APAC Update 12-27-24

                                            W     L     OTW     OTL     Pts

St Joseph’s Prep (6-2)       3       1       0         0           9

Holy Ghost Prep (9-3)       3      2        0          0        9

La Salle (5-5)                     3       2        0         0         9

Malvern Prep (2-5)          1       3        0         0         3

Hun School (1-6-1)          0       2         0         0         0

 

Scoring—APAC Games Only      GP G   A   Pts  PPG

Brady Logue     HGP                        5    5    7   12    2.40

Cole Gargon     SJP                          4   5     1    6     1.67

Grant LaGreca La Salle                  5    7     1   8     1.60

Michael Zarzycki  La Salle             5    4     3   7     1.40

Frank Ely  SJP                                  4      1    4   5     1.25

Chase Logue HGP                          5     3     3   6    1.20

Anthony Valeriote HGP                5     3     2   5    1.00

Teague Murray  MP                      4     3    1   4     1.00

Goals Against                                Min.  GA    GAA

Declan Geary   SJP                       204     9       2.25

Jake Rossi La Salle                       253     12     2.42

John Botthoff HGP                      102     5       2.50

Matt Crawford MP                      153     9      3.00

Save Percentage                          Shots   GA   Save Pct.

Jake Rossi   La Salle                      157     12      .924

John Botthoff  HGP                        64      5        .922

Matt Crawford MP                          94       9         .904

Declan Geary SJP                             93       9         .903                        

La Salle 6 Hun School 0

The La Salle Explorers went about their business one step at a time Wednesday afternoon. The results were impressive, a 6-0 win over The Hun School in an APAC matchup at Hatfield Ice Arena.

Grant LaGreca and Michael Zarzycki scored two goals each as La Salle improved to 5-2 on the season and 3-1 at the midway point in its APAC campaign.

LaGreca, a senior, cited the Explorers’ stick-to-basics approach.

“We’re just trying to focus on playing the right way,” he said. “Focusing on the D-zone, not cheating the game. Just kind of letting the hockey gods reward us with goals and playing good.”

It was LaGreca who got things started when he beat Raider netminder Patrick Donoghue just 45 seconds into the opening period. Zarzycki provided the setup before initiating a three-goal blitz with a shorthanded effort 69 seconds into the second frame. LaGreca followed up with a power-play effort at 4:57 before Zarzycki scored his second goal the game with 1:35 left in the middle period.

Hun School coach Eric Szeker the Raiders (0-2-1, 0-1 in the APAC) was hurt by a slow start.

“We were kind of running in quicksand for a bit there,” he said. “It was only 1-0 after the first. We just couldn’t find our game.

“It is what it is. We’re three games onto the season, we’ve got a young team [there were five underclassmen in the Hun School lineup) so, a lot to learn. We get to play again Friday, so we’re going to reset and look forward to that one.”

Because of school policy and NJSIAA regulations the Raiders start their season later than the other four APAC schools. But Szeker refused to cite scheduling issues as contributing to Wednesday’s result.

“We’ve been on the ice a couple weeks,” he said, “so, we should have a pretty good idea of what we want to do.

“I think of lot of credit goes to La Salle and [Coach Wally Muehlbronner] and what they have going on over there. They’ve got several lined that can play, they have a lot of good defensemen and a good goalie. We just ran into a good team today.”

Muehlbronner himself gave his team high marks.

“I thought we played well,” he said. “We came out hard, moved the puck well, all four lines played well, the D played well.”

LaGreca said efforts like Wednesday’s allow the veterans on the roster to set a standard for their teammates to emulate.

“All the returning seniors just want to show the younger guys and the new guy how to play the game and how to play the right way,” he said. “Because we’ve been there before.

• Jake Rossi earned the shutout in goal with 20 saves.

Hun School 0 0 0—0

La Salle 1 4 1—6

First-period goals: Grant LaGreca (L) from Michael Zarzycki, :45

Second-period goals:   Zarzycki (L) unassisted, 1:09 (sh); LaGreca (L) from Zarzycki, 4:57 (pp); Zarzycki (L) from Tristan Mitchell and Declan Kelly, 15:25; Alastair St. Hilaire (L) from Noel Donohue and Luca Staffieri 16:58

Third-period goal: Julian Tarsi (L) from Staffieri and Donohue 10:50

Shots: Hun School 20, La Salle 54; Saves: Patrick Donoghue (HS) 48, Jake Rossi (L) 20

Devon Prep 4 Hun School 3

The Raiders dropped a one-goal decision to the visiting Tide on Thursday in their season opener at Ice Land. Anders Van Raalte, Lucas Jean, and Justin Bibeau scored the Hun School goals.

