Tag: David Giacomin

St. Joseph’s Prep 3, Holy Ghost Prep 2

BRISTOL—St. Joseph’s Prep is making a habit of doing the little things right. The latest example was on display Friday night as the Hawks edged Holy Ghost Prep 3-2 in front of a large an energetic audience at Grundy Arena.

Austin Amato, Connor Burman, and Jimmy Craig all scored for the Hawks, who improved to 3-1 overall and 3-0-0-1 in the Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference. The only blemish on the Hawks’ record is a shootout loss to La Salle and they took a point on that occasion. It has been an impressive start for a young team.

“We’ve got a lot of stuff to improve on,” said Prep coach David Giacomin, “but the one thing you can’t take away from them is the effort. When they start hustling and they get in your face, they create turnovers, they create anxiety for the opposition. That part of the game we’ve done really well.”

Amato and Burman scored off turnovers to give the Hawks a 2-0 first-period lead. Burman, a junior, credits his team’s work ethic for its fast start.

“It’s the hard work,” he said. “It’s the chemistry. “Everybody wants to be here. Everybody wants to win. We’ve just a really good group this year, it’s all coming together.”

Giacomin said Burman played a solid three periods Friday night. “When that kid is moving he sees the ice so well,” he said. “He’s low to the ground, he’s hard to push off the puck. When he puts together three periods like he did tonight, people notice him.”

Evan Mudrick scored a power-play goal for the Firebirds (2-2, 1-2 in the APAC) 3:48 into the second period to make it a one-goal game for a time but Craig answered with his own power-play goal at 14:57.

That goal proved to be the game winner because Michael Roman found the back of the net for the Firebirds 6:37 into the third frame when he beat Hawk netminder Andrew Custer.

Holy Ghost Prep couldn’t come up with the equalizer. But Gump Whiteside, the Firebirds’ coach took an abundance of positives out of the evening.

“I like how our boys responded in the third period,” he said. “It was unfortunate, we kind of had a slow start there, but I really liked how our guts responded. We’re a young team. We’re going to be good. We’re just working through a couple things right now but I really liked how we responded in the third.”

St. Joseph’s Prep sits atop the APAC standings with a 3-0-1 mark (10 points) but the balance among the four schools through the first weeks of the season has been striking to say the least.

“The league has so much parity,” Giacomin said.”Every game is going to be exciting I think this year.”

Whiteside sees things the same way. “It’s great competition every night,” he said. “Great sportsmanship every night. We battle, we compete hard, we want to get that ’W’ but it’s been great.”

St. Joseph’s Prep 2 1 0—3
Holy Ghost Prep 0 1 1—2
First-period goals: Austin Amato (HGP) from Paulo Colavita, 2:13; Connor Burman (SJP) from Jimmy Craig, 15:12
Second-period goals: Evan Mudrick (HGP) from Byron Hartley, 3:48 (pp); Craig (HGP) from MIchael Urbani, 14:03 (pp)
Third-period goal: Michael Roman (HGP) unassisted, 6:37
Shots: St. Joseph’s Prep 19, Holy Ghost Prep 22; Saves: Andrew Custer (SJP) 20, Sean Joyce (HGP) 15

La Salle 4, St. Joseph’s Prep 3 (shootout)

PHILADELPHIA— Wednesday’s Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference game between La Salle and host St. Josephs Prep was divided into two distinct segments.

The first lasted 39 minutes and change and saw the teams score two goals apiece but settle nothing. The conclusion encompassed the remainder of regulation, overtime, and a shootout and featured an abundance of drama before a shootout goal from Max Maddalo that gave the Explorers a 4-3 win at the University of Pennsylvania’s recently refurbished Class of ’23 Arena. Moments earlier, Jimmy Craig scored for the Hawks with nine tenths of a second remaining in regulation to force overtime.

With the win, La Salle’s record improved to 3-3 overall, and 0-1-1-0 in the APAC). It was a win the visitors badly needed. Just as there are crossroads fights in professional boxing, Monday’s affair was a crossroads game of sorts for the Explorers, though the season is still young.

“The question we’re asking right now is who are we as a team?” said La Salle head coach Wally Muehlbronner. “We’re still trying to figure it out. We have so many new faces here. I think we will figure it out, but we haven’t yet.”

