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Monday, March 16
Class A Final
Tuesday, March 17
Class AAA Final
Class AA Final
Thursday, March 19
Girls Final
Big games are often decided when winning teams and/or big-time players step up. Such was the case Thursday night as Sam Norton and his North Penn teammates came up big when the moment demanded it.
North Penn scored three straight goals over the second half of the second period to separate themselves from Central Bucks South and went on to a 6-3 win over the Titans in the SHSHL National Division championship game at Hatfield Ice. It was the 21st win in 22 starts this season for the top-seeded Knights, who claimed a SHSHL title for the fourth time in team history. They will be the top seed for the Class AA Flyers Cup and will face Shawnee in the opening round Tuesday night.
For now, the defending Cup and state champions will celebrate with another trophy.
“A win like that is always enjoyable,” Sam Norton said. “It’s a great experience. I’m going to remember it for a while.”
The third-seeded Titans (16-6) struck first when Ryan Montagna finished off a two-on-one during a South power play just 89 seconds into the opening period. It gave his team the lead but North Penn goaltender Andy Norton was unfazed.
“I try to focus on what’s coming next,” he said, “the next shot, I just put it behind me. I really trust my team. I trust they are going to put another one in the net.”
Which Sam Norton did two-and-a-half minutes later to tie the game. Norton followed with his second goal of the night not quite threo minutes after that and Declan Leahy made it a 3-1 game with 3:08 left in the first period.
South however, wasn’t going anywhere. Ryan Frey found the back of the net 3:05 into the second frame and Joey Slobodian tied the game at the 8:30 mark, making the second half of regulation theoretically a new game.
It was time for Sam Norton to step up once more. Twenty-eight seconds after Slobodian’s game-tying effort, Norton completed a hat trick to put North Penn in front for good. Daniel Cabrales followed with a goal with 6:44 left in regulation and Nolan Shingle completed the scoring for the night with exactly five minutes remaining.
“It wasn’t our greatest {game},” said North Penn coach Kevin Vaitis. “We had some mistakes but we capitalized on some as well. And, when you get to this point in the season and you’re playing a team like that, it’s not going to be perfect.
“I thought the guys worked hard. Even when they came back to tie it at three, nobody panicked. We’ve been in situations like this before and we just keep working through it.”
The Titans worked hard as well against an opponent that leaves an opponent little margin for error.
“We’re proud of our team,” said South coach Josh Sklar. “They battled to the end. You’ve got the two top teams. In the league going at it and sometimes the bounces just don’t go your way.”
Sklar pointed out that competing against the Knights requires going full bore for three full periods.
“Every shift means something,” he said. “Every shift is important. We’re a deep team, but we battled. We tried, we did our best.
• The Titans are seeded sixth in the Class AA Flyers Cup and will face Downingtown East Tuesday night in the first round…. North Penn’s previous SHSHL titles came in 2002, ‘09, and ‘14. The Titans are seven-time champions, their last coming in 2018.
C.B. South 1 2 0—3
North Penn 3 3 0—6
First-period goals: Ryan Montagna (CBS) from Dom Gibson, 1:29 (pp); Samuel Norton (NP) unassisted, 4:01; Norton (NP) unassisted, 6:54; Declan Leahy (NP) from Ismael Cabrales, 12:52
Third-period goals: Ryan Frey (CBS) unassisted, 3;05; Joey Slobodian (CBS) unassisted, 8:30; Norton (NP) unassisted, 8:58; Daniel Cabrales (NP) from Landon Hostetter, 10:16; Nolan Shingle (NP) from I. Cabrales, 12:00
Shots: C.B. South 44, North Penn 22; Saves: Nate Neapolitan (CBS) 38, Andy Norton (NP) 19
If you’re a hockey fan who likes to see lots of goals, Grundy Arena was the place be Monday night. Pennridge and Pennsbury put on a fireworks display that featured seven first-period goals before the Falcons, who overcame an early 2-0 deficit, pulled away to an 8-4 win in the opening round of the SHSHL National Division playoffs.
Fourth-seeded Pennsbury (13-5-1) will face top-seeded North Penn in a Wednesday semifinal. The fifth-seeded Rams (6-11-1) will be off until they face Downingtown West in the opening round of the Flyers Cup.
