Nolan Puhala wasn’t one of those hockey players who was born with a pair of skates attached to his feet.

He went at it the hard way.

“Back when I was around 6, I would watch the Pens with my dad and then I asked him if I could start playing and he told me about dekhockey,” Puhala said. “I started playing dekhockey for a few years and I liked it and then I moved to ice.”

It was a great move on his part, and the Plum hockey program won’t be the same.

This season, Puhala led Class 2A in scoring and helped the Mustangs win their first Penguins Cup title since the school captured the inaugural Class 1A crown in 1989. He led the entire PIHL in goals scored with 39 and his 62 points were second only to Pat O’Neal of Indiana in Class 1A despite playing in only 17 of his team’s 19 games.

Puhala had eight hat tricks during the regular season including three goals in three consecutive games. He had two goals and five points in the Class 2A Penguins Cup championship game against Latrobe.

For his effort, the Plum senior has been named the 2017 Post-Gazette Stellar Six Player of the Year.

“He’s a super-nice kid, a very polite young man, but he’s a competitor and he really wants to win,” Plum coach Vincent Somma said. “His skill-set is impressive and you can see that coming to the rink. But he works hard and skates so much harder even after a long shift when other guys are out there.”

Puhala provided a perfect complement to linemate Dillon Joyce, who led the classification with 31 assists thanks in large part to his teammate being such an outstanding finisher. The two teamed up for two goals and nine points, including what turned out to be the game-winning goal, in the team’s 6-1 victory against Latrobe in the PIHL Class 2A Penguins Cup championship game.

Though that game against Latrobe was memorable, it was what he did in a regular-season matchup with the Wildcats that may have changed the scope of the Mustangs’ entire season.

“There’s been a few times where he’s taken a game over, but against Latrobe, we were down, 4-0, in the first period and it wasn’t looking good,” Somma said. “Late in the first, he scored and he came back to the bench with a very serious look and said, ‘We’re going to come back,’ and that just kind of sparked it.”

Plum came back and won that contest, 8-6.

Puhala doesn’t have a scholarship, but he is planning to go to Robert Morris and play hockey, at least at the club level.

“I played juniors this year and I want to continue to play in college,” Puhala said. “About halfway through the year I felt like I could be on the ice a lot more and I feel a lot more confident in my game.”

Other members of the Stellar Six:

VINCENT LAVORGNA

Canon-McMillan

Forward • Sr.

Tied for the Class 3A lead with 39 points and was an effective player at both ends of the ice for the Big Macs. Also finished tied for the classification lead in short-handed goals (4) and game-winning goals (4) and was tied for second in points-per-game average at 2.05. Scored eight goals in his final six games to help Canon-McMillan earn the No. 3 seed in the Penguins Cup playoffs, including a four-point game against Butler in the regular-season finale.

JAMIE MAURO

Franklin Regional

Center • Sr.

Was a two-time PIHL Class 1A all-star and finished second in the classification in scoring with 34 goals and 60 points in 18 games. Was tied with three others for the Class 1A lead with six power-play goals. In four playoff games, he finished with 11 points and had the team’s only goal in a 2-1 overtime loss to West Chester Bayard Rustin in the Pennsylvania Cup finals. Had at least one point in all 22 games played this season.

DAWSON RICHARD

North Allegheny

Forward • Sr.

All-star selection who paced Class 3A with 24 assists and was tied for the lead with 39 points. Had one hat trick this year, in an 8-2 win against Armstrong, and had 11 multi-point games including each of his final three during the regular season. Was instrumental at both sides of the ice in helping North Allegheny finish second overall in the regular-season standings.

DANIEL SOLTESZ

Franklin Regional

Goaltender • Soph.

Was named to the PIHL Class 1A all-star team and completed one of the best seasons ever turned in by a goaltender. During the regular season, he was 17-1-0 with a 0.93 goals-against average and a .929 save percentage as he gave up just 16 goals. Won his second consecutive Penguins Cup title and appeared in the state championship game for the second consecutive season while posting a 3-1 record, a 1.72 GAA and a .924 save percentage in the playoffs. Finished the season with nine shutouts and two other combined shutouts.

RYAN KINGERSKI

Central Catholic

Center • Sr.

A three-time PIHL Class 3A all-star, he teamed with Jake Tepe to form one of the best front lines in the classification. Finished third in scoring with 18 goals and 37 points in 19 games and helped the Vikings to the top seed in the Penguins Cup tournament. Was the team’s leading scorer in the playoffs with three goals and six points, including the double-overtime game-winner against Seneca Valley in the semifinals.

First Published: April 14, 2017, 4:00 a.m.