Photo Credit: @paulspicsnj

We’ve entered the final week of the regular season across the EHL and EHL Premier. The Huntsmen EHL Team had a pivotal two games against Philadelphia Hockey Club. They also had one last matchup against the New York Applecore. The Premier Team was on the road all weekend taking on the Union Jr. Thunder and the New Jersey 87s.

EHL vs Philadelphia HC (Wed)

The 1st period moved quicky, PHC had a power play, but the Huntsmen killed it off and there was no score. Early in the 2nd period Philadelphia took the lead on the rush. Quinn Visokey (1) tied the game for the Huntsmen. Brett Linker led PA into the offensive zone. The puck was poked away from him, but Visokey was trailing the play and blasted the puck through traffic tying the game 1-1. PHC regained the lead later in the period. After the midway point of the 3rd period, the Huntsmen took two penalties and PHC scored two power play goals, taking a 4-1 lead. Theo Lountzis cut the deficit for the Huntsmen. Eddie Mirigliano won an offensive zone draw and Lountzis sent the puck to the back of the net, and it was 4-2. PHC had one final answer to take momentum back and the Huntsmen lost the game 5-2.

EHL at Philadelphia HC (Sat)

This game was the final head-to-head of the regular season. Both teams had power plays in the 1st period but just like Wednesday, there was no score after 20 minutes. Enzo Giuliani (11) put the Huntsmen on the board in the 2nd period. Arendes and Cisar were working behind the PHC net. Arendes sent the puck to Giuliani who was left alone in front and buried the shot. Philadelphia tied the game with a power play goal. A few minutes later the Huntsmen were given a 5-minute major after a collision with the PHC goaltender. It was officially ruled charging, as the collision happened on the wall near the far side face-off circle. The penalty kill was solid, the penalty went into the 3rd period, but the Huntsmen didn't give up a goal. After Trevor Rissor won a defensive zone draw Drew Weston cleared the puck out of the zone. Tristan Fallon caught up to the puck and led the attack. Fallon sent the puck to Rissor and he scored his 5th of the year to give Pennsylvania a 2-1 lead. Xavier Tremblay provided insurance. He knocked down a breakout pass from PHC . Tremblay sent a shot from a sharp angle that banked off a defenseman for his 11th of the year. Philadelphia took a late penalty and never gained any momentum back. The Huntsmen won the game 3-1 as Chominsky made 20 saves in goal.

EHL vs Applecore (Tues)

Theo Lountzis (5) started the scoring for the Huntsmen in what led to another blowout against the Applecore. Arendes and Giuliani worked the puck from behind the net and Lountzis scored from just outside the far face-off circle. Devin England (12) gave the Huntsmen a 2-0 lead. John Manzi cleared the PA zone with a long pass to England. England caught up to the puck and went top shelf for the goal. In the 2nd period, the rout was on. Ryan Arendes scored his 28th of the season (tied for 3rd most in EHL). Manzi (10) made it 4-0 with assists coming from Rory Booth and Damon Warren. The Huntsmen had a power play and Cooper Walling scored his 1st of the year. Trevor Rissor ended the scoring in the 2nd on the rush for his 6th of the year. Fallon and Aidan Hellyer had the assists. The Huntsmen had a 6-0 lead through two periods. In the 3rd Lountzis scored his second of the day. Devin Schaeffer’s 8th goal came on the power play. The Applecore broke through and scored their first goal of the day. The Huntsmen immediately responded with Auge Cisar’s 5th of the year. Another dominating effort ended with a 9-1 win for Pennsylvania. The Huntsmen went a perfect 6-0 against the Applecore this year, outscoring New York 48-10. Goaltender Ryan Murphy made his EHL and Huntsmen debut making 28 saves in the win.

Murphy comes to the Huntsmen from the New Jersey Colonials 18 AAA team, a late edition by Head Coach Progen that he is excited about. “I’ve known Ryan for a little while and watched his game grow the last couple years,” said Progen. “He’s been a stud at his level, and we wanted to get him involved with our team. He helps us create competition in the net which is good. He did a heck of a job today and deserved the win. He was prepared right from the start for the team. He made some big saves early to help us get into our game. He had a great debut, did his job well, he was always in front of the puck and handled rebounds well. He controlled the game well, and I'm proud of him getting his first junior hockey win.”

