PIHL High School Hockey Notebook – Class AA Preview

By: Bruce Markey
Monday, October 15, 2012 | 1:00 PM

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Welcome to another edition of “PIHL Notebook” as we continue out countdown to faceoff on October 29 with a full team-by-team preview. Last week we took you inside every team in Class AAA. This week it’s time for Class AA to take center stage.

The alignment from last season is mostly intact. Latrobe moves from Section 4 to Section 3 in order to make room for Hampton, which joins the former in moving up from Class A after making back-to-back appearances at Consol Energy Center. What other storylines should you keep an eye on? The obvious one will be whether defending champion West Allegheny can possibly repeat after being hit so hard by graduation. Section 2 should again be a hotly contested race, perhaps the best in the entire league. What (and who) else should you pay attention to this season? We have your answers below.

(Teams listed in order of 2011-12 winning percentage)

SOUTHWEST CONFERENCE

SECTION 1:

West Allegheny Indians

2011-12 record: 18-3-0; 1^st Section 1

2011-12 playoffs: Won Penguins Cup; Lost Pennsylvania Cup

Key departures: Jonathan Levitt (27 G, 19 A); Jason Kumpfmiller (16-2-0, 2.65 GAA, 0.890 SV %, 5 SO)

Key projected returns: Patrick Coburn (15 G, 20 A); Matt Grebosky (14 G, 10 A)

The skinny: The group which lost to Latrobe as sophomores in the Penguins Cup Final was able to clear the final hurdle as seniors, taking down surprising Erie Cathedral Prep to capture the gold medals. Whether the Indians can do it again remains to be seen, but a new era begins now, of this much we are certain with 10 players gone. It could be worse, though. Yes, Levitt was the number five scorer in the class for an offense which ranked third (107 GF), and Kumpfmiller led all goaltenders in wins as the defense paced the class (35 GA). On the up side offensively, three of the top five scorers return, including second banana Coburn. Between the pipes, Grant Gerstner was good in limited action (2-1-0, 1.67 GAA, 0.800 SV %), but remains a largely unproven commodity.

Moon Tigers

2011-12 record: 10-10-0; 2^nd Section 1

2011-12 playoffs: Lost in Quarterfinals

Key departures: Josh Kelly (6 G, 9 A); Josh Bioni (8 G, 4 A)

Key projected returns: Alec Coleman (32 G, 18 A); Trevor Handlovitch (20 G, 25 A)

The skinny: The Tigers’ strength was undoubtedly their offense, with 95 goals ranking fifth. This should continue to be Moon’s signature with the top four scorers all back in the lineup, three of whom cracked the classification’s top ten list, including Jake Coleman (12 G, 33 A). Defensively is where this team has work to do since 83 goals allowed placed in the bottom half of the alignment.

North Hills Indians

2011-12 record: 6-15-0; 3^rd Section 1

2011-12 playoffs: Lost in First Round

Key departures: Michael Punzak (12 G, 10 A); Michael Witt (4 G, 3 A)

Key projected returns: Brett Berner (17 G, 21 A); Jake Lydon (10 G, 17 A)

The skinny: The return of North Hills to varsity competition after some successful rebuilding at the JV level may not have gone exactly as planned. Consider just two teams scored fewer goals than the Indians’ 69 while only Franklin Regional allowed more. On the other hand, at least the boys got a taste of the postseason, so there is something to build on, especially with leading scorer Berner being only a sophomore. It’s a young group in general with only four seniors last year, so it’s hopefully onward and upward in ’12-’13.

Montour Spartans

2011-12 record: 4-17-0; 4^th Section 1

2011-12 playoffs: N/A

Key departures: Travis Clark (5 G, 10 A); Christopher Beltz (10 G, 3 A)

Key projected returns: Brian Gerstel (5 G, 5 A); Nick White (4 G, 3 A)

The skinny: On the outside looking in at the playoff bracket is not a position to which this program is accustomed, but last season appears to have been a simple case of losing too much to graduation. The worst offense in the class has to overcome the extra challenge of losing its top two performers while the fourth-worst defense can at least point to youth at the goaltending position as both explanation and reason to hope.

