By GORDON GLANTZ
A cursory look at the SHSHL American standings shows Springfield with a 3-8 record heading into its Wednesday night meeting with Hatboro-Horsham (9 p.m., Hatfield Blue).
A deeper dive reveals a different story for the Spartans, who now seem cemented in fourth place and firmly out of playoff contention.
Of their eight setbacks, the Spartans have lost three by one goal and four by two goals.
While it has been disappointing for a team that came on strong at the end of last season and was hoping to be in the Flyers Cup conversation this year, second-year coach Don Quinn has no complaints about his team’s effort level.
The puck – as pucks are prone to do – just hasn’t bounced his team’s way.
“We are definitely a different team than we have been in the past,” he said. “Our goal is to always be competitive, and we have been. Unfortunately, though, we have just ended up on the wrong side of the scoreboard for a lot of those games. While we are headed in the right direction, we just need to figure out a way to get over the hump in those games.
“We have had our opportunities. A lot of those games have gone down to the last whistle. We gave up an empty net goal in one of the games. We definitely had chances to win all those games. We just keep on falling short.”
Spoiler Alert
While neither the playoffs nor the Flyers Cup seem attainable for the senior-heavy Spartans, they have chance to play spoiler by theoretically derailing either the hopes of Hatboro Horsham or Wissahickon of getting Flyers Cup bids.
“We have to keep plugging away,” said Quinn. “Hopefully, things change for us in these last couple of games.
“We have a busy week, we have Hatboro Horsham Wednesday and then Wissahickon on Friday.”
Quinn believes his team understands both realities – that they are not looking a postseason but are better than the record shows.
“We’re trying,” he said. “It’s just really simple. We have to score more goals than the other team.
“They are still battling. I think they realize they are in a lot of these games. We have had a lot of conversations about staying focused and staying the course. If we can just do a few things differently, who knows? We have had opportunities, but then something happens -- the puck bounces, we hold the stick too tight, we go offsides. We are right there. We have just got to keep on plugging way, because we are right there.”
Been There, Done That
One reason Quinn is not worried about overall letdown is the team’s experience level.
“I think everyone is still confident,” he said. “We are a senior-led team. We have 10 seniors this year. It’s not like they are young and not knowing what to do.
“It’s really just a matter of having it bounce the right way.”
Still, in the big picture, the Spartans are well-beyond the fledgling program they were a few years back.
That’s a positive.
“When I first took over the team, all I wanted to do was make the team competitive,” said Quinn. “We have accomplished that. Now, we just have to figure out how to win.
“It’s not on just one person. It’s as a team. We have to individually do our jobs, and get a win instead of a close loss. I’m still confident that we will.”
Leading the Way
Quinn has two sons on the team – Owen and Grayson – and Owen Quinn, despite playing defense, drives the Spartan offense with a team-high 20 points (9 goals, 11 assists).
“He is kind of the anchor of our team,” said the coach. “He and Chris Cahill (5 goals, 6 assists) are the captains and our clear leaders. How they go is how we go.”
As for the elder Quinn generating so much offense from the blue line, it has been by design.
“He carries the puck well,” said the coach, adding his son is most likely going to continue playing at the club level in college (West Chester, IUP or Kutztown). “He really contributes, offensively. His stats show that he can score goals and also distribute the puck.
“Having a balanced attack really gives us our best chance to win games. He does a lot for the team, both offensively and defensively.”
Another senior, Randy Franklin (1 goal, 3 assists) has been an interesting case study in perseverance.
“He just started playing hockey,” said Quinn. “When he gets the opportunities, he contributes. He has also been a great teammate, and a great leader for the team. I wish he was playing hockey since was 5 years old, but he gives me everything he’s got every shift that he gets.”
‘Transit’ Stoppers
Two other seniors are goalies Liam Baskin and James “Jack” Sarsfield, who have shared the crease for the Spartans.
Baskin (3-2 on the season) has a 3.55 goals against average and an .875 save percentage. Sarsfield (0-6) has a 4.82 goals against average and an .854 save percentage.
“They are both ‘transition-to-goalie’ guys for us because we didn’t really have anyone,” said Quinn. “Just two years ago, they both started playing goalie, so they have come a long way and have really done a great job of keeping us in games. Without them, we wouldn’t even have a team, so a huge thanks to both of them.”
