The Flyers Cup Committee has released its second and last set of rankings for the 2025-26 regular season. The rankings are based on on-ice performance and the evaluations of members of the committee.
The field for the 47th Flyers Cup Tournament will be announced on the evening of Sunday, February 22.
The Flyers Cup Committee has released its first set of rankings for the 2025-26 season. Rankings are based on game results and observations by committee members.
The Flyers tournament is an invitational event. There are no automatic bids.
The Flyers Cup Committee has released a lost of 50 teams from Pennsylvania , New Jersey, and Delaware, that are eligible for invitations to the 2026 Flyers Cup tournament. The Flyers Cup is an invitational tournament; they are no automatic bids.
Jake Weiner’s goal 17 seconds into overtime gave the Golden Hawks the win over the Crusaders Friday night at Flyers Skate Zone Northeast. South overcame deficits of 3-0 and 4-2 to take a 5-4 lead in the third period before Nolan Rauch and Jake Ruppert scored goals 35 seconds apart to put Father Judge in front 5-4 with 4:01 left in regulation.
Aidan Guinter tied the game for South with 38 seconds left in regulation on a feed from Weiner to force overtime.
Thursday, 11-6
Lower Merion 6 Neshaminy 2
Brody Navrodnick score two goals in each of the last two periods as Lower Merion overcame an early 1-0 deficit to beat Neshaminy Thursday night in the opening game of the second annual SHSHL-ICSHL Challenge.
The area’s scholastic hockey community came together Friday night in the support of the Philadelphia Blind Hockey organization. The occasion was the third annual Blindness Awareness Showcase.
Some 50 athletes from 10 different high schools, split into two teams. assembled at Hatfield Ice in support of the effort.
Team Orange included players from Holy Ghost Prep, Pennridge, Central Bucks East, Father Judge, and Central Bucks South. Team Black featured players from Conestoga (girls), North Penn, Holy Ghost Prep, Pennridge, and Malvern Prep.
This year’s showcase featured a new format. Instead of a series of cross-ice fames, as had been the case in the past, the two teams played three 17-minute running-clock periods utilizing the full 200 x 85 surface of the arena’s Gray Rink. The players wore goggles that simulated various vision disorders while goaltenders were blindfolded.
For the record, Team Orange prevailed on the scoreboard but the real winner was Philadelphia Blind Hockey was the beneficiary of the evening’s ticket sales and drawings.
North Penn senior forward Luke Haftel took part in last year’s showcase and has been on the ice for Philadelphia Blind Hockey practices, working the visually impaired youngsters who share his love for hockey. He said utilizing the entire ice surface gave the event a different feel.
“It was a little different than last year, “from half ice to the full sheet. Everyone was having a good time, being able to play the full ice.
Haftel utilized several sets of goggles that allowed he and his peers to experience various eye issues.
“You switch throughout the game, you see different types,” he said. “So, kids experience them and have an understanding of how we’re raising awareness.”
Penncrest junior forward Donovan Scheidley has worked with Philadelphia Blind Hockey players in the but had never taken the ice wearing goggles until Friday night.
“I tried every one on for at least one shift,” he said. “I think it was really interesting.”
With his vision restricted, Scheidley found himself relying heavily on his sense of hearing.
“When you don’t have your sight, it’s surprising to see how much you rely on your hearing,” he said.
Holy Ghost Prep senior defenseman Chris Marshall was making his first showcase appearance. He says working with Philadelphia Blind Hockey participants helped forge a connection between those players and he and his Firebird teammates.
“That’s the most important part,” he said. “I think it’s a great experience for them to feel included and to be a part of our team.”
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Hockey players from throughout the Commonwealth will converge at Penn State University next weekend for the Keystone State Games. Round robin play will take place at Pegula Ice Arena next Friday and Saturday, July 25-26. The gold and bronze medal games will be played on Sunday, July 27.
Games will be played in five divisions: 12U, 14U, 16U, 18U, and 19U (female) with teams representing four regions in the state.
Listed below are the U16 and U18 rosters for the South region, which encompasses the five-county Philadelphia area.
18U
1 Aiden Mott G
2 David Brown D
3 Brett Linker D
4 Aiden Paster D
5 Michael Snyder D
6 Jake Stepp D
7 Wim van Rossum D
8 Sean Cutter F
9 Shane Dachowski F
10 Declan Dowd F
11 Thomas Ely F
12 Ryan Frey F
13 Grady Jones F
14 Socrates Kelly F
15 Mason McCabe F
16 Lucas Mott F
17 Kevin Pico F
18 Cole Pluck F
19 Reed Surak F
30 Jacob Rotwitt G
16U
1 Nate Napolitano G
2 Seth Bender D
3 Aiden Collins D
4 Gabriel Dunn D
5 Aiden North D
6 Sean Tobin D
7 John Wagner D
8 Ryan Christie F
9 Joseph Darrah F
10 Malakye Johnson F
11 AJ Marazzacco F
12 Sean Scott F
13 Gavin Tietz F
14 Dean Venner F
15 Delan Wilson F
16 Alex Wilson F
17 Connor Boland F
18 Kamren Wetherell F
19 Dominic Gibson F
30 Peter Neveil G
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Chris Francis is the new head coach at West Chester Rustin.
A graduate of Penncrest Francis played Division I club hockey at West Chester University.
He began his coaching career by launching the program at Kingsway Regional High School in South Jersey and has also spent time at Springfield-Delco and Harriton. He is currently an assistant coach at Neumann University.
Rustin did not field a varsity team for the 2024-25 season but the Golden Knights have won nine Class A Flyers Cup championships and seven state chapionships including six straight Cup and state titles from 2024-19.
