Flyers Cup Class AA Semifinals Preview

North Penn vs. 5. Downingtown West 8:45 at Hatfield Ice

North Penn

Coach: Kevin Vaitis

Record: 24-1

Key players: So. Andy Norton .927 save %; Sr. James Boyle 2 goals, 0 assists, 2 points in tournament; Jr. Samuel Norton 3-4-7; Sr. Nolan Shingle (F), 3-5-8

In this tournament: Def. Shawnee 9-2 in first round; def. Owen J. Roberts 6-3 in quarterfinals

5. Downingtown West

Coach: Brett Mackell

Record: 13-8-1

Key players: Sr. Justin Adams .926 save %; So. Peter Budaj 0 goals, 8 assists, 8 points; Jr. Braiden Maya 3-1-4; Jr. Brady Cusa 2-2-4; Logan Brown 2-2-4; Nate Ochranek 2-2-4

In this tournament: Def. Pennridge 6-2 in first round; def. C.B. East 6-2 in quarterfinals

2. Boyertown vs. 3 Council Rock South 8:30 at Ice Line

2. Boyertown

Coach: Joe Slowik

Record: 16-5

Key players: Lucas Yancey .915 save % Brayden Kotzen 5 goals, 2 assists, 7 points; Declan Black 0-4-4;

In this tournament: Def. Souderton 12-2 in first round: def. Pennsbury 5-3 in quarterfinals

3. Council Rock South

Coach: Joe Houk

Record: 17-5

Key players: Trey Prozzillo .922 save %; Jake Weiner 6 goals, 1 assist, 7 points; Jordan Sarne 2-1-3; Connor Holland 1-1-2

In this tournament: Def. Spring-Ford 6-3 in first round; def. C.B. South 3-1 in quarterfinals:

Ice chips: North Penn is attempting to become the first Class AA champion to successfully defend since Downingtown East in 2019. Last year’s title was its first. Council Rock South won championships in 2009, ’11, and ’12. Downingtown West and Boyertown are each seeking their first Flyers Cup.

Flyers Cup Class AAA Semifinals Preview

Thursday, March 12

Holy Ghost Prep vs. 4 Malvern Prep 8:45 at Hatfield Ice

Holy Ghost Prep

Coach: John Ritchie

Record: 18-4

Key players: Matt Salita .956 save %; Chase Logue 27 goals, 6 assists, 33 points; Lucas Gonzalez 11-12-23; Anthony Valeriote 7-16-23

In this tournament: Had a bye in the quarterfinals

4. Malvern Prep

Coach: Bill Keenan

Record: 6-11-2

Key players: Ryan Corrado .908 save % Jake Weingartner 7 goals, 13 assists, 20 points, Pax Hoishik 7-10-17; Logan Love 4-3-7

In this tournament: Def. Devon Prep 6-4 in quarterfinals

2. St. Joseph’s Prep vs. 3. La Salle 6:30 at Ice Line

2. St. Joseph’s Prep

Coach: Charlie Van Kula

Record:17-7

Key players: Declan Geary .929 save %; Cole Gargon 16oals, 13 assists, 29 points; Bradan Fisher 11-14-25; Michael Washlick 9-11-20

In this tournament: Def. Salesianum 8-0 in quarterfinals

La Salle

Coach: Wally Muehlbronner

Record: 7-13

Key players: Anthony Foster .918 save %; Thomas Leonards 13 goals, 2 assists, 15 points; Patrick Lunsford 6-8-14; Andrew Frantz 4-8-12

In this tournament; Def. Father Judge 6-2 in quarterfinals

Ice chips: The four APAC schools in this year’s semifinals have won 14 consecutive Class AAA Flyers Cup titles and 17 of the last 18. All told, La Salle has win 13 Flyers Cups (including one in Class AA), Malvern Prep 10, Holy Ghost Prep 5 (one in Class AA) and St. Joseph’s Prep 1.

Malvern Prep won a record five straight Cups from 2001-05.

Hatboro-Horsham 10 Radnor 0

Some would call it a dominant performance. Others would use the term overwhelming. Whatever the phraseology, Hatboro-Horsham’s offensive firepower was on full display Monday night in the opening round of the Class A Flyers Cup.