Nolan Woudenberg score two of La Salle’s regulation goals but the Explorers; number-one star was indisputably Aidan McCabe who made 27 saves over the course of regulation and overtime plus three more in the shootout. The Hawks (2-1 overall and in the APAC) outshot the Explorers 30-17.

“Our defense kept the shots to the outside, the senior said. “There were a couple times where they got shots from the slot, but I was able to make some saves and keep us in it and we wound up getting it done in the shootout.”

No one was more impressed with McCabe’s performance then St. Joseph’s Prep coach David Giacomin. “I thought we were the better team today,” he said. “Not by much, but I think of the opportunities we had right in front of him. He stood on his head and made some unbelievable saves where we had pinpoint shots. Maybe if they were one-timers instead of catch and shoot he doesn’t get to those but he made every save that he had. He had to in the big moments. That was the game right there for them.”

Woudenberg and the Hawks’ Joseph Samango traded second-period goals. Maddalo gave the Explorers a 2-1 lead 2:49 into the third frame before Michael Urbani tied the game for the Hawks at the 7:05 mark, Woundenberg scored his second goal of the game with 3:20 left in the period to set the state for the finish of regulation and all that came after.

McCabe noted the pace of play picked up in the late going. “I think the game started out really slow,” he said, “and it gradually picked up and it gradually slowed own again until the last nine minutes.

“And then we got back to the mindset of just getting pucks to the net,” he said, “and just shooting because we knew we would be able to score.”

LaSalle 0 1 2 0 (1)—4

St. Joseph’s Prep 0 1 2 0 (0)—3

Second-period goals: Nolan Woudenberg (L) unassisted, 8:26; Joseph Samango (SJP) from Jimmy Craig, (second assist unavailable) 11:43

Third-period goals: Max Maddalo (L) from Nate Benner and Ryan Ferry, 2:49; Michael Urbani (SJP) unassisted, 7:05; Woudenberg (L) unassisted 12:40; Craig (SJP) from Andrew Centrella, 15:59;

Shootout Goal: Maddalo (L)

Shots: LaSalle 17, St. Joseph’s Prep 30; Saves: Aidan McCabe (L) 27, Rocco Bruno (SJP) 14

By Rick Woelfel

 

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LaSalle 3, St. Joseph’s Prep 1

By Rick Woelfel

HATFIELD TOWNSHIP— The postseason is a different animal. That point become apparent when La Salle and St. Joseph’s Prep took to the ice Monday afternoon in the Atlantic Prep Athletic Athletic Conference Founders Cup semifinals at Hatfield Ice.

The top-seeded Explorers had to work hard to secure the 3-1 victory over the Hawks to earn a place in Wednesday’s inaugural Founder’s Cup final. LaSalle’s opponent in the final will be longtime rival and third seed Holy Ghost, a 4-1 win over second seed Malvern Prep in Wednesday’s other semifinal.

Game time will be 4:00 at Hatfield Ice.

LaSalle (19-6) had beaten the fourth-seeded Hawks three times during the regular season, but the the two teams skated on fairly even terms on Monday.

“I think (the Hawks) played a really good game,” said LaSalle head coach Wally Muehlbronner. They clogged up the middle and did a great job of doing that. That took away our team speed a little bit, more than I would have liked, but we stuck with it and scored some dirty goals, which was good to see.”

Sam Lipkin gave LaSalle a 1-0 lead when he scored off at the 6:04 mark of the opening period.

The key sequence in the game however, commenced 2:24 in to the second frame when LaSalle’s Daniel Sambuco drew a five-minute major penalty for cross checking in the midst of a pileup at the Hawks’ net that resulted in an injury to St. Joseph’s Prep’s Matt Moresco (who later returned to the game). A few minutes later, LaSalle’s Byron Evans drew a minor penalty for cross checking, forcing the Explorers to play two men short for 1:29. But they escaped both penalties unscathed.

“I think we maybe gave up two or three shots in the five-on-three,” Muehlbronner said, “and had some tremendous offensive opportunities during it as well. I was really happy with the way we killed penalties.”

