Pennridge 5, Central Bucks South 1

By Rick Woelfel

HATFIELD—It wasn’t a flashy performance. But it was a model of efficiency.

Blake Stewart and Arek Lehrhaupt each scored twice to lead Pennridge to a 5-1 win over Central Bucks South in a SHSHL National/Continental matchup Thursday night at Hatfield Ice.
It was the second win for the Rams (2-1 overall, 0-1 in league play) in two nights.

Rams coach Jeff Montagna was pleased his team stepped up after a subpar, albeit winning effort against Central Bucks West on Wednesday.

“It was boring in a good way,” he said. “I have not been happy at all the first two nights (including an opening night-loss to Pennsbury), especially defensively. They did a really nice job just keeping things simple, and once we got the lead, not giving (South) a whole lot of life.”

Aidan Boyle got things started for the Rams when he beat Madison Ambler with a forehander from midway between the two circles 9:13 into the first frame. Lehrhaupt made it 2-0 at 11:50 with a shot from the edge of the right circle on an odd-man situation.

The Titans got on the board when Garrett Sklar beat Ryan Pico in the Pennridge net 6:31 into the middle period but that was all they could manage.

“We were outworked and outplayed,” said South coach Shaun McGinty, “and only a few players showed up. We need to win the corner battles and the battles in the defensive zone.”

Stewart restored the Rams’ two goal lead at the 7:59 mark of the period., then widened the margin with his second goal of the game 8:10 into the third frame. Stewart, who is the Pennridge captain, was pleased to see his team bounce back after an off night 24 hours earlier, but still wasn’t satisfied

“(Wednesday night) was pretty sloppy,” he said, “but we went home, we thought about the game and came out here and forced things that we needed to do tonight. It was much better, but without being on the ice very much, all that’s a little tough.”

Lehrhaupt finished the scoring with 1:09 left in the game.

The Rams are one of the most experienced teams in the SHSHL Montagna is counting on leadership from his veterans to help them reach their potential. “I told them ‘It’s on you guys’” he said. “Guys that have played for me for three, four years, they have to lead this team and have to set the example … and I didn’t think the first nights they did that.”

Montagna cited Stewart’s leadership abilities but also the responsibility that comes with wearing the captain’s C.

“He has to lead us and a couple of the other guys have to lead us,” Montagna said, “And they did that tonight.”

Pico and Ambler made 21 saves apiece. Ambler was in goal in place of veteran Mason Moyer who has been unavailable for the Titans’ first two games.

Pennridge 2 1 2—5
C.B. South 0 1 0—1
First-period goals: Aidan Boyle (P) from Andrew David, 9:13; Arek Lehrhaupt (P) from Jeff Manto, 11:50.
Second-period goals: Garrett Sklar (CBS) from Aydin Thierolf, 6:31; Blake Stewart (P) from Andrew David, 7:59.
Third-period goals: Stewart (P) from Richie Shanks and Boyle, 8:10; Lehrhaupt (P) from Manto, 14:51.
Shots: Pennridge 26, C.B. South 22; Saves: Ryan Pico (P) 21, Madison Ambler (CBS) 21.

It’s Almost Time to Play Hockey

After weeks of waiting, the Suburban High School Hockey League will officially kick off its 48^thseason on Wednesday, January 13. A total of 16 teams will skate under the SHSHL umbrella this season, nine in Class AA and seven in Class A.

The alignments are as follows:

Class AA

Central Bucks East

Central Bucks South

Central Bucs West

Council Rock South

Neshaminy

North Penn

Pennsbury

Souderton

Pennridge

Class A
Abington

Hatboro-Horsham

Plymouth Whitemarsh

Quakertown

Truman

Wissahickon

William Tennent

Council Rock South and Plymouth Whitemarsh are the defending champions in their respective divisions.

The regular season schedule will conclude on Friday, March 19.

The opening night schedule includes the following matchups:

Wissahickon vs. William Tennent 7:20 @

Bucks County Ice Sports Center

Hatboro-Horsham vs. Abington 9:00 at Bucks County Ice Sports Center

Council Rock South vs. Central Bucks South 8:30 at Hatfield Blue

Pennridge at Pennsbury 7:20 at Grundy

Quakertown vs. Truman 7:20 at Hatfield Gray

APAC Considering Options for 2021

As the Stanley Cup playoffs continue, the members of the Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference are studying their options for the 2020-21 hockey season. Members of the hockey-only conference, which features La Salle, St. Joseph’s Prep, Malvern Prep, and Holy Ghost Prep, have been working to determine if, when how to go forward in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Ice hockey is a varsity sport at all four institutions.

