By Scott Huff
Playoff ice hockey.The hundreds of boisterous fans that packed the stands and around the glass at the Bucks County Ice Sports Center rink paid to see playoff hockey when Lansdale Catholic met Hatboro-Horsham in the third and final game of a three game championship series to decide the Suburban High School Hockey League American Division playoff champion.
Those rabid fans got much more than got their money’s worth as Lansdale Catholic collected the playoff trophy with a 3-1 victory over the regular season SHSHL American Division champion Hatters.
Playoff ice hockey.
The contest was not to be decided until the third period when the Crusaders made the huge plays on both the offensive and defensive ends of the ice to secure the win.
Hatboro-Horsham – which trailed in the game 2-1 after two periods - had two power plays early in the period, but the Hatters could not cash in on either of them despite peppering LC goalie Ben Mills with a flurry of shots on goal.
The very first Crusader offensive surge after the penalty kills resulted in the pivotal goal of the game when freshman Andrew Hart fired a missile into the back of the Hatter net on a gorgeous assist from fellow freshman Anthony Valerio.
Playoff ice hockey.
“I’m almost speechless about the way we played tonight,” said Lansdale Catholic head coach Mark DiDonato. “And for those freshmen to step up and make big plays in the final game of a playoff series was great. They are going to be the leaders for the team next year – if they aren’t already leaders this year.
“We knew winning the playoffs was going to be tough,” added DiDonato. “But I liked the way we played in the first two games, and I knew that we could ride Nick (Sette) in a third game. He is our horse.”
The best-of-three series was played over three consecutive nights – 45 + 45 + 45 + 1 minute of overtime in the first game adds up to a demanding 136 minutes of intense playoff hockey over a 72-hour period.
“I am really tired right now,” smiled Sette who scored a key second period goal for the Crusaders. “If we had lost, though, I would have been exhausted and just collapsed on the ice. We were an overtime loss away from a sweep, and to do that against a team that is as good at Hatboro says a lot about us as a team.”
“This season has been a lot of fun,” said Hart. “I have learned a lot from the upperclassmen, and I hope that we can carry this experience into the Flyers Cup next week.”
Lansdale Catholic will make its first Flyers Cup appearance as the # 19 seed and will face # 14 Archbishop Carroll in a first round game. The contest will be played on Tuesday (3/8/11) at the Skatium with a 7 pm face-off.
Hatboro-Horsham will also participate in the Flyers Cup and will begin play on Wednesday (3/9/11) as the # 12 Hatters will face # 5 West Chester Henderson at the Ice Line Rink with a 6:45 pm face-off.
“Hopefully we can regroup and gain that same intensity we had,” said Hatboro-Horsham head coach Tricia Silvestri. “Tonight was just one of those games – we didn’t get a lucky bounce – and we left too many opportunities to score get away.
“It was an even game, and we gave a great effort,” continued Silverstri. “I can’t complain about the way that we played the game.”
Lansdale Catholic scored the only goal of the first period on a goal by Joe Magarity. The lone assist was awarded to Liam McCorry.
The Crusaders extended the lead to 2-0 in the second period on a goal by Sette, but the Hatters counter punched with their lone goal of the game as Tim Boyle redirected a shot into the net that came off the stick of Harry Nesbitt.
And then came the clinching goal in the third period by Hart after two skillful penalty kills by the Crusaders.
Mills came up big for LC with 23 saves that included eight in the final period. Jimmy Salfiti was solid in goal for the Hatters with 24 saves.
“I was a little concerned about us playing three games in three days,” said DiDonato. “But I guess I didn’t have to worry.”
After all, it was playoff ice hockey.
Score By Periods:
Lansdale Catholic 1 1 1 * 3
Hatboro-Horsham 0 1 0 * 1
First Period:
Lansdale Catholic – Joe Magarity (Liam McCorry)
Second Period:
Lansdale Catholic – Nick Sette (Brendan Curtis & Andrew Hart)
Hatboro-Horsham – Tim Boyle (Harry Nesbitt)
Third Period:
Lansdale Catholic – Hart (Anthony Valerio)
Shots On Goal
Lansdale Catholic – 27.
Hatboro-Horsham – 24.
Saves
LC – Ben Mills – 23.
HH – Jimmy Salfiti – 24.
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