St. Joseph’s Prep coach David Giacomin looked back on the missed opportunity. “It’s a shame,” he said, “because we worked on the five-on-threes in practice quite a bit, just in case we got a chance. The sad part is, we didn’t get enough puck movement today to even get scoring opportunities. I think that would have maybe changed the tide of the game.”

Lipkin extended LaSalle’s lead when he scored a power-play goal off a deflection with 3:57 left in the second period.

But the Hawks kept battling and they finally got on the scoreboard with 4:21 left in the third period when Evan Cassidy beat LaSalle netminder Aidan McCabe on a shot from the high slot off an Explorer turnover. The Hawks kept the pressure on the rest of the way but couldn’t score the tying goal.

Andrew Budzynski accounted for the final margin when he scored into an empty net with a long shot from the neutral zone just before time expired.

Notes: LaSalle had a 35-15 edge in shots. The Explorers are seeded first for the Class AAA Flyers Cup while the Hawks will be seeded sixth.

St. Joseph’s Prep 0 0 1—1
LaSalle 1 1 1—3
First-period goal: Sam Lipkin (L) from Michael Casey and Fabrizzio Mazzzarelli, 6:04
Second-period goals: LIpkin (L) from, Casey and Jan Olenginski, 12:03 (pp)
Third-period goals: Evan Cassidy (SJP) unassisted, 11:21; Andrew Budzynski (L) unassisted, 16:00 (en)
Shots; St. Joseph’s Prep 15, LaSalle 35; Saves: Troy Stefano (SJP) 32, Aidan McCabe (L) 14

 

Holy Ghost Prep 4, Malvern Prep 2—Colin Costello scored two goals as third seeded Holy Ghost Prep bested second seed Malvern  Prep 4-2 on Wednesday in the other Founders Cup semifinal at Ice Line.

Jack Kelly’s goal gave the Firebirds a 1-0 first-period lead. Costello scored with 2:36 left in the middle period to extend his team’s lead and added his second goal 2:56 into the third.

Kenny Conners scored for the Friars with 2:28 left in the game before Evan Mudrick finished the scoring with 1:36 left.

Sean Joyce got the win in goal, making 25 saves.

 

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.

Malvern Prep 2, St. Joseph’s Prep 1

PHILADELPHIA—It was hockey’s equivalent of a late-round knockout. Down by a goal and a man, Malvern Prep scored two shorthanded goals 74 seconds apart in the waning moments of the third period to score a stunning 2-1 win over St. Joseph’s Prep Friday night in an Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference game at the University of Pennsylvania’s Class of 1923 Rink.

Nick Martino scored the game-winning goal with 53 seconds remaining in regulation off a turnover the Hawks’ zone, beating Dan McGill with a forehander.

The comeback was, to say the least, improbable. Trailing 1-0 with 2:22 left in regulation, the Friars (8-3, 3-2 in the APAC) drew a penalty for having too many men on the ice. Up to that point the Hawks (5-9, 2-3) had had far the better of the third period and, skating on fresh ice, took a 1-0 lead on Brody Plouride’s goal with 13:01 remaking in regulation.

The Friars were skating uphill but they were unbowed. Martino tied the game with 2:07 remaining in regulation on a perfectly placed shot from the deep right wing that grazed the far post as it entered the net. But even that development gave no inkling as to what would happen from there.

Still on the power play, the Hawks coughed up the puck and one of the APAC’s premier snipers was there to take advantage.

“‘Never a doubt’ was our mindset,” Martino said. “After the time out was called (prior to the power play) Coach (Dave Dorman) was telling us ‘Take your chances but don’t overcommit.’ Two chances showed up and thankfully, we capitalized.”

Martino was in perfect position to capitalize on the turnover. “I saw the guy come up the ice,” he said. “I got a good angle on him. The puck needed up on my stick and I was just thinking, ‘Shoot.'”

Dorman said the result was a testament to his team’s resolve.”The this I’m most proud about is, through the highs and the lows, we managed them well and we stayed even keel,” he said.

“That was the most important thing, because at any point in time, that game could have gone either way.”

St. Joseph’s Prep coach David Giacomin regarded the defeat philosophically. “Games like that happen,” he said. “I thought we played as great hockey game for the entire game, and unfortunately, kids are kids. We wanted them to stay back on the power play and your instinct is to go forward and unfortunately, you give a very talented kid some ice and he buried that first one and the turnover costs on the second (goal).”

