Abington 6 Wissahickon 3

HATFIELD Township—With two of its leading scorers idled by injury, Abington needed a big game from its goaltender Thursday night, and it got it. Sam Nemec came up big as the Galloping Ghosts remained unbeaten with a 6-3 decision over Wissahickon in a SHSHL American Division encounter at Hatfield Ice.
Abington stands a perfect 8-0 on the season heading into the Christmas break and 7-0 in divisional play. The Galloping Ghosts’ last loss came to Council Rock South last March in the opening round of the Class AA Flyers Cup tournament.

On Thursday, they were without Pat Stelacio, the SHSHL’s leading scorer, and Matt Kramer, who between them have combined for 26 goals and 17 assists this season. That scenario raised expectations for Nemec and the senior delivered. Officially, he was credited with 37 saves against a Wissahickon team that came in averaging better than seven goals a game.

“It was definitely one of my busier games this year,” Nemec said, “and I felt I had it locked in as soon as the puck dropped. I felt good in warmups tonight.”

Like many goaltenders, Nemec prefers a lot of work.

“I would much rather be busy, rather than stay cold and face a couple shots a period,” he said. “I enjoy being busy down there.”

Abington coach Ken Brzozowski called Nemec’s effort the best game of his Abington career.

“I told him that was the best game I’d ever seen him play,” Brzozowski said. “I’ve been watching him play for four years and we asked him before the game; we said ‘We need one, we need a good game.’ And that’s what he did tonight, he gave us a great game.”

Jordan Heydt gave Abington a 1-0 lead 4:58 into the first period. Danny Hussa answered for Wissahickon (4-4, 4-3 in the division) five-and-a-half minutes later.

The Trojans took the lead when Hudson Honeycutt scored of a setup from Jack Raebiger 3:04 into the second period on a play that started when Raebiger made a rush up the left wing. But Sam Paulik tied the game for Abington with a power-play goal less than two minutes later before Heydt scored his second goal of the night to put the Galloping Ghosts back in front with 3:52 remaining in the period.

Ian Heydt extended Abington’s lead to 4-2 1:29 in to the third period but the Trojans weren’t finished. Will Hussa scored off a setup from Danny Hussa and it was a one-goal game once more with 5:14 still left in regulation. But Ian Heydt responded for Abington just 19 seconds later.

Devin Bates added an empty-net goal just before the final buzzer.

Wissahickon coach Ken Harrington said his team ran out of energy in the late going.

“We were gassed,” he said. “We had a short bench tonight. They were (fatigued) on the bench

“But, we just couldn’t get the puck over the goalie.”

Wissahickon 1 1 1—3

Abington 1 2 3—6

First-period goals: Jordan Heydt (A) unassisted, 4:58; Danny Hussa from Nolan Pounds and Griffin Lynch, 10:31

Second-period goals: Hudson Honeycutt from Lynch, 3:04; Sam Paulik (A) from Sean Doyle 4:56 (pp); Jordan Heydt (A) unassisted, 12:08

Third-period goals: Ian Heydt (A) from Sam Abramson, 1:29; Will Hussa from Danny Hussa, 11:46; Ian Heydt (A) from Abramsom and Brian Murdoch, 12:05; De vin Bates (A) unassisted, 16:59 (en)

Shots: Wissahickon 39, Abington 18; Saves: Fletcher Lynch 12, Sam Nemec (A) 36

Abington 4 Wissahickon 2

HATFIELD TOWNSHIP —Abington worked a very long time, all season in fact, for the right to hoist the SHSHL American Division (Class A) championship trophy, all season in fact.

But in the wake of their 4-2 win over Wissahickon Thursday night at Hatfield Ice, could be argued the top-seeded Galloping Ghosts had been working for far longer than that; Thursday’s win gave Abington its seventh SHSHL title but its first since 2004.

“It’s a huge win for our program,” said Abington coach Ken Brozowski. “We talked about before the game, about the history that Abington has. And it was important for us to come through and win this game.

