Council Rock North, North Penn & Quakertown are featured in this week’s SHSHL notebook.
By Craig Ostroff
Dedication, chemistry paying off quickly for Council Rock North
First-year head coach Greg McDonald set the tone from the very first practice.
This might have been Council Rock North’s first year back in the SHSHL after spending the last three years ineligible for varsity play, but that didn’t mean the Indians were looking to start from scratch.
“I go back to the first night of evaluations,” McDonald said. “The vibe at the first practice was like, hey coach, we’re not going to have a ton of expectations, we’re going to have fun. And we want them to have fun, but we made it clear the first night, this is not just something you do when you want to do it. We’re a varsity hockey team and the goal is to be committed to it and get better and win and play until you can’t play any more.”
And if McDonald laid down the groundwork for the season on that night, it was Karson Grainey and Jackson Accardi who set the tone for the rest of the team to follow. Grainey, a sophomore, quickly established himself as one of the top scoring threats in the SHSHL. Heading into the final week of the regular season, Grainey has overwhelmed opposing goalkeepers and finds himself among the league leaders in goals (25, third place in the league) and points (38, fifth place).
“Karson’s been huge for us,” McDonald said. “He’s been a guy we lean on. He can create his own scoring opportunities, and he’s so pure about it, so smooth with his shot. We had him at center, and that gave us some time to let other forwards figure things out and start scoring consistently. Once we had that, we were able to move him to wing, so now it’s about letting Karson just get the puck where he’s most dangerous and not start low in the D zone.”
“One of the biggest things for me and Karson was knowing how and when to connect—and we as coaches have been working all season on finding how and when to connect with every player on an individual basis. Karson is a guy with such high expectations. He thinks every time that puck’s on his stick, he should score. But he’s also very coachable, I have no hesitations in talking to him and being honest, and I know he’s going to take it to heart and learn from it.”
In Accardi, the Indians have a very uncommon asset—a freshman defenseman who can match up with many upperclassmen in terms of size and strength. Measuring 6-1 and around 180 pounds, Accardi knows how to use his size and strength to his advantage.
He can also make magic at the other end of the ice. Accardi is second on the team with 15 goals and third with 22 points.
“Jackson is super-consistent, he drives the practice pace really well,” McDonald said. “When you go into games, he’s a beast—he’s strong, powerful, but he’s got just enough finesse where he can make one or two people miss, he can take those shots and still get back.
“He’s a big body out there, and he’s powerful. I haven’t seen him outmatched yet as far as the physical side. He’s great in the corners, on the rush, he transitions nicely, uses size when he has to, and that makes him play even bigger. And he’s a smart kid on the ice.”
And others have followed suit. Nick Hahn has powered in 13 points over the team’s last five games to boost his totals to 10 goals, 18 assists, and 28 points. Wilton Pasch has 13 points, Jackson Mosley (6G, 7A, 13P) has 9 points in his last four games including two 3-point efforts, and Lucas Siomos (3G, 7A, 10P) has 7 points over his last four games.
And after a 1-4 start to the season, the Indians turned things around quickly. Coming into its regular season finale, North has won 6 of their last 8 games (among them victories over Central Bucks East, Neshaminy, and Plymouth Whitemarsh), bringing its National Division record to 4-5 (7-6 overall). Currently fourth in the division, their 8 points are enough to earn the squad a berth in next week’s SHSHL playoffs.
Not bad for a group of players who come out three months ago just looking to have some fun this year.
“What we’ve been able to do is stay together,” McDonald said. “We had a bumpy start, we rode it out. Being a young team, there were definitely things we learned from. Despite being a younger team, we saw maturity and we saw guys leaning into their roles.
“I like the scoreboard to be the result of a lot of things—it’s not about winning, winning, winning, but if you do all the little things correctly and you’re smart and have the drive and work ethic, it’s going to show up on the scoreboard. And after what we’ve been through this season, the fact that we’re talking about still playing, I’m happy for the boys. When you’re doing well, there’s a pride in the school, and I’m happy the kids get to have that kind of school spirit and feel good about the team.”