Notes—The Hawks had a 33-27 edge in shots. Dan Dougherty got the win in goal for the Friars The two teams will have a rematch Tuesday afternoon at Ice Line.

By Rick Woelfel
Malvern Prep 0 0 2—2
St. Joseph’s Prep 0 0 1—1
Third-period goals: Brody Plouride (SJP) from Ryan Newby, 2:59; Nick Martino (MP) from Jack Constabile, 13:53 (sh); Martino (MP) unassisted, 13:53 (sh).
Shots: Malvern Prep 27, St. Joseph’s Prep 33; Saves: Dan Dougherty (MP) 32, Dan McGill (SJP 25

St. Joseph’s Prep Preparing For Annual Holiday Trip

The St. Joseph’s Prep Hawks will be spending part of the week between Christmas and New Year’s on the ice, and having an educational experience along with it.

The occasion is the 26th annual Purple Pucks Tournament sponsored by Gonzaga College High School in Washington, DC. The tournament features eight Jesuit schools, including St. John’s from the District of Columbia, St. Ignatius from Chicago,

Loyola Academy from suburban Chicago, the Hun School from New Jersey, Archbishop Spalding from suburban Baltimore and Bishop O’ Connell from Arlington, Virginia in addition to the Hawks and the host Eagles.

The eight teams are divided into two pools of four. Each team will play three games over two days on Friday, December 28 and Saturday the 29th. The semifinals and finals will be played on Sunday, December 30.

St. Joseph’s coach David Giacomin says the tournament is annual fixture for the Haws. “we take two teams down there,” he said, “so our other team gets to play too.

“It’s about them bonding, staying in the hotel together, being able to go eat together, and hopefully this momentum will build throughout the rest of the season.”

There is also an educational/cultural element to the trp. There will be time for sightseeing in our nation’s capital and Giacomin and his players plan to take advantage.

“It’s about education as well as the hockey,” Giacomin said. “So, every year we try to find something to take the boys to do, whether it’s go to Congress, whether it’s go to any of the monuments, or go see the museums. We try to figure out what’s the best thing for them to do and hopefully come up with something creative for them to have a good time and learn something.”

St. Joseph’s Prep Edges Holy Ghost Prep 3-2 in Shootout

By Rick Woelfel

BRISTOL— St. Joseph’s Prep climbed off the canvas Friday night. Down 2-0 at the start of the third period, the Hawks scored twice to force overtime before prevailing over Holy Ghost Prep 3-2 in a shootout at Grundy Arena in an Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference game.

Austin Amato, the first player to shoot in the best-of-three shootout, was the only player to find the back of the net, by beating Firerbird netminder Sean Joyce low on the stick side.

But he and his mates worked hard to get to that point.

The first period belonged to Holy Ghost Prep. Jack Kelly and Andrew Serafin scored goals to give the Firebirds (4-6, 0-5 in the APAC) a 2-0 lead.

There was no scoring in the middle period but the Firebirds to had the upper hand before getting a big opportunity just after the buzzer when the Hawks’ Jared Schaal drew a double minor plus a misconduct, allowing the Firebirds to start the third period with a four-minute power play on fresh ice. But the hosts couldn’t capitalize and the momentum shifted after Schaal left the penalty box.

Nicholas Corrado scored a power-play goal off a goal-mouth scramble at the 5:08 mark before Owen Moke tied the game at 11:02 to draw the Hawks (4-4, 2-2 APAC) even.

“It seems this is the way we’ve been playing,” said St. Joseph’s Prep coach David Giacomin. “We win won, we lose one. We come back and play two terrible periods or one terrible period and then all of a sudden find the fire and start being aggressive.”

The Firebirds’ inability to capitalize on their four-minute power play started their downhill slide. “That really hurt us,” said Holy Ghost Prep coach Gump Whiteside. “We get that ice cut and that fresh sheet of ice and then come out their with that four-minute power play and couldn’t generate some offense. “They shut us down there. I don’t think we played with enough speed and enough momentum.”