“Overall I’m happy with our first game as a group,” said Hun School coach Eric Szeker. “We got better as the game went along and ran into a very hot goaltender.”

APAC Preview 2024-25

The Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference is launching its seventh season. Here’s a look at what to expect from the five conference schools in the 2024-25 campaign.

La Salle

Coach: Wally Muehlbronner (27th season)

Last year: 23-4, 8-0 in APAC; defending Founders Cup and Class AAA Flyers Cup champions

Key players: Sr. Jake Rossi (G); Sr. Cam Ross (D); Sr. Will Gregorio (D); Sr. Declan Kelly (D); Sr. Julian Tarsi (F); Sr. Grant LaGreca (F); Sr. Michael Zarzycki (F); So. Alistair St. Hilaire (F)

Outlook: The Explorers lost 12 seniors from last year’s Founders Cup and Flyers Cup champions but a solid nucleus returns. The defense corps is solid while Tarsi, LaGreca, Zarzycki, and St. Hilaire provide scoring balance. Rossi is a quality goaltender.

Holy Ghost Prep

Coach: John Ritchie (second season)

Last year: 12-14, 3-5 in APAC (0-1 in OT)

Key players: Sr. Ryan Lippy (D); Sr. Joe Kaufmann (D); So. Nate Romer (D); Jr. Chris Marshall (D-F); Sr. Colin Bara (F); Sr. Joe Spadaccino (F); Sr. Brian Kinniry (F); Jr. Anthony Valeriote (F); Jr. Jack Gavaghan (F); Jr. Lucas Gonzalez (F); Jr. Brady Logue (F); So. Chase Logue (F)

Outlook: The Firebirds struggled the first part of last season but were much improved after New Year’s.

“We were better the second half of the season,” Ritchie said, “which should help moving forward. The roster has a good core group of older experienced players, coupled with some talented newcomers.” 

Spadaccino, Kinniry, and Bara will provide veteran experience up front while Lippy and Kauffmann will do the same in the back. The roster also includes three experienced goaltenders.

Hun School

Coach: Eric Szeker (second season)

Last year: 5-12, 1-7 in APAC (1-1 in OT)

Key players: Sr. Patrick Donoghue (G); Sr. Elliot Wong (G); Sr. Jr. Chase Preston (D; Jr. Andrew Darst (D); Sr. Luke Rassier (F); Jr. Jake Beck (F); Jr. Luca Jean (F); So. Justin Bibeau (F); Jr. Nate Trawinski (F); Jr. Jacob Kelly-Lepage (F); Jr. Anders Van Raalte (F); Sr Jake O’Connell (F)

Outlook: The Raiders will put a much deeper team on ice this season than they did a year ago. Ten seniors graduated but a talented junior class returns. Donoghue and O’Connell will be relied on for leadership in the locker room and on the ice. Szeker is looking scoring balance.

“Scoring will come from many players,” he said, “but Jake Beck, who had a strong sophomore season, will be counted on for production.”

Donoghue and Wong provide experience in goal.

Malvern Prep

Coach: Bill Keenan (sixth season)

Last year: 11-9, 4-4 in APAC (2-2 in OT); Class AAA Flyers Cup finalist

Key players: Sr. Matt Crawford (G); Sr. Matt Barbacane (D); Jr. Cole Scarbinsky (D); Sr. Gabe Bedwell (F); Sr. Teague Murray (F); Jr. Pax Hoishik (F); Jr. Henry Tesoriero (F); So. House Young (F)

Outlook: The Friars look to bounce back from a tough loss in the Flyers Cup finals. The team by a core group of seniors and upperclassmen with additions of talented underclassmen.

“This year is about resetting our mindset, getting back to the basics and finding our grit,” Keenan said. “This is one of the toughest schedules Malvern Prep will play in a few years so we are looking forward to a fun, competitive season.”

