By Scott Huff
The road to the Flyers Cup Class AA and Class A championships is a nasty traffic jam at best, and with the ‘one-and-done’ format, a horrific accident waiting to happen at worst. And there will 11 Suburban One High School Hockey League teams that will begin that treacherous journey – eight in the Class AA level and three in the Class A level.“The league title used to be what the season was all about, but now the success of your season comes down to the how you do in the Flyers Cup,” said head coach Ken Latchum of the SHSHL Class AA playoff champion Central Bucks East Patriots. “The players were excited to beat Pennsbury for the playoff championship, but as soon as the game was over, they were all talking about the Flyers Cup.”
CB East swept Pennsbury in a three-game SHSHL Class AA championship series, while Lansdale Catholic outlasted Hatboro-Horsham in a three-game Class A series – two games to one – to capture its title.
“We really weren’t too sure that we were going to be invited to the Flyers Cup tournament,” said LC head coach Mark DiDonto as the Crusaders finished behind both Hatboro-Horsham and Upper Dublin in the SHSHL American Division standings. “But once we found out we were invited (on the Sunday before the SHSHL playoffs started), it took some of the pressure off of us and we played a good series against Hatboro-Horsham.”
The 11 SHSHL teams will compete with teams from the Inter-County Scholastic League, the South Jersey Interscholastic Hockey League, the Lehigh Valley Hockey League, and the Central Pennsylvania Interscholastic Hockey League. There were a total of 20 teams selected to compete in the Class AA division, while 20 teams will also compete for the Class A division.
The first puck will be dropped at the Ice Line Rink in West Chester when Neshaminy meets Conestoga on Tuesday.
Tuesday – March 8, 2011
Flyers Cups
Class AA Playoffs
# 15 Conestoga Pioneers (5-5-2) vs. # 18 Neshaminy Redskins (6-9-5) @ Ice Line Rink – 6:30 pm.
Conestoga finished in fourth place in the Central League, while Neshaminy finished in fourth place in the Suburban High School Hockey League National Division.
The Pioneers’ top three scorers are Tim Quinn, Zach Paro, and Doug MacDonald, and the goaltender is Robert Donovan.
The Redskins’ top three scorers are DJ Bell, Jordan Ducko, and Steven Lee – and the Skin goaltender is Collin Mazer.
Prediction: Neshaminy.
#14 Avon Grove (8-7-1) vs. # 19 William Tennent Panthers (7-10-3) @ Ice Line Rink – 6:45 pm
Avon Grove finished the season as the second place team in the Ches-Mont American Division, while William Tennent completed the season as the third place team in the SHSHL National Division.
Avon Grove’s top three scorers are Kyle Daley, Tommy Cooney, and Riley Miller – Logan Reisinger is the goaltender.
The Panthers’ top three scorers are Cameron Goodell, AJ Carbone, and Clint Aussprung – Eric HorroX is THE goaltender.
Prediction: William Tennent.
#13 Downingtown East (8-7-1) vs. # 20 Council Rock North Indians (7-11-2) @ Ice Line Rink – 8:30 pm.
Downingtown East concluded the season as the fifth place finisher in the Ches-Mont National Division while CR North was the fifth place finisher in the SHSHL National Division.
The Whippets' top three scorers are Ryan Urban – the league leader in points – Gordie Lukas, and Dave DeFazio. Brandon Sharp is the goaltender.
The top scorers for the Indians this season were Bobby Dumont, Michael Shander, and AJ Garboski. The Rock North goaltender is Hayden Richards.
Prediction: upset special – Council Rock North
Flyers Cup
Class A Playoffs
# 15 Upper Dublin Flying Cardinals (8-4-0) vs. # 18 Williamstown (10-7-3) @ Bucks County Ice – 7 pm
Upper Dublin was the second place finisher in the SHSHL American Division while Williamstown was the fifth place finisher in the South Jersey Ice Hockey League.
The top scorers this season for the Cardinals were Brian Markman – the league leader - Samuel Etskovitz, and Tyler Peskin – Jack Deragon was the goaltender.
The top scorers for Williamstown were Jonathan Ruiz – the league leader – Jacob Destasio, and Allen Haynes – Troy Altbaum is the goalie.
Prediction: Upper Dublin
# 14 Archbishop Carroll (7-2-4) vs. # 19 Lansdale Catholic Crusaders (7-5-0) @ Skatium – 7:30 pm
Archbishop Carroll finished in second place in the Tri-County League, while Lansdale Catholic – the SHSHL American Division playoff champion – finished the regular season in the third place.
The leading scorers for Carroll this season were Chris McCabe, Brian Hansel, and Michael McGuire. Gage Perchetti is the goaltender.
Lansdale Catholic was led in scoring by Nick Sette, Brendan Curtis, and Anthony Valerio. Ben Mills has been solid in goal for the Crusaders.
