This is the 14th entry of The Morris-Sussex Hockey Report’s 27 teams in 27 days, where each day (except for Thanksgiving) there will be a team preview of each area team (boys and girls) leading up to Opening Day on December 7.
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ROXBURY GAELS
Head coach: Jon Benbow, 19th year (218-189-42 career record)
Division: Haas
NJSIAA Classification: North, Public
Last year: Roxbury rebounded from a one-win season in 2021-22 by going 11-8 overall last season. It finished second in the Haas division with a 6-4 record. It dropped a 4-3 heartbreaking shootout loss to West Morris in the Haas Cup semifinals, before falling, 9-0 to Randolph in the Public B state tournament.
Key losses: Roxbury will have a lot of seniors to replace, highlighted by forward Jake Calanni (29 g., 9 a.), a First Team All-Haas selection. Defenseman Tyler Peterson (7 g., 10 a.) was a Second Team All-Haas pick, while Gavin Woudenberg (3 g., 5 a.) was also a reliable presence on the blue line. Forward Stephen Ellison (3 g., 10 a.) was also an important piece of the team’s 13-player senior class. Additionally, the Gaels lost a pair of players to transfer, which includes talented sophomore forward Cam Guerra (4 g., 11 a.) and junior goalie Mikey Guadagnino (.870 save percentage). Junior forward Ben Skutnik (3 g., 5 a.) has also left the program due to club hockey commitments.
Top returners: The Gaels will be led up front by junior Ryan VanZile (7 g., 22 a.) and senior A.J. Mancuso (12 g., 8 a.). Senior Sean Hardy, sophomore Michael Nelson, junior Justin Katz, and senior Nick Pieper round out the group of returning forwards.
Defensively, First Team All-Haas pick, senior Gavin Barooah returns after leading all Haas defensemen in scoring with seven goals and 12 assists last year. Senior Christian Sokolowski, junior Griffin Warsaw, and senior James Stewart will also be counted on.
Potential impact newcomers: Freshman defenseman Ryan Geller is expected to see minutes this season.
Burning question: How will Roxbury fill roles after heavy losses to graduation and transfers?
Any time you lose a senior class that was as large as Roxbury’s was last year, it’s going to be a challenge to reload for the next year. It’s even further compounded when you lose two important players to transfer and another to club hockey.
There are going to be a lot of roles up for grabs this season for Roxbury, most notably in goal after Guadagnino transferred to Pope John. How quickly a relatively inexperienced team comes together will ultimately determine what type of season it will have this year.
Outlook: While a lot of the focus has been on what Roxbury lost last season, it does have some nice pieces coming back between VanZile, Mancuso, and Barooah. That is a very nice core to build around, and if those three can continue to elevate their games while also getting some contributions from some of the lesser-known players, Roxbury is a team that should be competitive within the Haas division. Goaltending is the big question mark after it lost Guadagnino along with his backup, Joe Fragale (graduation), so a solid season from whoever takes over in net will also make a big difference for this team.
Check back Friday for a preview of Chatham
E-mail Mike Gurnis at michaelgurnis@gmail.com
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