“The APAC schools & staff have been monitoring the situation closely since the spring,” said APAC Commissioner Jim Britt. “We are continuing to discuss our scheduling options, primarily through Zoom calls through the summer & now in the fall. No firm decisions as yet, but we have several plans in development as the scholastic environment becomes clearer over the next few weeks.

“The APAC schools typically begin their hockey season in November, so we are continuing to monitor and consider the guidance provided by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.”

The four schools are expected to meet virtually at the end of this month to evaluate the situation.

La Salle won the first APAC titles as well as the 2019 Class AAA Flyers Cup and Pennsylvania state titles. Last year’s Flyers Cup tournament was abanndoned on March 12 because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Peyton Jones Headed to AHL

Peyton Jones, who started in goal for Penn State and before that Holy Ghost Pep, has agreed to a two-year, one-way contract with the American Hockey League’s Colorado Eagles, beginning with the 2020-21 season. The team announced the signing Monday afternoon.

Colorado was granted membership as an expansion team in the AHL beginning with the 2018-19 season and is the affiliate of the Colorado Avalanche.

“We are extremely happy for Peyton,” mentioned head coach Guy Gadowsky. “Through an incredible level of commitment to improving every day as an athlete and a student, Peyton has done so much for the success of our hockey program and has set standards that we hope are lived up to for many years to come. Congratulations to Peyton, we are excited to see his future successes.”

Jones jumped right into the starting role between the pipes as a freshman becoming the program’s first-ever everyday goalie following four years where goalies saw split time in Hockey Valley. The Langhorne, Pennsylvania native seized the opportunity and never looked back graduating from Penn State with 14 program records.

Jones, Penn State’s all-time wins leader, bookended his time as a Nittany Lion with victories in his first and last games at Pegula Ice Arena. He registered a 76-44-11 career record including a single-season record 23 during his freshman campaign where he was named the Big Ten Tournament’s Most Outstanding Player as the Nittany Lions captured their first-ever tournament title. His 42 career Big Ten victories are also a conference standard.

The senior is the Penn State career leader for games played and games started by a goalie with 133 for his career as well as leading in minutes (7866:20), saves (3,685) and points/assists by a goalie with eight. Along with his single-season program record for wins, Jones also holds single-season standards in games started (36), saves (983), points/assists (4) and shutouts (2).

During his final season in Hockey Valley this past year, Jones registered career-highs with a .919 save percentage, ranking fourth in the Big Ten and 21st nationally, to go along with a 2.60 goals against average while posting a 18-9-3 record and leading the Nittany Lions to their first-ever Big Ten regular-season championship. Jones’ .919 save percentage and 2.60 goals against average are both the second-best single-season marks in program history.

“Penn State has prepared me well for my pro hockey career,” mentioned Jones. “The coaching staff has done a great job with getting me stronger and ready for the next level off the ice while on the ice I was fortunate enough to have some extremely talented teammates who challenged me to be my best every day.”

Gump Whiteside coached Jones at Holy Ghost where Jones had a presence about him even as a freshman and even earlier when Jones was playing at the middle-school level.

Whiteside said Jones’s success could be attributed to his mental discipline and work ethic as well as his physical abilities. “Making it in the AHL, at a high level, is tough for a goaltender. It’s a little easier for forwards and defensemen. That just goes to show you about his work ethic.”

Flyers Cup Tournament Officially Cancelled

The Flyers Cup Committee has issued the following statement:

All,

In accordance with Governor Wolf’s mandate that all Pennsylvania schools will remained closed to in-student learning for the remainder of the academic year, the Flyers Cup Committee has made the unfortunate decision to cancel the remainder of the 2020 Flyers Cup tournament as well as the Pennsylvania State Championships.

This was certainly not an easy decision, but given the current and ongoing status of COVID-19, along with several other factors, we collectively feel that this is the unfortunate necessary option for the safety and well being of our players, coaches, officials, and communities as we follow the direction of many other scholastic, national, and international events.

These are unprecedented times and we share the disappointment of the teams still vying for championships at each given classification .We understand that this is not the end goal that each team set for the 2019-2020 season, but it unfortunately is the necessary ending. As a result of this decision, all remaining teams will have their team names only, engraved on the respective trophy as a group. There unfortunately will also not be any recognition of individual or all-tournament teams.

Stay safe and be well,

The Flyers Cup Committee

APAC Announces All-Conference Team

The Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference is pleased to announce the 2019-2020 All-APAC teams. The honorees were selected by vote of the Head Coaches of the APAC member schools: Holy Ghost Prep, LaSalle College High School, Malvern Prep, and St. Joseph’s Prep; institutions that share similar missions to promote academic and athletic excellence for their student-athletes.

