Predictions, top scorers, teams, more
First round is set for Monday, Tuesday, with championships on March 18-19
With the Class 1A preliminary round in the books, the official brackets are set for the PIHL playoffs.
All first round games are Monday and Tuesday with the semifinals taking place at Robert Morris University Island Sports Center beginning with Class 3A on March 11 at 7:15 p.m.
On March 12 it will be Class 2A starting at 7 p.m., and Class 1A will play on March 13, with the first game of the doubleheader slated for 6:45 p.m.
Penguins Cup finals will be held at the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex on March 18-19. Class 3A will play at 6:15 p.m. on March 18 with Class 1A playing the nightcap at 8:45 p.m.
Class 2A will play on March 19 at 6:15 p.m. with the Division 2 finals, which are not awarded Penguins Cups and are ineligible for state championships, to follow afterward.
State finals will be held March 23 at Ice Line Quad Rinks in West Chester.
Here is a breakdown of the top three classifications:
Class 3A
Leading scorers: Camden Martin, Peters Township (16 goals, 19 assists, 35 points); Eli Rankin, Upper St. Clair (19-13-32); Zachary Howard, Pine-Richland (1714- 31); Drew Alexander, Peters Township (12-16-28); Luke Walkauskas, North Allegheny (11-16-17) .
Leading goaltenders (minimum 10 decisions):
Cenzo Ditullio, Seneca Valley (14-5-0, 2.47 goals-against average); Quinn Lynam, North Allegheny (11-8-0, 3.07 GAA); Kyle Thomas, Peters Township (10-5-1, 1.90 GAA); Brett Sudac, Pine-Richland (9-2-1, 2.31 GAA); Owen Laurent, Upper St. Clair (8-5-1, 2.26 GAA).
Top seeds: Pine-Richland is first, North Allegheny second, Seneca Valley third, Peters Township fourth.
Winner will be: PineRichland. The Rams were the last team to win the St. Margaret preseason tournament and the Penguins Cup in the same school year when they won the preseason tourney in 2018 and Class 2A in 2019. On the surface Pine-Richland is an easy pick to win it all as the regular season champion, but that’s not the case. The Rams are hot at the right time and won their last seven heading into the playoffs. Zachary Howard has been near the top of the classification in scoring all season, Cullen Campbell is a perfect foil (13-13-26) and Josh Lanyard can put the puck in the net. The big question is which goaltender the team will go with as Nathan Dembowski (6-2-0, 1.98 GAA) and Brett Sudac (9-2-1, 2.31) have both proven capable.
The scoop: When the PIHL opted to redo its divisions every year to maintain a competitive balance, this was exactly what the organization wanted. There were four teams, Pine-Richland ( 31), Seneca Valley ( 30), North Allegheny (30) and Peters Township (30), that finished within one point of each other in the regular season. That is what makes it so hard to pick a winner here. Every team has a chance. Seneca Valley led the classification for most of the season and appeared a shoo-in for the top seed. But after reeling off nine consecutive wins, the Raiders stumbled at the finish line with back-to-back one-goal home losses to North Allegheny and Peters Township. Winning those kinds of games is vital in the postseason and those two losses loom large. Even so, there’s no reason Seneca Valley can’t make a run. … Peters Township is the two-time defending Penguins Cup champion and won the state title in 2022, but no team has won the Class 3A title three years in a row since Bethel Park from 2000-02. It’s not a surprise that Peters Township is peaking at the right time and has won six in a row and eight of the past nine heading into the playoffs. Coach Rick Tingle is a master of using the early part of the season to prepare his team for what comes next. It also helps that the team has the top scorer in the classification in Camden Martin, while Charlie Caputo has been a solid contributor. … Never sleep on North Allegheny. The Tigers
traditionally have one of the best defenses in the league and the goaltending tandem of Camden Junker and Andrew Long has only given up 43 goals all season.
Class 2A
Leading scorers: Alex Thomas, Norwin (32-29-60); Robert Chiappetta, South Fayette ( 13- 38- 51); Jake Stock, Thomas Jefferson (1926-45); Andrew Oliver, Thomas Jefferson (20-23-43); Max Rutkowski, Franklin Regional (28-12-40)
Leading goaltenders (minimum 10 decisions): Brock Pflugh, Latrobe (13-60, 2.32 GAA); Owen Burmeister, Norwin ( 11- 8- 1, 4.15 GAA); Aiden Dougherty, Thomas Jefferson (9-1-0, 2.36 GAA); Zachary Bender, South Fayette (8-1-1, 1.98 GAA); Joe Rattner, Fox Chapel 8-4-0, 4.52 GAA).
