Updated Playoff Schedule 2-22-24

Thursday, February 22

SHSHL National Division Quarterfinal

4. Central Bucks East vs. 5. North Penn

7:10 at Hatfield Ice

Wednesday, February 28

APAC Championship Game

St. Joseph’s Prep at La Salle

4:00 Hatfield Ice

SHSHL American Division Final

Plymouth Whitemarsh vs. Bensalem

6:50 at Hatfield Ice

SHSHL National Division Semifinal

C.B. South vs. Council Rock South

7:20 at Grundy Arena

SHSHL National Division Semifinal

C.B. East or North Penn vs. Pennridge

8:45 at Hatfield Ice

Thursday, February 29

SHSHL National Division Final

Site, Time TBD

St. Joseph’s Prep 3 Malvern Prep 2

All season long, St. Joseph’s Prep has counted on young players to step up in big situations. One of them did Wednesday night when it mattered most.

Sophomore Michael Castelli’s goal with 6:53 remaining in regulation was decisive as the Hawks bested Malvern Prep 3-2 in an Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference semifinal at the University of Pennsylvania’s Class of 1923 Arena. The third-seeded Hawks (15-5) will face top-seeded La Salle next Wednesday at Hatfield Ice (time TBD) for the Founders Cup. It will mark the school’s first appearance in the final in the six-year history of the APAC.

Castelli, a first-year varsity player, described the winning goal.

“My teammate [Ben Kersun] shot from the point,” he said. “I drove the net hard, got the rebound, and buried it.”

Castelli’s effort on the game winner is what the Hawks have come to expect from the underclassmen on the roster.

Senior captain John Lynch noted their impact in the semifinal.

“It was huge,” he said. “They show that they deserve ice time out there. Because they’re working just as hard as [the upperclassmen] do. And we try to push them as hard as we can. “They’re really earning their ice. They’re not given the ice. They’re earning it every time and they’re getting better every game.”

Castelli says the support of the upperclassmen has sped his development as a player.

“They’v been great,” he said. They’re just very supportive. Never negative,”

The second-seeded Friars (9-8) took the ice missing several key performers due to injury, including their captain, Jeremy Jacobs.

But they took the early lead when Jonathan Holt found the back of the net just 1:53 into the opening period. Tristan Winata tied the game for the Hawks 10:07 into the second frame but Caiden Canale put Malvern Prep back in front with 3:52 left in the period.

Lynch tied the game for St. Joseph’s Prep with a power-play goal 4:34 into the final period as momentum gradually shifted in the Hawks’ direction.

“I thought we had a good period-and-a-half of hockey,” said Malvern Prep coach Bill Keenan. “[St. Joseph’s Prep] came out in the second half of that game and played well.

“Our third period cost us. We had two penalties off the get go playing shorthanded. That cost us.”

Ice chips: Both teams will be part of the field for the Class AAA Flyers Cup beginning the week of March 4. The Hawks and the Friars split two regular-season meetings.

St. Joseph’s Prep 0 1 2—3

Malvern Prep 1 1 0—2

First-period goal: Jonathan Holt (MP) from Brady Doyle and Caiden Canale, 1:53

Second-period goals: Tristan Winata (SJP) from Calum Hartnell, 10:07; Canale (MP) from Teague Murray and Aidan Kelly, 13:08

Third-period goals: John Lynch (SJP) from Cole Garson and Hartnell; Michael Castelli (SJP) from Ben Kersun, 10:07

Shots: St. Joseph’s Prep 24, Malvern Prep 15; Saves: Jacob Aranda (SJP) 13, Matt Crawford (MP) 21

La Salle 3 Holy Ghost Prep 1

In the end, there was little to choose between the two sides. A single surge separated them and that was enough.

Ben Falicki and Charlie Kennedy scored a pair of second-period goals 23 seconds apart and La Salle went on to a 3-1 win over Holy Ghost Prep Wednesday evening in an Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference semifinal at the University of Pennsylvania’s Class of 1923 Arena.

