating and physical play to the team.  He is also a leader and his leadership will be needed with a young group of defensemen.  Two more '89's will be with the Bruins in Chris Liu and Colin Smith.  Liu has tremendous edges, good size and makes good decisions with the puck.  Smith, also a great skater, will bring some offensive jump to the blue as he will jump up into the play when they time is right.  '90 Joey Dillon will also bring an offensive flair to the team as he joins the team for his first season with the B's.  Dillon, along with Smith and fellow defensemen Evan Gogonis and Colin Shea, have all been long time members of the Bruins summer AAA tournament team program and have now joined the B' for their winter seasons as well.  Dillon is smart with the puck, has great edges and sees the ice well.  Gogonis is your typical "stay at home" defensemen that every team needs.  HE is good with the puck, calm under pressure and makes the right play every time.  Shea, only a '91, will work his way into the line-up as the season progresses.  He is similar to his D-partners in that he skates well and has good puck skills.
      "I am excited with this group of defensemen and the talent that the coaches have to work with.  While we will be a young team at the blue line I guarantee this group will show rapid improvement as individuals and a s a collective group," coach Chris Masters said.
      Up front the team returns five players from last year's team.  Cody Warila, who had a 25 goal season a year ago, brings his energy, booming shot and physical presence back to the line-up.  Stevie Moses, one of the most creative offensive players the Bruins have will be sure to build off his 53 point total of a season ago.  Moses had one of the best second halves from a season ago so look for him to get off to a great start.  Justin Alonzo, a human face-off machine, also had a 50+ point campaign last season and his creativity and ice vision are his best assets.  '90 Mike Cichy is another player who had a great second half and is sure to have a break out season.  Cichy is a natural goal scorer who also has great ice vision and, like Alonzo, wins a boat load of face-offs.  John Henrion is another forward ready for a breakout year.  Only a '91 he is back for his second season with the Bruins.  Henrion is a big, strong winger who has a deadly shot and like to play physical.
     The team welcomes seven new forwards who will round out the roster.  Alan Dionne makes the move from the Little Bruins and with it he brings an unrelenting work ethic, on ice tenacity and blistering speed and shot to the team.  1988 forward Joey Caveney will don a Bruins jersey for the first time and he brings his goal scoring touch and toughness to the team.  Two 1989's that have joined the B's are Dave Boehm and Sean Sullivan.  Boehm is a big time talent who has blazing speed.  Along with his skating and speed he can also find the back of the net.  Sullivan brings some much needed size to the forward line-up along with a mean streak that will provide some added toughness to the B's this year.     '90's Dominic Jancaterino and Derek Arnold are similar players in that they both are great skaters, have excellent speed and have good puck skills.  Rounding out the team is '91 Zach Dahrooge.  Dahrooge, at 6'2, is a big boy who has the size and skills to be a big time player as he develops over the course of the season.
     "Our forwards are similar to how our team looked two seasons ago where we put up a ton of points and won a lot of games with our offense. Last season our strength was at the blue line because of how many talented veterans we had at the blue line.  We have a fun group of forwards this year with three common themes-speed, skating and creativity," coach Pat Nugent commented following the teams training camp that concluded Wednesday night.
     The puck drops Friday night at 9:30 PM for the start of the season.

2005/06 Junior Bruins Team Announced
EJHL team will get started on Labor day

FRAMINGHAM, MA- The defending 2004/05 EJHL champion Bruins will get started defending their title on September 17 when they go on the road for a double dip down on Long Island. But before they get to their first league games of the year they will have had two weeks of practice and three exhibition games under their belts. The Bruins will get under way on labor day with their first meet and greet of the season.
     This season team returns six forwards from last years team. "Anytime you win a championship and move players on to colleges you are going to loose some great players. We lost some great one last year when Ginand, Berry, Peters, Jones, Mike Luzzi moved on but I think the forwards that  are retuning will be a great starter kit for us. I think everyone coming back at forward has a good chance to play D-1 in college and with some out side the program recruiting we did along with the top level midget players Chris is turning out of our younger teams we will be in good shape to start the season at Forward," said Coach Peter Masters.
     On Defense this year the Bruins lost more impact players (Cody Wild, Casey Russell, Mike Harr and Topher Bevis)  than anytime in the last five years. The Bruins will return one of the team captains, Jim Driscoll, and the other returning D-man is Billy Kasper. "Normally age wise we would have retuned true seniors Mike Harr and Cody Wild for one ore year before they went to college. But they were successful in earning college deals a year before players normally do and we have some big holes to fill. I think with the four players we have recruited to fill those voids we will be the youngest we have been on defense in almost 5 years but from what I have seen from these four in the top summer tourneys and showcases I feel great about what we will throw over the boards right form the start. I'm sure it will take some time to adjust and will have some growing pains but it will be really fun watching this group come together and improve," said Masters.
     In goal the Bruins lost two time EJHL goal of the year in Nevin Hamilton but return one of the top goalies in the east in Chris Rossi. "Chris was in Nevin's shadow a bit last year but when he played he was always on the top of his game and I think finished in the EJHL last year in the top two or three in save percentage and was second in GAA. I have no concerns with our starting goalie for this season and our other goalie is one of the best midget goalies (Nathan Kudla) around last year so we will be in good hands no matter who is starting in net for us.

Forwards

Kory Falite (7-18-86) will be starting his third season with the EJHL team. He is the leading retuning scorer (22-27-49pts) and one of the best pure shooters returning to the EJHL this season. Kory is from Billerica Mass and has already committed to U Lowell for the following season. "Each year you need 4 or 5 forward to be consistent point produces but you need at least two of them to be consistent goal scorer in the tight games and Kory will need to be one of those players for us this year, said Masters. Kory played his youth hockey for the Middlesex Islanders.

Pat Kimball (7-30-86) will be starting his 2nd full season with the big club. Pat played two season previous with the Little Bruins and Lawrence Academy. Last season Pat adjusted nicely to the EJHL posting a line of 17-28-45pts. Pat speed, hustle and big time snap shot will be counted on heavily if this team is going to make a run a the title again. Pat is from Framingham Mass and grew up playing on the powerhouse 86 Flames.

Bob Butler ((4-26-87) is going into his third full season with the Bruins. The past two seasons he spilt time between the Junior team and his high school (Marlboro HS) where he lead his team to the state championship and was a member of the EJHL championship team at the same time. This season he will be a full time member of the Bruins squad. He has gained 15 pounds over the summer to put himself at 6'1 195 going into this season. Along with some new found power, big time release and goal scorers touch he will be one of the Bruins go to guys. Bob is form Marlboro Mass and played for the 86 Flames in youth hockey.

Cody Carlson (10-13-88) was one of the youngest players in the EJHL past season and will be starting his 2nd full season with the EJHL team. The two years previous he had played with the Bruins AAA team and was one of their leading scorers two years in a row. Cody is one of the best shooters at the 88 level in NE and as a veteran this year will be counted on to bring his game to the next level and be a major point produces this season. Cody is from Peterborough NH and played his youth hockey for the 88 Assabet teams in the old Metro league.

Matt Fitzgibbons (10-16-86) is starting his 2nd full season in the EJHL and this will be his fourth full year in the Junior Bruins program. Matt played two season for Chris Masters on the Bruins AAA team and last year played 64 games posting a line of 11-20-31pts in the EJ. For a big player Matt has a great ability to make opponents miss, plays with his head up and has tremendous hockey sense. Matt is from Natick, MA and grew up playing for the GBL Bruins in youth hockey.

Chris Donavan (8-25-85) is starting his 2nd season with the Bruins and last year posted a line of 16-23-39pts. Last year Chris went through and adjustment period to Junior hockey and then was injured. After the injury he came back stronger than ever and had a tremendous playoffs helping the Bruins to the championship. "I think Chris will explode this year on the EJ early," said Coached Masters. Chris has great speed, works hard, finish every check and with knack for scoring goals he will be among the EJ top scorers. Chris grew up playing for the Little Caps in the Washington DC area

Justin Pallos (87) played the last three seasons at St Marks in the ISL but going in to his Senior year he has jumped to the Bruins before he heads off to Union College. Justin played for the Little Bruins last season posting a line of 14-18-32 in29 games. Justin is a playing making center with the ability to score timely goals in big games. "Justin made the jump to junior hockey from pre school to challenge himself at a different level as he prepares himself for D-1 College career and we are thrilled he will be playing for us this winter," said Coach Masters.

