MIDDLETON — Wearing a paper-thin $25 Christmas suit that he and his St. John’s Prep hockey teammates had ordered off of Amazon specifically for this tournament, senior captain Jake Vana put the Pete Frates Winter Classic into perfect perspective Thursday.
“You can’t make this stuff up: winning the championship on Pete’s birthday against the team we lost to (in the state semifinals) last year,” said Vana, whose overtime goal gave his Eagles a pulsating 1-0 victory over Pope Francis in the ninth annual Pete Frates Winter Classic at the Essex Sports Center.
“What Pete Frates has done not only for the Prep community, but the whole world; there’s no underestimating it,” added Vana. “The impact he’s had on ALS, the inspiration he is.
“He’s in my locker; I have a picture of Pete in there I got when I was in sixth grade. It’s a reminder that some days you don’t want to work your hardest or you’re tired from school, but always knowing that he’d always give it his all every day is a great reminder.”
Vana’s goal, in which he won a puck battle along the far wall, chipped it forward to himself and was off to the races before beating Pope Francis netminder Nick Ritchie with a backhand up top, gave the Eagles (now 4-1 overall) just their second-ever Frates Classic title and first since 2015.
The four-team tournament, which included BC High and Central Catholic, celebrates the life of Frates, a former three-sport star at St. John’s Prep (Class of 2003) from Beverly who fought Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) for better than eight years before his untimely passing at age 34 from the disease in December 2019. He would’ve been 39 years old on Thursday.
It was an emotional scene in the Prep locker room afterwards, with Pete’s younger brother Andrew there to accept the team’s Hines Helmet — awarded in honor of another late Prep alumnus, 1st Lt. Derek Hines, to the team’s Player of the Game — in remembrance of his much beloved brother.
“Andrew follows us and knows what our tradition is all about,” said head coach Kristian Hanson. “Playing a game in honor of Pete on his birthday and the way that we won it … it felt only fitting that Pete gets the helmet today.”
Senior goaltender AJ Farese was named tournament MVP for the Eagles after his 21-save performance, which included four big stops over the final three minutes of regulation after the visiting Cardinals (3-3) made their best offensive push of the contest.
“Everything lined up perfectly. We couldn’t have scripted it any better,” said the first-year starting keeper from Middleton. “The boys really embraced the idea of Pete Frates; we wanted to win it for him.”
“AJ was there to have our backs when we needed him most,” added Hanson. “Without him, we don’t win this game.”
Vana had a breakaway attempt in the last few seconds of the first period that came up short. When he had another chance two minutes into the extra session, he made it count.
“(Ritchie) was really leaning glove side, so I went backhand and tried to beat him 5-hole,” Vana said of his initial attempt. “He didn’t seem to move laterally and it showed all game.
“So when I was sable to win that battle and get free, (Ritchie) gave me blocker side, but I wanted to stick with what was comfortable. Instead of trying to go 5-hole, I tried to roof it .. and it snuck by him. I couldn’t be more happy.”
Hanson raved about Vana’s compete level and ability to shine when the lights are brightest after the game.
“Jake won’t blow you away with dazzling speed or incredible stick skills,” Hanson said, “but he’ll fight for every inch of ice, is stronger than most kids, has a real high IQ, and has something that most don’t: that level of determination. He wasn’t going to be stopped on that battle on the wall, and their guy chasing him wasn’t going to catch him on that breakaway …. not because Jake’s so much faster, but because he’s so smart about using his body and shielding the puck. He just has a sheer will to win.”
The Prep’s penalty kill — Vana and fellow captain Christian Rosa up top, with captain Jack Doherty and Brady Plaza on D, plus the second pairing of Cooper Hosmer and Carson Irving with defenders Deuce Morton and JR Goldstein — also drew praise from their coach for keeping the powerful Cardinals in check.
“To win it on Pete’s birthday is about as special as it gets,” reiterated Hanson, whose team will play in Reading New Year’s Day. “It’s always a goal of ours to win it, and it was nice we could check that box off.”
St. John’s Prep 1, Pope Francis 0 (OT)
Pete Frates Winter Classic
Championship Game
Pope Francis 0 0 0 0 0
St. John’s Prep 0 0 0 1 1
First period: No scoring.
Second period: No scoring.
Third period: No scoring.
Overtime: SJP, Jake Vana (un), 2:05.
Saves: PF, Nick Ritchie 26; SJP, AJ Farese 21.
Records: SJP, 4-1-0; PF, 3-3-0.
Contact Phil Stacey
@PhilStacey_SN