Knights learn and look ahead
It’s no understatement to say that the North Penn ice hockey team skated in some unfamiliar territory this season.
Traditionally a division title contender and standard postseason presence, the Knights struggled through an uncharacteristically difficult season. The Knights managed only a single victory and finished the slate on a 10-game slide en route to a 0-10-0 record in the Continental Division, 1-13-0 overall.
But success is measured in more than overall records. And while victories were hard to come by this season, the Knights proved to be competitive in a majority of their games. Of their 13 losses, nine were by 3 or fewer goals despite a schedule packed with league powerhouses and several legitimate Flyers Cup contenders.
“It’s obviously been a frustrating year for us,” said North Penn coach Kevin Vaitis. “But I think when we look from game to game, we can find bits and pieces from every game that we can take and look to build upon. We played Pennsbury (on Feb. 9), and in the newest Flyers Cup rankings, they’re number 5, and we had them at 3-3 with 2 minutes left in the game. I’ve got to give credit to the team, they continue to work and push through it. We fight our way back into some of these games, but sometimes the mistakes catch up with you.”
“The team has been resilient, they continue to work hard and pick each other up, and push through it. We’ve been able to claw back into some of these games and make it competitive.”
And just because the Knights didn’t win a lot of games, that doesn’t mean there aren’t numerous players who stood out and stepped up throughout the season.
“Justin Yothers and Ben Mostochuck - those two have been instrumental in trying to maintain our focus,” Vaitis said. “Every game, you watch their level of effort and they’re always playing at a high level.
“The other person who’s been a tremendous leader as far as setting the tone is Nick Ebbinghaus, our goalie. In most of our games, possibly every game, we’ve been outshot. The fact that most of them have been competitive games, a lot of that credit goes to his play in net throughout the season.”
And there are numerous younger players who have started to find their roles and made significant contributions throughout the season. They’ll be back bigger, stronger, and more skilled next season.
“John Stinson (5G, 3A, 8P) I would add to that mix,” Vaitis said. “Derek Delong has impressed us recently with some of his play. Both of them get more and more confident in every game they play. These are the things we can build upon next season.
“Ebbinghaus was out for a few games, and Nick Christ jumped in and filled in, and this is only his second year playing ice hockey for North Penn. He was playing JV, but he stepped in and payed great in games he had to fill in. He’s a guy we expect will have an impact next year.”
Cole Pluck and Joey Silvotti have also stepped up throughout the year and will be looked upon to take the next step in their development next season.
Should the returning Knights take those steps and learn from this year, it will likely go a long way toward the Knights putting this season in the rear view mirror and regaining their swagger.
“Our goal is always to complete for the league championship, the Flyers Cup,” Vaitis said. “This is the first time in my 13 years here that we’re not going to make the Flyers Cup or the playoffs. It’s been a challenging year for us. I’d be lying if I didn’t say we’re disappointed, but the team has been able to learn some life lessons along the way, they’re learning to work hard battling adversity and learning how to push through it and come out better as a result of it.
“I’m definitely liking the direction where we’re going. There are a couple young players coming up from the middle school team, and we’ve got a good group of varsity players looking to take that next step next year.”
Panthers a team on the rise
In its first year as a varsity club in the SHSHL, Quakertown struggled to a 2-13-1 record, finishing last in the Continental Division with just one league victory. A move into the American Division last season didn’t change the Panthers’ fortunes much, as the team finished in the basement with a 1-10-0-1 record.
Now in its third season, the Panthers’ fortunes have changed dramatically.
With seven wins heading into their final game of the regular season, the Panthers have already more than doubled their combined win totals from the past two years. They’ve secured a winning record in the American Division, and their 7-5 division record will push the team into its first SHSHL Class A playoffs.
And with an infusion of young talent that is only going to get bigger, stronger, and more talented, it seems more than likely that Quakertown will have its eye on the top of the division over the next several years.