First Team

Byron Hartley

Holy Ghost Prep (senior)

Position: Forward

Key facts: The APAC’s leading scorer with 26 goals and 22 assists for 48 points and helped the Firebirds reach the Flyers Cup semifinals.

“Byron was our senior captain,” said Holy Ghost Prep coach Gump Whiteside. “He was a true leader who developed tremendously over his four years at Holy Ghost Prep. He was a great teammate who made players better by his work ethic and personality.

Ryan Sambuco

Malvern Prep (junior)

Position: Forward

Key facts: Played a key role for the Friars while scoring 10 goals and adding 16 assists for 26 points. “He shows great vision, said Malvern Prep coach Bill Keenan, “and always finds ways to jump start the team.”

James Craig

St. Joseph’s Prep (senior)

Position: Forward

Key facts: A tenacious player whose eight goals and 13 assists for 21 points in APAC/Flyers Cup play and helped his team reach the Flyers Cup semifinals.

“He did everything a coach could ask for,” said St. Joseph’s Prep coach David Giacomin. “He was a tremendous competitor.”

Andrew Centrella

St. Joseph’s Prep (sophomore)

Position: Defense

Key facts: Scored four goals and provided 13 assists for 17 points in APAC and Flyers Cup play.

“He was an assistant captain and our hardest worker,” Giacomin said. “He played huge minutes and was always a threat on the ice.”

Chris Blango

Malvern Prep (junior)

Position: Defense

Key facts: Was a major force on the blue line for the Friars, scoring three goals and adding eight assists for 11 points. “He was the anchor of Malvern’s defense,” Keenan said, “and is very posed with the puck.”

Aidan McCabe

La Salle (senior)

Position: Goaltender

Key facts: A four-year varsity performer, he was the catalyst for an Explorer team that captured its second straight APAC title and reached the Flyers Cup semifinals. “He was the backbone of our team,” said La Salle coach Wally Muehlbronner.

Second Team

Nathan Benner

La Salle (senior)

Position: Forward

Key facts: Finished his final high-school season with nine goals and six assists for 15 points. “He was one of our captains,” Muehlbronner said, “and a solid all-around player.”

Jeffrey Hammond

St. Josephs Prep (freshman)

Position: Forward

Key facts: Made an impressive debut for the Hawks with nine goals and seven assists for 16 points in APAC/Flyers Cup competition. “He’s a great two-way player,” Giacomin said. “He played in all situations.”

David Kimmell

La Salle (junior)

Position: Forward

Key facts: An offensive catalyst for the Explorers. Led the team in scoring with 13 goals and 12 assists for 25 points. “He was our top scorer,” Muehlbronner said, “and an offensive key.”

Michael Urbani

St. Joseph’s Prep (senior)

Position: Defense

Key facts: Served as one of the Hawks’ captains and contributed five goals and 11 assists to his team’s effort. “He was a captain and the leader of our defensive corps,” Giacomin said. “He has a deadly shot and was a key defensively.”

Nolan Woudenberg

La Salle (sophomore)

Position: Defense

Key facts: Had a solid season for the Explorers with 10 goals and six assists for 16 points. “He was a strong, all around defenseman,” Muehlbronner said.”

Sean Joyce

Holy Ghost Prep (senior)

Position: Goaltender

Key facts: Finished his final season with the Firebirds with a 2.13 GAA and a .914 save percentage.

“Sean was a gamer,” said his coach, Gump Whiteside. One of the best goalies in the history of Holy Ghost Prep hockey. When Sean was in net, you always knew you could win the game.”

A reminder the skate shop in Grundy Arena remains open. Here is a link to their Facebook page.https://www.facebook.com/grundyskateshop/

SHSHL Select Team

This team was selected as a supplement to the Suburban High School Hockey League divisional teams that were announced last week. Our thanks to the coaches who provided input.

F Colin Abbonizio Sr. Central Bucks South

F Antii Autere So. Council Rock South

F Bryan Garry Jr. Wissahickon

F Tyler Greenstein Sr. North Penn

F Aidan Keogh So Plymouth Whitemarsh

F Michael Roby Jr. Council Rock South

F Robbie Seewagen, Jr. Neshaminy

F Chris Trefz Sr. Central Bucks West

D Tom Boyle Sr. North Penn

D Matt Buchinski Jr. Neshaminy

D Ken Duffield So. Council Rock South

D Ryan Gingras Sr. Central Bucks South

G Chris McIntyre Jr. Central Bucks East

G Jimmy Sweeney So. Council Rock South

All-SHSHL Team Announced

The Hockey Happenings Suburban High School Hockey League All-League team was selected by hockeyhappenngs.com with input from league coaches.

