(Photo courtesy of Tracy Valko. To view game action photos, click on the following link: https://solsports.zenfolio.com/f1064915949 )
By Ben Reese
HATFIELD — As the Suburban High School Hockey League schedule nears the end of the regular season, teams are jockeying for a position in the upcoming playoffs.
That makes every game important.
Central Bucks South and Central Bucks East played one of those very important games on Friday night. The Titans came away with a hard-fought 2-1 victory over the Patriots.
It is difficult to call any game a must-win but, well, this was a must-win situation for both teams. With only six teams qualifying for the SHSHL playoffs, those two points can go a long way to securing a spot.
The top four teams in the standings — Council Rock South, Pennridge, Pennsbury and Neshaminy — are pretty secure in their spots. It is the final two slots that are up for grabs.
And CB South and CB East are two of the teams in the running. Council Rock North is the other one.
So, yes, this was a must-win for both teams.
“It was (a must-win) not only for the playoffs and not only for the seedings but also for the mentality of our guys,” said South assistant coach Tyler Skroski, subbing for head coach Shaun McGinty. “We’ve struggled the past few games.
“We needed this one to give them confidence. A couple of points helps too.”
Those two points jumped the Titans over the Patriots into the fifth playoff spot with 10 points. It also left the Patriots one point behind the Titans and one point ahead of Rock North.
East coach Jeff Mitchell acknowledged the importance of Friday’s contest.
“Especially the way the seedings are for the playoffs,” he said. “Everybody’s kind of neck and neck.
“We couldn’t afford to drop this one tonight. Luckily, we have a tie which is giving us somewhat of a chance. Tonight was the night to try to solidify a spot. We just fell a little short.”
The players also knew this was a big game. They were cognizant of its importance.
“We definitely had to win coming in,” said winning South goalie Dominic Varacallo. “It was a huge game for us.
“We did what we had to do. We got in and got the win.”
Did you fell any additional pressure coming into the game, Dominic?
“There definitely is pressure being the goalie,” he explained. “You just have to play through it and do the best you can.”
Well, obviously, Varacallo’s best was very good. He allowed only one goal and kicked aside 24 other shots. In fact, he had a shutout going until the 4:27 mark of the third period when Patrick O’Brien scored the lone East goal.
South did all of its goal-scoring damage in the second period. In that period alone, the Titans outshot East 13-6 and scored twice.
Aidan Linso notched the first goal of the game for South, beating Patriots’ goalie Matt Mangiacapre with 6:03 gone in the second period. Aydin Thierolf scored the second goal 2:35 later to give the Titans a 2-0 lead.
“Our second period opened up really well,” said Skroski. “The shot margin had widened a lot.
“Our offensive pressure really dominated. When we can roll four lines as we did tonight, we’re a hard team to stop.”
East came back hard in the third period. Not only did the Patriots score a goal but they also outshot South 12-8 in the period.
“We came out a little lackluster to start,” said Mitchell. “We started on our heels a little bit; it’s our third game of the week.
“I love how we showed resilience at the end. We killed a 5-3 with a major penalty right at the beginning of the game, but we kept shooting ourselves in the foot with a couple penalties.”
With only a week left in the regular season, this race should go right down to the wire. It could be a very interesting week.
CB South 2, CB East 1
CB East 0 0 1 — 1
CB South 0 2 0 — 2
First period: No scoring.
Second period: 1, Aidan Linso CBS (Keith Waldron) 6:03; 2, Aydin Thierolf CBS (Colin Mendham) 8:38.
Third period: 3, Patrick O’Brien CBE (Stephen DiRugeris) 4:27.
Shots: CBE 25, CBS 35. Saves: Matt Mangiacapre (CBE) 33, Dominic Varacallo (CBS) 24.
- Log in to post comments