Lily Schindler’s goal with 64 seconds left in regulation gave Avon Grove a 12-11 win over Downingtown West Tuesday night in the Girls Flyers Cup championship game at PNY Arena.
The win gave Avon Grove its first Flyers Cup girls title. Downingtown West was trying for its third straight Cup and fourth in five years.
Schindler’s goal capped a stretch that saw the top-seeded Red Devils score three times in a span of 46 seconds to take a 12-10 lead. Avon Grove trailed 7-4 entering the third period but scored eight goals in the final session.
Schindler finished with three goals and three assists. Her teammate Skylar Greene scored five goals and added an assist. Emily Sullivan scored two goals for the winners while Brianna Register and Blaire Stoltzfus scored one goal each.
Ava Thomas scored for second-seeded Downingtown West with 29 seconds remaining to bring the Whippets within a goal. Thomas finished the game with nine goals and the tournament with 29.
Maddison Vitali scored the Whippets other two goals and contributed three assists.
The blitz came in the late stages of the first period. Four goals in a span of 4 minutes, 19 seconds. When the sequence ended, Garnet Valley had control of the Class A Flyers Cup final. The Jaguars never let go, en route to a 10-2 win over West Chester Henderson Monday night at Ice Line.
The numbers that top-seeded Great Valley (22-2) compiled were impressive to say the least.
Nolan Stott scored three goals and won the Bobby Clarke Award as the tournament’s Most Valuable Player. Kevin Walton finished with three goals and two assists; he finished the tournament as its leading scorer with six goals and three assists. Aiden Delfin contributed three goals and an assist as Garnet Valley (22-2) rolled to its 13th consecutive win and into Saturday’s state championship game against Avonworth at 12:45 Saturday afternoon at the Robert Morris University Island Sports Complex..
“It’s absolutely an unreal feeling,” Stott said. “We’ve worked so hard this year and to win two cups this year (Garnet Valley also won the Central League title) is an unreal feeling.
“I wouldn’t want to do it with anyone else. I love these boys and I’m so glad I got to do it with them.”
The scoring blitz began with 5:45 remaining in the first frame when Delfin beat Matt Cieslukowski in the Warrior net with a shot from the vicinity of the right faceoff circle. Walton scored a shorthanded goal with 1:16 left in the period the road became more arduous for second-seeded Henderson (16-7) when Dylan Orr and Delfin scored goals nine seconds apart in the period’s final 27 seconds.
The Warriors never recovered. Jake Platz got Henderson on the scoreboard 3:44 into the middle period but the goals kept coming from Garnet Valley, specifically from Stott who scored three consecutive goals in the second period in a span of just under 10 minutes to power the Jaguars to a 7-1 advantage.
“It was a shock to the system at the end of the first period,” said Henderson coach Tom Aughey. “Two goals in nine seconds in the final 27 seconds of the period changed the game completely.”
Aughey said the Jaguars’ greatest asset was their speed.
“They transition the puck so quickly,” he said. “And when they get to the open spot, they’ve got shooters that cam put the puck in the net.”
The third period saw period saw Walton and Delfin complete their hat tricks. At the other end of the ice. Great Valley’s Garrett Stoops had as relaxing an evening as is possible for a goaltender. He stopped 26 of the 28 shots he saw.
“I definitely think I was focused the whole time,” he said, “no matter what the score was. I always told myself ‘0-0. No matter what.’”
Moments after the final horn, Stoops was experiencing the emotion of the moment.
“It definitely feels pretty amazing,” he said. “It’s something really special, but I knew this team had it in them. We lost two games all year and we 10-0’ed the team we lost to (Haverford) in the Central League championship. I knew we’d come out here hard.”
Garnet Valley goaltender Garrett Stoops makes a save Monday night (Martin Scott photo)
Ice chips: This marked the second Flyers Cup for Garnet Valley. The first came in 1998, also in Class A …Aughey reflected on what Henderson accomplished this season despite coming up short Monday night.
“These kids in our locker room are truly special to our school and to our club,” he said. “It’s been six-plus years since we’ve had a winning season. To make it to the finals of not only the Flyers Cup but also our league playoffs, is something great. The seniors left a mark on our club that we will take forward.”
• The All-Tournament Team included:
Nathan Stott Garnet Valley MVP
Kaden Longo Garnet Valley
Dylan Orr Garnet Valley
Jake Morrow Garnet Valley
Garrett Stoops Garnet Valley
Blake Platz West Chester Henderson
West Chester Henderson 0 1 1—2
Garnet Valley 4 3 3—10
First-period goals: Aiden Delfin (GV) from Kevin Walton and Garrett Stoops, 11:15; Walton (GV) unassisted, 15:44 (sh); Dylan Orr (GV) from Kaden Longo and A.J. Tenhuisen, 16:33; Delfin (GV) from Jake Robinson 16:42
Second-period goal: Jake Platz (WCH) from Declan Dowd and Andrew Denny, 3:44; Nolan Stott (GV) from Longo, 6:08; Stott (GV) from Longo, 13:25; Stott (GV) from Tenhuisen, 16:05
Third-period goals: Walton (GV) unassisted, 3:41 (pp); Walton (GV) from Robinson and Delfin, 5:54; Nick Denadi (WCH) from Cole Navazio, 11:38 (pp); Delfin (GV) from Walton and Robinson, 13:33 (pp)
Shots: WC Henderson 28, Garnet Valley 46; Saves: Matt Cieslukowski (WCH) 36, Garrett Stoops (GV) 26
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