The top-seeded Explorers (19-3) will host St. Joseph’s Prep in the conference championship game for the Founders Cup next Wednesday. The fourth-seeded Firebirds (11-13) will join them in the Class AAA Flyers Cup tournament the week of March 4.

The two goals which gave the Explorers the upper hand came after over 31 minutes of scoreless hockeyThe first two periods were defined by their physicality. There was one penalty called inn the first period and six more in the second but referees Eric Michaels and Laura White allowed a good amount of physical play to go uninterrupted and neither team backed away from banging bodies.

“I definitely think our team came out hard,” said La Salle goaltender Jake Rossi. “It’s just a different animal in the playoffs. Everyone in our league is going to be tough.”

Ben Falicki ended the scoreless draw when beat Holy Ghost netminder Jack Unger on a shot from the left point with 2:48 left in the middle period. Charlie Kennedy made it a 2-0 game when he scored from the right circle just 23 seconds later.

Kennedy said he was confident goals would eventually come despite the absence of goals over the first half of the game,

“Definitely,” he said. “We were getting tons of opportunities and were coming up short. We got [two] quick ones and that gave us a lot of confidence, moving the puck and stuff.”

The Firebirds may have been staggering at that point but they remained unbowed. Jake McCaw finished a rush by beating La Salle goaltender Jake Rossi with 35 seconds left in the period to make it a one-goal game with one period to go.

The only goal of the third period came off the stick of La Salle’s Dean Carvalho with 10 seconds remaining.

Holy Ghost Prep coach John Ritchie talked of what might have been.

“I haven’t quite figured out why some of those pucks didn’t go in for us,” he said. “Six on five [on power plays] we get two or three really good chances.and they just take wired bounces.

“But I’m super proud of my group.”

Holy Ghost Prep 0 1 0—1

La Salle 0 2 1—3

Second-period goals: Ben Falicki (L) from Grant LaGreca and Will Gregorio, 14:49; Charlie Kennedy (L) from Ryan Wiley and Patrick Brace, 15:12; Jake McCaw (HGP) from Michael Holt, 16:25

Third-period goal: Dean Carvalho (L) from Blake Baudelaire, 16:50

Shots: Holy Ghost Prep 27, La Salle 30; Saves: Jack Unger (HGP) 27, Jake Rossi (L) 26

Holy Ghost Prep 5 Hun School 2

Holy Ghost Prep started fast on Tuesday and kept on going. A pair of first-period goals gave the Firebirds a 2-0 lead and propelled them to a 5-2 win over Hun School in the APAC play in game at Grundy Arena.

Fourth-seeded Holy Ghost Prep (11-12) earned a date with top seed and defending champion La Salle Wednesday at 4:00 at the Class of 1923 Arena at the University of Pennsylvania. Fifth-seeded Hun School closed its season at 4-11.

Having twice defeated the Raiders during the regular season, the hosts took the ice on Tuesday looking to set a tone. Pat Slook’s goal 3:12 into the opening period did just that. Jack Gavaghan made it a 2-0 on a shot from the right point with 2:34 left in the period.

“We knew that if we just jumped on them, it we got one early, we could keep rolling through them,” Slook said. “The plan was to get pucks deep and go at them, work in the corners and just grind out. Getting that first goal was a big one early.”

Nathan Romer and Caine Bickel added power-play goals for the Firebirds in the second frame, just over five minutes apart.

Special teams were impactful for much of a game that featured 12 minor penalties, six to each side.

A.J. Prete made it a 5-0 game 2:20 into the third period and the Firebirds seemed to have things well in hand.

At that point the Raiders, who had just 14 skaters dressed, seemed to be running low on energy. Following Prete’s goal, P.J. Angotti replaced Julien Arseneault in the Hun School net

But the visitors never stopped working and their effort paid off when Charles-Etienne Jette got the puck past Firebird netminder Jack Unger 5:35 into the final session. Joachim Neverdahl added a shorthanded goal just shy of four minutes later.