Top seeds: South Fayette is first, Thomas Jefferson second, Latrobe third, Norwin fourth.
Winner will be: Thomas Jefferson. There is every belief that this classification will come down to the Jaguars and South Fayette, the two teams that won the past two championships. But Thomas Jefferson gets the slightest of nods in this one. Since losing back-to-back games to Penn-Trafford and South Fayette on Dec. 7 and Dec. 14, the Jaguars have put it all together and reeled off 11 consecutive victories. They’ve won three one-goal games and three games in which they scored in double digits. Thomas Jefferson can beat you different ways. The Jaguars have four players,
Jake Stock (19-26-45), Andrew Oliver (20-23-43), Scott Allan (20-14-34) and Nick Best (7-26-33) with more than 30 points this season. Stock was the No. 3 scorer in 2A and Oliver No. 4, and the team’s 124 goals were the best in the classification. Both goaltenders, Dougherty and Ronnie Porupsky, have played well when they’ve had to and it will be interesting to see which one gets the nod in the tournament.
The scoop: Don’t be surprised if South Fayette wins it all and repeats. The Lions are not to be trifled with and are 1-0-1 this season against Thomas Jefferson, with the loss coming in a shootout on opening night. The two teams tied for first place overall with 36 points, but the Lions got the top seed in the tournament on that head-to-head record against the Jaguars. South Fayette won it all as the No. 2 seed last year and has done nothing but improve. The Lions are No. 2 in the classification in goals scored with 108, with Chiappetta expanding his setup role and leading the classification in assists with 38. The Lions have five double-digit goal scorers, led by Nolan Murphy with 25. South Fayette will also have to ride the hot goaltender as Graydon Sarnowski and Bender have both played well. … Norwin is the No. 4 seed and won the Class 1A title in 2022. The Knights also have Thomas, the leading scorer in the PIHL, who has 19 power-play points on the season and four short - handed goals. … Fox Chapel scored 100 goals this season and could be dangerous if a game gets into a shootout. The Foxes’ problem has been pulling pucks out of its own net after allowing 4.55 goals per game.
Class 1A
Leading scorers: Jacob Kunc, Shaler ( 27- 27- 54); Beckett Dunn, North Catholic (23-23-46); Conner Ralston, Avonworth (26-18-44); Noah Callender, Chartiers Valley ( 30- 14- 44); Ryan Berry, North Catholic (14-2943).
Leading goaltenders (minimum 10 decisions): Matthew Colberg, Chartiers Valley (18-0-0, 1.00 GAA); Shane Ciganik, Shaler (14-50, 3.55 GAA); Landon Buterbaugh, Quaker Valley (11-30, 1.85 GAA), Luke Rowe, Indiana (11-2-0, 3.11 GAA); Danny Mack, Avonworth (10-4-0, 2.82 GAA)
Top seeds: Quaker Valley won the Gold Division, Chartiers Valley won the Blue Division, Avonworth was second in the Blue Division, Indiana was second in the Gold Division.
Winner will be: Indiana. Yes, the Little Indians were blown out by Greensburg Salem in their regular season finale, but this is a team that has the right seeding to make it happen. Indiana last won it all in 2021 and has been in a rebuilding mode ever since. The Little Indians have a balanced scoring attack with seven players in double-digit point led by Landin Wilson (16-18-34) and Ash Lockard (17-15-32), while the goaltending has been solid with Luke Rowe. The Little Indians also swept division champion Quaker Valley this year.
The scoop: For the second consecutive season the PIHL split the classification into two divisions and did not have any crossover games until the postseason. That being said, the Gold Division won three of the four preliminary round games, including sixth-place finisher North Catholic upending third-place Blackhawk as the biggest upset of the round. It has been a decade since Quaker Valley won the last of their three consecutive Penguins Cup titles and this is as good a team as the Quakers have had since. Head coach Kevin Quinn knows how to get a team playoff ready and, despite losing three of its final four games, the Quakers are a serious contender that could easily win it all. … Chartiers Valley is the only undefeated team in the PIHL, yet there has to be a caveat because of the lack of crossover games. The Colts haven’t been to the playoffs since a 3-2 loss to Indiana in the 2021 final, so it will be interesting to see how they perform in the postseason. … Shaler has had a resurgence in all boys sports in the past couple of years and the Titans, with 132 goals, are the top scoring team in the PIHL. They have not won a championship since taking the Class 3A title 15 years ago.