Nathan Lavner (88) played last season with the Bruins AAA team where he lead the team in scoring (30-49-79pts). Nathan can play both canter and wing but will start the season in the EJ on wing. "Nathan is one of those special players that an play any of the forward positions but I think he can be most affective as a point producer on the wing," said coach Masters. Lavner is a great skater with breakaway speed and a nice set of hands. Nathan is from Shrewsbury, MA and grew up playing for a bunch of the top 88 metro teams in the area.

Evan Macintosh (87) hails from San Jose, California and will be starting is 3rd season in the Junior Bruins program. The last two years he has played primarily for the Bruins AAA team where he was a team captain. Last season he did play in 19 games with the EJHL team and was a part of the team when they won the championship in March. "No one works harder in the off season than Evan. He has a  devastating release, strong tide and quick feet," said coach Masters.


Nick DeCroo is a new player to the Bruins organization coming to the Bruins from the Midwest power house Pittsburgh hornets midget program. Nick is over 6'2" 200lbs and is a power forward. Normally a player of his caliber from the Midwest will end up in the USHL but Nick is a tremendous student and has a lot of interest on staying on the east coast to go to college. "Normally a player of his ability is not available to us on the east coast and mid western players normally stay in the mid west but I think he is going to be a huge part of our push to try and hold on to the EJHL crown," said Masters.

Jake Coyle is also making his debt in a Bruins uniform this fall. Jake older brother was one of the top players in the EJHL two years ago with the NH Monarchs and with his success Jake, who played in the NAHL last year for the Cleveland Barons will join continue the Coyle tradition of playing in the EJ. Jake has tremendous hands, good scoring ability and has a knack for getting under the skin of the other teams top players.

Kyle Solomon is the first player from Long Island to join the Bruins in almost seven years. Last season Kyle played with the USHL champion Cedar Rapids Rough Riders. Kyle, like Nick, has serious interest in playing college hockey on the east coast and wanted to back in the backyard of all the top academic institutions in the US. "Kyle was added just last week, we had lost Garrett Peters to major Junior about a month ago and have been looking for the right player to fill the void and I think we hit a home run with getting Kyle so late," said coach Masters.

Defense

Jimmy Driscoll (10-13-85) will be the horse of the D corps this year. Jim will be starting his 4th season with the Bruins and last year  posted a 6-38-44pts line and will be counted on heavily to led this young group of  defensemen. "I think Jimmy will be one of the top, if not the top defenseman in the league this year, he has experience, poise with the puck, never gets beat one on one, can run a power play and is one of the smartest D to I have ever coached," said coach Masters. Jimmy grew up playing for the 85 Islanders and lives in Dedham Ma.

Billy Kasper (10-24-86) is the only other returning defenseman to the Bruins this season. Billy grew up playing for the 86 Worchester Crusaders and hails form Worchester  Mass. Kasper is the best skating D man that has put on a Junior Bruins uniform in the past eight years. He has grit, courage and with some more bulk packed on this summer he should be a major leader on the team. This is Bill's 3rd year with the Bruins organization (one year on the Bruins AAA) and this is the start of the 2nd year with the Bruins EJHL team

Steve Bergin (88) grew up playing forward but was moved back to D last year. With the AAA team down a few Defenseman due to injury Steve jumped back to Defense and has never looked back. He is a tremendous skater, has great vision, nice hands and is very intelligent with the puck. "I have loved what I have seen so far this summer from Stevie playing back on D. He has adjusted to the position nicely and I think will be a big part of our power play this year," said coach Masters. Steve grew up in California and came to Mass 4 years ago and played one year at Eaglebrook and the past two seasons with Bruins AAA team.

Edwin Shea is the youngest player on the Junior Bruins this season born in 1989. The last two years he has played on the Midget AAA team and before that on the powerhouse 89 Minuteman Flames. Edwin has quick feet, good offensive ability and is one of the smartest most competitive players to come through the Bruins program the last 5 years. "It is very hard for a 16 year old to make our team these days but it was a complete no brainier for us to take him on the EJ team. He has had two great season with Chris on the AAA team and I think his transition to Junior hockey will be seamless," said Masters.

Matt Kronk will be the biggest player to don the Bruins uniform in quite some time. At 6'4" 240lbs and mean as a snake, players throughout the EJ will take notice of this behemoth every shift he is on the ice. As an 88 he is still one of the youngest players on the team and in the league but looks like a man already. Matt moves very well for a big guy, has great hands, a hard shot and truly one of the meanest players I have seen in a long time," said coach Masters. Matt grew up in Hudson, MA and played for numerous metro teams at the 88 level.

Jon Lareau (87) is last but certainly not least of the defenseman that will start the season with the Junior Bruins. Jon has already committed to Union for next fall and helped lead his St. George's team to the Division 2 prep school championship last spring. Jon is a beautiful skater, once a forward, who now brings big time one on one defense to the table to go along with the ability to run a power play at the highest level. He is intelligent, competitive and will be one of those players that gets better and better each week he is in the EJ. There really is no ceiling to how good he can become. Jon grew up playing with former Bruins players Cody Wild and Garrett Peters on the 87 Providence Friars.

Goalies

Chris Rossi (7-23-86) Will be starting his 2nd season with the Junior team and his third in the Bruins organization. Two years ago he was the top goalie on the Little Bruins and last year graduated from LaSalle academy in RI and then joined the Bruins for the first of his two PG years. Chris is quick as a cat, has the ability to make the save you shouldn't and is as competitive as any goalie in the EJ. Chris will be counted on heavy in the first few months to pick up where he finished last year as the EJHL 2nd rated goalie statistically. Chris is a great student is garnering attention form some of the top academic D-1 hockey schools on the east coast.

Nate Kudla (1987) will be joining the Junior team for his first full year this fall. Nathan has been playing with the Midget AAA team the last two years and will be counted on to adjust quickly to the EJ level. Nate has the ability to make all the routine saves look easy as well as the game saving saves. He, like Rossi, is a small quick goalie that gets out of his crease to challenge shooters and is very good at controlling his rebounds and forcing shooter to really make a good shot if it is going to beat him. Nate grew up in Groton, Ma and also played on the 87 Providence Capitals.

Junior Bruins Women's team makes debut Friday!
Lady B's look to capture first ever Women's Chowder Cup at Foxboro Sports Center

FRAMINGHAM, MA-The Bruins open a new chapter on Friday morning as the first ever Bruins women's team makes takes the ice for the first time.  Junior Bruins coach Matt Swain has put together a star studded team and will face some stiff competition this weekend at the Foxboro Sports Center.  The Lady B's face the Lady Cougars on Friday at 1:00 PM and then have double dip on Saturday when they take on the Toronto Thunderbirds and Mass Lady Mariners at 8:10 AM and 6:00 PM , respectively.
     The B's will roll out forwards Kelli Blankenship (NAHA), Samantha Faber (UNH), Melanie Henshaw (NAHA), Stephanie Holmes (Berkshire), Andrea Hunter (Pomfret), Michaela Long (Pomfret), Brittany Nelson (Pomfret), Kyla Sanders (Pomfret) and Nicki Wiart (Boston University).
      At the blue line are rearguards Sara Appleton (Berkshire), Kacey Bellamy (UNH), Julia Clark (Cushing), Leanna Coskren (Noble and Greenough), Ali Edell (Berkshire), Courtney Sheary (Cushing) and Bryanna Verley (Billerica HS).
     In the pipes will be Jennie Bellonio (Pomfret) and Lianna Bonanno (Ohio State).
     "We are all excited for this weekend and to see how the team does," Junior Bruins Director Chris Masters said.  "Matt has done a great job in assembling a talented team and we are all looking forward to seeing the games get started.  We hope this is the beginning of a successful addition to the Junior Bruins organization as we field our first women's team and that this part of our program will grow in the same fashion as our men's teams."

Golf Outing a huge success; Stewart brings down the house! DeCroo, Rossi, Schneider, Pallos team posts 58 to win tournament as Paul Stewart steals the show

HOPKINTON, MA-The Junior Bruins 2nd Annual Golf Outing wrapped up Monday night with Featured Guest Paul Stewart bringing down the house with his speech and emceeing the live auction.  While the final numbers have yet to be crunched it looks the Outing will raise more than the $10,000 goal.
     "We would like to thank everyone who participated in the day as a player, volunteer, silent or live auction bidder, the companies who sponsored tee boxes and the putting green and to all the generous people who donated items for the auctions and raffles as well as those who made financial donations to the event," Chris Masters said following the event.  "It was great to see the weather co-operate and everyone enjoy the day.  Having Paul Stewart at the event took the Golf Outing to a new level as well.  He was great and we are appreciative of him and the Boston Bruins Foundation donating his time and efforts to our event"
      Winners for the 2005 Junior Bruins Golf Outing are:

1st Place
Justin Pallos, Jason Schneider, Chris Rossi
and Nick DeCroo

2nd Place
Jimmy Troup, Gene Binda, Jay Durfee and Gerry O'Neill

3rd Place
Derek Arnold, Paul Jepsen, Jim Grimm and Peter Arnold

Long Drive Winner: Mike Yandle

Closest To The Pin: Gerry O'Neill

Grand Prize Raffle Winner: Derek Arnold

Grand Prize Raffle Winner: Derek Arnold (receives $1500 off Junior Bruins tuition).

