Twin brothers Peter and Joseph Kramer have signed their NLI’s to play hockey at Providence College!

Peter and Joseph Kramer signed their NLI to attend Providence College while playing hockey. Both brothers will be matriculating to Providence following an illustrious high school career, which has seen numerous highs. During their four years with the Cape Cod Whalers, the Kramer’s have been members of two state championship teams, the first of which featured current Friar Brett Berard, along with fellow NLI signee Riley Duran. The following year the Kramer’s helped lead the U16 Whaler all the way to the national quarterfinals, where they fell to eventual National Champions Pittsburgh Penguins Elite. They look to re-join this year’s U18 squad shortly and help make a push towards another state championship.

When asked about his time coaching the Kramer’s, former coach Bob Beniers stated “Peter and Joseph Kramer are two of the hardest workers I ever coached. It didn’t matter if it was a practice or a game, they always give 110%.  They are both extremely coachable, play the game the right way and can play in all situations.”

The brothers illustrious high school hockey career began with BC High, where they joined their brother Thomas, who is currently playing hockey at Babson. They helped lead this BC high squad to their first super 8 title since 2007. The following year the trio of brothers came back ready to defend their title. The brothers dominated all year, finishing with a combined 45 goals and 55 assists for 100 points over their 25 game season. The brothers made sure to score when it counted, as the Boston Globe recounts “And just like last year, BC High tied it up with an extra attacker on with less than two minutes to go in regulation, this time thanks to Joseph Kramer’s 6-on-4 power-play goal with 1:02 left in regulation for the Eagles, which was 11 seconds earlier than last year’s equalizer from Joe Dragon. Joseph’s older brother, Thomas, and twin brother, Peter, assisted on the goal.” This game went on to become one of the best high school games ever played, which saw fellow Whaler, Providence commit and current Thayer teammate Declan Loughnane won the game in quadruple overtime for BC High, giving the Eagles their second consecutive Super 8 championship.

When I asked BC High Head Coach John Flaherty about the Kramer’s, he stated “Peter and Joseph each brought their own identity and set of skills to the ice for BC High. Where they were identical was with effort, compete level and passion for the game. As young players they already knew how important it was to compete in all 3 zones. They scored their fair share of goals and were on the scoresheet often but they separated themselves from others with their play without the puck in the neutral zone and doing whatever it took not to give up scoring chances in the D-zone. They were a pleasure to coach and always showed up to the rink ready to work and ready to have fun.”

Following their highly successful run at BC High, Joe and Peter transferred to ISL power Thayer Academy. The brothers quickly made an impact at Thayer, which saw Peter produce a 10-20-30 stat line in 24 games and Joe produce a 14-18-32 stat line in 26 games. The brother helped lead the Tigers in the Martin/Earl (large school) tournament as the #5 seed, where they would eventually fall to St. Sebastian’s. Thayer coach Matt Collins noted “The Kramer’s bring intensity, talent, and character to the rink each and every day. They make their teammates better.  They are leaders on and off the ice. Joseph is a huge problem for a defenseman because he can beat you with his skill and he will out work most guys. Peter is always around the net and his skill and anticipation get him on the score sheet.  Both of them rise to the occasion and love the big moments in a hockey game.”

The brothers look to lead the Tigers to another playoff berth this season, before matriculating to Providence next fall, where they will join a host of Whaler alums, including potentially Mike Callahan and Jimmy Scannell, along with former Whaler teammates Riley Duran and Brett Berard!

Yesterday was a great day to be a Whaler, with 6 former players hearing their names called in the 2020 NHL draft. Drew Commesso was the first drafted in the second round followed by Ian Moore, Brett Berard, Ben Meehan, Riley Duran, and Gunnarwolfe Fontaine. This truly had to be a dream come true, as these six players are officially NHL prospects. While Berard, Commesso, Duran and Moore were all selected in their first year of eligibility, Meehan was selected in his second and Fontaine was in his 3rd. 

Drew Commesso was the first Whale off the board, at pick 46 by the Chicago Blackhawks. Drew had spent the last two years with the USA NDTP, where last season he put up a .920 save percentage. This year Drew will be playing for Boston University with fellow alums Ty Amonte and Jay O’Brien. 

The St. Mark’s product Ian Moore was the next alum selected just five picks into the third round. Moore has starred with St. Mark’s, where he has put up 96 points in 80 games. He was also a part of the Whaler U16 team that finished as a national quarterfinalist. This year he will play for the Chicago Steel of the USHL before matriculating to Harvard for the 2021-2022 season. 

Brett Berard was taken in the 5th round by the New York Rangers, following two years with Drew at the USA NDTP. Last year he finished 3rd on the U18 team in scoring, finishing with 34 points in 41 games. This season he will be suiting up with the Providence Friars, where he will join numerous Whaler Alums. His father also attended PC, where he played goalie. He will have the opportunity to compete against his father, as he is now the head coach at Holy Cross. 

Ben Meehan was the next to go, shortly after Brett. He was selected by the LA Kings, following a great yet injury shortened season with the Cedar Rapids Roughriders. Ben put up 18 points in just 25 games. He will be playing with UMASS Lowell this fall. 

Riley Duran’s selection in the 6th round had a little something extra, as he was selected by his hometown Boston Bruins. Riley has spent the last three years with the Whalers and the last two with Lawrence Academy, following stays with Woburn High and Malden Catholic. He was a prolific prep scorer last year with 44 points in 27 games, for the super 8 qualifier Spartans. This year Riley will play with the Youngstown Phantoms before joining Brett at Providence College next fall. 

The final Whaler taken was Gunnarwolfe Fontaine, who was selected in the 7th round by the Nashville Predators in his final year of eligibility. He has scored at every level, including 30 points in just 13 games with the Whalers in 2016-2017. He is taking the ice for Northeastern this fall, where he joins Whaler alums including Aidan McDonough and Jayden Struble.

Our 15 team won the highly competitive Mass. State Tournament, to be crowned the 2019 State Champs!!!

The Cape Cod Whalers are a midget organization with a proven track record of success. During the 2018-2019 season We had 42 alumni playing in college hockey and 13 playing in the NHL. We also had 18 players playing across junior leagues such as the BCHL and USHL. Along with these alumni successes, our U15 and U16 team won the Massachusetts State Championship, where our U16 lost to the eventual National Champion.