St. Joseph’s Prep

Coach:  David Giacomin (12th season)

Last year: 16-7 4-4 in APAC (1-0 in OT): Founders Cup finalist

Key players: So. Declan Geary (G); Jr. Michael Garr (G); Jr. Bruno Mainardi (G); Sr. Caden Kelly (D); Jr. Patrick Sweeney (D); Jr. Ben Kerson Jr. Adam Charaffi (D); Sr. Tristan Winata (F); Sr. Carter Short (F); Jr. Noah Stuhl (F); Jr. Tommy Ely (F); Jr. Michael Castelli (F);  So. Frankie Ely (F); and So. Cole Gargon (F)

Outlook: Team speed combined with veteran experience on the blue line will be recipe for success for the Hawks this season.
“We hope to be a speed driven team that will play hard in all three zones,” Giacomin said. “Depth will play a big role this year. With offensive returnees and the defense leading the way we hope to get off to a fast start and build from there.”

Holy Ghost Prep 5 Hun School 2

Holy Ghost Prep started fast on Tuesday and kept on going. A pair of first-period goals gave the Firebirds a 2-0 lead and propelled them to a 5-2 win over Hun School in the APAC play in game at Grundy Arena.

Fourth-seeded Holy Ghost Prep (11-12) earned a date with top seed and defending champion La Salle Wednesday at 4:00 at the Class of 1923 Arena at the University of Pennsylvania. Fifth-seeded Hun School closed its season at 4-11.

Having twice defeated the Raiders during the regular season, the hosts took the ice on Tuesday looking to set a tone. Pat Slook’s goal 3:12 into the opening period did just that.  Jack Gavaghan made it a 2-0 on a shot from the right point with 2:34 left in the period.

“We knew that if we just jumped on them, it we got one early, we could keep rolling through them,” Slook said. “The plan was to get pucks deep and go at them, work in the corners and just grind out. Getting that first goal was a big one early.”

Nathan Romer and Caine Bickel added power-play goals for the Firebirds in the second frame, just over five minutes apart.

Special teams were impactful for much of a game that featured 12 minor penalties, six to each side.

A.J. Prete made it a 5-0 game 2:20 into the third period and the Firebirds seemed to have things well in hand.

At that point the Raiders, who had just 14 skaters dressed, seemed to be running low on energy. Following Prete’s goal, P.J. Angotti replaced Julien Arseneault in the Hun School net

  But the visitors never stopped working and their effort paid off when Charles-Etienne Jette got the puck past Firebird netminder Jack Unger 5:35 into the final session. Joachim Neverdahl added a shorthanded goal just shy of four minutes later.

Hun School coach Eric Szeker celebrated his young team’s work ethic.

“My guys gave it everything they had,” he said. “Fatigue, whatever it might be, they made no excuses.

“We came out in the third when everything was against us and we still put a great effort out. That tells you about the [team] more than the score will.”

Holy Ghost Prep coach John Ritchie notes there is still work left to do as his team evolves.

“We gave up a couple breakaways late in the second period,” he said. “A young team starts to cheat a little bit when they have some success offensively and I thought we did that. It ended up hurting us.”

With the ‘second season’ now underway, Slook is encouraged by the progress he and his teammates have made over the course of the campaign.

“We grew as a team,” he said. “I think we hit a few speed bumps along the way but I think we just stayed together as a team and worked through it, and I think we’re in pretty good shape for the playoffs.”

Ice chips: Nine Hun School players concluded their high-school careers this season … The Holy Ghost Prep-La Salle game will be the first game of an APAC semifinal doubleheader matching Malvern Prep and St. Joseph’s Prep. is scheduled for a 6:15 start.

The results of the playoffs will not impact Flyers Cup tournament seedings.

