Abington defeated PW in a battle of the top Class A squads. Photos courtesy of Tracy Valko. Check back for a gallery of photos.
By Ben Reese
HATFIELD — The playoffs are coming! The playoffs are coming!
Both Abington and Plymouth Whitemarsh were well aware of that fact entering Thursday night’s game at Hatfield Ice. They are the No.1 and No. 2 seeds in the Class A division.
So, while the 9-5 Abington win didn’t change the standings or the seedings, it did provide a look at what the playoffs will be bringing for the two teams. When the playoffs begin next week, Abington will be taking on No. 4 seed Quakertown while PW will face No. 3 seed Wissahickon. 
So exactly what did this game give you, Abington?
“For us, we needed some tough games,” said Ghost coach Ken Brzozowski. “This game was close all the way until the end.
“It shows that we can play close games and continue to play at a high level. We’re excited to be playing at the level we’re playing at right now.”
Abington’s Joe Stelacio echoed his coach’s sentiments.
“We wanted to win this game to keep the momentum going,” he said. “You play all season but obviously we know that the job’s not done yet. We’re focusing on winning the championship.”
Despite the loss, PW coach Josh Aiello got some good vibes from the play of his team.
“I think the teams that are the most successful know how to bounce back from a loss,” Aiello said. “This one didn’t go our way, but I think we played a really good game in the first and second periods. I liked our energy.
“It didn’t go our way in the third period, one bad period out of the game. I think there were just a couple of little things that we need to adjust. A couple of decisions different would have changed the outcome of the game.”
But both teams are going to stay the course and keep doing what they have done all season,
“Like we’ve done all year, we’re going to approach the playoffs the same way,” said Brzozowski. “Each week, 0-0 going in, just focusing on that team (we’re playing) alone.”
“(We’re) just taking it one game at a time to the end of the season,” Stelacio said, “Not having to play PW or Wissahickon in the first round should help us. We’re not going to overlook Quakertown at all.”
Aiello might have the harder job, bringing his team back from a hard loss.
“I’m excited for what the playoffs bring,” he said. “You play the entire season to provide yourself an opportunity to complete in the playoffs.
“Our team performed well enough throughout the season to give us the opportunity to play in the playoffs. That’s step one.
“Now we go on to step two. No one’s season matters. At this point, record doesn’t matter.”
One thing was obvious in Abington’s win. The Ghosts don’t need just their top line to do the scoring.
They got goals from several players whose names don’t appear on the score sheet often.
Jordan Heydt scored two goals, Griffin Carpenter and Tim Rourke notched goals.
“I’ve said all year long that we’ve got guys who can put the puck in the net,” said Brzozowski. “Getting goals from the third line players, that’s just huge.”
However, it was one of the Ghosts’ most prolific scorers who opened the scoring in the game. Pat Stelacio, Joe’s brother, started things off in the first period with only1:46 gone in the game.
The rest of the period was a see-saw. After Stelacio’s tally, PW’s David Branigan scored at 2:38; then Carpenter scored for Abington followed by another Branigan goal before Matthew Cholaj finished up the period with a Ghost goal to give Abington a 3-2 lead going into the second period.
Plymouth Whitemarsh took control of the second period, scoring twice. Matthew Flynn and Isaac Mishkin hit the nets for the Colonials, tying the game at 3-3 after Rourke’s goal.
The third belonged to Abington. The Ghosts outscored PW 5-1 to clinch the game.
Scoring for Abington were Heydt twice, Matthew Kramer twice and Pat Stelcio once to offset the lone Colonial goal from Aidan Keogh.
Now both teams will gear up for next week’s playoffs. Abington will take on Quakertown at 7:10 on Thursday, Feb. 24 at Hatfield Ice followed by Plymoouth Whitemarsh battling Wissahickon at 8:50.
Abington 9, Plymouth Whitemarsh 5
Abington 3 1 5 — 9
Plymouth Whitemarsh 2 2 1 — 5
First period: 1, Pat Stelacio A (unassisted) 1:46; 2, David Branigan PW (Aidan Keogh) 2:38; 3, Griffin Carpenter A (Steven Dorn, P. Stelacio) 6:47; 4, Branigan PW (Luke Weikel) 11:00; 5, Matthew Cholaj A (Tim Rourke, P. Stelacio) 14:32 PP.
Second period: 6, Isaac Mishkin PW (Danny Smith) 9:06; 7, Matthew Flynn PW (Weikel, Jacob Elgart) 12:06 PP; 8, Rourke A (Matthew Kramer, P. Stelacio) 15:44. PP.
Third period: 9, Jordan Heydt A (Seamus Donofry) 5:05; 10, Heydt A (Sean Frye) 7:59; 11, Keogh PW (Tim Murphy) 8:20; 12, Matthew Kramer A (unassisted) 9:42; 13, Kramer A (Rourke, Cholaj) 15:04; 14, P. Stelacio A (unassisted) 15:54.
Shots: A 51, PW 33. Saves: Ben Panella (A) 28; Kolton Galie (PW) 42.
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