When the PIHL takes the ice Monday for its 2018-19 season openers, it will be a league in search of leadership.
Craig Barnett, who took over as commissioner prior to the 2016-17 season, was recently named executive director of the American Collegiate Hockey Association and tendered his resignation with the organization. The search is on for his replacement, but no one has been named to fill the vacancy at this time.
On the way out, Barnett helped draft several changes that will go into effect this season.
In Class 3A, there will be only nine teams and they will all qualify for the Penguins Cup playoffs with the eight and nine seeds taking part in a play-in game to meet the top seed in the tournament. Last year, there were 10 teams in the highest classification and two were left out. But with Plum moving back down to Class 2A, changes had to be made to accommodate regular-season scheduling as well as playoff seeding.
In Class 1A, there will no longer be one division comprised of 21 teams with each team playing the other once and the top 12 moving forward into the playoffs. Montour and North Hills moved down from Class 2A and Greensburg Central Catholic folded its program, which leaves the classification with 22 teams split into three divisions with the North carrying 10 and the South/West and South/East each with six.
In all, 16 teams will qualify for the playoffs with eight of the 10 in the North making the tournament. The top two finishers in each of the other two divisions will have two automatic qualifiers and the final two slots will go to the remaining teams with the best winning percentage.
Class 3A
Seneca Valley won its first Penguins Cup title last season, but the team is in a bit of a rebuilding mode as it heads into the year.
“We have probably half of our team coming back from last year, so the things that you look for are them giving knowledge to the junior varsity players and sharing that experience that things can go any way in the playoffs,” Seneca Valley coach Anthony Raco said. “They just have to identify certain areas that they had success in and be able to translate that early in the year.”
One of the Raiders strengths was its defense as the team allowed only 35 goals in 18 games during the regular season and just four in three Penguins Cup playoff wins. Though the team graduated goaltender Logan Johnson, it found a capable replacement in Aidan Campbell, who played for the Penguins Elite under-16 team last year and was selected by the Sioux Falls Stampede in Phase II of the United States Hockey League.
“He is a goalie that has a lot of experience and played for Seneca years back when he was a middle school goalie. We were able to get him this year and work some things out,” Raco said. “He’s a really talented player. He’s only going to be around for one year, but he provides a big body, he’s athletic and we’re hoping he can come in and help us win some games.”
Class 2A
Armstrong waited a long time to hoist the Penguins Cup.
In fact, nearly 30 years and several reconstitutions of the school went by before the River Hawks could do what Armstrong Central accomplished in Class 3A in 1991.
This year, though, Armstrong will be starting over almost from scratch as most of last season’s championship team has graduated.
“We only have 26 players total for JV and varsity,” Armstrong coach Lee Grafton said. “I’m only going to have 10 players rostered on varsity and have to count on call-ups from the JV team to help the team out.”
Armstrong will have a couple of impact players back from last year to help out. Senior forward Giovanni Romeo, who had four goals and six points in the Penguins Cup playoffs will be back as well as goaltender Ryan Bowser, who had a 2.00 goals-against average and a .919 save percentage in the postseason.
Class 1A
Bishop McCort is the defending champion and comes into the year riding a 29-game regular-season winning streak. The Crimson Crushers will play in the South/East Division and, because of the divisional breakdown this year, will have to play divisional opponent and Penguins Cup semifinalist Indiana three times in the regular season.
PRESEASON RANKINGS
Class 3A
1. Peters Township
2. Cathedral Prep
3. North Allegheny
4. Seneca Valley
5. Mt. Lebanon
Class 2A
1. Pine-Richland
2. Quaker Valley
3. Upper St. Clair
4. Plum
5. Latrobe
Class 1A
1. Bishop McCort
2. Meadville
3. South Fayette
4. Indiana
5. Thomas Jefferson
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Madison Barker, Indiana, Senior, Goaltender
J.C. Bele, Bethel Park, Senior, Forward
Aidan Campbell, Seneca Valley, Senior, Goaltender
Wyatt George, Mt. Lebanon, Senior, Forward
Patrick Kelly, Cathedral Prep, Senior, Defenseman
Giovonne Palombo, Central Catholic, Junior, Forward
Joe Pulit, Upper St. Clair., Senior, Forward
Mathieu Silva, Franklin Regional, Junior, Forward
Connor Strobel, Butler, Junior, Goaltender
William Studt, Pine-Richland, Senior, Forward
First Published: September 28, 2018, 11:00 a.m.
