By GORDON GLANTZ
By week’s end, a somewhat muddled SHSHL playoff pictured in both the American and National Divisions will have more clarity, as several key games are about to go down.
High noon will come at 9 p.m. at Hatfield Gray Wednesday when Plymouth Whitemarsh (12-2) faces off with Hatboro Horsham (12-1).
The regular season title, and a first-round bye, are pretty much up for grabs – but only after a strange twist of fate.
When HH sustained its only loss – in overtime, 8-7, to Wissahickon on Jan. 29 – it seemed to clear a path for PW.
But the Hatters bounced back with a 5-4 win over PW on Feb. 5 that is still fresh in the minds of the Colonials for this week’s pending rematch.
In the previous two matchups, PW scored a 5-3 decision back on Dec. 3 but HH responded with a 7-3 win two nights later.
Round and round it goes. Where it will end up? We’ll know when the clock hits zero Wednesday.
“Yes, it’s a good matchup, and they are a good team,” said PW coach Vince Forti, who felt the most recent meeting was there for the taking.
Forti added it was just a matter of seizing opportunities and the bounce of the puck, which can be a force of nature unto itself.
“I thought we played well for most of the game, but didn’t capitalize on a few chances,” said Forti. “Unfortunately, for us, they capitalized on theirs. We’re looking forward to another good but tough matchup against them this week.”
From the H-H point of a view, a 2-1 nonleague win over Kennett, a few days after losing to Wissahickon but before bouncing back to top their bitter rival, was a needed confidence boost.
“Yeah, that Kennett win was huge for us, especially coming off that Wissahickon upset,” said Hatters’ coach Shane Smith. “I think it helped us to get back on track and reset the team.
“We know we have to go through PW to try and get that first-round bye. If we both make it to the championship, we know it’s going to be a fun one.”
Turning Up the Heat
It may feel like the Ice Age outside recently, but the heat is on over in the National Division.
Second place – and a subsequent bye – can pretty much be secured by Council Rock South (12-2) with a win over Central Bucks South (10-3) Wednesday (7:20, Grundy B), but a win by the Titans could make it interesting heading into the final week.
In a prior meeting back on Nov. 12, the Hawks picked up a 3-0 win.
While the playoff odds for Souderton are slim, a glimmer of hope remains.
“We would need Pennridge or (Central Bucks East) to lose out,” said Souderton coach Ryan Uchniat, whose team is 4-8 and is paced by Max Ryon, who has 31 points (18 goals, 13 assists) on the season.
Uchniat’s troops will take on Central Bucks West Tuesday (8:30, Hatfield Gray). Assuming a win there, the chance to improve their odds will come Thursday (8:30, Hatfield Blue) against the Patriots, who are 6-7-1.
When they played before, all the way back on Nov. 5, the Patriots were able to record a 7-4 win.
The following night, Pennridge (5-7) will take on defending Flyers Cup and AA state champion North Penn (7:20, Hatfield Gray), which is unblemished thus far through 14 league games.
With a first-round bye locked down, an undefeated regular season gives the Knights an immediate goal while larger aims loom on the horizon.
“It’s an interesting question,” said North Penn coach Kevin Vaitis. “It’s something that has honestly not come up at all.”
Vaitis said the mantra of “one game at a time” continues to take hold.
“We are solely focused on getting better from game to game to prepare ourselves for postseason play,” he said. “We have lost a few non-league games, but that’s been good for us. We learned from losing those games and from mistakes we can’t make in the future.
“We have two (league) games left. If we are able to win both of those games and finish undefeated, that would be great, we know there are bigger things we are focused on with the league championship, Flyers Cup and state championship.”
Looking for the Elusive W
A cross-division game worth noting will be Thursday (8:50, Hatfield Gray), when the last place teams in each division – Abington and C.B. West – will be looking for their first wins.
“We’re excited for it,” said C.B. West coach Frank Blust. “It should be a good matchup for us and let us see how we’ve grown and improved throughout the year.
“I know both teams have had a tough season, and are hoping for a good matchup.”
It is worth noting that two of the widely acknowledged and respected top goalies in the league, Abington’s Matt Evangelist and C.B. West’s Isaac Mays, will be on display.
Evangelist has an .876 save percentage, while Mays has an equally impressive .866 save percentage.
Scoring Races
As the regular season winds down, it is worth taking a closer look at the scoring races.
In the National Division, Pennsbury’s Shane Gleisner is leading the way with 52 points (35 goals, 17 assists).
He is followed by North Penn’s Sam Norton, who has 43 points (19 goals, 24 assists) and Council Rock’s South’s all-time scoring leader Jake Weiner, who has 40 points (29 goals, 11 assists).
Next on the docket are North Penn’s Chris Silvotti (18 goals, 16 assists for 34 points) and Nolan Shingle (17 goals, 16 assists for 33 points).
C.B. South’s Ryan Frey also has 33 points (14 goals, 19 assists).
Over in the American Division’s scoring race, HH’s Vince Graziani leads the way with 49 points (26 goals, 23 assists).
He is followed by PW’s Daniel Guller, who has 44 points (13 goals and a division-high 31 assists) and HH’s Nathan Nemchinov (40 points on 21 goals and 19 assists).
Flyers Cup Power Rankings
In the most recent edition of the Flyers Cup power rankings, North Penn is first in Class AA and Council Rock is second.
They are followed by Boyertown, Conestoga and Owen J. Roberts.
In A, Hatboro Horsham is fifth. Curiously, Kennett is three slots above at No. 2.
Hershey is ranked first, Penncrest third and Marple Newtown fourth.
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