Jones off to St. Anselm
Veteran forward off to Manchester

FRAMINGHAM, MA-Junior Bruins forward Luke Jones has committed to attend and play for St. Anselm College in Manchester, NH in the Fall of 2005. And it was a long road to get there.
    The 1985-born Jones showed up at try-outs in the spring of 2001 as a virtual unknown from Stow, MA and Nashoba Regional High School. While he did not dominate the sessions, the coaching staff saw something in him that they liked.
   "Jonesy was just a solid up and down player with a decent skill package, " says head coach Peter Masters. "I don't know exactly what it was, but we liked him enough to bring him into our program."
   Jones started off as a practice player on the junior team and playing a smattering of midget games. But when given a chance to play at the junior level, he just kept playing better and better and progressing daily and before long, he was playing a vital role as a right winger. That role lasted all the way up through last season.
   Over the four years with the Bruins, Jones has played in 247 games and scored 67 goals and 121 assists. He as amassed a +122 rating.
   None of those feats are as important as the last point he registered, coming in the last minute of a tie game with the NH Monarchs in the EJHL Championship game this past March. That came on a one timer to the left side of the net on a feed from Ryan Ginand that he blasted home to give the Bruins their first ever EJHL Championship.
   Now he moves on to his next challenge at the college level where coach Ed Seney will use Jones' physicality and rugged play to mold a winner at St. Anselm College.
   Masters has mixed feelings about Jones' departure. "I'm happy for him to be able to go play college hockey at a high level. But, he has been a huge part of our team for a long time and it will be different not having him around. He is one of the all-time Jr. Bruins and we are proud that he played his junior hockey here with us.. We wish him the best."

Russell stays local
Veteran D-man chooses Bentley

FRAMINGHAM, MA-Junior Bruins defenseman Casey Russell has committed to Bentley College in Atlantic Hockey for next fall.
   Russell, an Orange, CT native has taken a crooked path to college to say the least. He started out with the Connecticut Clippers in the MET league before moving on to Avon Old Farms for one season where he and his brother, former Bruin Matt Burto, toiled for the Beavers.
   Following that stint, he moved out to the USHL where he played for the Des Moines Buccaneers before moving on to the NAHL with the Youngstown Phantoms to finish the season.
   All of which led him back to the area where he became a Bruin along with his brother, who now plays for UMass-Amherst. Last season, the big blue-liner scored 7 goals and 23 assists for 30 points and was +24. It was here that Bentley found Russell and made his dream of playing Division I hockey a reality.
   "Casey had a solid season for us. His stay at home style of defense along with his physicality were a major factor in our championship run," says coach Peter Masters. I'm sure he will have a nice career at Bentley for coach  (Ryan) Soderquist.

Luzzi heads to NYC
Forward goes to Manhattanville

FRAMINGHAM, MA-Junior Bruins forward Mike Luzzi has committed to Manhattanville College for this Fall.
   Luzzi, an '86 forward from Connecticut, is a smooth skating, play-making center who can also fill in on defense. This season he posted a 7-18-25 line in 63 games and was a +9.
   Manhattanville is one of the top programs in D III hockey and has come along out of nowhere to become so. Luzzi is heading into a great situation.
   "Mike is going to have a great career down there," says coach Peter Masters. "He is a highly skilled player with good vision and power-play skills. He spent two full years with our midgets after dabbling around at Hotchkiss and Salisbury and finally he broke through this year and became a college hockey player. It is a great story of perseverance and paying your dues to get where you want to be. I'm glad he wound up with us and it worked out for him."

'95's win second title of summer!
Champs at Yankees tournament on heels of 4-1 win 

STAMFORD, CT-The 1995 Junior Bruins won their second title of the summer Sunday afternoon at the Ct. Yankees tournament as they turned back the Long Island Ducks 4-1.  The rink was packed for this battle of titans.  The teams did not disappoint as they battled all game with the Bruins coming out on top 4-1.  Following the presentation of the tournament championship Brandon Shea, who scored two goals in the finals, was named tournament MVP.
     The first period was a back and forth battle that had both teams getting quality scoring chances but both goalies were up to the task.  The save of the game may have come when Ducks forward Jimmy Ricciardi (who played for the Bruins at Prospects and Mission Cup) went in alone for a breakaway on Ian Jenkins.  Jenkins made a tremendous save on the breakaway to keep the game at 0-0.  The period ended scoreless.
     The Bruins got the scoring started in the middle stanza when Erne picked up his seventh goal of the weekend.  Shea would score the eventual game winner to make it a 2-0 Bruins lead.  It would not stay that way for long as the Ducks bounced back and cut the lead in half.  Shea got his second of the game and ninth of the weekend to give the Bruins some breathing room as the period would end with the Bruins up 3-1.
     The third periods lone goal was scored by Vicario.  Vicario had a great weekend with an 8-8-16 line.  Connor Maher was equally as brilliant the second half of the game preserving the lead and holding the powerful Ducks offense off the board.
     Leading the Bruins in scoring was Shea who had nine goals and twenty assists for a 29 point weekend.  Vicario was second in scoring with the aforementioned 8-8-16 line and Erne had a 7-3-10 totals and was third on the team in scoring.  While those players may have had some of the headlines and led the team in scoring the B's got major contributions from Beau Starrett, Corey Gehringer, Eric Robinson, Colin MacGillivray and Joey Admirand.
     To shut down a line-up as powerful as the Ducks and the other teams the Bruins played in Connecticut the defense had to be up to the task.  Greg Holt had a great weekend along with Connor Light, Trevor Hamilton, Eric Israel and Trevor Massey.
     This wraps up the summer season for the 1995 Bruins.  It was a banner start to this age group winning not only the Yankees tournament but also the Prospects title.

CHAMPS...again!
1997 Junior Bruins make it a perfect season with CT. Yankees championship

STAMFORD, CT-The 1997 Junior Bruins have had a season to remember.  In their inaugural campaign they have destroyed the competition in every tournament hey have entered.  It started with the OTTF Spring Classic in Toronto and then continued in Montreal at the Mission Cup.  While the venue was different this past weekend the result was the same-the '97's won their third tournament championship of the year when they took home the CT. Yankees tournament title Sunday after beating Team Mission 10-0.
     Cal Burke went wild scoring four goals in the finals and Matt Dillon had a power play goal and a short handed goal to cap off a great weekend.  Dillon and Ryan Wroblewski both were named Tournament MVP's.  For their efforts Dillon was awarded a Vapor one piece stick and Wroblewski got a pair of Flarrow gloves.
     The Bruins got off to a great first period start outscoring their opponents 6-0.  They followed that up with a two goal second and third period.  Goalies Jake Burchill and Pete Ciccarelli spit duties to earn the shutout.  The goalies had some impressive numbers as Burchill did not allow a goal all weekend in 109 minutes of play while Ciccarelli only gave up two in 101 minutes of action.
     As previously mentioned Dillon was Co-MVP and he had impressive numbers to back it up.  He ld the team in goals and points with a 15-8-23 line.  He was also a +39 on the weekend.  Lincoln Griffin led the team in assists with nine.  Defensemen Austin Rook led the rearguards with a +34.  Another key to the tournament title was the hard hitting play from defensemen Rook, John Marino, Noah Hanifin and Patrick O'Leary.  Marino in particular was a one man wrecking crew laying players out all weekend.
     When outscoring your opponents over 70-2 there are a lot of nice plays and puck movement.  Colin White had a great weekend as always as did Pat Shea and John Barry.
     The '97 Bruins will take a break the rest of the summer ending the season with a combined 15-0-1 record and tinning all three tournaments they entered.

1997 CT. Yankees tournament Champs

Domination!
1997 Bruins win Mission Cup for their second
title of summer

MONTREAL, QUEBEC-The 1997 Junior Bruins continued their weekend and season long dominance on Sunday at the Mission Cup.  After dismantling each of the four teams they played in the round robin they had two more wins to get under their belt for their second consecutive championship.  When all was said and done two more teams were left in their wake as this talented group of 7 year olds celebrated the Mission Cup Championship with a 13-1 win over the Halifax Jr. Mooseheads.

