Scituate High School boys hockey season is underway, sporting a record of 12-2 so far (as of 1/28). The team is coming off an excruciating Elite 8 loss to the eventual state champions in Marblehead last season.
Last year’s team graduated 15 seniors, leading to this year’s team having a few more underclassmen than last season: “We have a couple of freshmen and are loaded with sophomores, but they’re all very talented,” said head coach Brian Hurcombe.
This year’s team has great leadership in their two senior captains, Luke Ryan and Nate Sannella. “Luke and Nate are very good leaders, maybe better than any captains that I’ve had since I’ve coached,” Hurcombe said.
Senior Luke Ryan has been on the varsity roster for three years of his high school career, and this season, he took on the role of captain. Ryan said, “Preseason, the team did full program captain practices to polish up their skills while us seniors did the same club hockey team to build some team chem.”
When asked about his goals for this season, Ryan said the answer was “pretty simple”: “Win the state championship.”
Senior captain Nate Sannella, a third-year varsity veteran, is excited for the rest of the season. He said the team listens to Brazilian soccer music to stay loose and dialed in before each game. SHS sophomore Shane Ryan (Luke’s younger brother), senior Michael Chatterton, and Luke Ryan engage in another pregame ritual: Using a special hammer stored in Ryan’s hockey bag, they each strike their left leg for good luck. Superstitious players believe this ritual helped lead Coach Hurcombe to his 100th victory.
Notably, Coach Frank Smith always has motivational words for the team to get their hopes up before a big game.
One of Sannella’s most impactful memories over the past four years has been playing in the D3 state championship game at the TD Garden during his sophomore year. “Although we came up short of the ultimate goal, having that experience is just something that no one tends to get in their high school hockey career,” commented Sannella.
As the season progresses, all eyes are on the boys as they continue to power through divisional rivals and demanding D3 programs. Clearly, SHS is fully invested in the hockey team this season.