LaSalle 5, Malvern Prep 1

By Rick Woelfel

HATFIELD TOWNSHIP—The LaSalle Explorers made it official Wednesday afternoon. Daniel Sambuco scored two goals and assisted on a third to give his team a 5-1 win over Malvern Prep in an Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference game at Hatfield Ice.

The win officially gives LaSalle (16-6 overall) the APAC regular-season title. The Explorers are a perfect 8-0 in conference play (with one win coming in overtime) and one league game left, on Monday against Holy Ghost Prep.

The Explorers and the Friars (11-4, 5-3 in conference with one win in overtime) will be seeded one-two in the APAC playoffs and will host semifinal games on February 25th. Both will move on to the Flyers Cup tournament from there.

Sambuco got the day off to a good start for the Explorers by scoring on a shot from the left circle with 2:56 left in the first frame. LaSalle extended its lead with 10 seconds left in the period when Nathan Benner scored a deflected goal on a play that originated behind the Malvern Prep net and appeared to catch goaltender Dan Dougherty unawares.

Sambuco and Andrew Budzynski scored goals 73 seconds apart to put LaSalle up 4-0 les than two minutes into the second period but the Friars, who were without their sniper, Nick Martino, due to a lower body injury, but they didn’t back off or back down.

“In the second period they had some really good pressure on us I thought” said LaSalle coach Wally Meuhlbronner. “I don’t know that our puck movement was so strong, but Malvern played a really good game. We’ve got to be prepared for every game from here on out.”

The Explorers didn’t buckle however until the 8:04 mark of the period when Jack Constabile scored a power-play goal for the Friars off a scramble in front of LaSalle goaltender Aidan McCabe. It was just the eighth goal surrendered by the Explorers in eight conference games.

“We’ve got a solid defense in the back,” said LaSalle senior defenseman Bryan Evans. “We love to play a hard, physical game and I think teams A. can’t keep up with our physicality and B. can’t keep up with our speed.”

Malvern Prep coach Dave Dorman presided his team’s tenacity. “There was no quit in the game,” he said, “which was the most important thing for us. I thought the bench stuck together, the kids kept competing, and I was happy for that.”

Brandon Leer completed the scoring for LaSalle with 3:04 left in the third period. The Explorers enjoyed a 40-22 edge in shots.

Notes: The four LaSalle seniors, Evans, Leer, Zach Baker, and Sean Keaveney were recognized before the game.
Malvern Prep 0 1 0—1
LaSalle 2 2 1—5
First-period goals: Daniel Sambuco (L) from Sam Lipkin, 13:04; Nathan Brennan (L) from Ryan Ferry, 15:50.
Second-period goals: Sambuco (L) from Lipkin, :25; Andrew Budzynski (L) from Benner, 1:38; Jack Constabile (MP) from Kyle Washalavitch, 8:04 (pp).
Third-period goal: Brandon Leer (L) from Sambuco and David Kimmel, 12:56.
Shots: Malvern Prep 22, LaSalle 40; Saves: Dan Dougherty (MP) 35, Aidan McCabe (L) 19.

APAC Sets Playoff Dates

By Rick Woelfel

The Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference has announced its playoff format for its inaugural season. All four teams will square off in the semifinal round on Monday, February 25 with the top two seeds, LaSalle and Malvern Prep, likely in that order, serving as hosts against either St. Joseph’s Prep or Holy Ghost Prep.

The championship game will be played on Wednesday, February 27 at the home rink of the highest-seeded finalist.

The league champion will be presented with the APAC Founders Trophy.

APAC Founders Trophy

The APAC tournament will serve as a prelude to the 40^th Flyers Cup tournament, which is expected to start on March 4 and conclude on March 17.

