PIHL Penguins Cup Championship Blog 2011

By: HSSN Staff
Saturday, March 19, 2011 | 12:00 AM

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Blogs. They are here, there and everywhere. It seems every Tom, Dick and Harry like to show up and blog at the big events, but for all the details on the PIHL high school hockey finals on Sunday, keep it here all day Sunday to the Network that has been bringing you EXCLUSIVE coverage of the Penguins Cup Playoffs all month long, the MSA Sports Network!

PENGUINS CUP CLASS AAA – Canon-McMillan vs Upper St. Clair (Brandon Rebel)

– What a finish, and a fitting way to end the Penguins Cup Playoffs for 2011! Congratulations to both teams on their seasons, and good luck to USC when they play on Saturday for the Pennsylvania Cup.

11:30pm: IT'S ALL OVER!!!! USC defies the odds and completes the comeback! The sophmore Mike Sweeney pokes home a rebound from right in front of Canon Mac's Ryan Palonis to give the Panthers the victory! They are your 2010/2011 Class AAA Champions!

11:29pm: MICHAEL AMBROSE!!! Highway robbery on Brett Oldaker! He poke-checked Oldaker's offering on the breakaway, denial denial denial!

11:24pm: Actually, I guess that was overtime I was smelling. We are in OT folks, for all the marbles on the biggest stage. Who's going to blink first?
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11:21pm: Last minute of play… I smell heroics!

11:16pm: USC ties it! The too many men gaffe by Canon Mac allows Justin Selep to re-direct a point shot from Stephen Gielarowski to knot things up with only 2:23 left! Things are heating up here, ladies and gentlemen.

11:16pm: USC kills the penalty and now its their turn on the power play as Canon Mac is called for too many men on the ice. Do or die for USC right now…

11:14pm: Canon Mac on the power play again. Ryan Haleski thrown in the box for holding. USC needs to get desperate and Canon Mac would love to seal it with a PP goal here.

11:13pm: CJ Murray on the doorstep and denied by Palonis! Remember that save!

11:12pm: USC guilty of icing now. Looks like they may be running out of steam… only 6 minutes to go.

11:10pm: CJ Murray sprung free again!… but play whistled offsides. Canon Mac is starting to play physical and lay the lumber here a little bit.

11:03pm: USC whistled for their 4th penalty and Zach McKown makes them pay almost immediately, scoring off of a rebound chance past a sprawling Michael Ambrose to give Canon Mac the lead again, 3-2! Barn-burner possibilities??

11:01pm: Unbelieveable!!! With the Canon Mac penalty expiring, USC's CJ Murray takes it coast-to-coast a la the Big Guy, Mario Lemieux, and knots it up at 2. We've got a game here folks!

10:57pm: 3rd period about to be under way here. USC will have a power play opportunity for 1:37 as Anthony Tonkovich is in the box for Canon Mac. They would love to get a quick one right off the bat and grab momentum for the final sprint. Only 15 more minutes of playoff hockey left at the Consol, time for these teams to dig deep!
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10:40pm: Second intermission at the AAA Championships. Some thoughts as the zambonis clean the ice… It's amazing that Canon Mac is being outshot 33 to 8, but are up 2-1 on the scoreboard thanks to a pair of Brett Oldaker goals. That young man is giving his team a chance, and don't forget Ryan Palonis who's stopped 32 of 33 so far. They've kept it close. Now the question is, can they hold on for 15 more minutes?

10:37pm: A hook called with 23.3 seconds left and USC is on the power play. A late goal to tie would be just what the doctor ordered for them.

10:33pm: Redemption for the Big Macs! A little shovel pass sets Brett Oldaker free on a breakaway and he buries the backhand by Michael Ambrose to make it 2-1 Canon Mac! Word to the wise, do NOT leave him wide open again!

10:30pm: Zach McKown just missed a yawning cage!! What a golden opportunity to go up by one, and Canon Mac must be sick right now.

10:28pm: Gielarowski nullifies the USC advantage with his second penalty of the game. Interference at 9:08. 4 on 4 play here.

10:27pm: Blair Oldaker called for a trip @ 8:14, we'll see if USC can get the next marker.

10:26pm: Icing called on an unforced Canon Mac error. Will it be a costly icing?

10:21pm: With Gielarowski (making me look silly for lauding him) in the sin bin, Canon Mac's first power play is successful as captain Brett Oldaker whips a wrister by USC goalie Michael Ambrose to make it 1-1!

