JVA Falcons tie Upper Moreland

The Pennsbury JVA Falcons, who were having a rough season to begin with took on the only team worse then them and have yet to win a game in Upper Moreland. The Falcons outplayed Upper Moreland a majority of the game, however failed to capitalize on power play opportunities. This resulted in a 1-1 tie. The game started off slow in a goaltending battle and a defensive battle was at foot between two teams , who haven't been able to play much defense at all the whole season. Falcons netminder Ben Herring was having a very solid first period until the final 13 seconds, where Matt Hoagland shot a puck that went sky high and Herring lost sight of it and it fell in behind his back. With the absence of the injuried Lefevre, captain Kyle Boltersdorf was forced to play defense and played solid alongside teammate John Gindhart, who saved a breakaway in the second period. Gindhart used his speed to get back and make a great backcheck and break the play up. Herring held his own during the period and the pairing of Faro and Kim turned out to be effective. Paul Kim has had notable improvement throughout the season to avenge him being out of position and Faro has been a surprise hitter. Finally, with 06:48 left in the second period, Sean Costello surged through the offensive zone, bursting through two Upper Moreland defensemen and took a wicked shot off the pad of goaltender Luke Bradshaw right to Jeff Stitt, who burred the goal with Costello and Faro assisting. Jeff Stitt had a great game offensively and he had plenty of hits. One of which resulted in an Upper Moreland player getting taken out of Grundy on a stretcher, which was incidental. The Upper Moreland players tried to retaliate although it wasn't Stitt's fault at all as he fell over him, but he held his own ground. The players that tried to lay him out, would just end up getting seated on the ice. At the end of the second period the score was tied at 1-1. The third was a period dominated by Pennsbury, who out shot Upper Moreland 14-3 but couldn't get anymore rubber in the back of Bradshaw; well at least for a goal. Dakota Morrow, Jesse Perlstein and Jason Millen put constant pressure in the offensive zone. Morrow had quite a few chances denied and he almost set up Liana Eyre for a goal; Eyre also had one of her stronger games. Midway through the third, Millen found Costello all alone in the front and his backhander barely missed getting over the glove of Bradshaw. Costello found himself getting a great amount of shots on net and displayed his offensive talent. He worked well with Stitt when he got to play offense with him and played well in his stint at center. The faceoffs were dominated by Hank Kauffman, probably the JVA team's best faceoff man at the moment. It appeared Jesse Perlstein had won the game in the final minute as he beat Bradshaw fivehole and the Pennsbury crowd put on a celebration. However, the goal was waived off due to the net was clipped off it's mourings and the game resulted in a tie. The difference was perhaps Pennsbury's power play unit that continued to struggle at an 0 for 4 and it doesn't look like it's getting any better. Maybe they should try my power play idea? It could only help at this point. The Falcons outshot Upper Moreland 26-22 in a good effort.

Varsity Player Profile: Erik Rinehold

Erik Rinehold received news a few days ago he would be one of the two players representing the Falcons in the SHSHL All-Star Game. Rinehold is Pennsbury's top defenseman and it is easy to see why. When it is all added up together, what separates Rinehold from most defenseman is he isn't one dimensional. That meaning, he isn't just a defensive defenseman with no offense nor an offensive defenseman with poor defense. Instead he is a combo of it all in one, a force in the defensive zone and a bonus on the point of the power play. In fact, all six of Rinehold's goals have come off snipes on the power play. He also has 13 assists; a majority coming with the extra man, as Rinehold is a master passer from the point and down low. This has totaled for 19 points in 17 games played. That is the offensive side of Erik Rinehold, there is no stats on the SHSHL website for defense so his play in his own zone is foreshadowed by his offensive stats. In his own zone, Rinehold is rock solid and very hard to get around. If he is beaten, his strong skating allows him to apply a very effective backcheck to break a play up. He is also known for his bone crushing hits. He delivers quite a few per game and will level opponents up when he can if it is not endangering him being out of position. The most remarkable check of his career was one that made the crowd roar, when he dumped the opposing player into the Pennsbury bench and skated away with a smile. Erik Rinehold has shown he is college ready, but until then watch for the gritty, offensive defenseman sporting the #44 for Pennsbury.

