Just across the twin bridges of Cape Cod, Bourne is gearing up for hockey season. The Canalmen are looking to build off last year’s tournament berth and maintain their strong culture. I spoke with Coach Frank Carpenito before the team’s scrimmage Friday night.
Carpenito has been coaching for 28 years, or “something like that”, as he notes. Under his leadership, the program is thriving, despite it being uniquely small.
“We don’t have cuts,” the coach explained. “We are actually the smallest public high school in the state, non co-op. We have 20 kids.”
The size of the program has not hindered its success, and they are looking to keep it rolling in 2025-2026. The Canalmen are far from satisfied with last season, one that ended with a first round loss in the tourney. So what would constitute a successful season?
“Obviously we want to win our league, the South Coast Conference. That’s always number one on the list. Make the tournament, win some games in the tournament, that’s the ultimate goal.”
He also made sure to include winning the Canal Cup in February vs. Sandwich, a rivalry game that sees Gallo packed with some 2,000 people.
With such a small program, Bourne needs to establish an identity that makes them a tough opponent for anyone. Carpenito says he wants to base their game off two things: good defense and goaltending. If those two things happen, Bourne can stay competitive in every game they play.
As he highlights, a stout defensive game can lead to offense. “We try to play a good structured system, but then really kind of transition and try to hit hard on offense as well. So, you know, we just try to be hard in all three zones, try to be aggressive on the puck and make sure our responsibilities are covered.”
Goalie Jackson Palmborg has been a pillar of this play style. His dominance in net has earned him high praise.
“ We got a great goalie, probably one of the best on the Cape, and outside of the Cape,” said Carpenito. In the scrimmage, Palmborg was extremely solid, allowing only two goals amid a myriad of Silver Lake shots throughout the game. It was the team’s lack of scoring that ultimately doomed them in a 2-0 loss. Catapulting their solid defense into quality scoring chances should be a point of emphasis for the team.
Senior James Crowell was in the middle of everything in Friday’s contest, even having a puck go into the Silver Lake Net off his foot. Unfortunately, the goal was waved off. He weighed in on the team’s play after the game.
“I thought our effort was there all around. We played a good game, it’s not the outcome that we wanted but it’s a scrimmage at the end of the day. We’re only looking to get better from it.”
Crowell and Palmborg are among several players that fans and recruiters should have their eye on this season. Junior Cole Thomas and Landon Hope should also be major weapons on the offense. On the defensive front, Carpenito highlights Hunter McClain and Brandon Kelly as big parts of the team’s core.
Bourne is small, but their tradition is larger than life. And their determination to win is as strong as ever. Carpenito remains determined to compete at a high level.
“To win the Canal Cup is always, you know, a great cherry on top of the season. But, you know, I mean, there’s bigger things that we want to play for. You just look to the next game and go for that.”
The Canalmen open their season Saturday night at Monomoy.
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