SHSHL Statistical Update

Suburban High School Hockey League statistics as of 2-5-19

Scoring GP G A Pts

Coleman Peppelmn LM 11 31 19 50

Vincenzo DeMaio LM 11 26 17 43

Sean Gary Wiss 10 24 17 41

Dean Keller PW 11 21 20 41

Bryan Gary Wiss 10 25 15 40

Adam Bostock LM 11 13 24 37

Tyler Greenstein NP 12 16 16 32

Steven Avellino Tr 10 24 6 30

Jake Weikel PW 11 16 13 29

Chris Trefz CBW 10 6 22 28

Eric Slater Pr 9 22 6 28

Colin Franzoni PW 11 16 11 27

Reis Braccio CBW 12 15 11 26

Nathan Oh NP 12 10 16 26

Ari Nordlinger UD 10 14 11 25

Robert Seewagen Nesh 10 15 9 24

Matt Cade Wiss 10 11 13 24

Perry Carpenter Ab 10 16 8 24

Josh Kaufhold NP 11 8 15 23

Jake Nelson NP 11 14 9 23

Aidan Keogh PW 10 17 6 23

Devin Green LM 10 10 13 23

Bobby Markus WT 11 13 8 21

Goals Against Average Min GAA

Luke Stranik Pr 521 2.12

Oscar Levin CBS 466 2.47

Chris McIntyre CBE 240 2.60

Nick Ebbinghaus NP 432 2.78

Andrew Zanoni NP 240 2.80

Brett Magloff CRS 256 3.00

Matt Oganowski CBE 384 3.25

Joe Gambino HH 478 3.41

Steve Glik Nesh 501 3.64

Ben Yuter PW 502 4.11

(Min. 240 minutes played)

Save Percentage Min. GA Save Pct.

Chris McIntyre CBE 240 13 .912

Luke Stranik Pr 521 23 .907

Steve Glik Nesh 501 38 .895

Jeremy Kennard CBW 361 31 .888

Oscar Levin CBS 466 24 .882

Joe Gambino HH 478 34 .876

Jonathan Pritchard Soud 581 87 .874

Jeremy Wedul Tr 528 55 .870

Brett Magloff CRS 256 16 .870

Jimmy Sweeney CRS 304 27 .859

(Min. 240 minutes played)

SHSHL Standings

Suburban High School Hockey League Standings as of 2-5-19

Class AA (National and Continental Divisions)

W L T Pts

Central Bucks South (10-3-1) 8 0 1 17

North Penn (9-2-3) 7 1 2 16

Pennridge (9-2-1) 6 1 0 12

Central Bucks West (7-6) 5 3 0 10

Neshaminy (5-4-3) 4 3 2 10

Central Bucks East (8-4-1) 4 4 0 8

Pennsbury (5-5-3) 3 4 1 7

Council Rock South (5-6-2) 2 4 2 6

Abington (3-7-3) 2 5 2 6

Truman (3-8-2) 2 5 1 5

William Tennent (3-9-2) 1 7 2 4

Souderton (2-11-1) 0 8 1 1

Class A (American Division) W L T Its

Wissahickon (8-2-2) 6 2 2 14

Lower Moreland (8-2-3) 5 2 3 13

Plymouth Whitemarsh (9-3-1) 5 3 1 11

Hatboro-Horsham (7-4-2) 4 4 2 10

Upper Dublin (3-9-0) 0 9 0 0

LaSalle 9, St. Joseph’s Prep 1

By Rick Woelfel

HATFIELD TOWNSHIP— It was pretty much business as usual for LaSalle Friday evening. Sam Lipkin and Daniel Sambuco scored two goals apiece and five other players scored one goal each as the Explorers routed St. Joseph’s Prep 9-1 in an Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference game at Hatfield Ice.

The win assured that LaSalle (15-6, 6-0-1-0 in the APAC) can do no worse than tie for the regular-season title in the APAC’s inaugural season. The Explorers are six points ahead of second-place Malvern Prep with two conference games remaking for each team, including one against each other next Wednesday at Hatfield Ice.

Friday’s game was settled early on. LaSalle took command when Sambuco, Jan Olenginski, and Sam Lipkin scored first period goals to give their team a 3-0 lead. Lipkin’s goal came with a teammate in the penalty box.

The Explorers epitomized balance by scoring three goals in the second and third periods as well. At a point in the season where physical and mental fatigue become increasingly significant, Sambuco says he and his teammates have maintained their focus.

“We know what we want at the end,” the sophomore said. “Obviously, we want the state championship, so that kind of fuels us, every single game, every single day. It just keeps us driving and going and going becaus e window what that end goal will be.”