1997 Mission Cup Champs

The semi finals had the Bruins taking on Team Mississauga and it turned out to be the closest game of the weekend.  The Bruins, behind a Jake Burchill and Peter Ciccarelli shutout, took down the boys from Ontario 7-0.  Matt Dillon and Ryan Wroblewski paced the B’s with three and four point games, respectively.  The game was tight through the first period with the Bruins holding a 1-0 lead on a Jack Adams goal.  The goal was set up by Dillon and Cal Burke (pictured-left).  The black and gold opened it up in the second period with a four goal outburst on goals by Wroblewski (2), Colin White and Dillon.  White led the team in assists for the second tournament in a row with 19 helpers.  The third, like the first, was a low scoring affair by this teams standards as the B’s found the back of the net two more times to close out the scoring.  Wroblewski got his third of the game and White got the final tally.
     On another rink the other semi final saw the upset of the weekend.  The Mooseheads had the Montreal Vipers, the top team from the other 1997 bracket, tied at three’s and going into double OT.  It was there that the upset was completed when the Mooseheads scored and sent the Vipers home and the set up a rematch with the Bruins.  The two teams met in the round robin in the first game of the tournament. In that game the B’s bombed the Halifax net and scored 18 goals.
This time around Halifax put up more of a fight early in the game and after one period the Bruins held only a 2-0 lead on goals by Wroblewski and Noah Hanifin (pictured-left).  White and Adams assisted on Wroblewski’s goal.  Hanifin led all defensemen in scoring on the weekend with a 4-12-16 line.  He was also a team high +32 on the weekend.
      The Bruins went wild in the second period scoring seven goals and putting the game out of reach.  John Barry made it 3-0 on a John Marino assisted goal before Jeremy Bracco got the only power play goal of the game.  Dillon and JJ Layton set up the power play goal.  Barry was at it again and made it 5-0 on a Wroblewski and Robbie Roche set up.  The tandem of Patrick Shea and Barry were dominant in the finals leading the team in plus minus in the finals.  Each time they were out on the ice they made something happen.  Dillon made it 6-1 on a Wroblewski pass and then Dillon returned the favor setting up Wroblewski.  Wroblewski had a 29 point weekend on 17 goals and 12 assists.  Dillon also had a big weekend picking up 20 points in the six games.

                                     
                                   Matt Dillon                    Ryan Wroblewski

     The final two markers of the second period were picked up by scoring machine Jeremy Bracco.  Bracco led all players in scoring with 20 goals and was tied with Wroblewski with 29 points.
     A big part of the Bruins offensive success was the play of their five defensemen.  All were dominant in their own end and started the breakout and offensive rushes with smart, tape to tape passes or jumping into the play and skating to open ice to start the break out and rush.  “Noah (Hanifin), Robbie (Roche), JJ (Layton), John (Marino) and Austin (Rook) all did a great job.  They are advanced beyond their years in some of the plays they make.  At times they looked like pro’s with their ‘D’ to ‘D’ passes in the offensive zone and the patience they showed waiting for passing lanes to open up,” coach Masters said following the championship game.

                
                  Noah Hanifin                 Robbie Roche            JJ Layton

                                  
                              John Marino                       Austin Rook

While the game was all but over there was three more goals left in the Bruins tank that they needed to empty.  Barry got the hat trick with his third of the game on Shea and Hanifin assists while Wroblewski got his hat trick goal on White and Dillon helpers.  The final goal of the game and the 86^th of the weekend came from Cal Burke.
      In total the B’s went 6-0 and outscored their opponents a ridiculous 86-3 en route to their second tournament title.  In total the Bruins 1997 team is 11-0-1 with both the OTTF Spring Classic title and Mission Cup titles on the mantle.

                         
                           John Barry                   Patrick Shea
     “This is obviously a fun group to watch and coach.  The collection of talent and how well they play together is astounding.  As time marches on, and as history has taught us, the competition will surely stiffen considerably but at this point this group is tough to beat,” coach Masters said.  “This reminds me, to a degree, of the 1986 Montreal Vipers.  They are one of the all time best AAA summer teams.  They were a totally dominating team that almost, if ever, lost.  The difference between them and us is that we have only been together for a year and they had a 3-4 year stretch of this type of dominance.  It will be fun to watch as this team progresses.”
     The team gets together for one more tournament later this month at the CT. Yankees tournament.  There will be some new faces on that team along with a crew that have been with the B’s for the first two tournaments.  Time will tell if they are able to continue their winning ways.

It was not all hockey at the Mission Cup.  Here the team poses for a picture at the hotel pool on Saturday.

CHAMPS!
Adams' OT goals gives '97 B's OTTF title

TORONTO, ONTARIO-The 1997 Junior Bruins and Detroit Little Caesar's locked horns in the finals of the OTTF Spring Classic and it proved to be a classic.  In the end it was an over time goal from Jack Adams that sent the BJB's into a celebratory frenzy.
     The two teams had played to a 2-2 tie earlier in the tournament and game two was the same heart pounding thriller.  The B's actually looked like they might run away with the game as they took a 2-0 lead in the first period and continued to pepper the Caesar's net with shots.  Jeremy Bracco, who would lead the team in scoring with a 13 goal-13 assist-26 point tournament got the Bruins on the board first.  Defensemen Noah Hanifin rushed the puck up the left wing side into Caesar's end and then slid a cross crease pass to Bracco who was going hard to the net.  Bracco, who showed a nice scoring touch all weekend, knew what to do from there.  It was five minutes later that Lincoln Griffin would finish off a nice passing play from Bracco and Ryan Wroblewski.  The Bruins continued to pound away but goalie Jorgen Johnson played superbly for the orange, blue and brown.  Forward Garrett Jenkins almost made it a 3-0 game when he rang one off the pipe later in the first.
     As Johnson was sharp for his team Bruins goalie Jake Burchill was equal to the task making several big time stops.  The momentum changed in what seemed like an instant when Caesar's scored three goals in less than a minute.  The Bruins showed great composure and answered with the tying goal only a minute after Caesar's took the lead.  It was Bracco who tipped a shot from the point and just like that the Bruins took momentum back.
     The third period was a back and forth affair that saw both Johnson for Caesar's and Pete Ciccarelli for the Bruins make 5-6 big saves.  It looked like Wroblewski would get the go ahead goal on two occasions but Johnson made game saving saves on both occasions.  Not to be lost in the game was the play of the Bruins defensive quintet of Hanifin, Austin Rook, John Marino, JJ Layton and Robbie Roche.  They did a great job shutting down a powerful offense and one of the tournament's top players in Caesar's defensemen Zach Osburn.  AS you look back at the results from all six games there was always 2-3 different players stepping up and providing a spark or scoring a big goal.  When we played Pro Hockey East Colin White had a four point game and had a 17 point tournament.  Lincoln Griffin had a big game in the semi finals and was a key to that win.  Matty Dillon scored a huge goal in the tie with Caesar's in the round robin play and was tied for third on the team in goals scored with six.  Garrett Jenkins may have been the teams unsung hero with his timely scoring and constant energy.  Another player who was a central figure to the team's success but may not have gotten the credit he deserved was Cal Burke who was a +15.
     When regulation play came to an end the teams got ready for the extra session and the Bruins, who carried the play the last 7-8 minutes of the game, continued to do so in OT.  The Bruins did not wait long to end the game and begin the celebration.  Forward Jack Adams scored his sixth goal of the tournament but the most important of the weekend as he took a pass from the left wing corner and quickly shot the puck low short side to beat Johnson and send the Bruins bench streaming onto the ice with gloves, sticks and helmets flying into the air as the team piled onto Ciccarelli.

     Adams was named the #1 star of the finals while Bracco brought home the tournaments most Outstanding Player Award. 
     "I and the rest of the coaches are extremely proud of the effort from this group.  We got contributions from every single player and won as a team.  To win a tournament you need strength at every position and we got that from this team.  I am already looking forward to having this team together again at the Mission Cup in June," coach Chris Masters commented following the championship win.