10:19pm: Defensive breakdown by Canon Mac, as Gielarowski scoots in all alone and rips one off of Palonis's mask. TING!

10:14pm: More of the same to start off the period as USC finally breaks the seal! Michael Segerdahl re-directs a C.J. Murray point shot to make it 1-0!
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10:09pm: 1st period is in the books… What a herculean effort by Canon Mac's Ryan Palonis to keep the score knotted at 0. He stopped all 20 Upper St. Clair shots he faced in the period.

10:07pm: Penalty killed by Canon Mac, but USC PP was moving the puck at will for the majority.

10:03pm: Gielarowski almost deflects one in off a point shot from Andrew Schmitt! And now all the hard work for USC pays off as Canon Mac is whistled for the first penalty of the game. #5 Alex Baskakov goes off for slashing @ 11:44.

10:00pm: 5 min left in the first, still scoreless but USC has a 12-1 shot advantage so far!

9:57pm: St. Clair's Robbie Markwell hits the side of the net with a bad angle shot…USC dominating offensive possesion right now.

9:52pm: Canon Mac fails to clear the zone and USC's Justin Selep bangs away a loose puck in the crease before it's pounced on by goalie Ryan Palonis.

9:50pm: USC's Stephen Gielarowski feeds one through the crease just missing a teammates stick. USC has early jump.

9:46pm: Hey, the puck hits the ice surface. Let's cross our fingers for a good one…

9:38pm: National anthem gets under way…and then nerves settle in! Fortunately, the young singer is spurred on by the crowd and gives a rousing rendition of the Star-Spangled Banner.

9:35pm: Still going through introductions. USC has had a solid showing in these playoffs so far, defeating North Allegheny 4-2 and blanking #1 seed Fox Chapel 2-0 in the semi-finals. Canon Mac stumbled in their first playoff game, needing heroics to beat Shaler 4-3 but recovered nicely to defeat Bethel Park 5-2 in the semis.

9:30pm: Both teams have taken the ice for warmups; Canon-McMillan is in the home white with yellow and blue trim while Upper St. Clair is in their road black with red trim and white lettering. Canon Mac won both regular season mathups with USC, 7-5 in early January and 4-3 in early February.

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PENGUINS CUP CLASS AA – Peters Township vs Bishop Canevin (Mike Azadian)

8:54pm: In desperation Peters pulls the goalie but its too late. Bishop Canevin wins 5-2. The PIHL AA champions

8:51pm: Some life left in Peters Twp as they score to make it 5-2. 2:11 left in the game

8:49pm: Anothe Power play goal by canevin as they are up 5-1 and are 2 for 5 on the man advantage. $
4:00 minutes to go.

8:47pm: Peters 0-3 on the power play as Canevin shuts them down

8:44pm: Peters goes to the power play down 3 goals, can they come back ?

8:41pm: Peters Twp takes another penalty this time for tripping and canevin goes to the power play for the 4th time…and scores :23 seconds in. Michael Mannsman scores assisted by Frank Vance and Andrew McNulty. 4-1 Crusaders.

8:38pm: Peters kills off the five minute power play Bishop Canevin 0-3 on the power play. Score still 3-1 Crusaders.

8:31pm: The 3rd period begins with Canevin on the power play.

8:14pm: Canevin goes on the power play late in the 2nd period after a Peters 5 minute boarding call, but the period ends at 3-1.

8:10pm: The Indians crowd grows quite after the Canevin goal,its 3-1 with 3:00 to play in period number 2.

8:04pm: Canevin scores to make it 3-1 as Randy Unger tallies. Assists to Matt Walsh and Andrew McNulty.

8:02pm: The Indians get on the board, after 2 Canevin defensman collide it results in a 2 on none and Devan Groom taps it in, Assists go to Taylor Cox and Paul Snyder

8:00pm: Penalty killed and Bishop Canevin now 0-2 on the power play.

7:57pm: The Crusaders go on the power play looking to go up by 3 after a crosscheicking penalty on the Indians.

7:55pm: Bishop Canevin kills the penalty allowing only 1 shot on goal, Peters Twp 0-2 on the power play.

7:52pm: Peters Twp goes on the power play for the second time tonite after an interference call on the Crusaders.

7:47pm: The first period ends with Bishop Canevin outshooting Peters Township 13-6. Score 2-0 Bishop Canevin.