LaSalle extended its lead when Sambuco scored his second goal of the game 3:32 into the second frame to chase Hawk netminder Dan McGill, who was relieved by Troy Stefano. Lipkin made it 5-0 with a power-play effort at the 8:27 mark before Evan Cassidy scored what turned out to be St Joseph’s Prep’s only goal at 8:59. Nathan Benner scored for LaSalle before the period ended, a prelude to Max Levenberg, Bryan Evans, and Fabrizio Mazzarelli scoring goals in the third period.

William Gross in the LaSalle net didn’t have much to do; he was called on to make just 15 saves.

“Puck movement I think was really good tonight,” said LaSalle coach Wally Meuhlbronner. “We’re coming of a pretty tough stretch where we haven’t scored a ton of goals. We were pinned in our (defensive zone) a lot the past two games and it’s good to see them play the way they did tonight.”

St. Joseph’s Prep coach David Giacomin saw his team fall to 6-14 overall and 1-6-1-0 in conference. The veteran coach was less upset with the result than he was his team’s seeming lack of emotional energy.

“I see good things out of these kids at times,” he said. “And for whatever reason, we go through these games where they just seem to not care.

“And to me, that’s the frustrating part. Once one goal is scored, or a second goal is scored, it’s almost like they give up. And so it’s very frustrating for a coach who puts in a lot of time and effort and practice with them to have them come out and not handle adversity well.”
St. Joseph’s Prep 0 1 0—1
LaSalle 3 3 3—9
First-period goals: Daniel Sambuco (L) from Michael Casey and Jan Olenginski, 5:43; Oleninski (L) unassisted, 6:15; Lipkin (L) from Casey and Olenginski, 15:24 (sh).
Second-period goals: Sambuco (L) from Lipkin, 3:32; Lipkin (L) from Fabrizio Mazzarelli and Sambuco, 8:27 (pp); Evan Cassidy (SJP) from Vincent Bogessi, 8:59;Nathan Benner (L) from Nolan Woudenberg, 12:48.
Third-period goals: Max Levenberg (L) from Ryan Walsh and Zach Baker; Bryan Evans (L) from Woudenberg and Ryan Ferry, 11:36; Mazzarelli (L) from Baker and Lipkin, 14:03.
Shots; St. Joseph’s Prep 16, LaSalle 43; Saves Dan McGill (SJP) 16 and Troy Stefano (SJP) 18, William Gross (L) 15.

WBCB Radio Announces Hockey Broadcast Schedule

WBCB Radio in Levittown, PA will air six high-school hockey games in February.

Five will feature games from the Suburban High School Hockey League, the sixth will be an Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference contest. The schedule kicks off Friday night with a matchup between Truman and Pennsbury, the annual Pink Game to benefit cancer patients in Lower Bucks County.

The entire schedule is listed below.

Feb. 1 7:30 pm. Truman vs. Pennsbury
Feb. 7 8:45 pm. Pennridge vs. Pennsbury
Feb. 11 4:00 pm. La Salle H.S. vs. Holy Ghost Prep.
Feb. 13 9:00 pm. C.B. East vs. Pennsbury
Feb. 20 7:20 pm. Truman vs. Neshaminy
Feb. 21 7:20 pm. Pennridge vs. C.R. South

* Games can be heard live on WBCB 1490 AM or wbcbsports.com.

Holy Ghost Prep-Malvern Prep Matchup A Big Step for the APAC

Wednesday night’s matchup between Malvern Prep and Holy Ghost Prep at the Wells Fargo Center was another step forward in the evolution of the Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference.

The Friars emerged with a 3-2 overtime win in front of a large and enthusiastic audience.

Holy Ghost Prep Athletic Director Jim Stewart spoke with Hockey Happenings Wednesday night and celebrated the evening’s success.

“It’s a great evening,” he said. “It’s a great opportunity for both programs, especially in the first year of the APAC it’s certainly an experience that the kids playing tonight will never forget, having the chance to play on the ice of the Philadelphia Flyers and it says something about the connections that are being made between the schools in the APAC so far. We’re working to give the kids a great opportunity for competition.”

Stewart noted that the vison the four member schools had of what the league should be is, to this point, being realized.

“There has been really good competition,” he said. “We set out to begin this under the leadership of a couple of the coaches at LaSalle and Holy Ghost Prep and we put some goals out of there of what we wanted to achieve this year in terms of ice time, schedule, varsity and JV play, and it has worked out great.”