Premier at Thunder (Sat)

It was an even game in the 1st period, shots were 11-10 Union, but there was no score. Early in the 2nd period, Aidan Reedy and Vilho Lahtela set up Braden Kozlowski with his 9th goal of the year. In the 3rd, both teams continued trading chances, but the spotlight belonged to the goaltenders. The Huntsmen took a penalty but were able to keep the Thunder off the scoresheet. Kozlowski’s goal stood as the game winner and Strnad made 29 saves for his 3rd shutout of the year.

Premier at 87s (Sun)

The Huntsmen have struggled all season against the 87s and unfortunately, this game was no different. New Jersey scored 3 times in the 1st period. In the opening minute of the 2nd  period, New Jersey took a 4-0 lead. The 87s kept the offense rolling and had a 6-0 lead by the end of the period. The Huntsmen finally got on the scoresheet in the 3rd. Dom DeStefano entered the offensive zone. He was check at the blue line, but while falling to the ice was able to get the puck to Vilho Lahtela. Lahtela ripped a shot, the goalie made the save, but Raleigh Radkowski was there for the rebound, scoring his 9th of the year. The 87s responded with 2 more goals and the Huntsmen lost 8-1.

Up Next

               EHL

Despite splitting the home and home with Philadelphia Hockey Club, the win over the New York Applecore (and Little Flyers loss to the 87s) has clinched a playoff berth for the Huntsmen! This is the first time the EHL Team will be in the playoffs. Last year the inaugural season ended at the showcase in heart break. The Huntsmen needed wins and other teams to lose, they ended up missing the playoffs by 4 points. This season (Year two at EHL level) is a different story. Now heading into the Showcase, they are looking to nail down the #3 seed in the South Division. The Huntsmen (47) head into the Showcase two points ahead of Philadelphia Hockey Club (45). The Huntsmen also own the tie breaker in case they finish with the same number of points, as the Huntsmen went 6-2-1 vs PHC this season. Pennsylvania starts the Showcase against the Bridgewater Bandits. The Bandits are 11-27-5, last in the East Division, and have been eliminated from the playoffs. Game two they face the Boston Dukes. This is their inaugural season in the EHL, and they will finish last in the North Division and miss the playoffs. They have a record of 8-33-2. The regular season ends against the Seahawks Hockey Club. The Hawks are locked into the #3 seed in the East Division with a record of 21-18-4 with 46 points. They are on a 5-game winning streak. Philadelphia Hockey Club also faces the Bandits/Dukes, but they end their season against the Providence Capitals. The Capitals have clinched the top seed in the Central Division with a 29-10-5 record (63pts). The #1 seed in the South Division is also up for grabs between the New Jersey Bears and the New Jersey 87s. The Bears lead the division with 64 points, while the 87s are right behind them with 63. The Little Flyers lost to the 87s on Tuesday which eliminated them from the playoffs. The South Division will be fun to keep an eye on as 1-4 need to win and scoreboard watch because things can change by the time the showcase ends on Monday.

Here's what Coach Progen had to say about ending the season at the Showcase. “It’s good to play teams outside our division. We play our division so much so getting different competition is good for us. We have to go out there and handle our business. We want to have a strong end to the season at the showcase to help us gear up for playoffs. We hit a goal today by making the playoffs, but we don’t ‘just want to be there’ we want to be successful in the playoffs. Our growth throughout the season has been our best attribute. Every day we look to get one percent better.”

               Premier

The Huntsmen are right in the thick of the South Division, just like at the EHL level, the standings can switch by the time the showcase ends. The only thing not up for grabs is the #1 seed, that belongs to the New Jersey 87s, with 68 points. The Huntsmen are 16-20-3 with 35 points. Pennsylvania will start against the Connecticut Nor’Easter. They are 4th in the East at 15-18-6 for 36 points. Next is the Adirondak Jr. Thunder. They are 3rd in the North with 45 points (22-15-1). The season closes against the New Hampshire Avalanche 24-11-4 with 52 points. The Huntsmen played them at the first Showcase and a late empty net goal sealed their fate in a 5-3 loss. The Huntsmen’s playoff opponent will depend on the results of the weekend. The Renegades are 1 point behind the Huntsmen, while the Bears are above them with 41 points.

Schedule

*All games played at Ice Works Skating Complex in Aston PA

**All games played in showcase format 2-25 minute periods

EHL vs Bridgewater Bandits (Fri)  4:20pm

EHL vs Boston Dukes (Sat) 10:20am

EHL at Seahawks HC (Mon) 10:20am

Premier at CT Nor’Easter (Sat) 12:00pm

Premier at ADK Thunder (Sun) 9:00am

Premier vs NH Avalanche (Mon) 12:00pm

By: Joe Sindoni

Staff Writer

Play by Play Announcer