'94's Maul Marlies
B's pick up 1994 Prospects hardware

 TORONTO, ONTARIO- On Sunday afternoon the ‘94 Junior Bruins team brought home the bacon in decisive form beating the pre tournament favorite Toronto Marlies. The Marlies, who are one of the top 94 teams in Canada, had posted a 92-1 record up until Sunday afternoon. Earlier in the tourney both teams squared off and the bad guys came out on top 3-2. “I thought our team could have won that game. We some great chances early and could not capitalize on them. The Marlies grabbed two quick power play goals and we could not dig ourselves out of that hole in the round robin game,” said coach Peter Masters.
     The Bruins posted a 3-1 round robin record to advance to the semi finals against the Illinois Prospects. The day before, the Bruins had beaten the boys from the Windy City by 4 goals. “We had jumped on them quick going up 3-0 in the first five minutes and the score was not indicative of what type of team they had so I thought the semi game would be a lot tighter,” said Masters. As predicted the Bruins and Illinois Prospects game was a back and forth affair with the B’s coming out on top 4-2 with goals coming from Tyler Grimshaw (Chris Calnan, Max Franklin), Calnan (Franklin, Kevin McKernan), Zach Pochiro (McKernan, Brian Morgan) and Adam Gilmour.  Jonathan Gillies played great in net making five spectacular saves over the course of the game.
     On to the finals where the Marlies had disposed of the Toronto Stars in their semi final game. Both teams traded punches early with both goalies keeping the score knotted at zero. “The game had good pace right from the start, both teams were finishing their checks and moving the puck. It was fun watching that type of hockey despite a long weekend of games already played,” said Masters.
     The Bruins would strike first when Frankie Vatrano sniped unassisted. A minute later Adam Gilmour would take a pass from Matt Grzelcyk and deposited it short side low to put the B’s up 2-0. Each team would get chances to score over the next 30 minutes but Ben Gagnon was stellar in net gobbling up all the Marlies chances. Vatrano and Chris Calnan would score late in the third (both empty netters) to seal the deal 4-0.
     “This team was a ton of fun to coach, the kids worked hard and they were really hungry each and every game. The Defensive corps (Grzelcyk, Truman Reed, McKernan, Charlie Donners and Ryan Segalla) was truly one of the best groups of  D-men I have had chance to work with. They gelled really fast and all five D were smart, great skaters, defended well and really battled hard for every loose puck,” said Masters.
      The 94’s will get back together in Montreal at the Mission Cup next month.

1995's are champs!
B's take tourney title at Prospects

TORONTO, ONTARIO- The 1995 Junior Bruins won their inaugural tournament defeating Toronto Pro Development 5-3.  Pro Development had beaten the B's in the second game of the tournament and was the odds on favorite to win this tournament.  They are also the favorites to win the Brick Tournament later this summer.  "We area really proud of these players," Peter Masters said, "The players deserve a tremendous amount of credit.  The whole coaching staff is proud of their effort."
     The team got off to a great start when they beat the Minnesota Blades on Friday morning.  Later that afternoon they played Pro Development and dropped a 6-2 decision to the powerful Torontonians.  The '95'ers bounced right back Saturday and put up two solid wins over Windy City and Illinois Prospects.  That put them into the semi finals and on a collision course for a rematch with Pro Development.  After winning their semi final game the showdown was set.
     The Bruins got two goal performances from Corey Gehringer and Nolan Vesey as well as a two assist game out of Brandon Shea.  Adam Erne scored the eventual game winner with Shea and Bo Starrett setting up the play.
     The goaltending duo of Ian Jenkins and Connor Maher were outstanding all weekend long.  Both played great in the finals shutting down the high powered offense that Pro Development had.  Maher was particularly sharp in the third period and during a two minute power play late in the game with the score tight.  On that power play the B's got some insurance scoring a short handed goal.
     "Every player we had was a big part of the team and we got, and needed, contributions from everyone," coach Mike Yandle said on Monday following the weekend.  "It was great to see this group get better as the weekend progressed.  The team really came together and got stronger as the tournament progressed."

The defense was rock solid all weekend long.  Connor Light, Nick Holt, Trevor Hamilton, Matt Ward and Steve Santini were a big key to the teams success.  Hamilton and Santini saved their best game for the finals where they really played well.  Up front the score sheet is littered with every forwards name and number.  The team got contributions from every player.  In addition to those already mentioned Eric Robinson, Jimmy Ricciardi and Chris Vicario all found the back of the net and played big roles in winning the championship.
     The next tournament up for the 95's will be the Mission Cup at the end of the month.

Next stop: Chestnut Hill
Ben Smith commits to Boston College

FRAMINGHAM, MA-The Junior Bruins are proud to announce the college commitment of long time Bruin player Ben Smith.  After a long recruiting process that involved nearly a dozen schools over the last couple of years Ben Smith made the call to coach Jerry York on Wednesday evening to let him know that he will call the Heights home after this coming season.  In the end the decision came down to Boston College and Harvard University.  Smith accepted the scholarship offer the defending Hockey East Champions made him.  Smith will be arriving at BC in the fall of 2006.  Smith will join former Bruins forward and then BC junior Pat Gannon in '06.
     Smith, an Avon, Connecticut native, has spent three seasons with the Little Bruins and then part of last season with the Junior Bruins.  He will be back in a Little Bruins sweater this fall as he enters his senior year at Westminster.  Smith, a center, has the whole package.  He does everything at a high level and is the consummate team player.  There is nothing he won't do for his team or a coach.  "Peter and I have long told college coaches and pro scouts that Ben is as complete a player that we have had.  He skates well, plays physical, is creative and intelligent with the puck, has a great shot, has a scoring touch, knows how to play in his own, can play the wing if needed, back checks, can play both sides of special teams, knows how to use his teammates and wins a ton of face-offs," commented coach Chris Masters on the type of player Smith is.
     Smith first came to the Bruins as so many of their midget and junior players do-through the programs spring/summer AAA tournament teams.  Smith first played for the Bruins at the 1988 Prospects tournament in 2001.  That '88 team went on to win 3 of the next 4 Prospects tournaments (2001-2002-2004).
In his first season with the Little B's Smith was only an eight grader and played in a handful of games as a thirteen year old.  The next season, 2002-2003, Smith picked up 26 points in 30 games played as the Little Bruins went 29-6-1.  The next season, as a captain, he led the team in scoring while setting records for goals (29), assists (34) and points (63) in a single season.  That was a banner year for the Little B's as Smith and company had a 34-6-2 season.  Last season with the junior team Smith had 28 points in 32 games.  During the winter at Westy he was second on his team in scoring with a 20-26-46 line.
     "Any time a player from our program makes a college commitment we are excited.  When it is a commitment to our alma mater and to play for the same coach that we had at school it makes it that much more special.  We are excited for Ben and his family and excited that BC is getting such a  quality person and player," coach Masters said after being notified of his school decision.

Post season awards keep coming for former Junior Bruin Tyler Black Bear named to USCHO.com All Rookie team

FRAMINGHAM, MA-The post season awards keep pouring in for former Little Bruins and Junior Bruins defensemen Bret Tyler.  Tyler, who spent four seasons with the Junior Bruins, has had a spectacular freshmen season in Orono.  He was named to the Hockey East All Rookie team, along with former Bruins teammate David Leaderer, and has now been named to the USCHO.com All Rookie Team.  USCHO.com is the leader in covering college hockey at every level.  Tyler was one of only two freshmen defensemen selected to this prestigious team.
     For more information go to the MAINE BLACK BEARS site or read the story at USCHO.COM.

Junior Bruins banquet recap
Annual end of the season event at Maggiano's capped off with guest speaker Bob Crocker

FRAMINGHAM, MA-The Junior Bruins held their end of the season banquet Monday night at Maggiano's Little Italy in Boston.  Bob Crocker (pictured left), former coach at Boston University, U-Penn and Colby and Assistant General Manager for the Hartford Whalers for 15 seasons and current scout for the New York Rangers, was the featured speaker and did an excellent job giving the keynote address.
     The coaches also handed out awards for each of the programs three teams.  Awards were given for Most Improved Player, Unsung Hero, Defensive Player of the Year and MVP.  Below are the award winners.

Junior Bruins
     Most Valuable Player-Nevin Hamilton
     Defensive Player of the Year-Cody Wild
     Unsung Hero-Chris Rossi
     Most Improved Player-Garrett Peters

Junior Bruins Midget AAA
     Most Valuable Player-Joey Lavin
     Defensive Player of the Year-Edwin Shea
     Unsung Hero-Chris Webb
     Most Improved Player-Stevie Moses

Boston Little Bruins
     Most Valuable Player-Pat Brosnihan
     Defensive Player of the Year-Ray Monroe
     Unsung Hero-Paul Nannicelli
     Most Improved Player-Mike Wolff

CHAMPS!!!

