Pennridge 6 Central Bucks East 0

HATFIELD TOWNSHIP— Pennridge served notice Monday night that its ready for the postseason. The Rams were in firm form Monday night during a 6-0 win over Central Bucks East in the opening round of the Suburban High School Hockey League Class AA playoffs at Hatfield Ice.

Six different players scored goals for second-seeded Pennridge (12-2-3), which will face North Penn in Wednesday’s semifinals (7:00 at Hatfield Ice. The seventh-seeded Patriots (11-6-2) will be idle until the Flyers Cup tournament begins next week; they’ll face Haverford High in the opening round next Wednesday.

Michael Eissler gave Pennridge a 1-0 lead with 4:12 left in the opening period when he tipped in a rebound of Jeff Manto’s original shot, beating East netminder Chris Mcintyre.

The Rams broke the game open in the second period, scoring five times in a span of 6 minutes, 58 seconds. Bryson Egan, Michael Walker, Manto, Blake Stewart, and Evan Kehoe all scored goals, the last two of which came just 14 seconds apart.

The Rams are unbeaten in their last nine games (7-0-2) Walker, a junior, says he and his teammates are focused on their postseason goals. “We’re kind of looking at every game as just like the next step forward to get to where we want to be,” he said. “We want to win the SHSHL and then obviously go as far as we possibly can in the Flyers Cup. So, this is just a step on the way.”

Walker noted the Rams have found more scoring balance in recent weeks

“In the beginning of the season we were a little one sided,” he said. “The first line was getting a lot of points, but as the season went on, the chemistry got better. Everyone was scoring on every line.”

The Rams are seeking their first SHSHL title since 2008. Walker noted the team is benefitting from the abundance of experience on the roster, as well as the experience of playing together. “With the regular season, working as hard as we did, coming into the postseason and working with each other isn’t as difficult as it seems,” he said. “We just connect.”

The Patriots had trouble coping with Pennridge’s speed for most of the evening and managed just 10 shots on goal in the 48-minute game.

“For the last three or four games we haven’t been on our game,” said East coach Ken Latchum. “Hopefully the Flyers Cup is another new season and we’ll get it going there.”

C.B. East 0 0

Pennridge 1 5

First-period goal: Michael Eissler (P) from Jeff Manto, 11:48

Second-period goals: Bryson Egan (P) from Michael Walker, 1:43; Walker (P) from Eric Slater, 2:06; Jeff Manto (P) from Nick Eissler, 5:20; Blake Stewart (P) from Slater and Matt Guinette, 8:27 (pp); Evan Kehoe (P) from Tommy Prichard, 8:41

Shots: C.B. East 10, Pennridge 40; Saves; Chris McIntyre (CBE) 34, Luke Stranik (Pr) 10.

SHSHL Playoff Game Times Set

The brackets have been finalized for the 2019 Suburban High School Hockey League playoffs. Action gets underway Monday, February 25 with four Class AA quarterfinal games and continues on Wednesday the 27^th with semifinal games in Class AA and Class A. The championship games in each class will be played at Hatfield Ice on Thursday, February 28.

Central Bucks South is the four-time defending champion in Class AA; if they successfully defend this year it will extra blush a new league record. Hatboro-Horsham meanwhile will be trying to defend the Class A crown.

It should be noted that the results of the SHSHL playoffs will have no impact on the Flyers Cup seedings which are scheduled to be announced on Sunday.

Monday, February 25

Class AA Quarterfinals

1 C.B. South vs. 8 Council Rock South 7:00 at Rev. Ice Gardens

4 C.B. West vs 5 Neshaminy 8:40 at Rev Ice Gardens

3 North Penn vs 6 Pennsbury 8:40 at Hatfield Ice

2 Pennridge vs 7 Central Bucks East 7:00 at Hatfield Ice

Wednesday, February 27

Class AA Semifinals

Upper Bracket winners 7:00 at Revolution Ice Gardens

Lower Bracket winners 7:00 at Hatfield Ice

Class A Semifinals

1 Lower Moreland vs 4 Hatboro-Horsham 8:45 at Rev. Ice Gardens

2 Wissahickon vs 3 Plymouth Whitemarsh 8:45 at Hatfield Ice

Thursday, February 28

Class AA Final 7:00 at Hatfield Ice

Class A Final 8:45 at Hatfield Ice

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C.B. South and Pennridge Tie 3-3

Colin Abbonizio scored with 2:47 left in the third period to give Central Bucks South a 3-3 tie with Pennridge Thursday night in a Suburban High School Hockey League game at Hatfield Ice.

