HATFIELD TOWNSHIP— Pennridge served notice Monday night that its ready for the postseason. The Rams were in firm form Monday night during a 6-0 win over Central Bucks East in the opening round of the Suburban High School Hockey League Class AA playoffs at Hatfield Ice.
Six different players scored goals for second-seeded Pennridge (12-2-3), which will face North Penn in Wednesday’s semifinals (7:00 at Hatfield Ice. The seventh-seeded Patriots (11-6-2) will be idle until the Flyers Cup tournament begins next week; they’ll face Haverford High in the opening round next Wednesday.
Michael Eissler gave Pennridge a 1-0 lead with 4:12 left in the opening period when he tipped in a rebound of Jeff Manto’s original shot, beating East netminder Chris Mcintyre.
The Rams broke the game open in the second period, scoring five times in a span of 6 minutes, 58 seconds. Bryson Egan, Michael Walker, Manto, Blake Stewart, and Evan Kehoe all scored goals, the last two of which came just 14 seconds apart.
The Rams are unbeaten in their last nine games (7-0-2) Walker, a junior, says he and his teammates are focused on their postseason goals. “We’re kind of looking at every game as just like the next step forward to get to where we want to be,” he said. “We want to win the SHSHL and then obviously go as far as we possibly can in the Flyers Cup. So, this is just a step on the way.”
Walker noted the Rams have found more scoring balance in recent weeks
“In the beginning of the season we were a little one sided,” he said. “The first line was getting a lot of points, but as the season went on, the chemistry got better. Everyone was scoring on every line.”
The Rams are seeking their first SHSHL title since 2008. Walker noted the team is benefitting from the abundance of experience on the roster, as well as the experience of playing together. “With the regular season, working as hard as we did, coming into the postseason and working with each other isn’t as difficult as it seems,” he said. “We just connect.”
The Patriots had trouble coping with Pennridge’s speed for most of the evening and managed just 10 shots on goal in the 48-minute game.
“For the last three or four games we haven’t been on our game,” said East coach Ken Latchum. “Hopefully the Flyers Cup is another new season and we’ll get it going there.”
C.B. East 0 0
Pennridge 1 5
First-period goal: Michael Eissler (P) from Jeff Manto, 11:48
Second-period goals: Bryson Egan (P) from Michael Walker, 1:43; Walker (P) from Eric Slater, 2:06; Jeff Manto (P) from Nick Eissler, 5:20; Blake Stewart (P) from Slater and Matt Guinette, 8:27 (pp); Evan Kehoe (P) from Tommy Prichard, 8:41
Shots: C.B. East 10, Pennridge 40; Saves; Chris McIntyre (CBE) 34, Luke Stranik (Pr) 10.
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