BRUINS TOP MONARCHS, 4-3 TO WIN EJHL TITLE

2005 EJHL Northern Division Champions
2005 EJHL Overall Regular Season Champions
2005 EJHL Playoff Champions

On to the finals!
Bruins look sharp in 2-0 win over Stars; high flying Monarchs await in EJHL finals

WORCESTER, MA-The Junior Bruins got a great performance from goalie Nevin Hamilton and goals from Jimmy Driscoll and Chris Donovan (pictured) to lead the way offensively for the EJHL regular season champion Junior Bruins in their  Sunday afternoon EJ semi final game with the Walpole Stars.  The win was the fifth time the black and gold beat the Stars this season.  No small feat given how talented and well coached the Stars are.
     In order for the Bruins to capture their first EJHL playoff title they will need to do the same on Thursday night when they get a rematch of last years final with the NH Jr. Monarchs.  The Monarchs have been playing their best hockey of the year of late.  The Sean Tremblay led Monarchs have pasted every team in their path the last couple of weeks.  The Bruins have beaten the Monarchs every game they have played this season and are coming off one of their best games in the last two months as they smothered the Stars for most of the game and were constantly generating offensive pressure.
     The B's and Monarchs will play for all the marbles on Tuesday night at 7:00 PM at Holy Cross.

Butler OT goal sends Bruins to
EJHL semi finals! Junior Bruins eliminate NE Jr. Falcons

WORCESTER, MA-The Bruins needed to play catch up most of the game Friday night against the NE Jr. Falcons in EJHL quarterfinal action but in the end it was a Bobby Butler overtime goal that propelled the #1 seed Bruins onto the semi finals of the EJHL play-offs.  Forward Kory Falite set up Butler on the goal.  The Bruins pounded 50+ shots on the Falcons net while only giving up 32 but still needed the extra frame to get the job done.

Tyler and Leaderer named to Hockey East
All-Rookie team
Former Junior Bruins earn HE honors

BOSTON, MA-On the night before the Hockey East semi finals the league hands out their hardware and two former Junior Bruins defensemen were named to the 2005 Hockey East Superskills All-Rookie Team.  Bret Tyler from the University of Maine and David Leaderer who plays for coach Toot Cahoon at the University of Massachusetts (Amherst) were the only two defensemen named to the team.  The selections were made based on the voting of all head coaches in the league.
     Joining Tyler and Leaderer on the team are goalies Kevin Regan (Waterloo Blackhawks), Peter Vetri (Williams Lake Timberwolves) and Cory Schneider (Andover) as well as forwards PJ Fenton (NE Jr. Coyotes/Falcons, Peter MacArthur (Waterloo Blackhawks) and Chris Bourque (Cushing).
Tyler led all Maine freshmen in scoring with 6 goals and 14 assists in 34 games played.  That was also good for 7th on the team.  Those totals also put him 5th in the country for freshmen defensemen.  Tyler, a Maynard, MA native, was also a +12 on the season which is good for 3rd on the team.  Tyler came to the Bruins as a 14 year old and was placed on the teams midget team.  Later that season he joined the Junior team and has never looked back.  He was a league All-Star numerous 4 times as well team MVP, Defensive Player of the Year (twice) and a two time captain.  A season ago Tyler had a 20 goal-58 assist-78 point campaign.  That was preceded by a 27-57-84 line in 2002-2003.  Tyler, as always, got better  down the stretch run of the year netting 14 points in his last 15 games in Hockey East. "This is a great honor for Bret and his family. To be recognized like this is very special because so many few players who have played this sport have ever been able to attain an award like this. Bret was a special player at fourteen and with hard work, grit and brains was able to continue to be special at the junior level and now the colligate level," said former coach Peter Masters.
Leaderer came to the Junior Bruins as a member of the Bruins inaugural Midget AAA team in 2002-2003.  His leadership skills were immediately evident when he was named one of the teams captains.  He had a breakout season with the Midget AAA team garnering interest from a handful of Division 1 schools.  One of those schools was U-Mass Amherst.  After a season with the Junior team a season ago he arrived at Amherst this past fall and had another breakout season-this time in the toughest conference in college hockey.  Leaderer led all freshmen defensemen in scoring at U-Mass this past season and was a big part of the teams success.  His 11 points were only 2 behind former Junior Bruin and current Minuteman teammate Matt Burto. "Dave came to us at sixteen years old and spent one year in our midget program and another on our junior team. We gave him the training ground and pushed him as much as we could to get ready to go into the college game as prepared as any true freshman could be. I think Dave's work ethic, skill and leadership helped earn himself a big role on the UMass team right away and he took that opportunity he was given and ran with it. I know a player of his caliber as a person and athlete is hard to come by and I know it will be exciting to see how he progress with the rest of his college career," said Masters.

Little Bruins reclaim title!
Molle scores game winner with 3:09 left in game to best AAA Bruins in EMJHL final

WORCESTER, MA-The Junior Bruins Midget AAA team and the Little Bruins came to Sunday's final at the Hart Center by dramatically different means.  The AAA Bruins skated to a 9-1 semi final win over the Portland Jr. Pirates while the Little Bruins needed an OT goal to beat the Jr. Falcons 1-0 in the other EMJHL semi final.  For the third year in a row the finals of the EMJHL had the Bruins two midget teams battling for the playoff crown.  The Little Bruins, who had a two year head start on their full season brethren, have been in the finals every season.  A Jason Molle goal broke a 2-2 deadlock late in the game to earn the Little B's their fourth title in five seasons.
The Little Bruins got on the board first when Steve Morra sent a shot from a bad angle towards the net that found its way through the pads of Nathan Kudla to put the Little B's up 1-0 nine minutes into the game.  The AAA'ers would tie the game up on a gorgeous 2-1 from Scotty Schuster and Phil Ginand.  The play started with Schuster chipping it past a defensemen on the right wing side in his own end.  he raced past the defensemen and headed up ice with Ginand joining him on the left wing.  Schuster moved the puck to Ginand in the high slot and as goalie Justin Gates and the remaining defensemen shifted to his side Ginand sent a perfect pass back to Schuster who one timed it into the open net.
     Justin Pallos would get the lead back for the Little B's when he cut across the high slot and whistled a perfect snap shot underneath the cross bar.  Andrew Glass assisted on the play and with only 2:04 left in the first half the score would stay that way setting up  a good second half.
     The AAA Bruins came out blazing and controlled play for the last 25 minutes of the game.  They out shot the Little B's 21-8 in the second half but Justin Gates answered the bell and kept his team in front.  Little Bruins coach praised Gates as the difference in the game, "Gator played his two best games this weekend.  He shined last night against the Flacons and was equally as strong today."
The only shot that did get past Gates was a Mike Cichy breakaway six minutes into the second half.  A turnover in the neutral zone found its way on Cichy's stick and he was off to the races going in alone from the blue line.  Cichy faked to his left and then took it to his backhand and roofed a backhander past Gates to tie the game.  The AAA Bruins skating was their strong suit this game as they played the majority of the second half in the Little B's end.  They did everything...but score.
     The game winner came with only 3:09 left as Molle picked the puck up off the right wing wall, took a few strides toward the net, and put the puck on the net and beat Kudla to the short side.  The Little B's were then able to keep the AAA'ers at bay for the remaining 3:09 and picked up an empty netter from Alan Dionne in the closing seconds.  The last 1:01 was spent with the goalie pulled but the split season Bruins got the job done and won their reclaimed the EMJHL title the AAA Bruins won a year ago.

CHAMPS!!!
Jones OT goal gives Junior Bruins back to back EJHL Regular Season Championship  

WALPOLE, MA-The Junior Bruins got an overtime goal to beat the Walpole Stars, 2-1 on Sunday afternoon to win their second straight Eastern Junior Hockey League regular season title. Coming into the game the Bruins knew that two points in the next two games would clinch the title for the 2nd year in row. Great goal tendering by Chris Rossi set the stage for the dramatic OT win.
     This game was a lot like the game both teams played on Friday night. High flying and lots of shots and  chances by both teams. But in a rematch of the same goalies it would Chris Rossi that would win the battle in the low scoring affair. Both teams had great chances in the first with the Bruins out shooting the Stars 13-12. But neither team could find the back of the net and the period ended 0-0. "Walpole is a strong team and with it being our third game in three days, at their building, I was hoping we could get out to a lead early while we were fresh. But both goalies played strong as their were a lot of quality chances at each end and we would have to hope we had enough in us to battle for a win later in the game," said Masters.
     Period two was more of the same as the teams both had plenty of power play chances and the shots would remain even at 14 apiece. Nikyta Kashirsky would put the starts up 1-0 eight minutes into the period with assists going to Mayer and Harrison. "This line was good for them all game, really taking the body and making things happen. We were lucky they only came up with one all game," said Masters.
The Bruins would again put up another 13 shots in the third period but could not find a way get the first one till Kory Falite, who had four goals on the weekend, turned and fired a shot from the slot in the offensive zone with a little under four minutes left. It got deflected by  a Walpole player and went five hole on Wilson. "We needed a break like that. We were tired, and it was late and sometimes good teams make their own luck and some how the puck found a hole and gave us a chance to take the game to OT," said Masters.
     In OT the Bruins would go on the power play after Luke Jones was hooked entering the Stars zone on a rush. In an EJHL overtime the five minute period is played 4-4 so when the Bruins went on the PP it went to 4-3. The Bruins would quickly set up in the zone and Alex Berry would move the puck high to Wild who hammered a one timer. The puck would miss the net but bounce right back out to Jones who was Johnny on the spot to bang in the rebound off the boards with two minutes left in the OT. "I cant say enough about his group. The Monarchs did not let up much down the stretch and we needed to win some tough games late in the season and every time we needed a win the guys did it. Losing Kimball and Donavan when you only have 11 forward for the last month put us in an even tougher spot to win these games. But beating the Monarchs heads up twice in the last month and that was the difference. I could not be any prouder of my team right now," said Masters.
     The Bruins will play the NE Huskies on Saturday night to close out the regular season and will await the play in game to see who their opponent  will be in the first round of playoffs.