SECTION 2:

Chartiers Valley Colts

2011-12 record: 17-4-0; 1^st Section 2

2011-12 playoffs: Lost in Semifinals

Key departures: Justin Sabilla (53 G, 19 A); Bryan Pustay (9 G, 18 A)

Key projected returns: Anthony Franks (10 G, 21 A); Cullen McMahon (13 G, 16 A)

The skinny: After consecutive appearances at Consol Energy Center, do the Colts have another run in them? The top offense in the class (131 GF) loses over a third of its goal total in scoring champion Sabilla, but also returns three out of four other 20-point getters, including Evegeny Koatsov (16 G, 12 A), who joined the team midseason and ranked second with 2.55 points per game. Despite ranking fourth in the class with 64 goals allowed, Noah Stevenson (12-4-0, 5.30 GAA, 0.794 SV %, 1 SO) needs to improve his GAA and save percentage if he wants his senior year to end with a shot at the gold medal.

Bishop Canevin Crusaders

2011-12 record: 15-5-1; T-2^nd Section 2

2011-12 playoffs: Lost in Quarterfinals

Key departures: Matthew Walsh (28 G, 32 A); Pete Karney (11 G, 20 A)

Key projected returns: Randy Unger (15 G, 22 A); Nikita Meskin (13-3-1, 2.39 GAA, 0.882 SV %)

The skinny: The Crusaders were the only team out of three in the section not to make the Semifinals, but it was not for a lack of talent or effort. Witness the fourth-best offense (106 GF) and third-best defense (56 GA) in the class. Yes, the loss of Walsh, who finished second in the scoring race, will sting, but he was one of only five seniors. After scoring the championship-winning goal in 2011, Unger should be more than capable of helming the offense while Meskin is a bona fide top goalie.

Erie Cathedral Prep Ramblers

2011-12 record: 15-5-1; T-2^nd Section 2

2011-12 playoffs: Lost in Finals

Key departures: Christopher Coombs (26 G, 14 A); Josh Ordos (9 G, 12 A)

Key projected returns: Jimmy Bufalino (28 G, 16 A); Trey Brown (12-3-0, 2.82 GAA, 0.875 SV %, 1 SO)

The skinny: Who saw the Ramblers coming last year? If you were not from Erie and had to bet on a team from Section 2 to skate in the championship game, would you have picked Cathedral Prep? We will leave those as rhetorical questions, but nobody is going to overlook them this time around. Yes, there were 10 seniors in the bunch, but there is plenty of firepower coming back, including top scorer (number eight in the class) Bufalino along with starting backstop Brown. The final statistics ranked the team second in offense (128 GF) and tied with Chartiers Valley defensively.

 

NORTHEAST CONFERENCE

SECTION 3:

Latrobe Wildcats

2011-12 record: 13-7-1; 1^st Section 4

2011-12 playoffs: Lost in Quarterfinals

Key departures: Jacob Koluder (18 G, 16 A); Brandon Harris (21 G, 9 A)

Key projected returns: Josh Singley (15 G, 26 A); Shane Brudnok (13-7-1, 2.14 GAA, 0.898 SV %, 6 SO)

The skinny: Latrobe may no longer be the all-powerful lock to win a championship in Class AA, but the Wildcats are still not a team you want to play when March rolls around. Sixth-best is a not a bad offensive mark at all (92 GF), but defensively is where this bunch really shined with 47 allowed ranking second. Most of that is due to the continued brilliance of Brudnok, who led his fellow starters in GAA, save percentage and shutouts. With he and leading scorer Singley both seniors, expect some extra motivation from both when the puck drops in two weeks.

Gateway Gators

2011-12 record: 9-11-1; 1^st Section 3

2011-12 playoffs: Lost in First Round

Key departures: Troy McAteer (8 G, 12 A); Luke Mandella (8 G, 9 A)

Key projected returns: Jake Dehass (8 G, 19 A); John Kasper (16 G, 6 A)

The skinny: The Gators have work to do, but the pieces are in place. Consider six out of eight 10-point producers are still in the lineup, including the top two in Dehass and Kasper. One would think another year of experience will only mean Gateway can improve on its 76 goals. Preventing goals was the bigger issue with 91 allowed, though Tyler Perhac’s numbers (8-10-1, 4.43 GAA, 0.877 SV %) could have been worse.

