A preview of Wednesday’s Pennridge/Central Bucks South showdown as well as Neshaminy and Abington are featured in this week’s notebook.
By Scott Huff
And the beat goes on…
SHSHL Continental Conference ‘Snapshot’
Central Bucks South Titans
Central Bucks South head coach Shawn McGinty knows how extra special this showdown game with Pennridge is going to be this week. The puck will drop on Wednesday night 8:40 pm at the Revolutions Ice Garden in Warwick.
The Titans are unbeaten in SHSHL Continental Conference Varsity ‘AA’ play this season, as are the Rams, which already makes the contest special. What makes it extra special is the coach behind the bench for Pennridge.
Veteran head coach Tom Coyne has recently taken over the helm for the Rams and will now attempt to derail a successful Titan team that he coached for many years.
“It didn’t surprise me that Tom would step in for the kids at Pennridge,” said McGinty. “I played for him when I was 15 years old, he was invited to my wedding, and I coached with him for seven years.
“We had a great run at South with two state championships and two Flyers Cup titles,” added McGinty. “We created a winning culture and climate at South.”
McGinty is in his second year as the head coach at CB South. In a ‘rebuilding year’ the Titans were crowned the SHSHL Continental Conference champions last year.
In addition to the battle of the conference unbeatens – and the Coyne-McGinty reunion – Wednesday’s game will be Senior Night for the Titans.
“It will be a great night for our seniors,” said McGinty. “I am hoping that it is a one- or two-goal game going into the third period and not a blowout by either team.
“Both teams can really put the puck in the net,” added McGinty. “Both teams will be playing at full throttle and will try and step on the other team’s throat – that’s how both Tom and I coach the game.”
The CB South offense has showcased the talents of seniors Matt Stoll and Joseph DeLaurentis. Combined the duo has scored 31 goals with 15 assists in 10 games this season.
“I really don’t know how many goals they have scored this year,” said McGinty. “To me it is all about the ‘W’.”
DeLaurentis plays on a line with a pair of sophomores – Dominic Patrone and Colin Abbonizio. Stoll plays on the line with junior Reis Braccio and senior Tyler Boylan.
The Titan defense is anchored by senior Frank Carter. Ryan Gingras, DJ LoVerdi and Dominick Kiberta provide talented depth.
CB South is blessed to have a pair of gifted goalies in senior Tim White and junior Oscar Levin.
“We sat down as a coaching staff and have come up with a plan to determine who the No. 1 goalie is going to be come playoff time,” said McGinty. “They both love to compete, and right now they are competing to see who is No. 1.
“I am not a big numbers guy – the goalie with the best goals against might not be the No. 1 goalie,” added McGinty. “Again, it’s all about the ‘W’ – how does the team play in front of that goalie.”
But for now – the focus is clearly on Pennridge.
“Tom and I are friends, and we talked the other day after he took the job,” said McGinty. “We laughed about knowing each other’s game plan, but once the game starts we’re out of it and the kids play the game.
“We will shake hands before the game, and then try to beat each other,” added McGinty.
SHSHL National Conference ‘Snapshot’
Neshaminy Redskins
Neshaminy head coach Matthew DeMatteo is in his first year behind the varsity bench for the Redskins. But the rookie coach has been an architect to the Neshaminy program the last few years.
“This is my first year at the varsity level,” said DeMatteo. “I coached the junior varsity team last year, and at the middle school level the four years before that.
“We are building a very good program and will have a nice crop of middle school players moving up next year,” added DeMatteo. “Our biggest problem this year is that we started the season with only one senior and are extremely young. And young players make young player mistakes.
“Another concern is that we are not a very deep team on the varsity level,” continued DeMatteo. “And it is tough for a small group of freshmen to compete with seniors.”
Neshaminy can boast of having one of the elite goalies in the SHSHL in junior Steve Glik.
“Steve is top shelf,” said DeMatteo. “He is very technically sound and is also athletic enough for us to take some chances in front of him.
“Steve is never out of position,” continued DeMatteo. “And he controls every rebound.”
Senior Captain Aric Miller anchors the Redskin defense. Junior Joey Buday, freshman Billy Dougherty, Brett Nelson, and sophomore Ryan McColgan join Miller on the blue line.
“I would have to say that our defense is the strongest part of our team right now,” said DeMatteo. “With our defensemen and Steve in goal, we should be able to compete against certain teams we play this year.”
The Neshaminy offense has featured an underclass line of junior Josh Haines, sophomore Joey DeMatteo, and freshman Thomas Gallagher.
“Our goal for the remainder of the season is to win some games against the teams that we are able to compete with,” said DeMatteo. “The big teams like Pennridge, CB South, and North Penn are teams that we may not be able to win against, but we want to be competitive.”