7:44pm: BishopCanevin scores again as Garrett Godlewski tips in a shot from the point at 11:52. Assists to Marc Slomiany, and Patrick Large. 2-0 Crusaders

7:40pm: Bishop Canevin has a goal dissallowed due to the Peters Township goalies mask coming off before the goal

7:35pm: Bishop Canevin score firstat 7:11 of the firswt period as Frank Vance scores assisted by Matt Walsh, 1-0 Canevin.

7:31pm: Its all even as Peters draws a penalty and we skate 4 on 4 for :59.

7:30pm: Peters Township goes on the power play.

7:28pm: The first five minutes belong to the Crusaders as they oushoot the Indians 4-1

7:25pm: The first big save of the game recorded by Peters Townships Woody Shell.

7:23pm: There is a big crowd from both schools including GREEN MAN !!!

7:22pm: The pre game festivities are over and we finnally drop the puck

7:15pm: Introduction of players has begun, then the national anthem and we drop the puck !!!

7:07pm: Bishop Canevin and Peters Township are in warmups, the game will start in 10 minutes or so

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PENGUINS CUP CLASS A – Mars vs Hampton (Mark Schaas)

6:36pm: It's over, Mars wins their third straight Penguins Cup with a 5-0 victory. Tyler Stepke pitches the shutout stopping all 18 shots.

6:34pm: 1:42 left in the game, still 5-0.

6:28pm: 4:42 remaining, Mars well on their way to a third straight Penguins Cup, still leading 5-0.

6:19pm: Mars has struck twice in the third, Hunter Sacchini scoring at 1:29 and Heakins adding his second at 2:25. Heakins has a 4 point day going, 5-0 Mars with 11:08 remaining.

6:12 pm: Both teams back on the ice to start the third, nothing better than the theme from WWE Raw welcoming them back. By the way, Raw is here at the Consol Monday night, in the old days of Mellon Arena, the WWE crew would have already started to set up, but now this date is availible for the Penguins Cup.

5:59pm: End of the second period, Mars still leads 3-0. Hampton will continue to be shorthanded to start the third, with Luke Laya off for roughing late in the period. Shots on goal, Mars leads 17-8, the Planets are 1-2 with the man advantage, Hampton is 0-3.

5:55pm: Mars finally added to the lead, now 3-0, Nick Blaney scoring with Heakins and Bender on the assists. 1:30 left in the period.

5:53pm: Mars has had several chances to add to the lead in the period.

5:49pm: 5:45 left in the second period, Mars still with a 2-0 lead.

5:43pm: Mars takes a 2-0 lead with 10:30 remaining in the second, on a beautiful set up by Joseph Bender, going cross ice to Nick Blaney, with Austin Heakins ramming home the rebound.

5:38 pm: End of first period, Mars 1 Hampton 0, Mars shorthanded to start the second with Russell Miller off for interference. Shots in the first: Mars 7 Hampton 3.

5:34pm: Mars leads 1-0 on a power play goal by Elliot Tisdale, assisted by Robert Foley. Tisdale pumping home a rebound off of goalie Sam Wilson at 14:17.

5:32pm: Mars killed the Leslie penalty, now on the power play as Zack Kosick off for the Talbots for high-sticking at 13:17.

5:29pm: Hampton on the power play again, but you'd never know it as Mars just had two scoring chances, Kevin Leslie off for interference at 11:02 of the first.

5:27pm: Penalty killed, both teams 0-1 on the power play, 4:46 remaining in the first, no score.

5:24pm: Mars on their first power play, Luke Laya off for cross-checking in front of the Hampton goal.

5:21pm: Penalty killed, no score 8:21 left first period.

5:19pm: Hampton on the power play, Colt Berneburg off for tripping at 4:10, still no score.

5:15pm: Underway here, 12:32 remaining first period, sorry too much basketball over the last few weeks, no score.

5:03pm: Introduction of starting lineups, we are in the visiting radio booth where MSG was just a few hours ago, IT'S HIGH UP HERE, but a great view.

4:53pm: Greetings from the Consol Energy Center. Hampton has just taken the ice for the pre-game warmup, awaiting the Mars Planets.

We'll see what the condition of the ice is, Pens Coach Dan Bylsma was not happy with it earlier in the day, telling Pierre McGuire during the NBC broadcast.

Mars has just taken the ice, looking forward to this game, saw Mars play several times this season.

Tags: Bishop Canevin, Canon-McMillan, Hampton, Upper St. Clair