The barrage of goals started early on. James Rush scored a pair of goals four-and-a-half minutes apart to put Pennridge up 2-0 7:33 into the opening period.
Shane Hicks woke up the Falcons when he scored two goals in a span of to tie the game. Jacob Sarver put Pennsbury in front with 5:09 remaining before Ryan Burke tied the game for the last time.
Hicks completed a hat trick with a power-play goal with 1:07 left in the period and Shane Gleisner extended the lead 54 seconds into the second period.
Rush completed his own hat Trick with a power-play goal of his own 3:24 into the second period but Pennridge would not score again.
Connor Gray and Sarver added goals for Pennsbury in the second period and Hicks scored his fourth goal of the game late in the third.
“I love the way we played tonight,” said Pennsbury coach Ryan Daley. “We got off to a little bit of a slow start nut we responded really well and never looked ack.
“After getting the goal support, we committed to our systems, particularly in the {defensive} zone.”
Pennridge 3 1 0—4
Pennsbury 4 3 1—8
First-period goals: James Rush (Pr) from Kaden Gunning and Landon Bishop, 3:01; James Rush (Pr) unassisted, 7:33; Shane Hicks (Pb) from Jacob Sarver, 9:03; Hicks (Pb) from Shane Gleisner and Sarver, 10:56; Sarver (Pb) from Jaxon Pinto. 11:51; Ryan Burke (Pr) from Dean Venner, 13:36; Hicks (Pb) from Gavin Schlotter and Sarver, 15:53 (pp);
Second-period goals: Gleisner (Pb) unassisted, :54; Rush (Pr) from Bishop and Venner, 3:24 (pp); Connor Gray (Pb) from Schlotter and Francis DeLucia, 9:59; DeLucia (Pb) from Hicks, 13:39
Third-period goals: Hicks (Pb) unassisted, 15:48
Shots: Pennridge 28, Pennsbury 29; Saves: Andrew Slutsky (Pr) 21, Brendan Milliken (Pb) 24
Ryan Frey’s goal with six minutes left in the third period gave Central Bucks South a 2-1 come-from-behind win over Central Bucks Easy Monday night in the opening round of the SHSHL National Division playoffs at Hatfield Ice.
The third-seeded Titans (15-5) will face second seed Council Rock South in a semifinal game on Wednesday. The sixth-seeded Patriots (6-12-1) will be idle until next week when they will face Conestoga in the opening round of the Class AA Flyers Cup.
It was East who struck first Monday night. Ethan Cenci’s goal 4:43 into the second period gave the Patriots a 1-0 lead. Joey Slobodrian tied the game for South 2:44 into the final period.
Frey’s game winner came off assists from Dom Gibson and Dom DiMarino.
Nathan Napoliano got the win in goal, making 17 saves. Cameron Young game up big in goal for the Patriots, making 46 saves.
“The team stayed the course,” said South coach Josh Sklar. “Everyone bought into the system and kept pushing.
“We ran into a hot goalie and we just needed to keep shooting and traffic in front.”
Sklar told his players to take a back-to-basics approach.
“We told them to simplify their game,” he said, “and make the smart, easy decision with the puck”
• The Titans are seeking their first SHSHL title since 2018 when they won their last of four straight.
Central Bucks East 0 1 0—1
Central Bucks South 0 0 2—2
Second-period goal: Ethan Cenci (CBE) from Samuel Gottesman and Tyson Cowan, 4:43
Third-period goals: Joey Slobodrian (CBS) from Ryan Frey and John Lord, 2:44; Frey (CBS) from Dom Gibson and Dom DiMarino 11:00
Shots: C.B. East 18, C.B. South 48; Saves: Cameron Young (CBE) 46, Nathan Napolitano (CBS) 17
The Hockey Happenings podcast previewing the Flyers Cup tournament is available HERE
The Suburban High School Hockey League playoff schedule for 2026 is now set. Pairings and game times are listed below.
