After a slower year in 2024, all five teams boys hockey teams in the Herget Division qualified for the state tournament last season.
Braintree, Needham, and Weymouth were all within the top 21 for Division I, while Milton and Walpole were Nos. 6 and 7 respectively in the Div. II tournament.
Though all five teams lost some heavy hitters from last year’s squads, they each project to have solid seasons in 2025-26.
Nick Bligh is entering his third season as Milton’s head coach and Joe Verderber is getting ready for the head duties at Walpole for the first time.
For how the squads compare to one another and what they expect out of the upcoming season, here are our Herget Division preseason power rankings.
1. Needham
Entering the preseason, the Rockets were staring at a lot of roster turnover and a need for their few returners to step up. So far, they’ve delivered.
“I’d say collectively our returning guys are doing a good job as a unit leading together and they have all offseason,” Needham coach Mike Hoban said. “That’s what we wanted. It’s hard where we don’t have a large crew returning and it’s kind of hard to name captains when more than half the team is going to be new.
“A couple guys have been around for a few years like (Matt) Ledbury on defense who’s really stepped up and is kind of taking a leading role too. Overall it’s just been a good, full unit lead on the charge.”
Ledbury, a consistent force on the blue line for the Rockets, is ready to shut down opposing skaters once more as a junior this year.
“He’s just smooth and not flashy and just gets the job done,” Hoban said of Ledbury. “He doesn’t wow you with his skill set even though he is really strong and has a good base. He’s not a kid that’s going to flash up and down the ice and go through guys like that but he just gets the job done.
“He’s picking right back where he left off last year.”
When it comes to the team’s forward, Hoban has his eyes on Joey Saratella, Joe McDonnell and Nick Buckley.
“Saratella up front who had his brother on the team last year and he played a pretty big role for us, Joey did, so he’ll step in and we’re looking to get some offensive firepower form him,” Hoban said. “McDonnell and Buckley didn’t play a ton of minutes last year but they know how to operate at the varsity level now that they got a year under their belt and you can see this year they’re a lot more comfortable.”
In net, Hoban is looking to junior Carson Brownridge and sophomore Lucas Olson to take charge as returners.
“Both of them physically got bigger and stronger, you notice that right from the get go,” Hoban said of his goalies.
Needham opens its season at Weymouth on Saturday, Dec. 13 at 7:20 p.m.
“At least the last four or five years I feel like we’ve played them first game and it’s always a really good initial test,” Hoban said of Weymouth. “Two teams that are comparable, that play hard against each other. It’s just a good game to start because you know you’re going to get right into the thick of it, it’s going to be physical.
“Playing there is a tough barn too, from a crowd and atmosphere perspective. Just being on the road for your first game, kind of getting into the swing go that too will be tough but always a really good start.”
2. Weymouth
The Wildcats are returning some of the best talent in the conference this season, putting them in line for another double-digit win season under coach Pat Kennedy.
Last year, Weymouth won 13 games before falling to Natick 5-4 in the first round. Their regular season was fueled by All-Star forward Whalen Chin and goaltender Billy Lennon, who are both returning this season.
Though the Wildcats lost their leading scorer in Alex Stockton, they are bringing back three other skaters who finished with at least 10 goals and 10 assists last season.
The returning trio of Michael Curry, Ryan Ferguson, and Ryan MacDonald tallied a collective 68 points last season for Weymouth.
3. Braintree
The Wamps are facing some of the biggest losses year-over-year in the conference. Braintree carried four All-Stars last season including the Herget MVP Matt Harvey and all of them have since graduated from the program.
In addition, freshman star Kinno Zhu is going to the Lovell Academy in Rockland for his sophomore year.
To make up for their losses, Braintree will need plenty of help from juniors Evan Anderson, Luke Joyce and Chris Psaros, and seniors Matt Morelli and Jason Williams.
In net, senior Cam Barron will have to take control after the departure of Amir Cullinane.
The Wamps start the year by hosting the Timberwolves on Saturday, Dec. 13 at 2:30 p.m.
4. Walpole
After taking some time away from coaching high school hockey, Joe Verderber takes over as head coach for Walpole.
“Walpole has had over the past few decades, a strong tradition of hockey and I want to try to bring that back,” Verderber said. “The previous coach, he did well, but trying to help the team do better and have more consistent success and bring back that kind of pride in the program for the town as well. Not just the players, but have the town and the school be proud of these guys, and we want our guys not just to be good hockey players but to be good people.”
So far Verderber has been impressed with what his team has put on the ice through tryouts and scrimmages, and the way his captains have led the way.
Entering the season, seniors Mike Conners, Daniel Morris, and Mike Roof were named team captains.
“So far they’ve been fantastic,” Verderber said of his captains. “They’re a humble group but they’re not afraid to voice their opinions and try to lead these guys and each one of them has a different approach which is nice.
“You have a Michael Conners, more of a quiet guy, leader by example. Danny Morris, he’ll pose questions and go that route, and then Michael Roof the goalie, he’s more demonstrative in goal and not afraid to speak his mind at any point in time.”
While they’ve been meaningful to this year’s squad as leaders, Verderber also has high expectations for their on-ice production.
“Mike Roof should be one of the best goalies out there, which is a nice thing to have,” Verderber said. “[Connors is] probably one of the more talented players on the team. A shifty little playmaking center, he’ll go up and down.
“Then Danny Morris is more of a role-playing type guy, he just does whatever’s asked of him but they complement each other well.”
Joining the trio as a top returner is Aiden Hoyle who was one of the team’s most impactful skaters as a sophomore last season.
“He’s got a lot of talents, he’s a good playmaker, he’s always looking to create some opportunity,” Verderber said of Hoyle. “I think he’s in the mindset, which is good, but an assist is as good as a goal. But he has the opportunity to score some goals and he’ll pass it off rather than take a shot.”
Taking on Braintree in his first regular season games, Verderber knows his squad will have to be ready.
“Talk about stepping into the fire,” Verderber said. “Braintree’s a solid program. They’re a really good team, really a strong, physical, good puck moving team. So we’re going to have our hands full. But you never know, we show up prepared, focused on just doing the little things right, you don’t know what can happen.”
5. Milton
Sporting one of the best defenses in the region, Milton put together a stretch of four straight shutouts last year, all in league play. The Wildcats lost just three conference games last season, finishing 11-6-6 and earning the No. 6 in the Division II tournament.
Though they graduated eight players including goaltender Ryan Ashburn and defensemen, Nick Antoniewicz and Jacob Melanson, the Wildcats have a strong group returning under Nick Bligh.
On the blue line, Milton still has seniors Aidan Rowley and Peter Buckley, and juniors Devin Prince and Jack Naughton.
In front of them, seniors Nate Kenney, John Sullivan, and Daniel Sullivan are also back.
In net, Milton will need seniors Liam Sadler and Colby Schleicher to step up in place of Ashburn.
Milton starts the season by hosting Wellesley on Saturday, Dec. 13 at 6 p.m.
