2024-25 NCDC Team Previews: Boston Jr. Rangers
By Joshua Boyd / NCDCHockey.com
The NCDC will be previewing each of the 21 teams set to hit the ice during the 2024-25 season in a continuing series up to the Sept. 19 start of the new campaign.
Boston Jr. Rangers
New England Division
Home Arena: Worcester Ice Arena, Worcester, Mass.
Head Coach: Rich DeCaprio
The Boston Jr. Rangers made the big leap this past spring, jumping from the Eastern Hockey League to the higher-level National Collegiate Development Conference. It was certainly a jump, and the Rangers went right to work in lifting the overall Rangers culture and on-ice product for this new era.
“For our first year in the NCDC, I am looking forward to bringing our culture and competitiveness we have built over the last 13 seasons in the EHL,” said DeCaprio. “I like our roster, as we have a few returning EHL players, some already with NCAA offers.”
The Rangers bring to the NCDC an organization that won two out of the last three EHL championships, so they certainly had a high pedigree on which to build. With that, the time since their June announcement of joining the NCDC has been a whirlwind – and a productive one, at that.
“Summer has been hectic, not only moving from the EHL, but also moving out of our previous rink in Tewksbury, Mass., and into the Worcester Ice Center,” said DeCaprio. “We have a brand new NCDC locker room that is first class, as well as the facility alone.”
DeCaprio has been the Head Coach with the Rangers since their 2012 inception, and he’s excited about working with his assistant coaches, including returning assistant Danny Ferri.
“Ferri joined last season around November. He played four years at Westfield State University and he does a great job,” added DeCaprio. “We just hired Nick Grinvalds, a former player of mine who was an EHL All-Star and then a four-year defenseman at Elmira College. This will be his first year coaching junior hockey, and he will do a great job with our ‘D’ core.”
With this staff and the team that they’ve put together, expectations are high.
“I expect to win. That’s been our standard every year, and that won’t change. Winning and competing for championships is embedded in our culture, and I am looking forward to year 1 in the NCDC,” he added.
Helping the NCDC Boston Jr. Rangers towards their goals right out of the gate are some of the recent cornerstones of the organization.
It starts with forwards Jake Russell and Mathieu Fournier as well as defensemen Colin Kwak and Jack Baird, all 2004-born veterans.
“Jake is a key returner, a great centerman who competes all over the ice,” said DeCaprio. “Colin is a fantastic player who can really skate and moves the puck. Mathieu and Jack will both be leaned on this season.”
Another key junior veteran coming in is former Alberta Junior Hockey League forward Tyler Dale.
“He definitely will bring experience to our lineup and I expect him to be a big contributor offensively,” said DeCaprio. “But all in all, our roster is loaded with players that have junior experience.”
The Rangers will certainly benefit from all of this junior veteran experience, but they are also bringing some exciting new talent to the junior ranks. DeCaprio brought up two that should catch college scouts’ eyes early in ‘06 forward Charlie Moore (out of Maine’s Greely High School) and ‘05 defenseman Anders Alves (from the Boston Advantage 18U AAA squad).
“Charlie is a great forward that can skate and really compete,” said DeCaprio. “Anders should be a big time D for us and really create offense.
The Jr. Rangers and Worcester Railers kick off the 2024-25 NCDC season on Sept. 19 with Game 1 of the season. The Rangers will be more than ready.
“We are looking forward to the new challenges ahead of us as an organization,” added DeCaprio. “It will be nice to be coaching against some old familiar faces again, as well as some guys I have never met.”