The win assured the Titans (11-3-2, 9-0-2 in league play) of the SHSHL Class AA regular-season title and the top seed in next week’s playoffs.

Pennridge now stands at 11-2-2 overall and 8-1-1 in the league heading into its scheduled regular-season finale against Council Rock South Thursday night.

Abbonizio’s goal concluded a four-goal flurry in the third period, that saw each team score twice.

Dominic Liberta opened the scoring for the Titans when he scored with 5:58 left in the opening period.

The score stayed unchanged deep into the second session when the Rams killed off a 1 minute, 15-second two-man disadvantage as a prelude to Eric Slater’s goal with 4:59 left in the period. It came just two seconds after the second penalty expired.

Pennridge took the lead for the first time when Matt Guinette scored 51 seconds into the final period. Harry McLaughlin answered back for the Titans at 9:12 to set up what turned out to be a frantic finish.

Slater scored his second goal of the game with 3:54 remaining before Abbonizio responded just 67 seconds later.

“It was a really good game,” said Pennridge coach Jeff Montagna. “They made then last play.”

The Titans had a 23-20 edge in shots. South coach Shaun McGinty was concerned about his power play, which failed to score in five opportunities. “It was a good game,” he said, “a good defensive game. They blocked a lot of shots. We’ve got to do better on special teams.”

Notes: The Rams beat the Titans 3-2 in a non-league game on January 9 … Montagna praised defenseman Frankie Rota for his shot-blocking efforts. “He’s going to be sore tomorrow,” Montagna said. The result means that Pennridge will be seeded second on third for the playoffs depending on their result Thursday and the result of the game between North Penn and Central Bucks West, which was postponed to Thursday.

Pennridge 0 1 2—3

C.B. South 1 0 2—3

First-period goal: Dominic Liberta (CBS) from David Kvcher and Harry McLaughlin, 10:02.

Second-period goal: Eric Slater (P) from Michael Walker, 11:01.

Third-period goals: Matt Guinette (P) from Slater and Walker, :51; McLaughlin (CBS) unassisted, 9:12; Slater (P) from Frankie Rota, 12:06; Colin Abbonizio (CBS) from D.J. Loverdi, 13:13.

Shots: Pennridge 20, Central Bucks South 23; Saves: Luke Stranik (P) 20, Oscar Levin (CBS) 17.

SHSHL Standings 2-19-18 (Corrected)