Monday, February 23
National Division First Round
Wednesday, February 25
National Division Semifinals
American Division Semifinal
Thursday, February 26
National Division Final
@ 6:10 at Hatfield
American Division Final
8:20 at Hatfield
@ If Council Rock South is the highest seeded finalist this game will be played at Grundy
The SHSHL playoff field is complete. And Pennridge provided the final piece of the puzzle.
James Rush and Landon Bishop scored two goals each as the Rams bested Central Bucks East 6-0 Thursday night in a National Division matchup. that served as the finale for the SHSHL’s regular season.
The Pennridge win, combined with Central Buck South’s overtime win over Souderton Thursday night, filled the last two slots on the National Division playoff bracket. Pennridge (6-10-1, 6-10 in the division with two losses in OT)) will be seeded fifth and face fourth seed Pennsbury Monday night. Central Bucks East (6-10-1, 6-9-1 with one win in OT), the sixth seed, will face third-seeded Central Bucks South. North Penn and Council Rock South, the top two seeds, have byes into Wednesday’s semifinals.
For a Pennridge teams that had only nine skaters available at one point early in the season reaching the postseason is a remarkable achievement.
“It’s incredibly satisfying,” said Ram coach Jeff Montagna. “They deserve it, for the amount of close games they played and lost, and come in to basically a ‘You lose and your done’ scenario, with that kind of pressure and play a perfect hockey game? It says a lot about them.
“I feel really, really good for them tonight.”
Junior Ryan says Montagna is committed to winning but also understands that hockey is supposed to be fun.
“He’s definitely intense,” Burke said. “He’s very loud, he’s very expressive on how he coaches.
“But, he wants to have a good time. He’s always joking, in the locker room and on the bench.
“He’ll show {His competitive side. You’ll hear him on the bench. He’s very intense, but he’s a great coach.”
Burke says Montagna and his staff have worked to make this season a positive experience for the players, even when the losses added up.
“There’s a lot of joking around and trying to lift our spirits up before games and during games. Just trying to push through those {challenges} we’ve gone through.
Pennridge controlled the game from the start. Rush scored a power-play goal just 2:38 into the opening period and assisted on second-period goals by Landon Bishop and Kaden Gunning.
Andrew Engler made it a 4-0 game with 2:01 left in the middle period and sent Patriot goaltender Cameron Young to the bench; Logan Mitchell replaced him.
Rush and Bishop added third-period goals; Rush also contributed three assists.
• Plymouth Whitemarsh defeated Wissahickon 11-1 Thursday night to claim the American Division title and arn a bye into Thursday’s championship game. Second seed Hatboro-Horsham and third-seed Springfield will meet in a Wednesday semifinal.
Pennridge 1 3 2—6
C.B. East 0 0 0—0
First-period goal: James Rush (P) unassisted, 2:38 (pp)
Second-period goals: Landon Bishop (P) from Rush, 5:03; Kaden Gunning (P) from Rush, 8:40; Andrew Engler (P) from Bishop, 14:59 (pp)
Third-period goals: Rush (P) from Morris Ostrobrook, 1:57; Bishop (P) from Rush and Engler, 6:14
Shots: Pennridge 47, C.B. East 23
Saves: Andrew Slutsky (P) 23, Cameron Young (CBE) 21 and Logan Mitchell (CBE) 20
National Division W L T OTW OTL Pts
@North Penn (19-1) 15 0 0 – – – – 60
#Council Rock South (15-3) 12 3 0 – – – – 48
#Central Bucks South (12-4) 11 3 0 – – – 44
#Pennsbury (11-5-1) 9 5 1 – – – – 38
Central Bucks East (6-9-1) 6 8 1 1 – – – 25
Souderton (6-11) 6 9 0 1 1 – – 24
