Only a handful of players remain on the Bishop Canevin roster from the 2014 team that lost to Central Bucks South in the PIHL Class AA Pennsylvania Cup championship. And it’s the new faces, including first-year head coach Kevin Pawlos, who could have the most impact when the teams meet at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Pegula Ice Arena in University Park, Pa.
“It’s definitely exciting for us as a team that weren’t around for 2014 and, as far as preparing, we’re just leaning on our seniors and upperclassmen who were on the team then and relaying their guidance and being a calming effect,” Pawlos said. “From a coaching aspect, you have to treat this game like any other even though it’s often hard not to.”
Sophomore goaltender Neko Borghini has taken the team on his back. He is 12-0-1 in his past 13 decisions and carried Bishop Canevin to its eighth Penguins Cup title. If the Crusaders are to win their fifth Pennsylvania Cup championship, they will need Borghini to continue to play at the level that has him 3-0 with a 1.33 goals-against average and a .937 save percentage in the postseason.
“He’s been tremendous for us down the stretch and we have seen [the Titans’] stat lines and some of their game results and we know that they have a high-powered offense and they’re probably going to throw a lot to the net,” Pawlos said. “Defensively we have to make sure that we have all our assignments covered and communicate well in the [defensive] zone.”
Bishop Canevin (18-6-1) also will need key offensive contributions from sources other than state championship veterans and leading scorers Alec Bosnic and Thomas Krivak. Freshman Daniel Tkac could be one of those sources as he is coming off his best high school game when he had two goals and four points in the PIHL Class AA Penguins Cup victory against Mars.
And the Crusaders might need all the offense they can muster as Central Bucks South (21-0-0) has ramped up its game in the postseason, scoring 31 goals and allowing only four in its four-game run through the Flyers Cup tournament. Goaltender Kevin Dorozinsky is 3-0 with a 1.36 goals-against average and a .927 save percentage in the postseason, while Jason Betchel’s six goals lead the Titans offense.
Class A
Franklin Regional (19-6-0) is the only first-time finalist in any of the three classifications, but it’s not for a lack of trying. Before knocking off South Fayette, 4-1, in the Penguins Cup final, the Panthers had been to the championship six times and held the record of futility for most appearances without a title.
“These kids are riding high with a lot of confidence,” Franklin Regional coach Brian Kurtz said. “I don’t think it’s really going to take much to prepare them except to drop the puck and let’s go.”
Because it’s the first time Franklin Regional is appearing in the state final, it seems appropriate that the team would have a freshman between the pipes as Daniel Soltesz has carried the team through the playoffs. In three wins he has a 1.33 goals-against average and a .962 save percentage, bloated by a shutout against Montour and a 44-save performance in a 4-1 victory against South Fayette in the title game.
Franklin Regional also has scorers. Junior Jamie Mauro has five goals, senior Nicholas Carretta has four, including a hat trick against the Lions, and Oldrich Virag has been a perfect set-up man with no goals and six assists.
Inexperience in championships is one thing Bayard Rustin (19-3-2) does not have. The Knights are the two-time defending state champions and will be making their sixth finals appearance in the past eight years.
Goaltender Jason Grande allowed only five goals in three Flyers Cup wins and has a .936 save percentage. Of the Knights’ 11 goals in the tournament, Brett Christie scored six and chipped in three assists, with Tommy Sloan (two) being the team’s only other multi-goal scorer.
Class AAA
Cathedral Prep (15-5-3) pulled out a 4-3 overtime victory against North Allegheny for its fourth Penguins Cup title and has won state championships the previous three, including a year ago in Class AA. If the Ramblers defeat La Salle College (18-4-1) in the 5 p.m. game, they will become the first Western team to win a state championship in a lower classification one year and a higher class the next.
First Published: March 17, 2016, 4:00 a.m.