Hun School 0 0 2—2

HGP      2 2 1—5

First-period goals: Patrick Slook (HGP) from Jake McCaw, 3:12; Jack Gavaghan (HGP) from Andrew Morgan and A.J. Prete, 14:26

Second-period goals: Nathan Romer (HGP) from Caine Bickel, 2:30 (pp); Bickel (HGP) from Colin Bara, 7:41 (pp);

Third-period goals; Prete (HGP) from Joseph Kaufmann, 2:20; Charles-Etienne Jette from Andrew Darst, 5:35; Joachim Neverdahl (HS) from Justin Laplante and P.J. Angotti, 9:25 (sh);

Shots: Hun School 21 Holy Ghost Prep 39; Saves: Julien Arseneault (HS) and P.J. Angotti (HS) 34, Jack Unger (HGP) 19

For more about Holy Ghost Prep CLICK HERE

For more about The Hun School CLICK HERE

Playoff Ponderings—APAC

Tuesday, February 20

APAC Play In

#5 Hun School at #4 Holy Ghost Prep

4:00 Grundy Arena

Hun School (4-10, 1-7 APAC)

A young Raider squad battled inexperience and injuries for much of the season. Justin Laplante scored four goals and added three assist in conference play. Julian Arsenault (.920 save percentage) and P.J. Angotti are both solid in goal.

Holy Ghost Prep (10-12, 3-5 APAC)

A young team matured as the season progressed.

Anthony Valeriote leads the team in scoring with four goals and 10 assists for 14 points in all competitions. Matt Cholaj has scored three goals and added 10 assists for 13 points.Jake McCaw finished regular season with nine goals and added four assists for 13 points; 3-3-6 in APAC play. Jack Unger is the probable starter in goal (.958 save percentage, 0.84 GAA in conference play; .893/2.36 in all competitions).

Wednesday, February 21

#1  La Salle vs Hun School/Holy Ghost Prep

4:00 at Class of 1923 Rink

La Salle (18-3, 8-0 APAC)

The defending conference, Flyers Cup, and state champion Explorers are seeking their fourth outright APAC title in the conference’s six-year history (they’ve also shared another).  Dean Carvalho led the APAC in scoring with six goals and six assists for 12 points. He tallied 15 goals and 21 assists for 36 points in all competitions. Patrick Brace has collected eight goals and 11 assists for 19 point in all competitions; 4-3-7 in the APAC. Goaltender Jake Rossi has a season-long save percentage of .936 and a GAA of 1.63; .954/1.13 in conference play.

#3 St. Joseph’s Prep vs #2 Malvern Prep

6:15 at Class of 1923 Rink

St. Joseph’s Prep (14-5, 4-4 APAC)

A corps of young players combined with veteran leadership to record some impressive results for the Hawks this season. Brayden Collins led the team in scoring with eight goals and 13 assists for 21 points; 3-3-6 in conference play. John Lynch scored four goals and added 11 assists overall. Jake Schultz was the Hawks’ top scoring in APAC competition with four goals and three assists for seven points; 7-5-12 overall. Jacob Aranda started every conference game in goal and finished league play with an .894 saver percentage and a 3.09 GAA; .893/2.85 overall.

Malvern Prep (9-7, 4-4 APAC)

The Friars had their ups and down early on, but rebounded to win six of their last nine games. Jeremy Jacobs led the team in scoring with 17 goals and 15 assists for 32 points; 5-6-11 in conference play.  Caiden Canale deposited six goals and added seven assists for 13 points in all competitions; 1-4-5 in the APAC. Brady Doyle added five goals and seven assists overall; 1-4-5 in conference play. Goaltender Matt Crawford turned in a .935 save percentage in APAC play with a 2.27 GAA; .911-2.62 in all competitions.

Hun School 4 Malvern Prep 3 OT

Andrew Darst scored with 1:35 remaining in overtime to give host Hun School a 4-3 win over Malvern Prep Wednesday afternoon in an APAC game at Ice Land.

The win was the first for the Raiders in seven conference starts and lifted them to 4-9 overall.

Brendan Marino tied the game for Hun School with 3:46 left in regulation; the Raiders scored all three of their regulation goals in the third period. Charles-Etienne Jette and Justin Laplante also scored goals for the hosts. Jette added assists on the game tying and game winning goals.

“It was a full team effort,” said Hun School coach  Eric Szeker. “Every single player who dressed played a role in the victory.

“It was great to see Julien get a win in net as he has been nothing but fantastic for us this season.

“Our seniors led the way, Jette, Marino and Laplante played incredible and it was great seeing Andrew Darst bury the game winner in front of the student section. A well-deserved win for this group, couldn’t be more proud as a coach!

Jonathan Holt scored twice for Malvern Prep, which dropped to 8-7 overall and completed conference play with a 4-4 mark. Teague Murray also scored for the Friars.