Pennridge (5-10-1) 5 10 0 – 2 – – 22
Neshaminy (2-14) 2 13 0 1 – – – 7
Central Bucks West (0-16) 0 15 0 – – – – 0
American Division W L T OTW OTL PTS
#Plym. Whitemarsh (13-2) 13 2 0 – – 52
#Hatboro-Horsham (14-3) 12 3 0 – 1 49
Springfield (6-10) 6 9 0 1 23
Wissahickon (5-9-1) 5 8 1 2 – 20
Abington (1-14-1) 0 14 1 – 2 4
@ clinched regular-season title
Scoring All League Scheduled Games
National Division GP G A Pts
Shane Gleisner Pb 17 42 21 63
Jake Weiner CRS 15 38 18 56
Samuel Norton NP 17 24 29 53
Chris Silvotti NP 20 23 26 49
Max Ryon Sou. 11 29 16 45
Nolan Shingle 19 23 20 43
Ismael Cabrales NP 18 14 27 41
Ryan Frey C.B. South 16 17 21 38
Shane Hicks Pb 16 16 21 37
Jordan Sarne CRS 15 17 17 34
Landan Bishop Pr 13 20 13 33
American Division GP G A Pts
Vincent Graziani HH 17 32 26 58
Daniel Guller PW 14 17 31 48
Nate Nemchinov HH 15 23 20 43
Grayson Quinn Spr. 16 24 14 38
Cooper Kanze PW 11 17 18 35
Luca Staffieri HH 14 15 16 31
Mack Risnychok Wiss 14 19 11 30
Bill Moffa HH 14 11 16 27
Blake Ambler PW 12 10 17 27
Logan Dicus Wiss 14 12 13 25
While the U.S. men’s hockey team was celebrating its opening win at the Olympic Games, North Penn took the ice Thursday night and continued its winning ways. The Knights took on Pennridge already assured of the SHSHL regular-season title. But they appeared to not let that circumstance distract them from the tasks at hand.
Chris Silvotti and Nolan Shingle scored twice and three other players scored one goal each as North Penn left Hatfield Ice a 7-0 winner.
With their regular-season finale against Council Rock South to come next Wednesday, the Knights stand at 19-1 overall and a perfect 15-0 in divisional play. For the defending Class AA Flyers Cup and state champions, Thursday night was business as usual.
“They knew {they had clinched the regular-season title} going into this game, but it was never brought up before the game,” said North Penn coach Kevin Vaitis. “They truly look at it one game at a time and that’s the mentality they’ve had all season.”
Silvotti and Tyler Evans gave North Penn a 2-0 first-period lead. Silvotti, Declan Leahy, and Shingle extended the lead in the second stanza and ended the suspense, since Aidan Quigley was working on a shutout at the other end of the ice. The junior finished with 19 saves.
For all the Knights have accomplished this season; they are the highest scoring team in SHSHL National, it is their defensive prowess that is especially noteworthy. In 15 divisional games this season, North Penn has allowed just 20 goals.
“It just comes down to our practices and our mentality going into the games,” Quigley said. “We’re focused and we stay focused, it keeps the team in the game.”
Quigley, a junior, notes that defensive is the top priority for the Knights. “We play defense first,” he said, “then move to offense. Our defense is very good. They also know when to move up and join the offense. I think that leads to a lot of our goals, when our defenseman are up in the play too after making a good defensive play.”
Shingle and Gabriel Dunn added third period goals for the Knights, who launched 54 shots at Pennridge goaltender Andrew Slutsky.
For the Rams (5-10-1, 5-10), who are battling with Central Bucks East and Souderton for the division’s last two playoff spots, it was a difficult evening.
“We were outclassed,” said Pennridge coach Jeff Montagna. “They’re the better team and we need a lot of things to go right. We had chances, and if we’re going to have a chance against this team, we need to finish some of them.
“Obviously, it’s hard to compete with them; they’re the defending state champs. But, if we’re not going to finish, we don’t have much of a chance.”