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

Class AA W L T Its

Central Bucks South (11-3-2) 9 0 2 20

*Pennridge (11-2-2) 8 1 1 17

North Penn (10-2-3) 7 1 2 16

*Neshaminy (7-4-4) 5 3 3 13

Central Bucks West (8-7) 6 4 0 12

*Pennsbury (6-7-3) 5 5 1 11

Central Bucks East (9-5-2) 5 5 1 11

Abington (4-7-4) 3 5 3 9

Council Rock South (6-7-2) 3 5 2 8

Truman (3-10-3) 2 7 2 6

William Tennent (3-10-2) 1 7 2 4

Souderton (2-13-1) 0 10 1 1

* Pennridge has the tiebreaker over North Penn

* Neshaminy has the tiebreaker over Central Bucks West

• Pennsbury has the tiebreaker over Central Bucks East

Class A W L T Pts

Lower Moreland (10-2-3) 7 2 3 17

Wissahickon (10-3-2) 6 3 2 14

Hatboro-Horsham (9-4-2) 5 4 2 12

Plymouth Whitemarsh (10-4-1) 6 4 1 11

Upper Dublin (3-12-0) 0 11 0 0

Wedenesday

North Penn vs C.B. West 7:10 at Hatfield

Pennridge vs. C.B. South 7:20 at Rev. Ice Gardens

Truman vs Neshaminy 7:20 at Grundy

Hatboro-Horsham vs. Wissahickon 8:50 at Hatfield

Pennsbury vs. William Tennent 9:00 at Revolution Ice Gardens

Thursday

Plymouth Whitemarsh vs. Upper Dublin 7:10 at Hatfield

Pennridge vs. Council Rock South 7:20 at Grundy

SHSHL Update 2-18-19

Here are the latest Suburban High School Hockey League Standings as of 2-18-19

Class AA W L T Its

Central Bucks South (11-3-1) 9 0 1 19

*Pennridge (11-2-1) 8 1 0 16

North Penn (10-2-3) 7 1 2 16

*Neshaminy (7-4-3) 5 3 2 12

Central Bucks West (8-7) 6 4 0 12

Central Bucks East (9-5-2) 5 5 1 11

*Abington (4-7-4) 3 5 3 9

Pennsbury (6-7-3) 4 5 1 9

Council Rock South (6-7-2) 3 5 2 8

Truman (3-10-2) 2 7 1 5

William Tennent (3-10-2) 1 7 2 4

Souderton (2-13-1) 0 10 1 1

• Pennridge has the tiebreaker over North Penn

Neshaminy has the tiebreaker over Central Bucks West

Abington has the tiebreaker over Pennsbury

Class A W L T Pts

Lower Moreland (10-2-3) 7 2 3 17

Wissahickon (10-3-2) 6 3 2 14

Hatboro-Horsham (9-4-2) 5 4 2 12

Plymouth Whitemarsh (10-4-1) 6 4 1 11

Upper Dublin (3-12-0) 0 11 0 0

Wedenesday

North Penn vs C.B. West 7:10 at Hatfield

Pennridge vs. C.B. South 7:20 at Rev. Ice Gardens

Truman vs Neshaminy 7:20 at Grundy

Hatboro-Horsham vs. Wissahickon 8:50 at Hatfield

Pennsbury vs. William Tennent 9:00 at Revolution Ice Gardens

Thursday

Plymouth Whitemarsh vs. Upper Dublin 7:10 at Hatfield

Pennridge vs. Council Rock South 7:20 at Grundy

SHSHL Standings Update

Here are the updated Suburban High School Hockey League Class AA standings through Thursday, February 14