Hun School coach Eric Szeker celebrated his young team’s work ethic.

“My guys gave it everything they had,” he said. “Fatigue, whatever it might be, they made no excuses.

“We came out in the third when everything was against us and we still put a great effort out. That tells you about the [team] more than the score will.”

Holy Ghost Prep coach John Ritchie notes there is still work left to do as his team evolves.

“We gave up a couple breakaways late in the second period,” he said. “A young team starts to cheat a little bit when they have some success offensively and I thought we did that. It ended up hurting us.”

With the ‘second season’ now underway, Slook is encouraged by the progress he and his teammates have made over the course of the campaign.

“We grew as a team,” he said. “I think we hit a few speed bumps along the way but I think we just stayed together as a team and worked through it, and I think we’re in pretty good shape for the playoffs.”

Ice chips: Nine Hun School players concluded their high-school careers this season … The Holy Ghost Prep-La Salle game will be the first game of an APAC semifinal doubleheader matching Malvern Prep and St. Joseph’s Prep. is scheduled for a 6:15 start.

The results of the playoffs will not impact Flyers Cup tournament seedings.

Hun School 0 0 2—2

HGP 2 2 1—5

First-period goals: Patrick Slook (HGP) from Jake McCaw, 3:12; Jack Gavaghan (HGP) from Andrew Morgan and A.J. Prete, 14:26

Second-period goals: Nathan Romer (HGP) from Caine Bickel, 2:30 (pp); Bickel (HGP) from Colin Bara, 7:41 (pp);

Third-period goals; Prete (HGP) from Joseph Kaufmann, 2:20; Charles-Etienne Jette from Andrew Darst, 5:35; Joachim Neverdahl (HS) from Justin Laplante and P.J. Angotti, 9:25 (sh);

Shots: Hun School 21 Holy Ghost Prep 39; Saves: Julien Arseneault (HS) and P.J. Angotti (HS) 34, Jack Unger (HGP) 19

For more about Holy Ghost Prep CLICK HERE

For more about The Hun School CLICK HERE

APAC Update for 2-16-24

Final Regular Season Standings

W L OTW OTL Pts GF GA

La Salle (18-3) 8 0 0 0 24 36 9

Malvern Prep (9-7) 4 4 2 2 12 18 20

St. Joseph’s Prep (14-5) 4 4 1 0 11 28 25

Holy Ghost Prep (10-12) 3 5 0 1 9 13 20

Hun School (4-10) 1 7 0 1 3 16 37

Playoff Schedule

Tuesday 2-20

4:00 (5) Hun School vs. (4) Holy Ghost Prep at Grundy Arena

Wednesday, February 21

4:00 Hun School or Holy Ghost Prep vs. (1). La Salle

6:15 (3) Malvern Prep vs. (2) St. Joseph’s Prep

Both game at Class of 1923 Rink

Wednesday, February 28

Tentative date for Founders Cup final to be hosted by highest seeded finalist

Scoring (Conference Games) GP G A Pts. PPG

Dan Carvalho (L) 8 6 6 12 1.50

Jeremy Jacobs (MP) 8 5 6 11 1.38

Patrick Brace (L) 8 4 3 7 0.88

William Carpenter (L) 8 1 6 7 0.88

Justin Laplante (HS) 8 4 3 7 0.88

Jake Schultz (SJP) 7 4 3 7 0.88

Ryan Levesque (HS) 6 1 4 5 0.83

Jake McCaw (HGP) 8 3 3 6 0.75

Brayden Collins (SJP) 8 3 3 6 0.75

Julian Tarsi (L) 8 3 3 6 0.75

Declan Kelly (L) 8 1 5 6 0.75

Will Gregorio (L) 8 1 5 6 0.75

Tristan Winata (SJP) 8 6 0 6 0.75

Save Pct (Conference Games) GP Shots GA Save Pct.