St. Joseph’s Prep dominated the five-minute NHL-style three-on-three overtime period. Joyce made four big saves to send the game to the shootout. “He’s rock solid back there,” Whiteside said.

Hawk goaltender Dan McGill was impenetrable in the extra period, stopping shots from Thomas McNulty, Serafin, and Colin Costello while Joyce denied Schaal and Evan Cassidy.

McGill noted that the Hawks had renewed energy when they took the ice in the third period. “We came back out with a great mindset,” he said. We were looking for the win.

The Hawks outshot the Firebirds 36-24, but the margin was 32-14 over the last two periods and overtime.
St. Joseph’s Prep 0 0 2 0—2*
Holy Ghost Prep 2 0 0—2
First-period goals: Jack Kelly (HGP) from Colin Costello, 7:43; Andrew Serafin (HGP) unassisted, 12:46.
Third-period goals: Nicholas Corrado (SJP) unassisted, 5:08 (pp); Owen Moke (HGP) from Michael Urbani and Fran Verratti, 11:02
Shootout goal: Austin Amato (SJP) first round
Shots: St. Joseph’s Prep 36, Holy Ghost Prep 24; Saves; Dan McGill (SJP) 22; Sean Joyce (HGP) 34.

LaSalle Beats St. Joseph’s Prep 5-0

By Rick Woelfel

The pieces fit together quite nicely for LaSalle Wednesday afternoon. Five different players scored goals as the Explorers downed defending Class 3A Flyers Cup champion St. Joseph’s Prep 5-0 in an APAC game at Hatfield Ice.
The win was LaSalle’s fourth without defeat this season and its second straight in the APAC.
“All four lines played pretty well,” said LaSalle coach Wally Meuhlbronner. The ‘D’ played pretty well. We overcommitted at times, but we were definitely happy with the result.”
LaSalle took a 2-0 first-period lead on goals from Michael Casey at 9:32 and Dan Sambuco at 14:52.
The pair joined Sam Lipkin on a line that collected nine points against Holy Ghost Prep last Friday night in the Explorers’ league opener. The trio collected five points on Wednesday
“They were all together last year,” said Explorer senior Brandon Leer. “They play club together so they’re on the ice together all the time. Their chemistry has been building up since last year. This year, everything has worked out.”
Despite the score, the teams battled on even terms through most of the opening frame. The second period was scoreless but by the time it concluded the Explorers were definitely in command.
In the third frame, St. Joseph’s coach David Giacomin, in search of an offensive spark, shuffled his lines and moved some defensemen up front.
The Explorers responded by scoring three times with the goals coming from Ryan Ferry, Nathan Benner, and Leer.
For the Hawks, who were opening their season on Wednesday, it was an opportunity to find out about themselves.
“They’re well-disciplined,” Giacomin said of the Explorers. “They play fast, It gives us the experience to be able to go back and say ‘If we want to compete, this is what we have to do in order to get better. I always like playing better teams in the beginning of the year rather than playing weak opponents”
LaSalle outshot the Hawks 41-21 but Giacomin was pleased that his troops battled to the final buzzer. “They didn’t quit and they hustled,” he said. “For me, there are some skill things we have to work on and can certainly do better, puck movement and other stuff, but the hustle across our three lines … those kids didn’t quite and they kept hustling their butts off.”
Aidan McCabe earned the shutout in goal for the Explorers.

St. Joseph’s Prep 0 0 0—0
LaSalle 2 0 3—5
First-period goals: Michael Casey (L) from Sam Lipkin and Dan Sambuco, 9:32; Sambuco (L) from Lipkin, 14:52.
Second-period goals: None
Third-period goals: Ryan Ferry (L) from Brandon Leer and Andrew Budzynski, 4:40; Nathan Benner (L) from Collin Kreisler and Zach Baker, 7:16; Leer (L) from Sean Keaveney, 9:00.
Shots: St. Joseph’s Prep 21, LaSalle 41 Saves: Dan McGill (SJP) 36, Aidan McCabe (L) 21.

 

 

 

Check back for a recap

Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference Previews

The Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference is set to kick off it’s inaugural season this week.

Here is a look at all four teams.