Bruins downed by U-18 team
Kessel's two goal two assist the difference in 5-1 loss  

BELMONT, MA-On Saturday afternoon the New England hockey world coverage at the Belmont hill rink in Belmont mass to watch the US under 18 team battle the Junior Bruins. The fans that showed up got a treat watching some of the best hockey the area has seen all year. When it was all said and done future #1 NHL pick Phil Kessel lived up to his billing scoring two goals and assisting on two more figuring in on four of the five US goals.
     The Bruins came out strong in the first period taking the play to the US team right form the start. Future Minnesota goalie Jeff Frazze was on top of his game early stopping three great Bruins chances. "I thought our warm up was weak and tentative. You could tell the guys were giving the US team to much respect just from how we warmed up. We talked about it in the locker room after the warm up. I told this team is going to give you enough trouble on their own if you sit back and play nervous or tentative it will be ugly. I think they responded well. They attacked and did not give an inch in the neutral zone and once they realized they could play with this team they settled in nice," said Coach Masters. The U-18 would strike first scoring on the power play 14 minutes into the game. Kessel would move the puck to Ryan Stoa who would hammer a shot that missed the net but shot right back out to Erik Johnson would was moving in from the point and he one timed the puck into the Bruins net. The Bruins would out shoot the U-18 team 11-9 in the first but could not find the back of the net.
     It would be all Bruins in the second controlling the play and out shooting their opponent 12-5. "We played great in the 2nd. We could not find away to beat Frazee and we made only a few mistakes all period and they made us pay one of them. Phil Kessel would receive a great pass from Nathan Gerbe in the neutral zone, walk in to the Bruins goalie Hamilton and in one motion, before Hamilton could set up, snapped a shot five hole to make it 2-0 with three minutes left in the 2nd. "Big time goal, not many AHL goalies could have stopped that shot," said one of the NHL scouts on hand.
The National team would take over in the third out shooting the Bruins 12-5 and putting three more on the board. Kory Falite would finish off a great 3-2 play late in the game to finally crack Frazee. Casey Russell moved the puck to Butler who broke into the offensive zone and hit Falite streaking to the net. Falite would one time the pass give the Bruins their first and only goal of the game. "It was a real honor for our guys to be selected to play in a game like this. It is not every day a national team travels to play a local team in the area and I was proud of way we competed and executed for 95% of the game. This is one of the few times as a coach your not to upset after a loss. Hopefully we will get an opportunity to play a game like this next year," said Masters.

Little Bruins shining in prep playoffs
Franklin, Glass, Burrows, Brosnihan, White and Pallos key teams to victories  

FRAMINGHAM, MA-Wednesday afternoon the prep playoffs began and 5 Little Bruins playing in those games played key roles in their teams advancing.  The Little Bruins had representatives playing for Nobles, Worcester Academy and St. Marks.  All three teams advanced to their respective division semi finals on Saturday.
      Josh Franklin had two goals to pace Nobles over Thayer.  Josh Burrows set up Nobles first goal while Glass assisted on Franklin's first goal.
     Pat Brosnihan picked up the game winning goal in Worcester Academy's 4-3 quarterfinal win over Kent's Hill.
     Justin Pallos led St. Marks to a convincing 6-2 win over Brunswick.

Lavin, Franklin and Glass recognized
Three Bruins '89's invited to NTDP tryout camp  

FRAMINGHAM, MA-This past week the US NTDP has sent out invites to 1989 birth year players to come to their tryout camp later this month.  The Junior Bruins will be well represented in Ann Arbor at the tryouts as three players from the midget program have received invites.  Defensemen Joey Lavin from the Midget AAA Bruins and forwards Josh Franklin and Andrew Glass from the Little Bruins have all received invites.
     This marks the fourth year in a row the Bruins have sent a player to the NTDP tryout camp.  At the 1986 level it was Junior Bruins forward Adam Pineault, the following year at the 1987 level it was former Little Bruins forward and Junior Burins forward Jason Lawrence, former Little Bruin and Junior Bruins forward Bobby Butler as well as Midget AAA goalie Peter Cox and at the 1988 level it was Midget AAA defensemen Matt Kronk and former Little Bruins forwards Ben Smith and Doug Rogers.
Lavin, in his second campaign with the Midget AAA Bruins, is the teams leading scorer for defensemen with 11 goals and 42 assists for 53 points in 60 games played.  He is one of only four players to play in every game this season.  In those 60 games he has a plus/minus rating of +45.  That total is third on team behind team leader Edwin Shea (+55) and forward Nathan Lavner.  Lavin, who lives in Shrewsbury, MA, spent his youth hockey days playing with the 89 Worcester Crusaders.  Lavin had this to say after being notified of his invite to the tryout camp, “"Having the opportunity to compete for a spot on the National team is exciting and is truly an honor. All of the hard work and dedication during practices with my teammates has put me in this position to be recognized by the NTDP. If not for my teammates I would never be in this position.  The development and exposure I have gotten with the Junior Bruins the past two years has also been a major factor in receiving this invite.”
Glass, who was with the Midget AAA Bruins a year ago, played his first season with the Little Bruins this fall.  In 31 games he had a 5-13-18 line in 31 games.  He is playing for Nobles during the winter season and has a 7-15-22 line in 29 games.  Glass was a long time 1989 Minuteman Flames player.  While with the Flames Glass’s teams won numerous MBHL league titles.  On that same Flames team was Midget AAA defensemen Shea.  Glass, Lavin and Franklin all played on the 1989 Junior Bruins AAA summer team.  Also on those teams were Jimmy Hayes and Derrick Pallis who will also be at the NTDP tryout.
Franklin has spent the past two fall seasons with the Little Bruins and has been one of the teams top point producers.  In his inaugural season with the Little B’s he had a 23 goal-14 assist-40 point season in 35 games played.  This past season he was second on the team in scoring to Yale bound Pat Brosnihan with a 19-15-34 line in 33 games played.  Glass and Franklin are also teammates during the winter at Nobles where this past season Franklin has put a 24 point season.  Franklin, who grew up in Randolph but now lives in Wrentham, was a BU Jr. Terrier in his MBHL days.  Franklin's younger brother Max is on the 1994 Junior Bruins AAA summer team.
     “It is nice to see these players are recognized and get the invite out to Ann Arbor.  They only invite 12-13 defensemen and 24-25 forwards so it is truly an honor.  We expected that there would be a few players from the Midget AAA Bruins and Little Bruins that got invites to the camp.  We thought that Shea may also get invited based on how he has played this year and the other defensemen they invited.  He is at the same level as the other defensemen we have been told received invites.  There are also a lot of other great ’89 players in our program and playing with other teams in our area who did not get invites but a case could certainly be made for a lot of them as well.  It is a nice honor for Joey, Andrew and Josh and we wish them good luck at the tryouts,” coach Chris Masters commented on the news of the three midget players.

Junior Bruins and NTDP U-18 team to square off Saturday night B's to take on Lawrence, Kessel, Mueller and company

FRAMINGHAM, MA-The Junior Bruins will face off with the NTDP U-18 tam this Saturday night at the Icenter in Salem, NH.  The pucks drops at 8:10 PM.  The Bruins will have their hands full as they play a talented U-18 team that has beaten college teams such as Notre Dame and Michigan State.  They have also tied the following teams: Clarkson, Northern Michigan and Minnesota State. Last weekend they dropped a 5-4 decision to the Michigan Wolverines.
     The NTDP is traveling east to play the first and second place teams in the EJHL.  On Sunday they will play the NH Jr. Monarchs who currently sit in second place behind the Junior Bruins.  One familiar face on the Team USA bench will be former Little Bruins and Junior bruins forward Jason Lawrence.  Lawrence, who accepted a full scholarship to Boston University after his season with the Junior Bruins, is one of the top players on the NTDP team.