The sixth-seeded Hatters were too much for 11^th-seeded Radnor and rolled to a 10-0 win at Hatfield Ice.

Nate Nemchinov scored four goals and added four assists for Hatboro-Horsham, which will face third-seeded Kennett in Thursday’s quarterfinals. Vince Graziani produced three goals and two assists before the game was terminated via the 10-goal rule with 10:45 remaining in the third period.

Prior to the stoppage, the Hatter (17-3) were in complete command and applying unrelenting pressure.

“We try to wear out our opponents with our stamina,” said Hatboro-Horsham coach Shane Smith. “We were able to do that here, we were able to keep the pressure on them, and keep it deep in their zone.”

Nemchinov and Graziani spend much of their time on the ice simultaneously. The chemistry between Nemchinov, a senior, and Graziani, a sophomore, is unique.

“We’ve played with each other for two years,” Nemchinov said. “We know where each other are on the ice at all times. We talk; it’s all about communication and chemistry.”

It took the Hatters some time to get started. The game was nearly nine-and-a-half minutes old before Luke Staffieri scored his team’s first goal. But once they started, the goals kept coming. Graziani and Cole Meyer added goals before the first period ended.

Nemchinov scored three times in the second frame and Graziani and Bill Moffa scored additional goals to propel Hatboro-Horsham to an 8-0 lead. Nemchinov an Graziani each scored in the final period.

The Hatters’ up-tempo approach theoretically leaves them vulnerable at the other end of the ice. But Graziani points out he and his teammates are confident in the defense behind them.

“There are very good players in this tournament, and it’s hard to get back,” he said. But we’ve got good goaltending and good ‘D’ back there, so it helps us out.”

Emotions were running high by the late stages of the second frame. The Raptors lost defenseman Charles Peterson with 1:51 left in the period when he drew a major penalty for head contact plus a match penalty for a hit on Staffieri. Staffieri himself was banished 3:30 into the third period after fisticuffs with Radnor’s Hayden Goldenberg. The Raptors’ Stephen Sucher also received a game misconduct for being the third man in the altercation. The fighting penalty means Staffieri will not be in uniform when the Hatters face Kennett on Thursday.

• Patrick Murphy and Eric Miller split the shutout in goal for the Hatters. Murphy played the first two periods, Miller the third.

Radnor 0 0 0—0

Hatboro-Horsham 3 5 2—10

First-period goals: Luca Staffieri (HH) from Nate Nemchinov, 9:26; Vince Graziani I(HH) from Staffieri and Giovani Bucci, 14:31; Cole Meyer (HH) from Joey Magnin, 16:28

Second-period goals: Nemchinov (HH) unassisted, 4:31; Graziani (HH) from Nemchinov and Bill Moffa, 10:22; Nemchinov (HH) from Graziani and Moffa 14:03; Moffa (HH) from Nemchinov, 14:35; Nemchinov (HH) from Graziani, 15:43;

Third-period goals: Nemchinov (HH) from Staffieri and Moffa, 2:54; Graziani (HH) from Nemchinov. 6:15

Shots: Radnor 11, Hatboro-Horsham 38; Saves: James Danner (Ra) 28, Patrick Murphy (HH) 8 and Eric Miller (HH) 3

Contested terminated with 10:45 remaining in third period

North Penn 6 C.B. South 3

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

C.B. South 2 C.R. South 0

They set the pace early and didn’t let up.

Central Bucks South defeated three-time SHSHL champion Council Rock South, 2-0, in a National Division semifinal on Wednesday night at Grundy Arena.

Jamison Crouch put the Titans on the board just 36 seconds into the game, with assists from Joseph Slobodrian and Ryan Montagna.

It would prove to be the only goal the Titans needed, but Ryan Frey added an insurance goal 10 minutes later, also assisted by Slobodrian.

“That first goal really set the tone for us,” said Frey, a senior. “We knew we were going to get the first goal, it was just a matter of how. To get it on the first shift was huge. That gave us the momentum and it stuck with us the whole game.

“I thought our D zone was lot better than it usually is. We got pucks out when we needed to. We got traffic in front of their goalie early, that’s how we scored those two goals and overall I thought we played a very good game.”

The teams split in the regular season.