Matt Cholaj and Pat Stelacio each scored two goals and each added an assist as top-seeded Abington won its 15^th straight game after opening the season with a loss to new SHSHL Class AA champion Pennridge.

“We lost the first game of the season,” Chelaj said, “but we came out hot after that We really didn’t let much get to us. We kept our heads in every game.

“It’s good when all four of our lines can really get going and score goals. All four of our lines are putting up points this year and it was just an overall good season.”

Cholaj put Abington in front 5:19 into the opening period. A.J. Pounds answered for third-seeded Wissahickon (9-8) at the 9:42 mark.
Abington’s next three goals came on power plays. Stelacio put his team in front for the second and last time with 3:11 left in the opening session before Abington broke the game open early in the second stanza thanks to consecutive Trojan penalties that gave the Galloping Ghosts a two-man advantage; Cholaj and Stelacio each scored goals during that interlude to put their team up by three goals just 3:01 into the middle period.

Will Hussa made it a 4-2 game at the 6:34 mark. Wissahickon had no further success against Ben Panella in the Abington net although the Trojans had two goals disallowed during the game.

Abington is classified Class AA for the Flyers Cup and as the 14^th seed will face third seed Council Rock South on Tuesday at Hatfield Ice. Wissahickon is seeded 10^th in Class A and will go against seventh-seeded West Chester Henderson Monday at Ice Line

The Grundy Skate Shop is a full-service hockey pro shop inside the Grundy Arena, offering a great selection of equipment, brands and various services. We do a full range of repairs as well as offer custom hockey jerseys. Owner Bill Keyser, has over 25 years experience in the industry and specializes in skate sharpening, including profiling. Please visit our Facebook page or stop in and check us out!

Abington 6 Quakertown 2

HATFIELD TOWNSHIP— Abington took its first steps on its postseason journey Thursday night. Matt Kramer and Jordan Heydt scored two goals each as the Galloping Ghosts downed Quakertown 6-2 in a SHSHL American Division semifinal at Hatfield Ice.

Top-seeded Abington (14-1) will learn Sunday if it qualifies for the Class AA Flyers Cup field before taking the ice against Wissahickon for the American Division title Thursday.

Fourth-seeded Quakertown, playing its first playoff game in its three-year tenure in the SHSHL, finishes at 7-9.

Abington coach Ken Brzozowski noted his team turned in a workmanlike effort. “It’s kind of what we’ve been doing all year,” he said, “working hard. Our philosophy is ‘Carry the puck wide, get it deep, and and then go to work. We’ve got got some skilled guy that have got some pretty good hands and can find a little hole there through open space.”

Kramer and Heydt scored first-period goals to stake their team to a 2-0 lead.

Heydt extended his team’s lead with a backhander from the low slot midway through the second session. Ryan Porter made it a 4-0 game with 56 seconds left in the period.

The Panthers however did not back down. Anthony Pagliei and Lucas Cunnane scored goals 45 seconds apart to make it a 3-2 game 3:01 into the third period.

But Quakertown couldn’t get closer. Kramer scored his second goal of the game midway through the period before Sam Paulik added a goal of his own down the stretch.

“We couldn’t be prouder of the boys,” said Quakertown coach Keith Krem. “They came out and they played hard. It didn’t go where we want it to go but we were happy to be in a playoff game and taking our season to a new step.”

Quakertown 0 0 2—2

Abington 2 2 2—6

First—period goals: Matt Kramer (A) from Joe Stelacio, 9:48; Jordan Heydt (A) unassisted, 13:33

Second-period goals: Heydt (A) 8:13; Ryan Portner (A) from Stelacio, 16:04

Third-period goals: Anthony Pagliei (Q) unassisted, 2:16; Lucas (Q) from Wilham Shaw, 3:01; Kramer (A) from Heydt and Brian Murdoch, 8:32; Sam Paulik from Pat Stelacio,15:50

Shots: Abington 29, Quakertown 20;

Abington 9 Plymouth Whitemarsh 7

HATFIELD TOWNSHIP—The calendar says January, not July, but there were plenty of fireworks at Hatfield Ice Wednesday night. Abington and Wissahickon combined for 16 goals before the Galloping Ghosts prevailed 9-7 in a matchup of the two titans of the SHSHL’s American Division.

