Where Are They Now: 2018-19 Ice Hockey Edition

Canton’s Liam Pecararo and the Northeastern Huskies have their sights set on the NCAA Frozen Four. (Jim Pierce/Northeastern Athletics)

High school tournament season is now in full swing, and around these parts all eyes are on the still-unbeaten CHS ice hockey team (23-0-1) and their quest for another MIAA state championship trophy.

But while the Bulldogs certainly have earned the spotlight as they continue their run at sports immortality, there are a number of other athletes with Canton ties whose accomplishments this winter warrant attention and praise.

Of course, no mention of Canton hockey’s finest would be complete without a nod to the legendary Kevin Rooney, star of the last Bulldog title team and former college hockey champion who is now living out his dream as a member of the National Hockey League’s New Jersey Devils. After getting a taste of NHL action in his first two and a half professional seasons, Rooney has had an extended run with the big club over the past two months, most recently centering the second line in the team’s 2-1 shootout loss to Columbus on March 5. The former Hockomock MVP scored his first NHL goal against the Chicago Blackhawks back on January 14 and recently had a stretch of three points in three games — bringing his season totals to four goals and two assists in 28 games played.

Switching gears to the NCAA ranks, no Canton player has enjoyed a finer season than Northeastern University’s Liam Pecararo. After a productive stint with the Waterloo Black Hawks of the USHL and a season at UMaine, Pecararo transferred to NU and has emerged as a key cog for the nationally ranked Huskies (22-10-1). Last month, Pecararo helped Northeastern win its second straight Beanpot trophy, registering an assist in tournament victories against both Boston University and Boston College. A few weeks later, he earned his first career Hockey East Player of the Week award after a prolific two-game stretch against UNH in which he racked up three goals and four assists — including his first collegiate hat trick. Pecararo is currently tied for second on the team with 26 total points and will look to add to his totals as the Huskies get ready for postseason play.

Canton hockey legend and current NHL forward Kevin Rooney has set the bar incredibly high for the aspiring stars of tomorrow.

Coincidentally, the team that is tied with Northeastern in the Hockey East standings, the Providence College Friars, has also had its share of Canton Youth Hockey alumni over the years — including three members of the Rooney family — and is poised to add another next season with the arrival of Jerry Harding. A two-year member of the Bulldogs who went on to attend Noble & Greenough, Harding has spent the past season sharpening his skills in the highest levels of junior hockey, collecting six goals and 10 assists between stints with the Omaha Lancers and Cedar Rapids RoughRiders of the USHL.

Also making their mark this season are several Canton players competing at the NCAA Division III level, headlined by former Bulldog all-star Nick O’Connor, who capped off a memorable career at Colby College with a selection to the All-NESCAC First Team. O’Connor, a senior forward and team co-captain, finished third in the conference in scoring with 27 points and was a semifinalist for the Concannon Award, given to the top American born player in New England DII/III.

Meanwhile, moving on to compete in the NCAA national tournament is another NESCAC standout and Canton native, Ryan Pfeffer. A Thayer Academy grad, Pfeffer captained Trinity College to a conference title while netting a team-high 12 goals. He will now look to lead the seventh-ranked Bantams to a DIII title, starting with an opening round matchup this Saturday against No. 11 University of New England.

Other notable DIII players with Canton roots include a pair of former Bulldogs: John Femia, who led St. Anselm with 15 assists, and Brian Brooks, who had another productive campaign at Suffolk with five goals and 10 assists. Colin Clapton, a Winchendon School alum, was similarly impactful in his final season for the 18-7-2 Salve Regina Seahawks, while Roxbury Latin grad Jimmy Duffy got his feet wet in his first season at Bowdoin, appearing in 20 games for the Polar Bears.

On the women’s side, Canton’s Anne Malloy, a Milton Academy alum, continues to be a key part of the defensive corps at Amherst College, playing in all 26 games this season for the Mammoths. Also seeing action for their respective college teams were Canton natives Emily Lanci, a sophomore forward at St. Michael’s (4g, 1a), and Julie Nagel, a junior forward at Plymouth State (2g, 3a). Another Cantonite, Hilary Witt, recently completed her fifth season as head coach of the University of New Hampshire women’s hockey team. A former standout player at Northeastern and a member of the Massachusetts Hockey Hall of Fame, Witt previously coached at Yale University and won an Olympic silver medal as an assistant coach with the 2014 U.S. women’s national team.

As for the MIAA tournament action now underway, while the Bulldogs fell just short in their bid for a “Super 8” berth, the prestigious Division 1A tournament is not without its local connections. Canton’s PJ Donahue, a senior defenseman for top-seeded BC High, was a key part of last year’s championship team and helped kick off the Eagles’ title defense with a goal and an assist in their 4-2 opening-round win over Marshfield on Sunday.

Meanwhile, Xaverian Brothers, coached by Canton resident Dave Spinale and featuring Canton sophomore Shane Spinale, are back in the tourney for the first time since 2014 after knocking off a dangerous Duxbury team in the play-in round last week at the Chelmsford Forum. The Hawks went on to lose to No. 2 Pope Francis but are still alive in the losers bracket after Tuesday’s convincing win over No. 6 Austin Prep. Xaverian will next play No. 4 Arlington on Saturday while BC High gets set to do battle with Pope Francis on Monday, March 11.

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