Class AA

Central Bucks South (11-3-1) 9 0 1 19

*Pennridge (11-2-1) 8 1 0 16

North Penn (10-2-3) 7 1 2 16

*Neshaminy (7-4-3) 5 3 2 12

Central Bucks West (8-7) 6 4 0 12

Central Bucks East (9-4-2) 5 4 1 11

*Abington (4-7-4) 3 5 3 9

Pennsbury (6-7-3) 4 5 1 9

Council Rock South (6-7-2) 3 5 2 8

Truman (3-10-2) 2 7 1 5

William Tennent (3-10-2) 1 7 2 4

Souderton (2-12-1) 0 9 1 1

Pennridge owns the tiebreaker over North Penn

Neshaminy owns the tiebreaker over Central Bucks West

Abington owns the tiebreaker over Pennsbury

The tiebreaker is the regular season result between the tied teams

SHSHL Update Through 2-10-19

Suburban High School Hockey League Standings

Class AA W L T Pts

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

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

Pennridge (10-2-1) 7 1 0 14

Central Bucks West (8-6) 6 3 0 12

Central Bucks East (9-4-2) 5 4 1 11

Neshaminy (6-4-3) 4 3 2 10

Council Rock South (6-6-2) 3 4 2 8

*Abington (3-7-4) 2 5 3 7

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

Truman (3-9-2) 2 6 1 5

William Tennent (3-10-2) 1 7 2 4

Souderton (2-12-1) 0 9 1 1

The top eight teams will qualify for the SHSHL playoffs

• Abington defeated Pennsbury and would have the edge in a tiebreaker

Class A W L T Its

Lower Moreland (9-2-3) 6 2 3 15

Wissahickon (9-2-2) 6 2 2 14

Plymouth Whitemarsh (9-4-1) 5 4 1 11

Hatboro-Horsham (8-4-2) 5 4 2 12

Upper Dublin (3-11-0) 0 10 0 0

Top four teams qualify for SHSHL playoffs

Scoring GP G A Pts

Coleman Peppelmn LM 13 35 22 57

Bryan Gary Wiss 11 31 18 49

Sean Gary Wiss 11 27 21 48

Adam Bostock LM 14 21 27 48

Vincenzo DeMaio LM 14 29 18 47

Dean Keller PW 14 23 21 44

Eric Slater Pr 12 26 13 39

Jake Weikel PW 14 19 20 39

Ari Nordlinger UD 13 22 14 36

Tyler Greenstein NP 14 18 17 35

Aidan Keogh PW 13 22 12 34

Reis Braccio CBS 14 20 13 33

Chris Trefz CBW 10 8 25 33

Perry Carpenter Ab 11 21 11 32

Steven Avellino Tr 12 24 6 30

Nathan Oh NP 14 11 18 29

Robert Seewagen Nesh 13 17 11 28

John Gray Soud 13 16 12 28

Colin Franzoni PW 14 17 11 28

Devin Green LM 12 11 16 27

Goals Against Average Min GAA

Luke Stranik Pr 537 2.05

Chris McIntyre CBE 336 2.29

Oscar Levin CBS 466 2.47

Nick Ebbinghaus NP 432 2.78

Andrew Zanoni NP 240 2.80

Brett Magloff CRS 256 3.00

Joe Gambino HH 526 3.19

Matt Oganowski CBE 384 3.25

Steve Glik Nesh 501 3.64

Jeremy Kennard CBW 393 3.79

(Min. 240 minutes played)

Save Percentage Min. GA Save Pct.

Chris McIntyre CBE 336 16 .920

Luke Stranik Pr 537 23 .909

Steve Glik Nesh 501 38 .895

Jeremy Kennard CBW 393 31 .888

Joe Gambino HH 526 35 .884

Oscar Levin CBS 466 24 .882

Jonathan Pritchard Soud 629 92 .876

Jeremy Wedul Tr 576 60 .871

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

Pennridge Holds Off North Penn 5-4

HATFIELD TOWNSHIP— Two of the top teams in the Suburban High School Hockey League demonstrated Thursday night why they earned that distinction.

It was Pennridge that prevailed, by building a three-goal lead in the third period before hanging on to defeat North Penn 5-4 in a Class AA game at Hatfield Ice.
It was the fifth straight victory for the Rams, who improved to 5-1-1 overall and 4-1 in league play. The loss was first in league play for the Knights (5-2-1, 4-1) who saw a three-game winning streak snapped.

It was the second regular season meeting between the two teams, who played to a 4-4 tie in a. non-league encounter on November 9

Pennridge defenseman Jeff Manto scored his first goal of the season Thursday night. He said the win over an elite opponent was a signal to the rest of the league. “We’re trying to prove we’re the best team in the league,” he said. “We are trying to stand out.”

The first period featured close checking at both ends and limited offensive opportunities; the teams combined for just 14 shots. Nathan Oh opened the scoring for North Penn with 3:30 left in the period but it took Michael Walker just 21 second to respond for the Rams.

Michael White gave Pennridge a 2-1 lead just 30 seconds into the second frame, only to see Jake Nelson tie the game for North Penn just 51 seconds later. Manto’s shot from just inside the blue line during a power play put the Rams up for good with 3:35 left in the period.

Eric Slater scored his Class AA-leading 17th goal of the season 5:48 into the third period to put Pennridge up 4-2. But by that point, the Knights had demonstrated an ability to keep Slater and Walker more or less under control. Blake Stewart extended the Pennridge lead with 5:09 left and Pennridge coach Jeff Montagna was quick to point out the importance of having multiple offensive threats

“We were able to win on a night when they neutralized Eric and Michael,” he said. ” They got their goals but (North Penn) really did a good job neutralizing Eric and Michael.”

Having veteran goaltender Luke Stranick between the pipes didn’t hurt the Rams’ chances. “When you make mistakes, you don’t have to worry about them ending up in the net all the time,” Montagna said. “He’s the rock back there, he’s the given on our team.”