Abington improved to 6-1 overall and a division-leading 5-0 while the Colonials (5-1, 3-1) tasted defeat for the first time this season.
It was a big night for Abington junior Pat Stelacio who scored four goals. Luke Weikel matched him for the Colonials.

Stelacio got support however from teammates Matt Kramer (three goals), his brother Joe Stelacio, and Sam Paulik

“We knew it was going to be a tough game,” said Abington coach Ken Brozowski. We know that we’re going to get the best game from most teams in the league and you’re playing a team like PW; they’ve got a couple really good players on their team. Absolutely, we knew it was going to be a close game.

The fireworks show began early; each team scored twice in the first 7:34 of the opening period. Pat Stelacio and Weikel scored for Abington while Weikel found the back of the net twice for the Colonials.

Stelacio followed up with two additional goals 19 seconds apart. With 4:19 left in the first frame he already had a hat trick and his team had a 4-2 lead.

Stelacio, a junior, started his high-school career at Roman Catholic but switched to Abington this season.

“I wanted to play with my brother at Abington,” he said. “I have a lot of friends here, so it was the right move.”

Weikel completed his own hat trick just 28 seconds into the middle period, but Abington responded with five straight goals to build an 8-3 lead by period’s end.

Kramer, who came into the game leading the entire SHSHL in scoring, ended the period by completing his own hat trick. He now has 17 goals and nine assists on the season.

Plymouth Whitemarsh coach Josh Aiello was expecting a lot of offense, to a point.

“I wasn’t expecting a shootout,” he said, “but you have two teams that are able to put the puck in the net and you’ve seen it over the course of this season. I didn’t expect it, but I guess it’s not a surprise.”

The Colonials made a run early in the third period, scoring three goals in a span of 35 seconds to make it an 8-6 game with 10:09 still remaining in regulation. Danny Smith played a key role in the surge, scoring one of the goals and assisting on the other two.
But Plymouth Whitemarsh could get no closer. The teams traded goals down the stretch; the last goal of the night was Stelacio’s fourth.

Plymouth Whitemarsh 2 1 4—7

Abington 4 4 1—9

First-period goals: Pat Stelacio (A) from Griffin Carpenter, 2:09; Luke Weikel (PW) from Matthew Flynn and Aidan Keogh, 3:09; Sam Paulik (A) unassisted, 7:34; Weikel (PW) from Conlan Carpenter and Keogh, 10:03 (pp); Pat Stelacio (A) unassisted, 12:22; Pat Stelacio (A) unassisted, 12:41

Second-period goals: Weikel (PW) unassisted, :28; Matt Kramer (A) from Joe Stelacio, 2:12; Joe Stelacio (A) from Kramer and Brian Murdoch, 8:50; Kramer (A) from Joe Stelaio and Paulik, 12:04; Kramer (A) from Joe Stelacio and Paulik, 16:39

Third-period goals: Danny Smith (PW) unassisted, 6:16; Weikel (PW) from Smith and Keogh, 6:30; Tim Murphy (PW) from Smith and Weikel, 6:51; Pat Stelacio (A) from Ian Heydt, 7:22; Weikel (PW) from Mishkin, 15:50.
shots: Plymouth Whitemarsh 32, Abington 34; Saves: Kolton Galie (PW) 8 and Christopher Maslij (PW) 17, Ben Panella (A) 25