Jack Unger (HGP) 4 72 3 .958

Jake Rossi (L) 7 197 9 .954

Matt Crawford (MP) 7 293 19 .935

Julian Arseneault (HS) 4 200 16 .920

Jaccob Aranda (SJP) 8 235 25 .894

Goals Against (Conference Games)

Jack Unger (HGP) 0.84

Jake Rossi (L) 1.13

Matt Crawford (MP) 2.27

Jacob Aranda (SJP) 3.09

Julian Arsenault (HS) 3.10

(Goaltemders must have played 153 minutes in conference games)

Holy Ghost Prep 6 Haverford School 0

Anthony Prete scored two goals and four other players scored one goal each as the Firebirds bested the Fords to win their Senior Night game at Grundy Arena Friday night.

Colin Bara, Patrick Slook, Brendan Schultz, and Joseph Kaufmann all scored for Holy Ghost Prep (9-12), which broke the game open with three goals in the second period.

Dillon Gallagher earned the shutout in goal.

Haverford School 0 0 0—0

Holy Ghost Prep 1 3 2—6

Hun School 4 Malvern Prep 3 OT

Andrew Darst scored with 1:35 remaining in overtime to give host Hun School a 4-3 win over Malvern Prep Wednesday afternoon in an APAC game at Ice Land.

The win was the first for the Raiders in seven conference starts and lifted them to 4-9 overall.

Brendan Marino tied the game for Hun School with 3:46 left in regulation; the Raiders scored all three of their regulation goals in the third period. Charles-Etienne Jette and Justin Laplante also scored goals for the hosts. Jette added assists on the game tying and game winning goals.

“It was a full team effort,” said Hun School coach Eric Szeker. “Every single player who dressed played a role in the victory.

“It was great to see Julien get a win in net as he has been nothing but fantastic for us this season.

“Our seniors led the way, Jette, Marino and Laplante played incredible and it was great seeing Andrew Darst bury the game winner in front of the student section. A well-deserved win for this group, couldn’t be more proud as a coach!

Jonathan Holt scored twice for Malvern Prep, which dropped to 8-7 overall and completed conference play with a 4-4 mark. Teague Murray also scored for the Friars.

Malvern Prep 0 1 2 0—3

Hun School 0 0 3 1—4

Second-period goal: Jonathan Holt (MP) from Henry Tesoriero, 12:36

Third-period goals: Charles-Etienne Jette (HS) from Brendan Marino and Jake O’ Connell, 5:50; Justin Laplante (HS) unassisted, 10:43; Teague Murry (MP) from Aidan Kelly, 11:00; Holt (MP) from Matt Barbacane, 12:13; Marino (HS) from Joachim Neverdal and Jette, 13:14;

Overtime goal: Andrew Darst (HS) from Jette, 3:25

Shots: Malvern Prep 27, Hun School 41; Saves: Matt Crawford (MP) 37, Julian Arsenault (HS) 24

Malvern Prep 2 Holy Ghost Prep 1

WEST GOSHEN—In one sense, it was an unfortunate way for a hockey game to end.

James Young scored in the second round of a shootout to give Malvern Prep a 2-1 win over Holy Ghost Prep Thursday evening at Ice Line. Young’s goal, the only one of the shootout, brought down the curtain on a splendid display of high-school hockey between two teams looking to bolster their positions for the upcoming APAC playoffs and the Class AAA Flyers Cup tournament.

Young, a freshman, noted the importance of a stuck-to-basics approach.

“We’ve got to focus on the goal,” he said. “You’ve got to keep playing and pursue what you want to do.”

The Friars (8-6, 4-3 in the APAC) did just that for 56 minutes and beyond, none more so than their goaltender Matt Crawford, who faced 43 shots and stopped 42 of them; Malvern Prep was outshot 43-27.

“Facing a lot of shots like that isn’t much to me,’ Crawford said. “It’s just a game. It’s keeping me active, it’s keeping my focus on the game.”

Crawford feels he’s more effective when he’s busy.

“As a goalie, getting a lot of shots, you’re always focusing on the next shot,” he said. “So, I feel like when there’s no pressure in the zone it’s a mental struggle.”

