Ashland’s George Boccelli began taking skating lessons at the age of three and one year later he decided to join his older brother (of two years), Nick, into the hockey rink and set out for his own adventure.
The younger Boccelli would begin playing Demon Youth Hockey for the co-op team of Ashland, Hopkinton and Holliston where he would patrol one of the wings on the ice up until the beginning of high school. Prior to entering Ashland High School in September of his freshman year, Boccelli would leave the Demons to play for the Minuteman Flames that summer. He would continue to skate for the Flames for three years during the summer/fall months before high school hockey.
When high school tryouts got underway Boccelli found himself a little on edge, but luckily for the incoming freshman he had someone on the inside who could guide him through the tryouts.
“It was definitely nerve racking,” he said, “but having an older brother who already went through the process made it a lot easier. Nick told me just to relax and skate hard.”
Before you knew it, Boccelli found his name on the Ashland varsity roster but as a freshman saw very limited ice time; instead most of his hockey was skating with the Junior Varsity squad. With limited playing time with the varsity team, Boccelli, who skated periodically with the fourth line, watched as the Clockers made the state tournament. The fourth line center primarily got to view the tournament from the Ashland bench, where he discovered the game was played at a much faster pace. Unfortunately, it was the last time that the Ashland hockey team advanced into post-season play.
Prior to entering high school, Boccelli played one of the two wing position, but following his tryouts for the Clockers he began playing center, a position he felt he was much better suited for.
“I like to move around the ice where I considered myself as a two-way player so playing center was a better position for me,” he said. “As a two-way player I find myself to be more of an assist guy than a scorer.”
During his sophomore campaign he had seven assists for the Clockers and last winter he upped that total to 10, a number that Ashland Coach Mike Roman would have liked to have been a little higher.
“George has been a fantastic two-way player for us, but he struggled a bit offensively last year,” the coach said. “He has a defensive game that surprises me at times; every time I look onto the ice and think someone should be in a certain place, he’s always there. He has great game presence.”
Boccelli believes his instincts come from his older brother, who he got to play with for two years while in the Ashland team.
“It was a great experience getting to play with Nick for two years,” Boccelli said. “It was like having a mentor on the ice during games; Nick would give me tips and advice to what I was doing right and wrong during my shifts.”
Last winter as a junior, Boccelli was named as one of the team’s captains, an honor that is usually not given to an underclassman. According to Roman, he believes that Boccelli is the first junior captain that he and the team have ever elected at Ashland.
“Playing on one of our top two lines, George has also shown that he is open to whatever we ask of him,” Roman said. “He works extremely hard on the ice and is a nice kid as well; he’s well deserving of the title.”
Boccelli was grateful but also very surprised by the appointment.
“To be named a team captain as junior is a great accomplishment,” he said. “I am honored that my teammates believed in me but also that the Coach took their word. It means a lot to me and this year as a two-time captain I’m hoping that I can lead my team back into the tournament again.”
While the Clockers have only been able to manage 11 wins over the past two seasons (4 last winter), hockey was almost an afterthought in Ashland this year. Due to budget costs, the school committee needed to make some cuts and with the hockey numbers dropping and the rising cost of the sport they decided to get rid of the program. Luckily for the players, a group of passionate parents rallied and told the committee that they would do whatever it took to keep the program afloat.
“It would have been extremely frustrating that we, as hockey players, were only going to get one chance to participate in the tournament,” Boccelli said. “Only one shot at the tournament and our high school hockey careers cut short – that was not the way I wanted to go out.”
Now that they have a second chance, Boccelli and his teammates are looking to take full advantage of what has been placed in front of them.
“I myself, as the team’s only captain this year, want to get everyone on the same page,” the Clocker Captain said. “After that it would be huge if we could get back to the tourney once again.”
He may not be able to will the Clockers back into the tournament, a place he only got to experience from the bench as a first year player but if Boccelli continues to exert his passion for the game, his teammates will follow. And who knows, a program that was on the verge of distinction may find itself venturing back into uncharted waters, giving Boccelli a sendoff he has truly worked hard to accomplish.
Issue Date:
January, 2017
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