Kiski Area Cavaliers

2011-12 record: 3-17-1; 2^nd Section 3

2011-12 playoffs: N/A

Key departures: Brandon Donnelly (14 G, 13 A); Josh Simmons (1 G, 6 A)

Key projected returns: Shawn Welsh (15 G, 7 A); Kevin Kunkle (10 G, 6 A)

The skinny: Obviously things did not go as Kiski Area hoped in moving up to Class AA after winning the 2011 Chiefs Cup. Certainly 70 goals for and 130 allowed are numbers the Cavaliers would like to reverse this season. There is a young foundation to build on, though, with eight of the team’s top 10 scorers back in the lineup. Starting goaltender Benjamin Crawford (3-17-0, 5.81 GAA, 0.809 SV %, 2 SO) could have a much poorer stat line with the high number of goals allowed, but will definitely need to kick it up a notch as a senior.

Franklin Regional Panthers

2011-12 record: 1-20-0; 3^rd Section 3

2011-12 playoffs: N/A

Key departures: Lucas Chiala (16 G, 11 A); Josh Coyne (7 G, 10 A)

Key projected returns: Nicholas Cecere (5 G, 8 A); Austin Avampato (2 G, 4 A)

The skinny: It has been strange to watch the Panthers struggle so mightily in recent seasons after being near the top of Class AA for so many seasons. There is certainly much work to be done after posting the second-worst goal total in the class at 44 and allowing the most. Offensively, the challenge will be replacing the team’s top two scorers. Defensively, perhaps starting from scratch between the pipes will be a good thing with Macioce Richard and Max Zahrobsky both graduating.

SECTION 4:

Hampton Talbots

2011-12 record: 12-4-2; 1^st Section 4-A

2011-12 playoffs: Lost in Semifinals

Key departures: Brian Swain (10 G, 12 A); Rob Pavlik (6 G, 7 A)

Key projected returns: Zach Kosick (18 G, 16 A); Luke Leya (17 G, 17 A)

The skinny: The Talbots move up after several impressive runs in recent years through Class A. Last season was no exception with Hampton ranking sixth offensively (91 GF) and second defensively (38 GA). Leading scorers Kosick and Leya should help keep the red lights turning on for Hampton while Cam Raidna (8-4-2, 2.52 GAA, 0.896 SV %, 2 SO) will do his level best to keep them turned off at the other end following a spectacular freshman year.

Pine-Richland Rams

2011-12 record: 11-9-1; 2^nd Section 4

2011-12 playoffs: Lost in Semifinals

Key departures: Clint Loney (12 G, 30 A); Scott McAliney (21 G, 20 A)

Key projected returns: Dillon Kessy (16 G, 18 A); Ryan Cole (11 G, 17 A)

The skinny: The Rams made a push back toward the top of Class AA last season, tying Bishop Canevin with 106 goals scored. The defense was solid as well with 65 allowed ranking fifth. Leading scorers Loney and McAliney will be missed after placing in the top ten, but guys like Kessy and Cole appear equal to the task of replacing them. As for the goaltending, Brendan Bagnato (4-3-1, 2.87 GAA, 0.850 SV %) will take over as a senior for Chase Takacs (7-6-0, 3.12 GAA, 0.873 SV %).

Plum Mustangs

2011-12 record: 11-10-0; 3^rd Section 4

2011-12 playoffs: Lost in Quarterfinals

Key departures: Jacob Kuhn (7 G, 6 A); Domenico Andreoli (1 G, 6 A)

Key projected returns: Andrew Walters (34 G, 12 A); Jordan Gable (10 G, 20 A)

The skinny: It was a middle-of-the-road campaign for the Mustangs with a record just above .500 and statistics (78 GF, 98 GA) in the bottom half of the bracket. The good news is both leading scorers are back, with Walters having placed fourth in the class, as is starting goalie Taylor Cestra (11-10-0, 4.72 GAA, 0.855 SV %) for his senior year. Speaking of seniors, there were only three on last year’s roster, so if youth breeds optimism, Plum fans should be pumped for the opener.

And with that, we are halfway through our ’12-’13 PIHL season preview. Check back next Monday for a look at the landscape in Class A. Your home for the 2013 Penguins Cup Playoffs is the MSA Sports Network!

Tags: Bishop Canevin, Chartiers Valley, Erie Cathedral Prep, Franklin Regional, Gateway, Hampton, Kiski School, Latrobe, West Allegheny