“We knew this was going to be a good game,” Frey said. “We knew we had to get on their goalie early and we did and that’s how we were able to win this one.

“I honestly didn’t think that lead was going to hold up. I thought it was going to be one of those games were we scored, then they scored and back and forth. I’m so glad we won.”

The Golden Hawks pulled goaltender Trey Prozzillo with 2:28 to go in the third period in a last-ditch effort to score, but were thwarted by CB South’s defense.

CB South advances to Thursday night’s final against top seed North Penn, an 11-1 winner over Pennsbury in the other semifinal.

“Winning this game gives us so much confidence,” Frey said. “We have three big wins coming into it. We have momentum and we’re going to go into that game with a lot of energy and hopefully pull out a nice win.”

CB South’s last league title was in 2018.

“It’s always exciting to be playing for a league title,” said CB South goaltender Nathan Napolitano, a junior. “Playing for a championship is always fun.”

The Titans have lost twice to the Knights this season.

“We want to play North Penn again,” Napolitano said. “We gave them two of our not-best efforts so we play them well, and we’ll see what happens.”

The early lead gave him confidence in the team.

“A lead is always easier than trying to keep your team in it,” he said. “When they got the first one, my job got easier.”

CB South 2 0 0—2

CR South 0 0 0—0

First-period goals: Jamison Crouch (CBS) from Joseph Slobodrian and Ryan Montagna, 0:36; Ryan Frey (CBS) from Slobodrian, 10:32

Shots: CB South 27, CR South 27; Saves: Nathan Napolitano (CBS) 27, Trey Petrillo (CRS) 25

North Penn 11 Pennsbury 1

The North Penn Express kept rolling on Wednesday night. Chris Silvotti delivered three goals and three assists while Samuel Norton and James Boyle delivered two goal=s each as the Knights routed Pennsbury 11-1 in a SHSHL National Division semifinal at Hatfield Ice.

Top-seeded North Penn (21-1) will host third seed Council Rock South in Thursday’s final (6:10 start)13-6-1.
Pennsbury (13-6-1) the fourth seed, will move on to the Flyers Cup and prepare to face Haverford High Tuesday night.

It didn’t take long Wednesday night for North Penn and Silvotti in particular to get rolling. Silvotti scored twice with a goal from Daniel Cabrales in between to give North Penn a 3-0 10:01 into the first period. Shane Gleisner scored what would be Pennsbury’s only goal with 4:55 left in the opening session but James Boyle and Silvotti answered before the period ended.

Samuel Norton scored twice in a span of 2:23 early in the second frame and Declan Leahy, Boyle, and Liker Haftl added additional goals before the contest was halted via the 10-goal rule with 4:28 left in the third period.

The Knights accumulated 52 shots on goal

“The boys played really well tonight,” said North Penn coach Kevin Vaitis. “That’s a a very good Pennsbury team and they played us tough twice earlier in the year. We knew we had to play our A game tonight and I thought we played really well in all zones of the ice.”

Vaitis says his team will have to step up against the Titans Thursday night.

“They knocked us out of the league playoffs last year so it would be nice to win and get some revenge for that game this year,” he said. “However they are a very good team so we need to repeat our performance tomorrow night if we want to win again. We have to be ready. “

Pennsbury 1 0 0—1

North Penn 5 3 3—11

First-period goals: Chris Silvotti (NP) from Derek Lugara and Declan Leahy; 1:43; Daniel Cabrales (NP) unassisted, 4:34; Silvotti (NP) from Chase Kelly Del Ricci and Declan Willison, 10:01; Shane Gleisner (NP) from Francis DeLucia, 12:05; James Boyle (NP) from D. Cabrales and Silvotti, 14:13; Silvotti (NP) frim Lugara, 15:45

Second-period goals: Samuel Norton (NP) from Nolan Shingle, 3:07 Norton (NP) from Ismael Caabrales 3:30; Leahy (NP) from Silvotti and D. Cabrales, 14:07

Third-period goals: Boyle (NP) from Silvotti, 1:57; Luke Haftel (NP) from Gabriel Dunn and Boyle, 12:32; Landon Hostetter (NP) from Tyler Evans and Milo Little, 15:23