SHSHL Update for 12-20-21

National/Continental-Class AA W L T OTL Pts

Pennridge (7-0) 4 0 0 0 8

Souderton (5-3) 3 2 0 0 6

Council Rock South (5-1-1) 3 1 0 0 6

Neshaminy (5-1-1) 2 1 0 0 4

Central Bucks East (3-4) 2 1 0 0 4

Bensalem (3-3) 1 1 0 0 2

Central Bucks South (1-5-1) 1 1 0 0 2

Pennsbury (3-2-1) 1 1 0 0 2

Council Rock North (2-4) 1 3 0 0 2

Central Bucks West (3-4) 0 3 0 0 0

North Penn (1-6) 0 3 0 0 0

American Division-Class A W L T OTL Pts

Abington (5-1) 4 0 0 0 8

Plymouth Whitemarsh (5-0) 3 0 0 0 6

Wissahickon (3-4) 3 1 0 0 4

Quakertown (3-5) 3 3 0 0 6

Upper Dublin (3-5) 2 3 0 0 4

Hatboro-Horsham (1-5) 0 4 0 0 0

William Tennent (0-7) 0 4 0 0 0

Scoring

Class AA G A Pts

Shane Siegmund (PB) 9 10 19

Karson Grainey (CRN) 12 6 18

Kevin Pico (Pr) 11 5 16

Max Gallagher (Nesh) 8 7 15

Nick Hahn (CRN) 6 8 14

Kevin Koles (CRS) 6 7 13

Alex Hood (Bens) 9 5 14

Julian Sarne (CRS) 10 3 13

Kevin Koles (CRS) 6 7 13

Seth Grossman (Soud) 7 5 12

Class A G A Pts

Matt Kramer (Ab 14 8 22

Jack Bocul (UD) 14 5 19

Joe Stelacio (Ab) 8 11 19

A.J. Pounds (Wiss) 10 8 18

Matt Cholaj (Ab) 8 9 17

Will Hussa (Wiss) 10 6 16

Aidan Keogh (PW) 7 9 16

Nick Hussa (Wiss) 5 11 16

Luke Weikerl (PW) 7 7 14

Danny Hussa (Wiss) 10 3 13

Anthony Pagliei (Q-town 5 8 13

Goals Against

Class AA Minutes GA GAA

Ryan Pico (Pr) 301 7 1.19

Brian Nelson (Nesh) 257 12 2.38

Liam Rogers (CBW) 204 10 2.50

Carson Lopez (CRS) 362 18 2.54

Jason Magaruh (CBS) 155 8 2.63

Class A Minutes GA GAA

Ben Panella (Ab 153 6 1.88

Kolton Galie (PW) 195 10 2.61

Sam Nemec (Ab) 153 10 3.14

Matt Krem (Q-town) 405 40 4.74

Michael Bonnani (Wiss) 354 36 4.88

Wissahickon 4, Abington 3

Nick Hussa scored a goal and assisted on three more as Wissahickon defeated Abington 4-3 Thursday night in the Suburban High School Hockey League American Division championship game at Hatfeld Ice.

It’s the fifth divisional title for the Trojans. They previously won championships in 2006, 2010, 2015, and 2019. A possible sixth championship in 2003 has not been verified.

Wisssahickon (12-1) took the lead on a goal from Bryan Garry 7:11 into the first period. Abington (8-4) drew even when Colin Bruton found the back of the net at the 15:36 mark during a power play.

Wissahickon’s Daniel Glazer and Abington’s Sam Paulik traded goals in the second period before Will Hussa gave Wissahickon the lead for good at the 13:28 mark with an assist from Nick Hussa, who extended the Trojans’ lead when he scored with 2:07 left in the period. Griffin Carpenter scored for Abington remaining in the second session; the third period was scoreless.

Wissahickon will move on to the Class A Flyers Cup and will face sixth-seeded West Chester Henderson next Thursday at Hatfield Ice (7:10).

Thursday’s loss concluded Abington’s season.