SHSHL Continental Conference Standings
1. Central Bucks South Titans 6 0 0 12
2. Pennridge Rams 5 0 0 10
3. North Penn Knights 3 1 0 6
4. Central Bucks West Bucks 3 2 0 6
5. Central Bucks East Patriots 3 4 0 6
6. Souderton Indians 2 4 0 4
SHSHL National Conference Standings
1. Council Rock South Golden Hawks 5 0 1 10
2. Council Rock North Indians 3 3 1 7
3. William Tennent Panthers 1 5 2 4
4. Neshaminy Redskins 1 4 1 3
5. Truman Tigers 0 2 1 1
6. Pennsbury Falcons 0 7 0 0
SHSHL Varsity ‘AA’ Scoring Leaders
* stats obtained from SHSHL website
Goals/Assists/Points
1. Eric Slater – Pennridge 19 14 33
2. Zac Herman – Council Rock North 15 13 28
3. Matt Stoll – Central Bucks South 15 10 25
4. Matt Meil – Council Rock South 18 5 23
5. Michael Walker – Pennridge 12 11 23
6. Joey DeLaurentis – CB South 16 5 21
7. Reis Braccio – CB South 6 13 19
8. Daniel Guest – Council Rock North 10 8 18
9. Logan Hurwitz – Council Rock South 5 11 16
10. Brandon Simmonds – CR North 4 12 16
SHSHL Varsity ‘AA’ Top Goalies
*stats obtained from SHSHL website
Wins/Saves/Goals Against Average
1. Oscar Levin – CB South 7 126 1.18
2. Mason Procz – CR South 4 91 1.36
3. Luke Stranick – Pennridge 8 196 1.56
4. Tim White – CB South 3 66 1.87
5. Jeremey Kennard – CB West 5 154 3.11
6. Steve Glik – Neshaminy 3 218 3.27
7. Chris Maiden – North Penn 4 83 3.44
‘On Ice’ in the SHSHL Varsity ‘AA’
Wednesday – January 17, 2018
Neshaminy vs. Council Rock South @ Grundy – 7:20 pm
Pennridge vs. Central Bucks South @ Warwick – 8:40 pm
Thursday – January 18, 2018
Central Bucks West vs. Council Rock North @ Grundy – 7:20 pm
Central Bucks South vs. LaSalle II @ Hatfield – 8:30 pm
Pennsbury vs. Upper Moreland @ Wintersport – 8:30 pm
Truman vs. Lower Moreland @ Warwick – 8:45 pm
SHSHL American Conference ‘Snapshot’
Abington Ghosts
Abington head coach Ken Brzozowski and his Ghosts are focused on getting to the postseason this year.
“I feel that you have to set lofty goals for your team,” said Brzozowski. “You want the players to practice hard and execute in the games.
“We not only want to make the postseason in our league, but we want to have an impact on those games in the postseason,” added Brzozowski. “Our final goal is to get a berth in the Flyers Cup at the end of the season – and the players need to have a belief that they belong and can compete at that level.”
The Abington offense has been efficient all season – and the Ghosts have been able to showcase a number of scorers.
Junior Perry Carpenter leads the scoring with 15 goals and 12 assists, senior Nikolai Portner has scored nine goals with 12 assists, junior Gavin O’Donnell has scored seven goals with 10 assists, and junior Elijah Coston has scored three goals with seven assists.
“We have done a very good job of distributing the puck around,” said Brzozowski. “We don’t want to become a team that just has one or two scorers – and our stat line has shown that.”
Abington features four strong defensemen in junior Ryan Gosselin, freshman Colin Bruton, senior Eric Miller, and senior Luke DeCristofano.
The duo of sophomore Jacob Snellenburg and junior Mason Large share the goaltending duties.
“Jacob is a good strong goalie – and he will always give you a good effort,” said Brzozowski. “And Mason is also a nice goalie – we are comfortable with both of them.”
The biggest challenge for Abington down the stretch will be competing with unbeaten Wissahickon.
“We didn’t play well against them the first time,” said Brzozowski. “And we are looking forward to seeing them a second time in the regular season – and hopefully a third time in the postseason.”
SHSHL American Conference Standings
1. Wissahickon Trojans 9 0 0 18
2. Hatboro Horsham Hatters 7 2 0 14
3. Abington Ghosts 6 2 0 12
4. Upper Dublin Cardinals 5 5 0 10
5. Lower Moreland Lions 4 4 0 8
6. Plymouth Whitemarsh Colonials 2 7 0 4
7. New Hope Solebury Lions 1 6 0 2
8. Upper Moreland Bears 0 7 0 0
SHSHL Varsity ‘A’ Scoring Leaders
*stats obtained from SHSHL website
Goals/Assists/Points
1. Bryan Garry – Wissahickon 35 19 54
2. Sean Garry – Wissahickon 25 19 44
3. Ari Nordlinger – Upper Dublin 22 8 30
4. Dean Keller – Plymouth Whitemarsh 23 6 29
5. Perry Carpenter – Abington 15 12 27
6. Colin Franzoni – PW 8 15 23
7. Jacob Mueller – Hatboro Horsham 12 9 21
8. Nikolai Portner – Abington 9 12 21
9. Chris Braun – New Hope Solebury 16 5 21
10. Oren Serafin – Upper Dublin 14 6 20
SHSHL Varsity ‘A’ Top Goalies
*stats obtained from SHSHL website
Wins/Saves/Goals Against
1. Jacob Snellenburg – Abington 5 168 2.67
2. Ryan Bell – Hatboro Horsham 4 116 3.40
3. Michael Henderson – Wissahickon 6 158 4.17
‘On Ice’ in the SHSHL Varsity ‘A’
Wednesday – January 17, 2018
Lower Moreland vs. Plymouth Whitemarsh @ Hatfield – 6:20 pm
Upper Dublin vs. Hatboro-Horsham @ Hatfield – 8:00 pm
Thursday – January 18, 2018
Pennsbury vs. Upper Moreland @ Wintersport – 8:30 pm
Truman vs. Lower Moreland @ Warwick – 8:45 pm
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