While both goalies are moving on, Quinn feels he has a plan in place going forward.
“We have an incoming goalie next year,” he said. “He will be a freshman. We are still working in the school to potentially get a sophomore or a junior to do a similar thing that Jack and Liam did for us, just so that we have another body who can contribute as a goaltender.”
D is the Key
The Owen Quinn-led defensive corps is a big reason why the games have been tight, albeit on the wrong side of the ledger most nights.
Overall, for the season, the Spartans have 43 goals for and 46 against.
“His presence, along with our other defensemen, have helped to keep the shots-against totals down,” said Quinn. “Last year, we were giving up a lot of shots and a lot of more goals. I think our goal differential has been a lot more improved this year. It really has a lot to do with our defensemen.
“If you were to tell me last year that we were only going to give up 3-5 goals per game this year, I would think we would have a lot more wins than we do. Our defense and our goaltending have both improved, but we keep on finding ourselves on the wrong end of those one- and two-goal games.”
Looking Ahead
Grayson Quinn (6 goals, 3 assists) will headline the returning nucleus that also includes Kellen Warman (5 goals, 3 assists) and Gavin McManus (7 goals, 3 assists).
“They are all juniors now, we are going to really look for them to take the reins and be the leaders on this team,” said Quinn. “Even though we have 10 seniors, we also have a good junior class and we have had some freshmen come in and help us this year. We have a freshman, a defenseman in John Barr (1 goal, 4 assists), who has really helped us out on the back end. We also have some middle school players coming into the fold next year.
“We are in good shape as far as numbers go, and we have gotten contributions from our younger players also. I still think the future is bright.”
One intriguing returning player will be Mathilde “Tillie” Boccella, one of the circuit’s few female players.
“She is a freshman, and she scored her first goal of the season against Abington a couple games ago,” said Quinn. “She has an older brother, Felix Boccella (1 assist), who is a senior defenseman.”
Breaking the Logjam
The top of the standings in the unforgiving National Division had some noticeable movement last week when Council Rock South used a tight 5-3 win over upset-minded Pennsbury (5-8) to put a further stranglehold on first place at 13-0.
North Penn (12-2) skated into second place with an 11-2 win over CB West, while CB South used its third straight one-goal win – 4-3 over Pennridge -- to improve to 11-2. The Rams dropped to 9-4.
CB South coach Shaun McGinty attributes the tight wins to a team-first mentality.
“The boys are playing a consistent team game,” he said. “Everyone is putting the team first and has the mentality that the only thing that matters is the W.
“The boys are playing for each other. It’s a tight group of players. They want to see each other succeed and everyone has accepted their role.”
The stage is now set for some vital games Wednesday, as CB South and Council Rock South tangle at 7:20 (Grundy B) while North Penn and Pennridge collide at 8:30 (Hatfield Blue).
The last time Pennridge and North Penn played on Dec. 19, the Knights dominated the Rams, 5-0, and outshot them, 51-17.
Redemption is the word that comes to mind.
“For us, it’s a bit of a statement game,” said Pennridge coach Jeff Montagna. “It has been a long time since somebody dominated us the way that they did and it was an awful feeling.
“I want us to grow from that game and respond accordingly. Sometimes, it’s the best thing that can happen to a team.”
This week’s key encounters in the upper echelon of the National division can pretty much be considered pre-playoff games, and will have that atmosphere in the air.
That is fine with McGinty.
“We have shown the compete level needed for playoffs and the Flyers Cup,” he said. “We need to hit our stride at the right time. The boys will continue to take things one shift at a time. It’s a game within a game.”
Down the Stretch
The race for the scoring title in the National remains up for grabs, with CR South’s Jeremy Rayher (24 goals, 22 assists, 46 points) fending off Pennridge’s Shane Dachowski (26 goals, 19 assists, 45 points) and North Penn’s Cole Pluck (18 goals, 25 assists, 43 points.
Within striking distance are CR South’s Jake Weiner (a league-best 25 goals, 12 assists, 39 points) and Jackson Accardi (23 goals, 15 assists, 38 points) of CR North.
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