North Catholic downs Pennsbury JVA in non league action

The non-league game today featuring the North Catholic hockey club against the JVA Pennsbury Falcons turned out to be the Falcons most exciting game of the season if anything. There was a pretty good attendance and with a limited roster the Falcons played very well. They lost 2-0, but off a series of bad officiating and bad luck. Although they were outshot 38-`0, that doesn't mean outPLAYEd. The Falcons played very well dispute early struggles. Early in the first period, the Falcons found themselves in their own zone most of the first 10 minutes before they got it going. Sean Costello played exellent all game in both zones. He got the nod to play center for the first time and he performed very well. Costello won 9 out of 11 faceoffs for an 81% succession rate. This should be something the coaches should use to their advantage in future games. Costello played great all game, he had great penalty killing, dangled around players to create chances and kept the power play in line. Forward Liana Eyre had her best game of the season, with quite a few scoring chance and almost had a goal in front but her backhand in front of the net barely missed beating the North Catholic netminder. The whole team played well together, it was the first real game all season they passed really well, Eric Micheal, Kyle Boltersdorf, Hank Kauffman and John Gindhart, who got some forward playing time all played very well. Gindhart was boarded in the second period but nothing was called. The refs were brutal all game, honestly, I question how the let people who lack such knowlege of the game take the ice. Derek Faro got into some action at the end of the second period when he got in a scrum w ith a few North Catholic players. They were all a bunch of punks, who thought they were tough beating on a roster featuring about 10 Pennsbury players. Eric Michael SHOULD HAVE had a goal set up by Sean Costello in the first period, which would have given the Falcons a 1-0 lead but it was waived off. Although, it clearly hit the back bar and came back out. Then, North Catholic's second goal came when a player ran goaltender Alan Galisewski, who played for the Falcons for the day. The puck went in and the refs, instead of calling a penalty awared North Catholic a goal. Galisewski played great all game, displaying his great glove and had 36 saves on the afternoon. Chris Lefbvre looked good all around game, as he led some offensive rushes into the zone before getting called a 10 minute misconduct for boarding and he left the game early when the refs missed a knee on knee call. The Falcons showed life in the third and never gave up, Sean Costello deked around three guys and hit shot barely missed the top right corner and Derek Faro almost hit the rebound home but the shot was blocked. All in all, a good team effort, hopefully when coach Millen returns he realizes Costello is good at the center position and recognizes how well the team can play if you have the right line comos with Michael, Kaufmann, Eyre and Boltersdorf.

Falcons slaughter William Tennent 8-2

The Falcons entered the game the clear cut favorites as they played a weak squad in William Tennent, the team in last place in the cellar of the division and they have yet to win a game. Pennsbury came in feeling confident, but the fans would hope not too confident. The Falcons didn't hold back in this game as they registered 53 total shots and ended up winning by a six goal margin. Pennsbury's captain, Matt Mager shined as he guided the Falcons with five goals on the night; one short of the double hatrick. Mager would open up the scoring from a nice pass from Mike Hlatky, who returned after missing the last few games from playing in Canada. Hlatky had a great return for the Falcons as his netted a goal and dished off three assists. It appeared the Falcons had a jump start with his presence on the ice on both ends. Tim Wunder got the nod but didn't receive much action with only 14 shots on goal. Wunder stopped 12 out of the 14, it wasn't that he played bad at all was just a little cold from not facing much action all night. Wunder has showed great promise, as he will be the full fledge starter next season with Chapin heading off to college. Erik Rinehold, Colin Gannon, Phil Herring and Nick Burkhart kept the shots limited and had a solid defensive effort. It was a shock to see Rinehold go pointless, but he was more focused on the defensive end of things. Forward Matt Topely had a very good game, as his work ethic showed on the scoreboard. Topely roofed a goal set up by Mike Hlatky and Bear (Andrew Patterson). Topely had a good overall performance as he finished with that goal and also assisted two goals for a three point night. Ken Mccormick kept his point streak going as he registered an assist and played a very solid physical game. Sean Harlow displayed great passing all night and was rewarded for it as he helped Matt Mager score three of his five goals. William Tennent showed some life late in the second period as they cut the score to a 2-4 deficet after trailing 4-0 but the Falcons getting a goal at the end of the second and three in the third buried the game as the Falcons prevailed 8-2.

