Franklin Regional hockey looking to finish strong after slow start

By: Paul Schofield
Saturday, January 13, 2024 | 11:01 AM

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Franklin Regional’s hockey team has made runs at the PIHL Class 2A titles the past few seasons, and the Panthers have their eyes set on another trek to the postseason.

After a 1-4 start to the 2023-24 season, the Panthers have turned things around and won seven of the past nine games.

Now they want to make their big push.

“We want to win out,” Franklin Regional coach John Winebrenner said after the Panthers rallied to defeat Norwin, 6-4, on Jan. 8. “Getting this win was huge.”

Franklin Regional spotted Norwin a 2-0 first period lead as the Knights’ Alex Thomas scored twice. Thomas was looking for a first-period hat trick, but Panthers’ goaltender Grant Novotny denied him.

The big save gave the Panthers’ offense some momentum going into the second period.

The Panthers got goals from four different players — Casey Schraeder, Jackson Falkner, Brendan Yohe and Max Rutkowski — to grab a 4-2 lead.

They carried a 4-3 advantage into the third period and, with Norwin on the power play, Luke Anderchak got behind the Knights’ defense to score a shorthanded goal.

But Norwin, which lost to the Panthers, 12-0, earlier this season, got a goal from Dom Cerilli to make it 5-4. The Knights thought they had tied the score, but Thomas’ shot hit the post.

Moments later, Rutkowski took a pass down the left side and scored a game-sealing goal.

The win gave the Panthers 18 points and elevated them into a second-place tie with Thomas Jefferson and South Fayette. Latrobe has 20 points and sits atop of the standings.

“Luke’s goal was huge,” Winebrenner said. “I thought Max (Rutkowski) played well and Max (Williams) was all over the ice.

“If we’re to make a run, we have to play better team defense. After Thomas scored early, we switched things up and tightened up our defense.”

Rutkowski now has 26 goals and 10 assists. Williams has scored seven times and added 12 assists, Anderchak has six goals and nine assists and Yohe has eight goals and six assists.

After a game Jan. 15 against Hempfield, the Panthers face first-place Latrobe on Jan. 18 at Kirk Nevin Arena.

The Panthers then won’t play a game for 25 days before returning to the ice Feb. 12 at home against Penn-Trafford.

They finish the season with games at Armstrong (Feb. 15), at Hempfield (Feb. 22) and Fox Chapel (Feb. 26) at home.

A strong finish could give the Panthers a chance to make another run in the playoffs.

Paul Schofield is a TribLive reporter covering high school and college sports and local golf. He joined the Trib in 1995 after spending 15 years at the Daily Courier in Connellsville, where he served as sports editor for 14 years. He can be reached at pschofield@triblive.com.

Tags: Franklin Regional