Friars and Firebirds Make Memories at the Wells Fargo Center

A lot of history has been made at the Wells Fargo Center since the building opened 12-and-a-half years ago. Holy Ghost Prep and Malvern Prep made some history of their own Wednesday night when they met in an Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference game, but mostly, the players made lasting memories for themselves, memories they’ll be able to share for decades with teammates, family, and friends.

Kenny Connors scored two goals for the Friars in their 3-2 overtime win, including the game winner. He had skated on the Wells Fargo Center in the past as a participant in Mites on Ice, but playing a regulation game there was another matter. ”The environment with the (Malvern Prep student body) coming was a lot different,” he said. It was a lot more noisy environment, fun to play in.”

Connors said stepping on the ice for the warmup was a unique experience. ”You come to games here and you watch the guys play,” he said, “and to be able to be on that same ice as them is something special. And to have people come and watch and to be able to get a win out of it was something that was great for us.”

Malvern Prep 3, Holy Ghost Prep 2 OT

By Rick Woelfel

It was a finish fit for the wetting. Kenny Connors scored a dramatic goal 2minutes, 23 seconds into overtime to give Malvern Prep a 3-2 win over Holy Ghost Prep Wednesday night in front of an energized audience at the Wells Fargo Center.

The game-winner came moments after the Firebirds’ Byron Hartley fired wide at the other end. Malvern’s Nick Martino corralled the rebound and shot up the right wing, sending a cross-ice pass to Connors as the two plyers crossed the blue line. Connors delivered a forehander that beat Firebird netminder Sean Joyce.

“(Martino) had a really great look across and got me open,” the sophomore said. “The goalie came out too far, I thought.

“It was a great win. We played great defense and scored in transition.”

Connors scored two goals for Malvern Prep (11-3, 5-2 in the Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference) and assisted on the third.

It took a goal from Kyle Washalavitch with 1:18 left in the third period for the Friars to force overtime.

The Firebirds took a 2-1 lead on Byron Hartley’s goal with 6:48 left in the third frame.

But following a Malvern Prep timeout at the 1:21 mark, the Friars won a faceoff in their offensive left wing circle and got the puck back to Waskalavotch at the point who beat Joyce with a wrister.

The teams traded goals in the first period. Connors put the Friars up just 80 seconds into the game. Evan Mudrick answered for Holy Ghost Prep (6-11, 0-7 in conference) when he scored in the midst of a flurry in front of Malvern Prep goaltender Dan Dougherty.

For Holy Ghost Prep, the result was another in a season-long string of frustrations. The Firebirds have lost four game this season in either overtime or a shootout.

“I didn’t think we played a very good second period,” said Firebird coach Gump Whiteside, “but our first period and our third period were great. In overtime, we had a lot of chances. We just can’t find a way to win right now. It’s frustrating.”

Notes—It’s the second this season the Friars have staged a late rally to get a win. They trailed St. Joseph’s Prep 1-0 with 2:52 left in the game on January 11^th and won the game with a pair of shorthanded goals.

Malvern Prep swept the three-game series with Holy Ghost Prep this season. All three games were decided by one goal …. There was plenty of hitting but no nonsense. Referee Greg Liscino let the players play and didn’t call a single penalty.

Malvern Prep 1 0 1 1—3

Holy Ghost Prep 1 0 1 0—2

First-period goals: Kenny Connors (MP) from Quinn Dougherty, 1:20; Evan Mudrick (HGP) from Eric Pohl and Alex D’Angelo, 14:21

APAC Scoring Leaders

Here are the top scorers in the Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference as of 1-29-19; conference games only.

GP G A Pts

Sam Lipkin Ls 6 7 9 16

Michael Casey Ls 6 5 9 14

Daniel Sambuco Ls 6 5 9 14

Nick Martino MP 5 7 5 12

Kyle Washkalavitch MP 6 3 4 7

Byron Hartley HGP 5 4 1 5

Jan Olenginski Ls 5 2 3 5

Eric Pohl HGP 6 2 2 4

Charlie Andress MP 5 1 3 4

Brandon Leer Ls 6 3 1 4