A year ago, six defensemen from this group were selected to the 2025 USA Boys National 15 Team: Cotter, Anderson, Martin, Farrell, Guo, and Ware. They went to camp as unknowns and came home with National Team jerseys. That was the foundation.

Then the 2025 half season happened — where the Neponset Valley River Rats defeated the Militia in the finals, denying the favored Minutemen Flames who were expected to win it all. Then the 2025-2026 prep season and public high school season happened. Then the USHL Draft happened. And the landscape on the blueline shifted dramatically.

Four of those six returning defensemen were selected in the USHL Phase I Draft. Cotter was tendered by the Green Bay Gamblers — the highest commitment a USHL team can make. Ware went to Omaha. Anderson to Dubuque. Martin to Sioux City. These four didn't just maintain their stock from last year's camp — they elevated it with dominant prep seasons and USHL selections.

Guo remains a 1st Team All-Mass defenseman with every credential on his resume. Farrell, who plays at Catholic Memorial (MIAA), brings the returning National Team experience from a different path.

But this isn't 2025 anymore. The Festival roster has 24 defensemen, and some of the new names have earned credentials that didn't exist a year ago. The question heading into this weekend: who from the other 18 is ready to challenge one of the returning six for a spot?

The math: 24 defensemen are at Festival. The Final 40 takes roughly half the overall roster. That means approximately 10-12 defensemen advance. The six returning National players have the inside track — but there are only so many spots, and the competition behind them is real.

The Returning Six — 2025 USA National 15 Team

Logan Cotter 22 pts (5G, 17A)
St. Marks • Militia HC • Red • Marlborough
The only tendered defenseman in the Massachusetts 2010 class. Green Bay gave up a first-round pick to lock him in. Cotter was 1st Team All-Mass with 22 points — third among all defensemen. He was a known commodity coming into last year's camp. Now he's a proven one.
2025 National 15 Tendered → Green Bay 1st Team All-Mass
Nicholas Ware 25 pts (0G, 25A)
Belmont Hill • River Rats • Royal • South Weymouth
Twenty-five points. All assists. Zero goals. Ware is the most unique defenseman in the class — a pure playmaker who makes everyone around him better without needing to shoot. The #2 scoring defenseman in Massachusetts, drafted by Omaha in Round 8. His vision from the blueline is elite.
2025 National 15 USHL → Omaha 1st Team All-Mass
Brodie Anderson 12 pts (3G, 9A)
Cushing Academy • Flames • White • Wayland
NEPSAC Champion at Cushing Academy, 1st Team All-Mass, and drafted by Dubuque in Round 9. Anderson played on the best prep team in the state and won the title. He brings a winner's mentality and Flames development to the Festival.
2025 National 15 USHL → Dubuque 1st Team All-Mass NEPSAC Champion
Brendan Martin 13 pts (2G, 11A)
St. Sebastian's • River Rats • Gray • Dedham
1st Team All-Mass with 13 points from the St. Sebastian's blueline, drafted by Sioux City in Round 11. Martin is a steady, reliable defenseman who produces points and plays big minutes. The River Rats trusted him in every situation at Nationals in Green Bay.
2025 National 15 USHL → Sioux City 1st Team All-Mass
Alexander Guo 10 pts (2G, 8A)
Belmont Hill • Flames • Red • Weston
1st Team All-Mass, National 15 selection, Boys Festival pick, Flames player. Guo has every credential — but was not selected in the USHL Draft. That makes this weekend personal. A strong showing at Festival could be the statement that puts him back on every scout's radar heading into the QMJHL Draft on June 5.
2025 National 15 1st Team All-Mass
Shaun Farrell 1 pt (0G, 1A)
Catholic Memorial (MIAA) • River Rats • Red • Hanson
The only returning National 15 defenseman who plays MIAA rather than prep. Farrell's stats don't tell his story — he's a defensive defenseman whose value shows up in the minutes he logs and the situations he's trusted in. The National Team coaches saw it last year. The question is whether the new evaluators see it again.
2025 National 15

The Challengers — Ready to Push

These three defensemen didn't have National Team experience heading into last year's camp. But they've spent the past 12 months building resumes that demand attention. Each one has a legitimate case to push into the Final 40.