“It’s been fantastic, a lot of fun this year to coach,” said Quakertown coach Keith Krem. “You can see the team buying in. Good leadership is the first step, everyone had to do their part, and everyone has stepped up. Anthony (Pagliei) is our leader, our captain, but you don’t just see Anthony on the scoresheets, you’re seeing everybody get involved in the game. From the goalkeeper to the scorers, everyone is doing their part.”
It hasn’t come easy, though. The Panthers opened the season with just one win in their first six games.
With a young team, Quakertown could have thrown in the towel. Instead, the veteran players continued to push through and show the younger players what they needed to do to turn around the season.
And the younger kids responded.
“Things really flipped in December,” Krem said. “You could see the buy-in, and we’re now seeing that consistency we need for things to be successful. Almost half our team is freshmen and sophomores, so we needed them to contribute to be successful. This can be a learning year where guys are in over their heads and are intimidated by playing 17-, 18-year olds, or they can take the challenge head on and not get intimidated.
“Anthony’s leadership set the methodology we wanted for the team. Anthony may be the leader, but the younger kids are following suit and they’re contributing and leading as well. We don’t have success this year if the young guys don’t step up.”
Branden McNally (6G, 6A, 12P) and Corbin Cassel (4G, 2A, 6P) have proven to be solid additions to the offense. Josh Tolchin, Kevin Flynn, and Braden Bishop are three steady freshman defenders, who will continue to anchor the blue line for the next several years. Sophomore Matthew Krem has taken over goaltending duties this season and has been a steadying presence in the crease.
“We’ve got three core defensemen, a nice young goalkeeper,” coach Krem said. “The hardest thing to solve finding a goalie and defense, so we’ve got a nice young core to build around. And McNally and Corbin are goal scorers, so we have all three. We should be able to add pieces around that and find ways to be successful here.”
They don’t need to wait, either. The Panthers earned the fourth seed in the American Division playoffs. They will take on top seed Abington on Feb. 24 as part of a division playoff doubleheader. The Ghosts hold two wins over Quakertown this season, but Krem believes if the team can limit Abington’s shot totals, they can compete with the top seed.
“We had one blowout all year, and that was to Wissahickon, then we beat them up the second time around,” Krem said. “We have a good offense, but we haven’t been able to get it going to the level we want it to against the top of the division. We want to get the shot count down, if we can keep it into that 30-40 range and can put some pucks in the net, we have a shot to make some things happen.
“I think a lot of people are pretty surprised we’re in the playoffs. When you exceed expectations, there’s some pressure that’s off. This is Abington’s game to lose, and it’s ours to win. That puts us in a nice spot where we feel like the pressure is on Abington, not on us. We’ve got to go in and play our game and make good things happen.
“But the bottom line is, we’re happy we’ve had the season we have, but we’re not just happy to be there. We’re coming to play and give them a hockey game.”
SHSHL playoff schedule
While we wait for the end of the season to lock down the seeding, times and locations for the SHSHL playoffs are already set.
The National/Continental Division playoffs begin on Feb. 23 with the following games:
Seed 1 vs Seed 8; 7:50 pm, Warwick
Seed 2 vs Seed 7; 7:20 pm, Hatfield
Seed 3 vs Seed 6; 7:20 pm, Grundy
Seed 4 vs Seed 5; 8:30 pm, Hatfield
Semifinals will be held on March 2:
Seed 1/8 winner vs Seed 4/5 winner; 7:10 pm, Hatfield
Seed 2/7 winner vs Seed 3/6 winner; 7:50 pm, Warwick
The championship game will be played March 3 at 7:10 pm at Hatfield.
Four teams will advance to the American Division playoffs, with the seeds set. The semifinals will be held on Feb. 24 with a doubleheader at Hatfield:
Abington (1) vs Quakertown (4); 7:10 pm
Plymouth Whitemarsh (2) vs Wissahickon (3); 8:50 pm
The final will be held March 3 at 8:30 pm at Hatfield.
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