Not everyone goes to the public high school in their hometown, which can have an impact on local athletic programs, some more than others.
This is especially the case in hockey in the metro Boston area. There are a handful of towns just south of Boston who are in close proximity to a handful of private schools as well as vocational options. It might detract from their programs, but it has not stopped teams from being successful and competitive.
The Braintree High boys hockey team has been fortunate in recent years to keep its participation rate up despite the nearby competition. This year, Braintree had 97 kids try out for the program, despite some serious obstacles.
Not only is Braintree a couple of exits away from Boston on the highway, but also the town itself features three high schools with the option of attending a fourth for its town residents. Braintree High School is the main high school, but Archbishop Williams, a perennial Division 1 playoff contender in the Catholic Central League, also is located in the town.
The same could be said for Thayer Academy, which competes in the ISL prep league. Plus, since Braintree lacks a major vocational department, students in the town also have the option of going to Blue Hills Regional Vo-Tech in Canton, as do students from Avon, Milton, Canton, Norwood, Randolph, Dedham, Westwood and Holbrook (however, Randolph, Avon and Holbrook do not have high school hockey programs).
Archbishop Williams alone has seven Braintree players on its varsity roster: Mark Blaney, James Rowell, Brendan Foley and defensemen Brian Kelly and Ryan O’Connor; meanwhile, Blue Hills senior captain Nick Blaney, from Braintree, has amassed more than 50 points this season, dominating Div. 3 competition as his team earned a playoff spot. The team faces the same existential threat that Milton Academy, BC High, Catholic Memorial, Xaverian and club teams give any other town in this area.
The Braintree High Wamps manage to put together a competitive squad year after year despite playing a brutal Bay State League schedule and going up against tough non-league opponents such as Duxbury, St. John’s Prep, Malden Catholic, Hingham and Barnstable. Braintree made it to the Super 8 in 2014 and has been on the Super 8 watch list many times in the past five years.
"I think kids look at our schedule and say they don’t have to go to a private school to play the better teams," Braintree head coach Dave Fasano said. "With success comes people wanting to play for you. We’ve had some good teams."
Braintree might not have all of its players, but its senior captains this season — forwards Shawn Leslie and Dara Canavan as well as goaltender Owen Cuddyer — helped the school get to yet again another Div. 1 South playoff.
Fasano credits the high participation rate at his school to the robust youth hockey program in town and a couple sharp seasons from his team. After all, the youth program had only 50 to 60 players one decade ago.
"That’s a big part of it, obviously, when you have that many kids out of the youth hockey program," Fasano said. "As we’re winning and playing the better teams, we’re seeing the kids staying. It’s a trickle-down effect."
In-town competition
Although the City of Presidents does not have the vo-tech detraction, the two public high schools in Quincy have each other as competition for bodies as well as the local Catholic and ISL schools. Students can pick which high school they want to attend: Quincy High in Quincy Center or North Quincy just a few miles up the road.
"It’s a little different," North Quincy head coach Matt Gibbons said. "We’re two teams competing for bodies, since there’s no line in the sand here."
A problem that stems from Quincy schools competing for players is the inability of the high school coaches to be involved with the youth hockey program. Gibbons was on the Quincy Youth Hockey board but said half the town was upset because they thought it would help his team "recruit" players.
At times, this has hurt both team’s numbers in recent years. However, the Red Raiders have found creative ways to stay afloat. Goaltender Asher Wines got a waiver from the state during the 2016-17 season as an eighth-grader to play for the varsity team. Plus, junior forward John Early attends Landmark School in Beverly, a school without a hockey program.
This season, North Quincy also got back sophomore defenseman Andrew Hally from Archbishop Williams and junior forward Noah Wines from BC High. Both of them were sub-varsity players at their respective schools but have played regularly for North Quincy this season.
Two benefits North Quincy has going for it now are its youth and its scheduling. The team has a young core that is working its way up, and it is competing in the Patriot League. The regular-season schedule primarily features quality teams in higher divisions than North Quincy. Plus, the team is now in the Division 3 South bracket, so playing that tough schedule would give it an edge over a team that coasts through a cupcake schedule.
"I think if we had a few kids come back, you wouldn’t just have a deep tourney run," Gibbons said. "Who knows? Maybe it’s a state championship. We’re not going to be a Super 8 team, but we still have an opportunity to do something special here."
Gibbons said if players do attend their public high schools, they might have a better opportunity to shine while still receiving a quality education.
"If all of those guys came and played together for four years, they’d be able to play right away together," he said. "At BC High, they might be playing freshman and maybe get the bump up, possibly sophomore year. Some of it is just doing their homework, too."
"Sure, there’s a good education there, but that’s no guarantee to get into a great school," Gibbons added. "You also don’t have to look down on the public school, either. We’ve got kids here taking two or three AP classes and getting accepted into six colleges. It’s like anything: You get out of it what you put into it."