Sam Fishbone 29 pts (6G, 23A)
St. Sebastian's • Flames • Gray • Needham
The top-scoring defenseman in the entire Massachusetts 2010 class. Twenty-nine points — 23 assists — from the St. Sebastian's blueline. Fishbone wasn't on the 2025 National Team. He answered by putting up more points than every defenseman who was. Drafted by Sioux Falls in Round 5, he was the earliest Massachusetts defenseman selected in the draft. If he plays this weekend the way he played all season, he doesn't just make the Final 40 — he makes it impossible to leave him off.
USHL → Sioux Falls 1st Team All-Mass
Tyler Poti 17 pts (1G, 16A)
Winchendon • Islanders HC • Royal • Sandwich
NEPSAC Champion. 2nd Team All-Mass. Drafted by Cedar Rapids in Round 15. Poti brings size, pedigree, and a championship ring to the Festival. His 16 assists from the Winchendon blueline showed he can move the puck, and his role on a title-winning team showed he can defend. Cedar Rapids saw enough to draft him. Now it's about showing the National Team evaluators the same thing.
USHL → Cedar Rapids 2nd Team All-Mass NEPSAC Champion
Ryan Porter 11 pts (2G, 9A)
Dexter Southfield • Flames • White • Hanover
The dark horse. Porter put up 11 points from the Dexter Southfield blueline and was drafted by Sioux Falls in Round 7 — earlier than several returning National players. He's a Flames defenseman who plays a smart, physical game. Porter doesn't have the National Team pedigree or the All-Mass selection, but he has something the others earned on draft night: a USHL team that believes in him enough to spend a 7th-round pick. This weekend is his chance to prove they were right.
USHL → Sioux Falls 2nd Team All-Mass

The bottom line: Six defensemen return from last year's National Team. Three more — Fishbone, Poti, and Porter — have built USHL-caliber resumes since then. That's nine defensemen with serious credentials competing for roughly 10-12 Final 40 spots. The margins are razor-thin. Every shift this weekend matters.

All 24 Festival Defensemen

Player Team Town Varsity Mass Prep School 2025 National 15 25-26 Pts USHL
Logan CotterRedMarlboroughSt. Marks★ Yes22Tendered → Green Bay
Nicholas WareRoyalSouth WeymouthBelmont Hill★ Yes25Rd 8 → Omaha
Brodie AndersonWhiteWaylandCushing Academy★ Yes12Rd 9 → Dubuque
Brendan MartinGrayDedhamSt. Sebastian's★ Yes13Rd 11 → Sioux City
Alexander GuoRedWestonBelmont Hill★ Yes10—
Shaun FarrellRedHansonCatholic Memorial★ Yes1—
Sam FishboneGrayNeedhamSt. Sebastian's—29Rd 5 → Sioux Falls
Tyler PotiRoyalSandwichWinchendon—17Rd 15 → Cedar Rapids
Ryan PorterWhiteHanoverDexter Southfield—11Rd 7 → Sioux Falls
Jordan MarziRoyalHopkintonRivers—3—
Patrick VianoRedWestwoodMilton Academy—3—
Benjamin BeaudryRoyalSturbridge——
Sean CallananWhiteWaltham——
Colin DunlapRoyalPlymouth——
Conor GieselmanGrayWeston——
Luke GriffinRoyalWinthrop——
Derek KellyGrayHadley——
Luke LatulippeGrayFeeding Hills——
Kellan MurphyWhiteBelmont——
Henry NajarianRedDuxbury——
Matthew PolastryGrayWest Springfield——
Myles ScribnerWhiteEasthampton——
Brandon SousaRedBurlington——
Timothy ThodiyilWhiteHopkinton——

The gold dots mark the six returning 2025 USA National 15 defensemen. The green USHL column shows which players were drafted or tendered. The prep column separates the players State of Hockey tracks from the non-prep selections.

Twenty-four defensemen. Three days. The returning six have the edge — but the challengers have the numbers to back up their case. This weekend tells us who's moving on to the Final 40.