Prediction: Lansdale Catholic
Wednesday – March 9, 2011
Flyers Cup – Class AA
# 5 Pennsbury Falcons (12-7-1) vs. # 12 Cherokee –NJ (14-3-3) @ Grundy Ice Rink – 7 pm
Pennsbury reached the SHSHL Class AA finals and finished the regular season in third place in the National Division, while Cherokee was a second place finisher in the South Jersey Scholastic Hockey League – Tier – 1.
The Falcons were led is scoring this season by the SHSHL leading scorer Ken McCormick. Mike Hlatky and Will Richards were also key scorers – Benjamin Herring was the goalkeeper.
The top three goal scorers for Cherokee were Pat Mohnacs, Casey Forte, and Cole Zucker. The net minder for Cherokee is Dan Navarra.
Prediction: Pennsbury
# 8 North Penn Knights (10-6-4) vs. # 9 Parkland Trojans (12-0) @ Hatfield Ice – 7 pm
North Penn completed the SHSHL Continental Division as the third place team while Parkland was unbeaten in the Lehigh Valley Scholastic League and earned the league title.
The Knights’ top three scorers included Jimmy McKelvie – who led the SHSHL Continental Conference in scoring – Dave Heggan, and Caleb Witzaney. The North Penn net minder is Cody Matthews.
The Trojans’ top trio of scorers was Daniel Plinke, Daniel Barnaby, and Dylan Rzonca. The goaltender for Parkland is Jordan Potosky.
Prediction: North Penn
Flyers Cup – Class A
# 5 West Chester Henderson Warriors (10-5-1) vs. # 12 Hatboro-Horsham Hatters (8-3-1) @ Ice Line – 6:45 pm
West Chester Henderson was the third place finisher in the Ches-Mont National Division, while Hatboro-Horsham was the regular season champion in the SHSHL American Division.
The Warriors are led in scoring by Cory Daszkiewicz, Eric Carreras, and Justin Knisely. The WCH goalie is Danielle Speroff.
The top three Hatters in scoring this season were Manny Billones, Patrick Durkin, and Tim Boyle. The Hatboro-Horsham goaltender is Jimmy Salfiti.
Prediction: Hatboro-Horsham
Thursday – March 10, 2011
Flyers Cup
Class AA
# 1 Council Rock South Golden Hawks (18-1-1) vs. winner of # 16 Perkiomen Valley (9-9-2)/ # 17 Haverford (5-6-1) @ Bucks County Ice – 7 pm
Council Rock South was the champion of the SHSHL National Division. Perkiomen Valley was the first place team in the Ches-Mont American Division, while Haverford was the fifth place finisher in the Central League.
The Golden Hawks were led in scoring this season by Patrick Grille, while Steve Junod and Nick Keck also finished in the top three scorers. Steve Jastrow is the goal tender for CR South.
The top scorers for Perk Valley were Andre Clifford, Read Bohon, and Ryan Kasiarz – Dustin Jagiela is the net minder for the Vikings. The top scorers for Haverford were Ryan Ferrill, Vince Pantalone, and Keith Vincent – Christopher Treat is the goal tender for the Fords.
Prediction: Council Rock South
# 2 Central Bucks East Patriots (17-3-0) vs winner of # 15 Conestoga (5-5-2)/ # 18 Neshaminy (6-9-5) @ Warwick Ice Arena – 7 pm.
Central Bucks East was the SHSHL Class AA playoff champion sweeping Pennsbury in a three-game series. Conestoga finished fourth in the Central League, while Neshaminy finished fourth in the SHSHL National Division.
The Patriots were led in scoring by Tom Schloendorn, Mike Palmer, and Austin Cinalli. Justin Golia is the goalie for CB East.
The leading scorer for Conestoga is Tim Quinn while DJ Bell is the top scorer for the Skins. Robert Donovan tends goal for the Pioneers while Collin Mazer tends the goal for Neshaminy.
Prediction: Central Bucks East
# 4 Central Bucks South Titans (12-5-3) vs. winner of # 13 Downingtown East (8-7-1) / Council Rock North (7-11-2) @ Bucks County Ice – 8:45 pm
Central Bucks South was the second place finisher in the SHSHL Continental Division, while East took fifth place in the Ches-Mont National – and North finished fifth in the SHSHL National Division.
The Titans were led is scoring this season by Tom Dougherty, while Connor Bechtel and Nick Delaurentis followed Dougherty in points. Dennis Ruff is the goalie for CB South.
Ryan Urban led the Ches-Mont National is scoring to lead East while Bobby Dumont led the Indians in scoring. Brandon Sharp is the goalie for the Whippets while Hayden Richards is the last line of defense for Rock North.
Prediction: Central Bucks South
Suburban One Sports.com
SHSHL Top Ten
1. Council Rock South Golden Hawks
2. Central Bucks East Patriots
3. Pennsbury Falcons
4. Central Bucks South Titans
5. North Penn Knights
6. Lansdale Catholic Crusaders
7. William Tennent Panthers
8. Hatboro-Horsham Hatters
9. Neshaminy Redskins
10. Upper Dublin Flying Cardinals
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