A select team encompassing all three divisions is scheduled to be announced on March 29,

National Division

First Team

F Antii Autere So. Council Rock South

F Michael Roby Jr. Council Rock South

F Rob Seewagen Jr. Neshaminy

D Matt Buchinski Jr. Neshaminy

D Ken Duffield So. Council Rock South

G Jimmy Sweeney So. Council Rock South

Second Team

F Beau Brusius-Yedman Sr. Pennsbury

F Joey DeMatteo Sr. Neshaminy

F Erik Eisler Jr. Pennsbury

D Ben Dous Sr. Pennsbury

D David Mueller Sr. Council Rock South

G Brian Nelson So. Neshaminy

Continental Division

First Team

F Colin Abbonizio Sr. Central Bucks South

F Tyler Greenstein Sr. North Penn

F Chris Trefz Sr. Central Bucks West

D Tom Boyle Sr. North Penn

D Ryan Gingras Sr. Central Bucks South

G Chris McIntyre Jr. Central Bucks East

Second Team

F Sean Gorman So. Central Bucks East

F Jack Lowery So. Pennridge

F Dominic Patrone Sr. Central Bucks South

D Conrad Frisch Jr. Pennridge

D Luke Van Why Jr. North Penn

G Mason Moyer Jr. Central Bucks South

American Division

First Team

F Bryan Garry Jr. Wissahickon

F Aidan Keogh So. Plymouth Whitemarsh

F Jake Weikel Sr. Plymouth Whitemarsh

D Dean Keller Sr. Plymouth Whitemarsh

D Ben Lerner So. Hatboro-Horsham

G Ben Yuter Sr. Plymouth Whitemarsh

Second Team

F Alex Howieson Jr. Hatboro-Horsham

F Nick Hussa So. Wissahickon

F Luke Weikel So. Plymouth Whitemarsh

D Robert DiCrosta Sr. Truman

D Nolan Ryan Jr. Wissahickon

G Joey Gambino Sr. Hatboro-Horsham

FLYERS CUP POSTPONED

UPDATE 3-27-20

The Flyers Cup Committee has decided to continue the postponement of the 2020 Flyers Cup Tournament, The decision was based on the Governor Wolf’s ‘Stay at home” directive.”

No date has been determined for re-starting the tournament.

The Flyers. Cup tournament has been postponed for 14 days. Flyers Cup Committee President Eric Tye issued the following statement.

Based upon the recommendation of the State of PA, the Flyers Cup Committee has decided to postpone the continuation of the Flyers Cup tournament for 14 days. During that time, we will re-evaluate the situation and make a final decision on the status of the 2020 Flyers Cup tournament.

We hope that everyone will follow their local and state guidelines and stay healthy.

Flyers Cup Class AAA Semifinals on Tap

The Flyers Cup Class AAA semifinals will go on as scheduled Thursday night at Hatfield Ice. Top-seeded Holy Ghost Prep will face fifth-seeded Father Judge in the 6:30 opener. Second seed and defending champion La Salle will face St. Joseph’s Prep in the 8:45 nightcap.

The finals will be held Friday at Ice Line with a scheduled 7 p.m. start.

Holy Ghost Prep vs. Father Judge 6:30

Fifth-seeded Father Judge carries a 12-game winning streak into the semifinals. The Crusaders are 18-5 overall and are the champions of the Intercounty League’s PCL Division. Sean Melso leads the Crusaders in scoring with 14 goals and 29 assists for 43 points. Robert Werner has provided 27 goals and 15 assists for 42 points. The Crusaders have won two Cups, the Class AA crown in 1993 and the Class AAA title in 2000.

Top-seeded Holy Ghost Prep (14-4-2-1-0) has won eight of its last nine games. It’s only loss in that span came against La Salle in the Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference championship game. Byron Hartley leads the team in scoring with 23 goals and 15 assists for 38 points. Evan Mudrick has added 12 goals and 10 assists for 22 points. The Firebirds won the Class AA championship in 2003 and Class AAA titles in 2007, ’15, and ’17.

La Salle vs. St. Joseph’s Prep 8:45

La Salle, the defending champion and second seed, is seeking to win its 12^thFlyers Cup title, an all-time record (11 have come in Class AAA, one in Class AA. The Explorers are 13-11-2-2 heading into the semifinals. They’ve won six straight games and seven of their last nine. Keennan Schneider leads the Explorers in scoring with nine goals and 18 assists for 27 points. David Kimmel has provoded 13 goals and 12 assists for 25 points.

St. Joseph’s Prep (11-9-1-4 in all competitions) captured its first Flyers Cup title two years ago. This year’s team relies on balance. Jimmy Craig is pacing the team in scoring with seven goals and 14 assists for 21 points.