Shots: Pennsbury 27, North Penn 52; Saves: Brendan Milliken (P) 41, Aidan Quigley (NP) 26

SHSHL 2026 All-League Teams

National Division

First Team

F Jake Weiner Sr. Council Rock South

F Shane Gleisner Sr. Pennsbury

F Samuel Norton Jr. North Penn

D James Boyle Sr. North Penn

D Jamison Crouch Sr. Central Bucks South

G Andy Norton So. North Penn

Second Team

F Max Ryon Sr. Souderton

F Jordan Sarne Sr. Council Rock South

F Chris Silvotti Jr. North Penn

D Ben Dempsey So. Central Bucks East

D John Lord So. Central Bucks South

G Isaac Mays Sr. Central Bucks West

American Division

First Team

F Vince Graziani So. Hatboro-Horsham

F Nate Nemchinov Sr. Hatboro-Horsham

F Dan Guller Sr. Plymouth Whitemarsh

D Logan Dicus Sr. Wissahickon

D Ryan Jaegher Sr. Plymouth Whitemarsh

G Matt Evangelist Jr. Abington

Second Team

F Grayson Quinn Sr. Springfield

F Cooper Kanzee So. Plymouth Whitemarsh

F William Moffa Jr. Hatboro-Horsham

D Luca Staffieri Jr. Hatboro-Horsham

D Reid Richestie Jr. Hatboro-Horsham

G Max Yoder So. Plymouth Whitemarsh

Players were selected by league coaches

The Hockey Happenings podcast is available HERE

Pennsbury 8 Pennridge 4

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

APAC Founders Cup Playoff Preview

The APAC’s Founders Cup semifinals are set for Wednesday at Ice Line. Second seed Hun School will face third seed St. Joseph’s Prep in the 3:30 opener. Top seed and defending champion Holy Ghost Prep will go against fifth seed Malvern Prep at approximately 5:45.

The Founders Cup championship game is set for next Wednesday, February 25 and will be hosted by the highest-seeded finalist.

Here’s how the teams match up. The statistics listed below are for APAC games only.

Hun School (2)

Coach: N.G. Welsh

Record: 13-12, 4-4 in APAC

Key Players: Jr. Zachary Vallee 8 goals, 2 assists, 10 points; Sr. Luca Jean 3-3-6; Elliot Trottier .917 save %, 2.45 GAA; Blake Echternacht .915 save &, 2.71 GAA

St. Joseph’s Prep (3)

Coach: Charlie Van Kuna

Record: 15-6, 4-4 in APAC

Key Players: Jake Ely 3 goals, 3 assists, 6 points; Jr. Cole Gargon 4-1-5; Sr. Bradan Fisher 1-4-5;. Jr. Declan Geary .908 save &, 2.31 GAA

This season:

12-10 Hun School 2 St. Joseph’s Prep 1

12-29 St. Joseph’s Prep 3 Hun School 2 (Purple Puck final)

1-13 Hun School 4 St. Joseph’s Prep 3

Holy Ghost Prep (1)

Coach: John Ritchie

Record: 16-4, 8-0 in APAC

Key Players: Sr. Lucas Gonalez 4 goals, 6 assists, 10 points; Jr. Chase Logue 9-1-10; Sr. Anthony Valeriote 1-7-8; Jr. Matt Salita .971 save &, 0.67 GAA

Malvern Prep (5)

Coach: Bill Keenan

Record: 5-10-2, 2-6 in APAC

Key Players: Sr. Pax Hoishik 5 goals, 7 assists, 12 points: So. Jake Weingartner 4-7-11; Sr. Ryan Caterino .921 Save %, 2.34 GAA

This season

11-19 Holy Ghost Prep 4 Malvern Prep 1

12-3 Holy Ghost Prep 2 Malvern Prep 0

Past APAC Champions

2025 Holy Ghost Prep 6 La Salle 4

2024 La Salle 7 St. Joseph’s Prep 0

2023 La Salle 7 Holy Ghost Prep 3

2022 Malvern Prep 4 La Salle 1

2021 La Salle and Malvern Prep declared co-champions

2020 La Salle 4 HGP 1

2019 La Salle 6 Holy Ghost Prep 3

SHSHL Update 2-16-26

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