Ferriero stays healthy, but teams places fourth

By Dom Nicastro

Staff writer

Essex's Benn Ferriero was lucky. He ate the pasta and felt fine.

However, 14 of his teammates on the 2004 United States Under-18 Select Team had what Ferriero called "mystery meat" and weren't so lucky.

The next day, those players suffered from food poisoning from the dinner in their hotel in Breclav, Czech Republic, and had to compete against Canada in the semifinals of the Under-18 Junior World Cup. They felt the effects, losing to the eventual champions, 4-0.

The Americans, last year's undefeated champion, finished fourth. Sweden topped the U.S., 3-0, in the third-place game Sunday in Piestany, Slovakia. Team USA was 2-0 before dropping three straight.

Team Canada dominated the Czechs in the title game, 4-1, to capture its eighth championship in the last nine years.

"I didn't eat the meal everyone got sick from," Ferriero said last night from his Essex home. "I have no idea what it was."

Ferriero played in four of the five games, notching an assist on the game-winner in a 3-2 victory over Russia. He did not play against Canada because the prior game, he was ejected for his role in a small skirmish near the end of Team USA's 5-1 loss to the Czech Republic.

After the Czech game, played in front of more than 5,000 screaming Czech fans, and about a dozen American faithful, Team USA was told to stay in the arena because there were a few thousand rowdy fans outside. Police had to disperse the large gathering before allowing the Americans to head to their hotel.

"It was so loud, you could not hear yourself talk," Ferriero said. "I don't think they knew where we were staying, which was probably good."

Ferriero will be a senior at Governor Dummer Academy this fall. He will play in a few more summer tourneys before he hits the books.

Next year at this time, he will be preparing to attend Boston College, where he will play hockey on a full scholarship. Boston College won the battle over the hard-skating forward over dozens of other Division 1 colleges that courted him.

Ferriero was one of 20 players selected to play for the U.S. at the World Cup out of a pool of 240 at the 2004 USA Hockey Select 17 Festival at St. Cloud State University in St. Cloud, Minn. At the Festival in Minnesota last month, Ferriero was the leading scorer on Team Massachusetts with six points on four goals and two assists in six games. He was also tied for fourth among all scorers.