Abington 1 2 0—3

Wissahickon 1 3 0—4

First-period goals: Bryan Garry from Nick Hussa and Daniel Glazer, 7:11; Colin Bruton (A) from Tom Rourke and Matt Kramer, 15:36 (pp)

Second-period goals: Galzer from Garry and Hussa, 3:50; Sam Paulik (A) from Ian Heydt and Sean Faye, 8:13; Wil Hussa from Nick Hussa, 13:28; Nick Hussa from Garry, 14:53; Griffin Carpenter (A) unassisted, 15:42

Shots: Abington 28, Wissahickon 49; Saves: Sam Panella (A) 45, Michael Bonanni 25

SHSHL Semifinal Pairings Finalized

The matchups for Wednesday’s SHSHL semifinals are finalized, along with game sites and times.

National/Continental Division

5 Pennridge vs. 1 Pennsbury 7:20 at Grundy Arena

3 Council Rock South vs. 2 Central Bucks South 6:30 at Hatfield Ice

American Division

4 Hatboro-Horsham at 1 Wissahickon, 8:40 at Hatfield

3 Plymouth Whitemarsh at 2 Abington 9:00 at Bucks County Ice

Sites and times are subject to change

The championship games in both division are scheduled for Thursday with sites and times to be announced.

SHSHL Playoff Schedule

Monday 3-29

Nat/Continental First Round

3 Council Rock South vs. 6 North Penn 7:15 at Rev. Ice Gardens

4. Neshaminy vs. 5 Pennridge 7:20 at Hatfield Ice

Wednesday 3-31

Nat/Continental Semifinals

1 Pennsbury vs. TBD 7:20 at Grundy

2. Central Bucks South vs. TBD 6:30 at Hatfield

American Division Semifinals

1 Wissahickon vs. 4 Hatboro-Horsham 8:40 at Hatfield

2. Abington vs. 3 Plymouth Whitemarsh 9:00 at BCI

Thursday, April 1

Championship games in both divisions; sites, times TBD

Abington Using Win over Truman to Launch Playoff Push

Abington 6, Truman 1

The postseason doesn’t officially begin for another week and a half but Abington has already adopted a playoff mindset. The Galloping Ghosts are in a stretch that wills see than play four games in a span of 10 days. The results will determine not only their status for the SHSHL American Division playoffs but perhaps earn them a place on the Class AA Flyers Cup bracket,

The first step in the process took place Wednesday night as Abington scored a 6-1 decision over Truman at the Bucks County Ice Sports Center.

Griffin Carpenter scored twice and four other players added one goal each as Abington improved its record to 6-3

“Tonight’s game started Monday night,” said Abington coach Ken Brzozowski. “We had an outstanding practice. We knew that we had four games coming up, games we know that we can compete in. We had an outstanding practice and that transferred into tonight. They did everything that I asked them to do.”

The Galloping Ghosts were forced off the ice for a time earlier this year because of Covid issues. But the team made the most of the down time,

“We got shut down for 10 days,” Brzozowski said. “we got together, we watched some game film over Zoom. I think that helps as well, whenever the kid can see themselves on the ice, and then come to practice and try to fix those things, as simple as they may be, I think paid dividends tonight.”

Senior Defenseman Holden Brooker said the Monday practice helped he and his teammates get their skates back under them following the layoff.

“We didn’t have a game for one week and we were looking a little sluggish,” he said. That practice definitely helped us out a little bit. It definitely got us moving tonight and hopefully we can do that our next game too.”

With three games remaining in the regular season, the Galloping Ghosts still have hopes of a Flyers Cup invitation; despite the fact they are competing the SHSHL’s American Division they are classified as a Class AA team for Flyers Cup purposes.

“I can’t remember the last time we were in the Flyers Cup,” Brooker said. “it would be great, it would keep (our) spirits up. We’ll try to do the best we can.”

• The SHSHL playoffs will be contested the week of March 29. Four American Division teams and six National/Continental teams will qualify and play for separate championships.

