MARS READY TO MAKE RUN AT POSTSEASON
If the PIHL Class 2A Penguins Cup playoffs started today, Mars would be on the outside looking in.
Luckily for the Planets, there’s still a couple of weeks to go. And though they came into the week in third place in the Northwest Division, they might be in the best position to make a run to the tournament.
“I think our schedule this year was brutal. We played the majority of the top teams at the beginning of the year and, a lot of times, it was off like a two-week break and, coming off Christmas, we had a month break,” Mars coach Steve Meyers said. “The schedule-makers didn’t do us any favors, but we’ve shown we can play with Meadville, we can play with Quaker Valley and we play well within our own division.”
Mars entered the week 5-7-0 and trailed second-place Meadville (6-81) by three points for the second and final playoff spot out of the division. But the Planets have also played three fewer games than the Bulldogs, have a huge matchup with them coming up on Monday and won the first meeting between the two, 5-0, on Jan. 27.
“I think 5-on-5 that we were definitely the better team. They had a lot of shots, but most of their shots were perimeter shots, so I wasn’t all that worried about that,” Meyers said. “I really felt that was one of our best system games of the year, that we really suffocated them and they didn’t really have any good looks.”
Mars has struggled scoring goals throughout the season, but the five it put up against Meadville marked the third consecutive game — all wins — it had scored at least that many. Mack Rinner leads the team with seven goals and 13 points for a Planets squad that has only hit the back of the net 44 times this season.
For Mars to make a successful run to the postseason, it will rely on all-star goaltender Danny Mitchell, who went into Thursday night’s game against Shaler 5-4-0 with a 2.42 goals-against average, a solid .913 save percentage and is tied for third in the classification with two shutouts.
“Danny’s a workhorse, so when he’s getting 30-plus shots, I think that’s when he’s at his best,” Meyers said. “I think there were games when he didn’t face that many hits and he didn’t get into a rhythm, but he is one of the better goaltenders in the league.”
Cathedral Prep
It has been a tumultuous season for the Cathedral Prep hockey team.
At the beginning of the season, the Ramblers mourned the loss of one of their own when senior Jack Schoenig died of chemical asphyxia at a party in State College. Since that time the team has been hit-and-miss, but in the past few weeks, they have put it together and are making a strong run to the postseason.
Cathedral Prep (9-6-1) has won its past five games and came into the week within one point of clinching a Class 3A Penguins Cup berth. The Ramblers are also in fifth place only one point behind both Peters Township and Canon-McMillan and, with the top four teams getting first-round home games, they are in a position to make some noise in the tournament.