Pennridge falls in OT to Parkland in Flyers Cup AA 1st round
HATFIELD TWP. >> When Michael Padgeon slid a pass to Nathan Runk for the game-tying goal in the final minute of the third period, the Pennridge ice hockey team was sure it had the momentum to complete its comeback.
“I felt pretty confident we were going to come back and get it done,” Rams junior forward Troy Crosson said. “Just, they got a nice shot in front of the net. What can you do about it?”
Eight-seeded Pennridge rallied from two goals down in the third to force overtime in Tuesday’s night Flyers Cup AA first round contest, but Koby Staivecki struck from the point 2:04 into the extra period to give the No. 9 Trojans a 6-5 victory at Hatfield Ice.
“Obviously, not ideal to give up two goals quick (in the third period), they battled back, kept battling. And it one of those things, once it goes to overtime, somebody has to lose,” Pennridge coach Matt Stabile said. “Unfortunately, you know it was going to be one of those weird things where a puck bounces from the point and goes in. But, that’s kind of how everything works.”
Parkland had five different goal scorers while August Schwartz and Joseph Bantseev each had two assists The Trojans advance to the quarterfinals to face either top-seeded Central Bucks South or No. 16 Avon Grove Friday at The Revolution Ice Gardens.
“The biggest thing is they’re physical and anytime a team’s physical, it’s hard to play against them,” said Crosson of Parkland. “Whether you’re a skilled team or a fast team, they slow you down and they hit you. I think that’s their biggest strength.”
Despite the season-ending defeat, Stabile sees the Pennridge program on an upward trajectory. The Rams missed the Flyers Cup two seasons ago, was the 20th seed in 2015 and this year earned the eighth spot in the tournament.
“We have a strong junior class. We have a bunch of young freshmen coming up. So, we’ll be back next year,” he said.
ICE HOCKEY: Koby Staivecki's OT goal sends @ParklandHockey past Pennridge 6-5 in Flyers Cup AA 1st round. pic.twitter.com/VKeBb8DhZf
— Mike Cabrey (@mpcabrey) March 2, 2016
Crosson collected a hat trick for the Rams, who twice erased two-goal deficits. Padgeon and Josh Bird both handed out three assists while Connor Lodri had a pair of assists.
Pennridge goalkeeper Michael Weaver made 35 shots on 41 shots while Parkland goalie Kevin Glitz stopped 19 of the 24 shots he faced.
“The trap that they play, it’s a lot of keeping the puck in,” said Stabile of Parkland. “They got some shots on the outside and that’s what we tried to do, keep everything on the outside. But their style of play, we needed the speed. And when we played with speeds is when we were successful.”
The Trojans jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first period, but Pennridge scored the next three to lead 3-2 after Josh Finlayson’s power-play goal at 13:59 in the second.
Parkland answered back with three consecutive goals – including two in a span of 16 seconds in the first minute of the third period – to go up 5-3.
“We came out flat in the third,” Crosson said. “What can you do? After the first one, it’s tough to regroup. And then the second one, it’s just like a dagger in the heart. So, we got a time out and regrouped and came back.”
Crosson’s third tally pulled the Rams within one with 9:12 left. After pulling Weaver late in regulation, Pennridge found the equalizer when Padgeon’s pass got to an open Runk at the opposite post for a goal at 52.1 seconds.
HOCKEY: Michael Padgeon finds Nathan Runk for a goal to pull @PennridgeHockey even 5-5 final minute 3rd vs. Parkland pic.twitter.com/69hJamNOOZ
— Mike Cabrey (@mpcabrey) March 2, 2016
But Staivecki netted the game-winner at 7:56 at overtime, getting room at the point to let go of a wrist shot that made it to the back of the net.
Evan Dratch gave Parkland a 1-0 lead at 13:18 in the first period. Louie Rivera’s goal off a Schwartz assist doubled the advantage at 3:33. Crosson blasted in a shot at 1:42 to cut the margin to 2-1 entering the second.
“It calmed us down once that goal was scored,” Crosson said. “After that, we got a lot of energy. We just couldn’t get it done, though.”
Crosson pulled the Rams level 22 seconds into the second period while Finlayson’s power-play tally at 13:59 gave Pennridge its only lead at 3-2.
But just 1:21 later, Timothy’s Doe goal on the man advantage tied the contest 3-3. Parkland went back up 21 seconds into the third on a Bantseev goal, while a Schwartz tally made it 5-3 Trojans at 15:23.
Crosson cut the Ram’s deficit to 5-4 by driving down the center of the ice, evading diving poke check then putting a shot past Glitz at 9:13.