Malvern Prep 0 1 2 0—3

Hun School 0 0 3 1—4

Second-period goal: Jonathan Holt (MP) from Henry Tesoriero, 12:36

Third-period goals: Charles-Etienne Jette (HS) from  Brendan Marino and Jake O’ Connell, 5:50; Justin Laplante (HS) unassisted, 10:43; Teague Murry (MP) from Aidan Kelly, 11:00; Holt (MP) from Matt Barbacane, 12:13; Marino (HS) from Joachim Neverdal and Jette, 13:14;

Overtime goal: Andrew Darst (HS) from Jette, 3:25

Shots: Malvern Prep 27, Hun School 41; Saves: Matt Crawford (MP) 37, Julian Arsenault (HS) 24

La Salle 7 Hun School 1

Ryan Wiley and Ben Falicki each scored twice as La Salle downed the host Raiders 7-1 Wednesday afternoon in an APAC matchup at Ice Land.

The win lifted the Explorers to 16-2 overall and a perfect 7-0 in the APAC.

Wiley’s goal just 39 seconds into the first period gave La Salle the early lead; the Explorers broke the game open in the second period when Falicki (twice), Wiley, and Alistair St. Hilaire all scored goals.

Liam Donahue added a goal in the third period.

Justin Laplante scored a third-period goal for Hun School (3-9, 0-6)

La Salle 1 4 2—7

Hun School 0 0 1—1

First-period goals: Ryan Wiley (L) unassisted, 0:39

Second-period goals: Ben Falicki (L) from Dean Carvalho, 1:09; Wiley (L) from Charlie Kennedy and Patrick Brace, 1:54 (pp); Falicki (L) from Cameron Ross and Will Gregorio, 4:07 (sh); Alistair St. Hilaire (L) from Julian Tarsi and Gregorio, 16:08

Third-period goals: Liam Donahue (L) from Alex Fusaro and Falicki, :28; Justin Laplante (HS) from Anders Van Raalte, 2:33; Carvalho (L) unassisted, 5:17

Shots: La Salle 43, Hun School 19; Saves: Jake Rossi (L) 18, P.J. Angotti (HS) 36

APAC Update 12-26-23

                                               W     L    OTW  OTL Pts  GF     GA

La Salle (10-1)                       4     0       0        0    12    16     3  

Malvern Prep (6-4)              2      2      1       1      6     9       11

St. Joseph’s Prep (5-2)        2      2      1        0     5     14     11

Holy Ghost Prep (3-9)         1      2      0       0     3      5        7

Hun School (2-4)                  0     3      0        1     1      4       16

Scoring (All Games)                      GP        G     A     Pts.   PPG

Jeremy Jacobs (MP)                      10        13   12    25     2.50

Alistair St. Hilaire (L)                     5          6    2      8       1.60 

Dan Carvalho (L)                            11         7     6     13     1.18

Caiden Canale (MP)                      10         6     5     11     1.11

Tristan Winata (SJP)                    7         6     1         7       1.00

Julian Tarsi (L)                                11         2     8     10    0.90

Patrick Brace (L)                            11         4     5      9     0.82

William Carpenter (L)                  11         1     8      9    0.82

Aidan Kelly (L)                               10        3     5      8    0.80

Anthony Prete  (HGP)                  12        5    3      8    0.75

Will Gregorio (L)                          10         3    4      7  0.70

Declan Kelly (L)                            10        1      6     7  0.70

Scoring (Conference Games)       GP        G     A     Pts.   PPG

Dan Carvalho (L)                            4         3       3     6       1.50

Jeremy Jacobs (MP)                      4          2        4    6     1.50

Declan Kelly (L)                              4          1      4      5     1.25

Tristan Winata (SJP)                     4          5       0      5     1.25

Will Carpenter (L)                         4          1       3      4     1.00

Will Gregorio (L)                          4          1       3      4       1.00

Jake Schultz (SJP)                        3         2       1      3       1.00

Justin Laplante (HS)                   3         1       2      3      1.00

Ryan Levesque (HS)                   3        1       2      3       1.00

Patrick Brace (L)                          4         2       1      3      0.75

Julian Tarsi (L)                             4         2       1      3      0.75

Aidan Kelly (MP)                         4         2       1      3.  0.75