Messalonskee senior Fabian plays up to high expectations

Thursday, March 30, 2006

By SCOTT MARTIN
Staff Writer

Staff photo by Andy Molloy
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Messalonskee High School's Ted Fabian scored 27 goals and 34 assists to lead the Eagles this season.

Sitting at a table watching the three finalists for the Travis Roy Award give speeches last season, Ted Fabian knew exactly where he wanted to be in one year's time. Having recently finished his junior season as a high-scoring forward on the Messalonskee High School hockey team, Fabian started thinking about what it would take to be one of the players making a speech at the 2006 banquet.

"I wanted to be there, on that podium," Fabian said recently. "All year long, I've worked for that. You try not to think about it and play a team game, but it was a goal."

Fabian had already established himself as one of the top Class A players in the state as a junior and entered his senior season as the one player every team facing Messalonskee was trying to stop. They didn't have much luck and Fabian reached his goal.

This season, Fabian led Class A's Tier I in scoring with 27 goals and 34 assists, helping the Eagles to an 11-8-0 record. Not only was he a finalist for the Travis Roy Award, but on Sunday, he was named the winner of the award, given to the top Class A senior hockey player in the state.

For his outstanding season, Fabian has been named the Morning Sentinel and Kennebec Journal Boys Hockey Player of the Year. Waterville Senior High School senior forward Jason Fitton and Winslow High School senior goalie Devon Grenier were also considered. Fabian was the Morning Sentinel Player of the Year last season.

As a junior, Fabian scored 25 goals and added 30 assists, playing for a much deeper Messalonskee team. The Eagles finished 12-7-1, but graduated five seniors from that team. Included in that senior class were both of Fabian's linemates, Phil Mason and Nick Perry.

Having put up huge numbers as a junior, Fabian had already experienced being "The Man" in the eyes of his opponents, but it went to a whole new level this season. Sophomore Matt DelGiudice helped ease the load with his own stellar season (11 goals, 30 assists) but Fabian was constantly the center of attention, getting clutched, grabbed and hit wherever he went on the ice. "He knew he was the guy they wanted to stop, he'd never tell you 'I'm the man,' but he knew," Messalonskee coach Mike Latendresse said. "He wanted to be the best hockey player he could be and no matter what they would do, he'd keep trying." "He went out every game trying to have a good time," DelGiudice said. "I think he had it in his mind that people were trying to shut him down, but he embraced the challenge."

Fabian started the year red hot, scoring 20 points (9 goals, 11 assists) in the Eagles' first five games, as Messalonskee opened 4-1. He continued his torrid scoring pace throughout much of the season, but he and the Eagles were finally slowed a bit down the stretch as the Eagles played a grueling late season schedule.

Messalonskee went 2-4 in its final six games, a stretch that included a pair of loses to Eastern A regional finalist Brunswick and one to No. 1 seed Waterville.

Fabian scored seven goals and had seven assists during that stretch. He had a point in every Messalonskee game this season, except its last, a 2-0 loss to Brunswick in the Eastern A quarterfinals. "He improved his overall game," Latendresse said. "With the focus on him all year, to perform at the level he did, it is an accomplishment."

The 5-foot-10, 172-pound Fabian hopes to play junior hockey next season with the Boston Bulldogs of the Atlantic Junior Hockey League with the goal of playing for a Division I team. He thinks he'll need two years in juniors to reach that goal. "I'd need to get bigger," Fabian said. "I'd like to be around 185, but I have to gain the right kind of weight."

Scott Martin -- 621-5618

smartin@centralmaine.com