Game Notes

-Matt Mager registered five goals on the night
-Mike Hlaty had a 4 point game in his return (1 G, 3 A)
-Ken Mccormick is one point away from the 40 point mark, Matt Mager is two
-The Falcons tie Council Rock North in the standings with 29 points but with two more games played

Varsity Player Profile: Mike Hlatky

Mike Hlatky is a junior, who has a big role on the Pennsbury Falcons Varsity offense. He has not only made the top six forwards on the lineup sheet, but he gets plenty of power play weapons as well. In 13 games played with Pennsbury, Hlatky has posted up 21 points. Hlatky is one of the most balanced players on the team as 10 of the 21 are goals while the other 11 are assists. He has a very accurate wrist shot and his passing awareness sets up plays on rushes from the defensive zone. What perhaps compliments Hlatky's natural offensive skill is his work ethic on the forecheck. Hlatky would probably have to be the best forechecking forward on the Falcons as he never gives up on a play and applies constant pressure on the opposing puckhandler. His size has also given him a big edge in winning battles deep in the zone, something Mike has come custom to winning a majority of the time. This has proven to help Pennsbury out the most on the power play, when they dump and chase and Hlatky is there to make sure the puck stays secure in the zone to set up the play. Speaking of which, 4 of Hlatky's 10 goals come with the extra man. He is also a very strong skater which helps the combination of that with his size; this allows him to deliver big hits a long the boards and in center ice. It is uncertain of Hlatky's status for next season with the Falcons but if he was to not return, the school would certainly miss his presence on the ice.

Solving the JVA Special Team Issues

It is clear that if you have watched Pennsbury's JVA team play hockey, their power play unit is more of a "powerless play unit" and there is one crucial reason why. Well, they don't have a set power play unit. Special teams is a very critical part of any hockey game and normally the team that does the best on the power play or penalty kill ends up with the winning tally at the end. What the coaches need to do is evaluate and set their power play units. I have had a few combos for both that they could work on, you can't just send the unit you just had on the ice out and call it your Power Play Unit. Overall, the penalty kill has been solid but there is some things the coach can do to get creative with the power play. Here is how I look at it

Power Play 5 on 4 Unit 1

Millen-Boltersdorf-Perlstein

Costello-Lefbvre

Now, plenty of people may question the having a forward at the point, but if you have someone who can run the side of the point and has fast skating to get back on defense why not? Kyle Okposo and Doug Weight do it for the Islanders, Mike Richards does it for the Flyers, Evgeni Malkin does it for the Penguins and so fourth. Having Lefbvre operating the power play would make sense as he usually does, being the best offensive defenseman the team has. Costello has displayed his slapshot on many occasions and it is one hell of a shot. The power play is the perfect time for him to mutilate this and use it to the Falcons advantage. If anyone, Costello is the man to do it. Having Perlstein, the team's leader in points only makes sense and he showed in the game against North Penn that he has good chemistry with Jason Millen, who has strong work ethic and a good wrist shot;Millen scored twice against North Penn. Boltersdorf provides the power with his size and he was also apart of that line's success in the North Penn game. At this point in the season, it doesn't hurt to try and maybe netting more goals for Ben Herring on special teams would help. Especially when you are given the chance to capitalize on the extra man.

Power Play 5 on 4 Unit 2

Stitt-Morrow-Michael
Gindhart-Faro

This second unit could produce with it's fair share of time as well. Faro has shown he can be a balanced defenseman and Gindhart has shown he can rip a shot when he hits the net and his aggressiveness could be useful with the extra man as long as he doesn't get too aggressive. Stitt has a powerful shot and playing aside Morrow, he may get the chance to display it. Morrow has displayed nice passing out there and playing with Jeff could polish the stat sheet as well. Michael is what I would call an underdog player, he has a very nice shot and on the goals he has scores this season he has shown it. IF the Falcons can keep it in the offensive zone, that is when he plays his best. Faro is known for taking initial shots and creative rebound opportunities so if someone plays out front, they can go for the big finish.