 

St. Joseph’s Prep

Head coach: David Giacomin (sixth season)

Last year: 26-4-1; Flyers Cup and Pennsylvania state Class 3A champions

Key players: Sr. Troy Stefano (GK); Sr. Dan McGill (GK); Sr. Nick Ciampitti (D); Sr. Nick Corrado (D); Jr. Mike Urbani (D); Sr. Evan Cassidy (F); Sr. Owen Kelly (F); Sr. Austin Amato (F)

Outlook: The Hawks lost their top two lines from last year to graduation so some retooling will likely be necessary. But this should still be a formidable group.

“We hope to be a speed driven team that will play hard in all three zones,” Giacomin says. “It probably will take time to see who we truly will be. Depth will play a big role this year.”

 

Holy Ghost Prep

Coach: Gump Whiteside (10th season)

Last year: 19-6

Key players: Jr. Sean Joyce (GK); Sr. Tom McNulty (D); Sr. Andrew Serafin (D); Sr. Alex D’Angelo (F); So. E.J. Pohl (F); So. Evan Murdick (F)

Outlook: The Firebirds feature a blend of senior leadership and young talent after reaching the Flyers Cup finals a year ago. Joyce, a first-year starter in goal, will be a key to this team’s success.

 

LaSalle

Coach: Wally Muehlbronner (21st season)

Last year: 14-10

Key players: Jr. Aidan McCabe (GK); Sr. Zach Baker (D)

Outlook: The Explorers will likely field the most experienced team in the league; 15 players return from what was a young team a year ago. Muehlbronner likes the balance in his lineup. Goaltender McCabe will be a lynchpin.

 

Malvern Prep

Coach: Dave Dorman (fifth season)

Last year: 13-7-1

Key players: Sr. Dan Dougherty (GK); So. Chris Blango (D); So. Jack Constabile (D); Sr. Charlie Andress (F); Sr. Nick Martino (F); So. Kenny Connors (F); Sr. Kyle Washkalavitch (F); So. Ryan Sambuco (F)

Outlook: A young Friars squad reached the Flyers Cup semifinals a year ago; nine freshmen saw varsity time last year; a number of those returnees are expected to fill key roles this season. Dougherty offers a veteran presence in goal.

 

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Counting Down to the Debut of the Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference

A new era is dawning in Philadelphia-area scholastic hockey as the Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference prepares to open its 20-18-19 season.

The new league features four schools, St. Joseph’s Prep, Holy Ghost Prep, LaSalle, and Malvern Prep, all with rich hockey traditions. Collectively, they have won 23 Flyers Cups, 21 of them in Class 3A, including the last eight, 11 of the last 12, and 16 of the last 18.

The caliber of hockey in the new league promises to be superb.  David Giacomin, the head coach at St. Joseph’s Prep, the defending Flyers Cup champion, says the four schools were looking to go against good competition on a regular basis.

“I think the big thing for all four of the schools was, we wanted to play in league where it was very competitive for everybody,” he said. “We wanted to compete against a stronger schedule. We’ll play each other three times apiece plus the (non-league game), we formed an agreement with the schools in South Jersey to play them so we’re playing the same type of teams to make this a very even playing field, but it’s giving the best competition that we could possibly find in the area on a consistent basis.”

The foundation the APAC runs much deeper however. Hockey at each of the member schools is a full-fledged varsity sport and the administrations at all four institutions are committed to fitting their respective hockey programs into their school’s educational philosophy.

“it’s run through the school,’ Giacomin said. “Everything goes through them, we have the full support of the Prep community and the full backing of the entire school. So, it’s super important. It doesn’t really mean that much for hockey itself, but it means more for the kids, to be able to turn around and say ‘I play for my school’ and it is a sponsored school sport where you’re getting the full backing of your community. That means the most to them.”

The majority of the league schedule will be played in the afternoon, which Giacomin believes will stimulate student attendance at the games.

“Looking at the way we’re doing it now, if we’re able to bring kids right from the school, immediately after school and starting the game at four o’ clock, that frees them up to do all their studies in the evening,” he said. “So, we’re hoping this format is going to work to our advantage and to be able to bring a lot of the student body in.”
Holy Ghost Prep and LaSalle will play the first APAC league game in history, Friday, November 2 at 7:30 at Grundy Arena.

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