Jeremy Jacobs gave Malvern Prep a 1-0 lead with 2:32 left in the second period when he launched a rocket from the top of the slot that beat Holy Ghost Prep netminder Jack Unger. The goal came while the Firebirds’ Matt Cholaj was in the box serving an interference penalty.

Caiden Canale and Brady Doyle assisted on the goal.

Canale, one of six Malvern Prep seniors who were recognized Thursday night, noted that he and his teammates are comfortable in close games.

“It definitely matters,” he said. “We’ve had a lot of games like this this season and we know what it takes. So, we just went out and did everything we could to win.”

Doyle said the goal gave he and his teammates a lift they needed.

“It gave us a huge advantage the rest of the game,” he said. “Our energy was kind of bad to start the game and once we [scored] t was a lot better.”

Unger came up big for his team with 8:29 left in the third frame when he denied Jacobs on a breakaway. That set the stage for A.J. Prete’s game-tying goal with 3:26 remaining.

The Firebirds (7-12, 3-5 in conference) had additional opportunities, but couldn’t solve Crawford a second time. But their coach, John Ritchie, took a lot of positives away from the encounter.

“I thought it was the most complete game we’ve played all year,” he said. “I think after a huge letdown in terms of our effort against St.Joe’s Prep [Wednesday night] I couldn’t have asked for any better response from our guys tonight.

“Unfortunately a couple of the bounces didn’t go our way but Malvern played just as well and kept it close.”

With one APAC game remaining and the postseason to come, Doyle says Thursday’s win will give the Friars an energy boost.

“We’ve got to get the win and carry that momentum with us,” he said.

Holy Ghost Prep 0 0 1 0 (0)—1

Malvern Prep 0 1 0 0 (1)—2

Second-period goal: Jeremy Jacobs (MP) from Caiden Canale and Brady Doyle, 14:28

Third-period goal: A.J. Prete (HGP) from Chris Marshall and Andrew Morgan, 13:34

Shootout goal: James Young

Shots: Holy Ghost Prep 43, Malvern Prep 27; Saves: Jack Unger (HGP) 26, Matt Crawford (MP) 42

La Salle 7 Hun School 1

Ryan Wiley and Ben Falicki each scored twice as La Salle downed the host Raiders 7-1 Wednesday afternoon in an APAC matchup at Ice Land.

The win lifted the Explorers to 16-2 overall and a perfect 7-0 in the APAC.

Wiley’s goal just 39 seconds into the first period gave La Salle the early lead; the Explorers broke the game open in the second period when Falicki (twice), Wiley, and Alistair St. Hilaire all scored goals.

Liam Donahue added a goal in the third period.

Justin Laplante scored a third-period goal for Hun School (3-9, 0-6)

La Salle 1 4 2—7

Hun School 0 0 1—1

First-period goals: Ryan Wiley (L) unassisted, 0:39

Second-period goals: Ben Falicki (L) from Dean Carvalho, 1:09; Wiley (L) from Charlie Kennedy and Patrick Brace, 1:54 (pp); Falicki (L) from Cameron Ross and Will Gregorio, 4:07 (sh); Alistair St. Hilaire (L) from Julian Tarsi and Gregorio, 16:08

Third-period goals: Liam Donahue (L) from Alex Fusaro and Falicki, :28; Justin Laplante (HS) from Anders Van Raalte, 2:33; Carvalho (L) unassisted, 5:17

Shots: La Salle 43, Hun School 19; Saves: Jake Rossi (L) 18, P.J. Angotti (HS) 36

Seton Hall Prep 4 Malvern Prep 2

Three first-period goals propelled Seton Hall Prep to a 4-2 won over visiting Malvern Prep in a non-league encounter on Monday.

Christopher McIntyre scored twice in the opening period for the winners while Andrew Tralongo also scored. Matthew Smith added a goal in the third period.

Jeremy Jacobs and Brady Doyle scored for the Friars who stand 7-6 on the season.