Trailing by there goals, the Knights were in no mood for a concession speech. Luke Van Why scored with 1:25 remaining and then, with their goaltender out, the Knights received a power-play chance when Manto drew a roughing call with 48 seconds left. Jared Albano beat Stranick at the 15-second mark and the Knights swarmed again following the ensuing faceoff before the final buzzer came to the Rams’ aid just as Tyler Greenstein, North Penn’s sniper-in-chief, was teeing up a shot from the high slot.

“The guys continued to battle to the very end,” said North Penn coach Kevin Vaitis. “We never give up. We got down 5-2 with a couple minutes left and could have easily packed it in, but the boys continued to battle.”
North Penn 1 1 2—4
Pennridge 1 2 2—5
First-period goals: Nathan Oh (NP) from Jared Albano and Will Hughes, 12:30; Michael Walker (P) unassisted, 12:51.
Second-period: Michael White (P) unassisted, :30; Jake Nelson (NP) from Josh Kaufhold,
1:21; Jeff Manto (P) from Nick Eissler, 12:25 (pp).
Third-period goals: Eric Slater (P) from Matt Guinette, 5:48; Blake Stewart (P) from Michael Walker, 10:51; Luke Van Why (NP) from Ryan Cunningham and Nelson, 14:35; Jared Albano (NP), from Tyler Greenstein and Oh 15:45.
hots: North Penn 26, Pennridge 27; Saves: Nick Ebbinghaus (NP) 22, Luke Stranick (P) 22.

By Rick Woelfel

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Pennridge Downs Central Bucks East

HATFIELD TOWNSHIP— Pennridge and Central Bucks East tested themselves against each other Thursday night. It was the Rams who passed the test and left Hatfield Ice with a 6-2 win in a Suburban High School Hockey League encounter.

Eric Slater scored three goals for the Rams (4-1-1, 3-1 in SHSHL Class AA) but the story of the evening was his team’s ability to keep the Patriots under constant pressure.

Slater and Matt Guinette scored goals to give the Rams a 2-0 first period lead but the most interesting numbers on the scoreboard were the shot totals that read 20-0 in favor of Pennridge.

“Good defense started in our offensive zone,” said Pennridge coach Jeff Montagna, “and with guys being in position where they can attack the puck and still be in good defensive positions if we do turn the puck over.

“That first period was as well as we’ve put together all year.

Ken Latchum, East’s veteran coach, said the pressure took a toll on his troops, who dropped their first decision of the season.. “They pressured us,” he said, “and their feet never stopped moving. They didn’t glide once.

“Those guys, even their third line, were just full of pressure. Those guys just motored and that’s what I want these guys to learn. You’ve got to motor.”

The Patriots (5-1-1, 2-1) didn’t get their first shot on goal until 29 seconds into the second period when they were on a power play. Slater gave the Rams a 3-0 lead 4:51 into the middle period by skating up the middle of the offensive zone and weaving his way through traffic.

“He’s lethal,” Montagna said. “You give him an inch, he’s lethal and you add that shot that his his offensive ability and it’s almost impossible to shut him down.”

Slater, who had two assists to go with his three goals, now has 16 goals and four assists in his team’s six games. He said he focuses on finding open ice. “I’ve always tried to,” he said. “It helps playing with teammates that open up so much space for me.”

Rob Kern solved Pennridge goaltender Luke Stranick with 6:13 left in the middle session. The score stayed that way to the end of the period but Frankie Rota and Slater (while his team was shorthanded) scored third-period goals to make it a 5-1 game with 7:43 remaining in regulation.

East’s Nick Locastro and the Rams’ Conrad Fisch traded goals to finish the scoring.
The Rams had a 36-9 edge in shots.

C.B. East 0 1 1—2
Pennridge 2 1 3—6
First-period goals: Eric Slater (P) from Blake Stewart, 9:55; Matt Guinette (P) unassisted, 14:33.
Second-period goals: Slater (P) unassisted, 4:51; Rob Kern (CBE) from Nick Locastro and Sean Gorman, 9:47.
Third-period goals: Stewart (P) from Frankie Rota and Slater, 2:20; Slater (P) unassisted, 8:17 (sh); Locastro (CBE) from Phil McIntyre and Owen Connor, Conrad Fisch (P) from Slater.
Shots: C.B. East 9, Pennridge 36