Truman 0 1 0—1

Abington 1 3 2—6

First-period goals: Colin Bruton (A) from Ian Heydt, 10:47

Second-period goals: Ian Heydt (A) from Nick Kleinwski and Jordan Heydt, :25; Jarrett Wolf (T) from James Gallagher and Jeremy McCartney, 2:28; Griffin Carpenter (A) from Joe Stelacio, 8:38; Sam Pavlik (A) from Stelacio, 10:59

Third-period goals: Carpenter (A) unassisted, 1:40; Sean Faye (A) from Pavlik and Ian Heydt, 7:59 (pp)

Shots: Truman 19, Abington 46; Saves: Connor Pilla (T) 40, Sam Nemec (A) 18

Abington 7, Wissahickon 6

HATFIELD— Joe Stelacio’s goal with 4:25 remaining in the third period capped a remarkable comeback and gave Abington a 7-6 win over Wissahickon Wednesday night in a Suburban High School Hockey League American Division matchup at Hatfield Ice.

The Galloping Ghosts rallied from a 5-0 deficit in the second period and trailed 6-3 going into the final session before scoring four unanswered goals to record their fifth victory in six starts.

The win moved Abington in to first place in the division ahead of the Trojans (4-1) who have a game in hand as the SHSHL regular season nears its halfway mark.

“This is certainly a big win for us,” said Abington coach Ken Brzozowski. “It’s something we’ve been working for a while, to be able to play at this level, play at this caliber. We thought coming into the game we had a chance, we got down, and the team just rebounded.”

The Galloping Ghosts had to climb a very steep hill. With just under five minutes gone in the middle period Wissahickon had a 5-0 lead on the strength of three goals from Nick Hussa and two more from Brian Garry. Abington didn’t get on the board until Matt Kramer found the back of the net with 6:58 remaining in the second session. Jordan Heydt and Ian Heydt added goals 55 seconds apart to make it a 5-3 game with 2:39 left in the period.

Garry completed a hat trick to give his team a three-goal advantage heading into the third period but the Trojans, who were playing their first game in two weeks because of Covid-19 issues and had only nine skaters dressed on Wednesday, did not score again. Griffin Carpenter, Stelacio, and Kramer all scored in a span of 4:49 draw their side even with 5:55 left and set the stage for Stelacio’s game winner.

Colin Bruton, Abington’s captain, said he and his teammates maintained their focus during their third-period comeback. “I just think we needed to stick to our game,” he said. “we knew we could score on them. We had three goals on them at that point. We just wanted to keep playing our game, just try and outwork them, and I think we did a good job of that.”

Wissahickon coach Ken Harrington was missing several regulars including his top defense pair.

“We could have played much better,” he said. “Maybe that’s fatigue too. But we still had the lead.”

Ice chips—the Trojans had a 39-21 advantage in shots. Sam Nemec made 33 saves in the Abington net … The two teams will have a rematch on Match 5 … The Galloping Ghosts captured the first three SHSHL titles in history, from 1974-76 They claimed a fourth championship in 1978 and added two more in 2003 and ’04.

Wissahickon 2 4 0—6

Abington 0 3 4—7

First-period goals: Brian Garry from Nick Hussa, 1:07; Hussa from Garry, 13:00 (sh).

Second-period goals: Hussa from Garry, :07; Garry from Hussa, :53; Hussa from David Glazier, 4:58 (pp); Matthew Kramer (A) from Colin Bruton, 9:08; Jordan Heydt (A) Kramer, 12:26; Ian Heydt (A ) from Kramer, 13:21; Garry unassisted, 15:42.

Third-period goals: Griffin Carpenter (A) unassisted, 5:16; Joe Stelacio (A) from Sam Paulik, 5:33; Kramer (A) from Paulik and Ryan Portner, 10:05; Stelacio (A), 11:35.

Shots: Wissahickon 39, Abington 21; Saves: Michael Bonnani 14, Sam Nemec (A) 33