Wissahickon 7 Plymouth Whitemarsh 2

Thursday proved to be an eventful evening at Hatfield Ice. Both Wissahickon and Plymouth Whitemarsh had reason to feel good about what they accomplished, albeit using different criteria.

The Trojans dominated on the ice, scoring three first-period goals on the way to a 7-2 SHSHL American Division win. A.J. Pounds, Nolan Pounds, and Nick Hussa all scored two goals as the Trojans improved to 7-6 overall and 7-3 in divisional play with two games remaining.

Wissahickon coach Ken Harrington called it his team’s best effort of the year. “Our team played together,” he said. “Against a good opponent. We always have good matchups with P-W.”

Harrington said there have been signs team has been coming together. The Trojans have won five of their last seven starts, although they had lost two straight coming into Thursday.

“We’ve been jelling,” he said, “but we weren’t really getting results as much. We kept to it. it was almost you could see them thinking ‘Yeah, this works.’”

For the Colonials (10-3, 8-2) it was a disappointing result at best. They are no longer on control of their destiny in the American Division title chase and Thursday’s setback may leave a negative impression in the minds of those who seed the Class A Flyers Cup field.

Luke Weikel and Aidan Keogh scored goals but there were few other bright spots for Colonial coach Josh Aiello to point to.

“Tonight was not our best game,” he said.

But the Colonials came up big with their efforts in support of Hockey Fights Cancer, an organization that was founded in 1998 by the National Hockey League and the National Hockey League Players Association to support cancer patients and their families. Proceeds from Thursday’s game, including tee shirt sales, will be donated to Hockey Fights Cancer.

It’s the sixth straight year the Plymouth Whitemarsh hockey program has held a charitable event in conjunction with a game. The event is organized by the players.

“This particular year we did Hockey Fights Cancer,” Aiello said. “In the past we’ve done Team Cancer America and the Susan G. Komen Foundation (breast cancer awareness).

“I’m just proud of our guys,” Aiello said. “We’re dedicated to performing well on the ice but it’s equally as important to do good outside of the rink and our players have been focused on that year after year. I’m really proud of our guys.”

• The Trojans lost forward Nick Bonnani in the third period after he drew a major penalty for fighting. It was his fourth penalty of the game. Bonnani will likely serve a suspension.

Plymouth Whitemarsh 1 0 1—2

Wissahickon 3 3 1—7

First-period goals: Nick Hussa from Ty Schiff, 4:15; A.J. Pounds from Nick Hussa, 11:31; Luke Weikel (PW) from Dylan Novitski and Aidan Keogh 12:13; Nick Hussa from Schiff and Nick Pounds, 13:42 (pp)

Second-period goals: Will Hussa from Schiff, 2:39; Nolan Pounds from Nick Pounds, 12:48; Nolan Pounds from A.J. Pounds and John Kufner, 16:55

Third-period goals: Keogh (PW) from Conlan Carpenter, 10:34 (pp); A.J. Pounds from Griffin Lynch, 11:44 (sh)

Shots: Plymouth Whitemarsh 25, Wissahickon 33; Saves: Kolton Galike (PW) 26, Michael Bonnani 23

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Plymouth Whitemarsh 9, Truman 0

HATFIELD— Every goaltender, at every level of hockey, starts a game hoping for a shutout. Kolton Galie archived that ambition Thursday night. The Plymouth Whitemarsh junior stopped 15 shots as the Colonials downed Truman 9-0 in a Suburban High School Hockey League American Division matchup at Ice Line.
It was the first shutout of Galie’s high-school career.

“It’s really nice,” he said. “They had a few nice shots on us and it felt really nice to be able to come out there and save them and our defense really put in the effort to keep the puck out of the front of our net.”

One observer who was particularly impressed with Galie’s performance was Truman coach Bill Keyser, who took it all in from his post behind the bench.

“(Plymouth Whitemarsh) played for their goalie tonight,” he said. “They played in front of him, the blocked shots for him, and they maintained the puck. They played really well today,”

Despite Tigers’ low shot total, Galie worked hard. At least half a dozen saves required maximum effort, notably on odd-man rushes. His best save of the night came when he denied James Gallagher on a breakaway 75 seconds into the third period to keep Truman (3-6 overall and in the division) off the scoreboard.