Champs!
Midget AAA Bruins win EMJHL Regular Season Championship beating Breakers 6-1

ROCKLAND, MA-The Midget AAA Bruins locked up the EMJHL Regular Season crown early Wednesday morning as they beat the Bay State Breakers, 6-1.  This is the first regular season title for the Midget AAA Bruins.  The past two seasons they played bridesmaids to the Little Bruins who were in the middle of a three year back to back to back title run.  A year ago the Midget AAA Bruins beat the Little bruins in a thrilling play-off championship game to claim their first EMJHL Play-off title.  The win today puts the Midget AAA Bruins record at 18-0-3.  No team can now catch them in the standings.  With the AAA Bruins as league champs and securing the #1 seed in the play-offs they earn a first round "bye".  The other first round "bye" goes to the Little Bruins who have locked up the #2 spot in the league.
     The championship clinching victory did not come easy.  The game was a make-up of a game that was scheduled for early December and the game time was an 8:30 AM start time Wednesday.  Not an easy rink to get to at that time of the day.  As well as having some players missing because they do not have school vacation this week.  So, with a short bench, the Bruins were still able to get the job done.  The Bruins skeleton squad was limited to four defensemen and only eight forwards.  The number of defensemen dipped to three when Stevie Bergin injured his wrist in the second half.
     The Breakers caught the Bruins sleeping in the first two minutes of the game and scored a rebound goal to take a 1-0 lead.  Peter Cox would shut the door for the next 23 minutes and Justin Gates would blank the Breakers in the second half to keep them to the lone goal.
The Bruins tied the game when Chris Webb cut across the high slot going right to left and snapped a shot past the Breakers glove hand.  The play was set up by a text book breakout.  The Bruins defensemen moved the puck from behind the Bruins net up the left wing to Phil Ginand who moved to the puck to winger Stevie Moses on the other side of the ice.  Moses brought the puck down the right wing side and drew a defender to him and then dropped the puck to a trailing Webb who finished off the play from there.  The game winner came off the stick of Edwin Shea who popped the first of three power play goals on the day.  the goal was a beauty of f set up from Nathan Lavner and Joey Lavin.  Evan Mackintosh closed out the scoring in the first half when he finished off his own rebound to make it a 3-1 game.
     MackIntosh picked up where he left off when he dropped a slap bomb from the point to open up the scoring in the second half.  he stepped into a shot just over the blue line that blew past the Breakers goalie in the blink of an eye.  The final two goals of the game were power play markers, both off the stick of Cody Warila.  Those goals were Warila's 22nd and 23rd goal of the season.
     "I have been telling the guys a lot lately how proud I am of the way they have played the second half of the season.  The team has responded to a lot of tough tests and have come out on top in most of those cases.  The injury bug has hit this team hard all year but the healthy bodies we have refuse to make excuses and throw in the towel when it would be easy to make an excuse and do just that.  The leadership and resolve of this group is strong and it will need to continue to be as we now turn our attention to two tough games this weekend," coach Chris Masters said following the game.  He continued, "it was nice to see this group rewarded with their first regular season title after the hard work and strong play they have put in all season.  There is still work to do before play-offs but we can now turn some of our focus to repeating as play-off champions."

It's official: Brosnihan to Yale
Little Bruins captain headed to New Haven

FRAMINGHAM, MA- The news of '86 Little Bruins forward Pat Brosnihan committing to Yale University to play for coach Tim Taylor was published on several web sites a few weeks ago.  Until it became official over the weekend we have hesitated to post a story on Pat and the big news.  This past weekend Pat took his official visit at the school and confirmed he will be on board next fall.  Pat is a big time talent and already has a pro level shot and release.  Most players at 6'3 do not have the skating abilities he has or the soft hands that can give defenders a headache.  His biggest asset is his shot.  It is powerful, accurate and his release is deadly.
     Brosnihan came to the Little Bruins tryouts on the spring of 2003 and the B's did not know much about the 6'3 200 lbs. forward and was a bit of an unknown.  He did not remain and unknown for long.  He started to make a name for himself that summer in tournaments such as the Beantown Classic.  Later that fall he made a big impression on the Bruins coaches and college coaches as he put up big numbers for the nationally ranked Little Bruins.  In his 41 games in the 2003-2004 season he had a 23-22-45 line which was good for second in the team in scoring.  He was also a +32 and had two game winning goals.  He was a big reason the Little Bruins went undefeated (26-0) in the EMJHL and had a 32-6-3 record.
Brosnihan, who plays at Worcester Academy in the winter, is the captain of the '04-'05 Little Bruins and is currently leading the team in all offensive categories.  He has a 27-20-47 line and has 5 game winning goals.  He is also tied for the team lead in +/- with a +26.  Brosnihan has a chance to set the Little Bruins record for goals scored in a season.  Jason Lawrence set the record two season ago with 28 goals.  That was the record till Ben Smith broke it with 29 in the '03-'04 campaign.  Brosnihan has the EMJHL semi finals and finals (if the B's advance) to break the record in March.
     "The goal of our program is to get our players the development and exposure they need to move on to play college hockey and we are thrilled when any of our players make a commitment.  We are thrilled for Pat and his family.  Pat has been a big part of our Little Bruins team the last two years and we know that Yale is getting a big time talent as well as a great kid.  We wish Pat the best next year as he starts a new chapter in his life and hockey career," coach Chris Masters said after receiving the news.

All Stars!
EJHL All Star and Futures Game selections announced 10.05)

FRAMINGHAM, MA-Next Thursday night the EJHL will be on full display as the 2005 All-Star games will be played at Walter Brown Arena on the campus of Boston University. Fourteen Junior Bruins players have been selected to participate in the evenings games.
     Last season the EJHL added a 2nd game on All Star night. "The coaches in the league felt that, year after year, with only one all star game that worthy players, due to roster constraints, were left at home. So we added a second game and trimmed the rosters from 22 players down to 20. Last year we were happy with the two game system but felt we wanted to showcase and recognize our younger "up and coming players"," said Peter Masters.
     The EJHL changed the ages of the second game and '84 and '85 age players were not eligible for selection. "The change in all star selection for the Futures game benefits a team like our because we are normally one of the youngest teams in the league so we have more players eligible to be chosen," continued Masters. Coach Masters was named as one of the coaches of the All-Star game along with Valley Warriors coach Andy Heinz, NH Monarch coach Sean Tremblay and Apple Core coach Henry Lazar.
     Leading the fourteen man Bruins hit parade is three time EJHL All star goaltender (2003/04 EJHL goalie of the year) Nevin Hamilton (U Lowell).  Nevin is currently leading the EJHL in GAA (1.56) and save percentage (94.08). "I have never seen Nevin play better or more consistently than he has in the last two months of EJHL play," said Masters. Chris Rossi has also made an impact on the league in his first year and is 2nd in all of the EJHL in in GAA and tied for 3rd in save percentage with 92.15 average. Jimmy Driscoll is making his first EJHL all star appearance. He is currently leading the Bruins defensemen is scoring (4-26-30pts) and is in the EJHL top 5 in scoring for defenseman. Topher Bevis (UMass)  will be joining Jimmy on the blue line, it will be Topher first appearance at the game though Topher played with  the US U-18 team least against the EJHL all star team in an exhibition game in the fall of 2003. Ryan Ginand (Northeastern) will be playing in his 2nd EJHL all star game and is currently 18th in the EJHL in scoring and has a season line of 22-9-33pts and is leading the entire Junior Bruins team in point production. Pat Kimball, Chris Donavan and Alex Berry (UMass) have all made the jump from prep hockey to the EJ this past season. All three have transition well and will be joining Ryan as the four Bruins representatives at the forward position.
     Garrett Peters, Kory Falite (U-Lowell), Bob Butler and Matt Fitzgibbons have all been named to the futures game rosters. "This is great opportunity for all four forward to playing front of the college and NHL scouting community that they normally would not have got if it weren't for the 2nd game," said Masters. Cody Wild and Mike Harr, both already committed to Division 1 schools for next year, have been selected and will be trying to raise there stocks in the minds of their new coaches and the continue to try to impress NHL scout who will hopefully be drafting players this summer.
     The Futures game starts at 7pm followed at 8:40pm by the All Star game. For a full look at the entire roster go can check the EJHL home web page at www.easternjunior.com . Good luck to all Bruins and EJHL players!