• The Rams close the regular season next Thursday against Central Bucks East,
North Penn 2 3 2—7
Pennridge 0 0 0—0
First-period goals: Chris Silvotti (NP) from Ismael Cabrales and Gabe Dunn, 3:12; Tyler Evans (NP) from Milo Little and Landon Hostetter, 13:36
Second-period goals: Silvotti (NP) from Ismael Cabrales and Briggs Hostetter, 1:03; Declan Leahy (NP) from Chase Kelly Del Ricci and Evans, 6:56; Nolan Shingle (NP) from Daniel Cabrales and Ismael Cabrales, 12:08
Third-period goals: Shingle (NP) from Silvotti and Ismael Cabrles 1:57; Gabriel Dunn (NP) from Leahy and Daniel Cabrales
Shots: North Penn 54, Pennridge 19; Saves : Aidan Quigley (NP) 19, Andrew Slutsky (Pr) 47
National Division W L T OTW OTL SOW SOL Pts
North Penn (18-1) 14 0 0 – – – – 56
Council Rock South (15-2) 12 2 0 – – – – 48
Central Bucks South (11-4) 10 3 0 – – – 40
Pennsbury (10-5-1) 8 5 1 – – – – 34
Central Bucks East (6-8-1) 6 7 1 1 – – – 25
Pennridge (5-9-1) 5 9 0 – 2 – – 22
Souderton (3-11) 4 9 0 1 1 – – 16
Neshaminy (2-13) 2 12 0 1 – – – 7
Central Bucks West (0-15) 0 14 0 – – – – 0
American Division
W L T OTW OTL SHW SOL PTS
Hatboro-Horsham (14-2) 12 2 0 – 1 – – 49
Plym. Whitemarsh (12-2) 12 2 0 – – – 48
Wissahickon (5-9-1) 5 8 1 2 – – – 20
Springfield (5-10) 5 8 0 1 – – 19
Abington (0-13-1) 0 13 1 – 2 – – 4
Scoring All League Scheduled Games
National Division GP G A Pts
Shane Gleisner Pb 16 40 20 60
Jake Weiner CRS 16 37 17 54
Samuel Norton NP 17 24 29 53
Chris Silvotti NP 19 21 25 46
Nolan Shingle 18 21 20 41
Ismael Cabrales NP 17 14 23 37
Ryan Frey C.B. South 15 16 20 36
Max Ryon Sou. 9 20 15 35
American Division GP G A Pts
Vincent Graziani HH 16 30 25 55
Daniel Guller PW 13 13 31 44
Nate Nemchinov HH 14 21 20 41
Grayson Quinn Sp. 15 21 15 34
Cooper Kanze PW 10 17 14 31
Mack Risnychok Wiss 14 19 11 30
Luca Staffieri HH 13 15 15 30
Bill Moffa HH 14 11 16 27
Blake Ambler PW 12 10 17 27
Logan Dicus Wiss 14 12 13 25
National Division W L T OTW OTL SOW SOL Pts
North Penn (16-1) 13 0 0 – – – – 52
Council Rock South (14-2) 11 2 0 – – – – 44
Central Bucks South (10-4) 9 3 0 – – – 36
Pennsbury (10-4-1) 8 4 1 – – – – 34
Pennridge (5-8-1) 5 8 – – 2 – – 22
Central Bucks East (5-8-1) 5 7 1 1 – – 21`
Souderton (3-10) 3 9 0 1 1 – – 12
Neshaminy (2-11) 2 10 0 1 – – – 7
Central Bucks West (0-14) 0 13 0 – – – – 0
American Division W L T OTW OTL SHW SOL PTS
Hatboro-Horsham (13-2) 11 2 0 1 – – 45
Plym. Whitemarsh (11-1) 11 1 0 – – – 44
Wissahickon (5-8) 5 7 0 2 – – – 18
Springfield (4-9) 4 8 0 1 – – 15
Abington (0-13) 0 13 0 – 2 – – 1
Scoring All League Scheduled Games
National Division GP G A Pts
Shane Gleisner Pb 15 39 19 58
Jake Weiner CRS 13 34 17 51
Samuel Norton NP 15 19 25 44
Chris Silvotti NP 17 20 20 40
Nolan Shingle 16 19 14 33
Jordan Sarne CRS 13 17 15 32
Ryan Frey C.B. South 14 13 19 32
Ismael Cabrales NP 15 10 22 32
American Division GP G A Pts
Vincent Graziani HH 15 29 23 52
Daniel Guller PW 12 12 29 41
Nate Nemchinov HH 13 20 20 40
Bill Moffa HH 14 11 16 27
Mack Risnychok Wiss 12 18 8 26
Luca Staffieri HH 12 13 13 26
Blake Ambler PW 10 10 16 26
Cooper Kanze PW 8 13 11 24
Grayson Quinn Sp. 13 16 7 23
Reid Rochestie HH 14 7 15 22
Hockey Happenings 