The Colonials (6-4, 5-4 in divisional play) dominated play from the start and recorded 36 shots themselves. Like many a goaltender elsewhere, Galie likes to stay busy.

“Of course, the less shots the better,” he said. “But then, when they do get a breakaway, I’m not warmed up enough to be able to it as quickly as I would with 30 or so shots.

The Colonials scored three goals in each period. Matthew Flynn finished with a hat trick and added an assist. Luke Weikel contributed two goals and four assists. Thomas Corcoran, Jack MIshkin, Aidan Keough, and John Cubbin scored one goal each.

“I think every line contributed,” said Colonial coach Josh Aiello. “Our offense played well, our defensemen made sure they covered, and adjusted to the two-on-ones and three-on-twos.

“And our goalie really played outstanding. It was Kolton Galie’s first career shutout at the high-school level. I’m just so proud of how. He’s really just getting stronger and stronger as the season goes on.”

Keyser was pleased with his own team’s effort. “My kids didn’t back down at all,” he said. “They worked hard. We had a couple injuries on the bench and running with a light bench, sometimes that can hurt you a little bit.”

Truman 0 0 0—0
Plymouth Whitemarsh 3 3 3—9
First-period goals: Luke Weikerl (PW) from Matthew Flynn, 3:48; Flynn (PW) from Weikel, 12:41; Thomas Corcoran (PW) from Zach Spera, 14:10
Second-period goals: Aidan Keogh (PW) from Weikel, :37 (pp); Jack MIshkin (PW) from Weikel, 5:49; Flynn (Pw) from Weikel and MIshkin, 11:56 (pp)
Third-period goals: Flynn (PW) unassisted, 2:08; John Cubbin (PW) from Weikel and Keogh, 5:53 (pp); Weikel (Pw) from Corcoran, 15:22
Shots; Truman 15, Plymouth Whitemarsh 36; Saves: Connor PIlla (T) 27, Kolton Galie (PW) 15

P-W’s John Cubbin Savoring Being Back on the Ice

HATFIELD—Plymouth Whitemarsh’s game against Upper Dublin Thursday night was something of an afterthought. The Colonials were scheduled to face Wissahickon in a SHSHL American Division matchup but that contest was postponed because of Covid-19 issues within the Wissahickon program.

So, Upper Dublin stepped into the breach and faced off against the Colonials in a non-league tussle that saw Plymouth Whitemarsh prevail 3-2 when Conlan Carpenter scored with 2:02 remaining in regulation time. The win was the Colonials’ fourth straight.

For John Cubbin however no evening on the ice can be considered mundane. Cubbin, a senior defenseman and the Colonials’ captain, is back playing hockey this year after missing his entire junior season while recovering from a concussion he sustained playing baseball the previous summer.

“It feels amazing,” Cubbin said, “I felt very restricted last year, not being able to play the sport I love. I didn’t feel like me, so I felt like I had to play.

“I’m hoping it makes a difference to the team, that’s why I decided to play. It seems like it is, so hopefully we can continue to grow and grind and continue to add on to our wins.

While Cubbin did not see game action last season, he was on the ice for every practice. That impressed his coach, Josh Aiello.

“I’m really proud of what John Cubbin has accomplished,” Aiello said. “He has spent a year not playing in games, but growing his education of the game, understanding the system, and conditioning, and really starting to fine-tune his craft.

“So, I’m really proud of what he’s accomplished. He’s a team-first kind of guy. He’ll help everyone from a freshman to a senior and its one of the reasons he’s the captain of our team.”
Cubbin admits it’s taken him some time to get his skates under him again. “I definitely feel a little bit rusty, a little bit sloppy in parts of my game,” he said. “A lot of this is like riding a bike, so you get it back pretty quick.”

Cubbin says he isn’t overly concerned about contact in the aftermath of his concussion. “I think I’m a big kid, I can fend for myself,” he said. “As a freshman, I was going out and trying to hit the biggest kid out there and now I’m a senior and I am one of the biggest out there, so I do believe that I can protect myself.”

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!