(Photo courtesy of Tracy Valko: https://solsports.zenfolio.com/f833388304
By GORDON GLANTZ
It’s coming down the wire in the SHSHL’s American Division, albeit between Hatboro Horsham (5-3) and Wissahickon (5-2) in the race for second place.
At 6-0, Plymouth Whitemarsh enters the 2025 portion of the season running away with first.
The Colonials, who have outscored their opponents by 32 goals (48-16) thus far, can further solidify their stranglehold with games against Wissahickon this Thursday (8:30, Hatfield Blue) and the Hatters the following Thursday (7:10, Hatfield Gray).
First-year head coach Vince Forti, an eager 30-year-old who was first recruited into the world of coaching by La Salle legend Wally Muehlbronner, was familiar with some of the PW players from coaching club hockey at the Wissahickon Skating Club but otherwise provided a clean slate to the Colonials.
Forti was primarily on the B varsity team of a La Salle squad that won three state titles in four years.
Said Forti: “I cracked the (A) lineup for a couple of games, but even just being in that program at the time, I felt like I was getting the best hockey education that I could possibly get.”
Forti also believes his age helps with relatability to the PW players.
“I think it does, for sure,” he said. “They see me as young enough to relate to, and they are at the age where they are mature enough where I can just have a conversation with them. They kind of get it.”
Forti took over a team that finished first last regular season, fell in the postseason championship and made a quick exit from the Flyers Cup.
Some key players were lost to graduation and transfer, but enough remained that starting this strong was not out of the realm of possibility.
“We’re playing really well right now,” said Forti. “I wouldn’t say that I necessarily expected it, but I knew that we would be competitive, but I honestly can’t say that I expected to go as well as it has gone.”
Forti also knows that the Colonials themselves can still be their own worst enemy in the second half of the season.
“I try to remind them of that,” he said. “They can’t just walk into games and expect them to be easy. Everyone out there wants to be that team that gives us our first loss. I have really been trying to stay on them and remind them that, while confidence is a good thing, you don’t want to get overconfident and take any of these games lightly.
“Once the puck drops, it’s a 50-50 chance of who wins. I just try to remind them to forget any games in the past. Every game is a brand new game. We just have to keep going out there and do the little things.”
Getting Defensive
Individually, Daniel Guller has been lighting it up from the blue line. He went into the holiday break with a team-high 18 points (8 goals, 10 assists) while Ryan Jahger (1 goal, 3 assists) is more of a defensive defenseman that helps to hold down the fort.
Because he is patrolling the blue line with Guller, Forti believes that Jahger is a bit overshadowed.
“He always make the smart, simple play,” said Forti. “He doesn’t try to overdo things.”
Another defenseman getting the job done is Charlie Spouse (3 goals, 3 assists).
“He’s constantly working just at really getting better, which I like,” said Forti. “I actually even notice him out there in games trying to do the things we have been working on in practice.”
Behind them, senior goalie Julian Lucks has been beyond solid, exceeding statistical barometers with a save percentage over .900 (.901) and a goals-against average under 3.00 (2.67).
“I think he has played really well,” said Forti. “He has kept us in a few games so far, where he has given us a chance to win. Even in the games where we didn’t really need him to steal the game for us, he made the saves that he needed to.”
Freshman Sensations
The Colonials have had pair of freshmen – Cooper Kanze and Blake Ambler – who have been stellar thus far in leading the attack.
Each has only appeared in four of the six games, but Kanze has 12 points (7 goals, 5 assists) and Ambler had 10 points (5 goals, 5 assists).
While Forti praised Kanze’s advanced skill level, he pointed to Ambler’s work ethic and discipline.
“He’s just a very smart player who doesn’t try to overdo things and makes simple plays,” said Forti. “He plays at a higher level than you would expect to see for a freshman.”
Supporting Cast
Forti basically plays three lines and goes five deep on the blue line, with smart hockey being the key to a balanced attack.
Among those doing their share are Luke Smith (4 goals, 6 assists), Daniel Molony (7 goals, 2 assists), Brandon Woolridge (3 goals, 6 assists), Ryan Campbell (4 goals, 1 assist), John Zawislak (1 goal, 4 assists) and Morgan Hulitt (1 goal, 4 assists).
“I would say that team chemistry, top to bottom, is one of our biggest strengths,” said Forti. “It has made things even easier on me, so they deserve a lot of credit for that.
“We have a lot of skill to do more at times, but we also have enough hockey IQ to know that you don’t have to do everything every time. That really helps.”
Future Plans
While Forti is preaching to the Colonials that they need to take it a shift at a time and a game at a time, it is difficult to not look ahead.
“I know a lot of the guys who played last year have a bitter tasted in their mouths because they lost in the championship,” said Forti. “That’s obviously a goal.
“After that, there is the Flyers Cup. We just want to be able to go as deep as we can go. But, for now, we’re just focused on the season and just staying ready.”
Minding the Twine
While Lucks has the best save percentage in the American, he is followed in that category by Springfield’s Liam Baskin (3.62 goals against) with a .884 save percentage, Wisshickon’s Fletcher Lynch (4.13 goals against) with a .870 save percentage, Abington’s Matthew Evangelist (6.00) with a .867 save percentage and HH’s Eric Miller (5.34 goals against) with a .849 save percentage.
Hat Tricks
A pair of Hatters – Vincent Graziani (8 goals, 14 assists) and Nathan Nemchinov (10 goals, 10 assists) -- lead the scoring race in the American, while teammates Darius Graziani (8 goals, 9 assists) and Victor Wilkins (12 goals, 3 assists) are behind PW’s Guller.
Leading the circuit in goals, with 13, is Wissahickon’s Benjamin Raebiger. He also has three assists.
Games to Watch
In the National Division, action resumes Thursday as well.
At 7:10, at Hatfield Gray, the puck will drop between Neshaminy (2-6) and CB South (7-2).
At 9, over at Grundy, CB East (3-5) and Pennsbury (4-5) will each looked to make a move in the standings.
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