Penalty Kill

Having Perlstein play on any penalty kill unit would only make sense as he has displayed to be the best forechecker on the team, this has given Perlstein a few steals for breakaways. Liana Eyre is a very good skater and when she has the puck, she normally dumps it in the offensive zone for the "dump and chase" so her skating tagged on with her aggressive play in the defensive zone. Paul Kim is a defenseman who is more of a stay at home guy and playing with a big hitter like Lefbvre backing him up would lead to a solid unit, no matter if they were to be paired on the first or second unit. This would leave a familiar pairing of John Gindhart and Derek Faro, who have shown some chemistry together on the ice. The Falcons actually have every forward that is a solid penalty killer. Sean Costello has shown great ability to break through multiple defensemen, backchecking forwards and he could make a scene. It's a wonder he doesn't get much playing time. Players like Hank Kaufman give it a nifty clear when they get the puck and as long as Herring or Stitt stands tall in net, the penalty killing unit should be fine.

Player Profile: Ken Mccormick

Ken Mccormick is the Pennsbury Falcons current leader in points, goals and assists so far this season. In 14 games played, Mccormick has 36 points (16 goals, 20 assists). Mccormick is one of those players that don't wait for the play or sit out front all the time, he is a player that makes things happen. Ken has great hands, which is the key factor in his great puckhandling. He is known for making defensemen look bad with his strongm dangling moves that leaves the crowd thrilled. It is a compliment for his strong wrist shot; most of Ken's goals come off him picking the corners of the net. He is able to create his shooting opportunities with his skating, he is a very fast skater and that also helps on the forcheck. The Falcon forwards are one of the best in the league in forechecking and strong skaters like Mccormick are a reason why. This is also why Mccormick is able to lead the Falcon rushes into the opponent's zone. What is under looked is Mccormick's passing ability. He leads the whole team in assists for a reason and a majority of them come when they have the man advantage on the power play. He recently had a five assist game against Neshaminy, displaying his solid passing abilities. Mccormick is eighth in the whole SHSHL point leaders list, with a game in hand on most of the players ahead of him. Every game, always look for #18 to make something happen in the offensive zone.

Falcons shred Neshaminy 9-1

The Pennsbury VS Neshaminy Varsity game tonight was an exciting one to say the least, well mainly if you are a Pennsbury fan. The Falcons routed the Redskins 9-1 but there were also a few fights that broke out, which will probably be the most exciting portion of the game. The game started off with the Falcons flying and it ended with it that way as well, as the Pennsbury power play clicked tonight. The scoring was opened up by Pennsbury's stud defenseman, Erik Rinehold who sniped a wrist shot past goaltender Collin Mazer top left corner for the 1-0 Pennsbury lead on the power play, as Matt Mager and Ken Mccormick both assisted on the goal. It didn't take long for the Falcons power play to strike again on the power play as Dobz (Alex Dobzanski) scored from the point for the 2-0 lead. The Falcons defensemen were taking control of the game as Phil Herring sniped his goal for the 3-0 lead; this was the third straight goal by a Pennsbury defenseman. It wouldn't end there, after a great defensive effort by Rinehold and Burkhart in their own defensive zone, the Falcons rush broke out and Erik Rinehold hit his second goal of the game and a 4-0 lead. It seemed the momentum was taking a slight shift as the Redskins caught a break when their first goal came off the skate of Dobzanski. It appeared Neshaminy would get a second after that, but after a clear cut whistle had Chapin off guard, the goal was waived off due to the off sides call. Chapin redeemed himself, as the next Neshaminy rush resulted in a great left pad save by the senior netminder. One of the he men in front of Chapin, Dobzanski shined in this game. Ken Mccormick would score the first Falcons goal by a forward on a beauty. Mccormick dangled around the Neshaminy defense and sniped home another power play goal. It was just a dominating effort by the Falcons all game long and it showed, Captain Matt Mager scored the second goal of the game by a forward for a 6-0 lead and defenseman Colin Gannon, who was solid all game defensively made it 7-0. It was at that point, the second period got very frisky. Colin Healy and Neshaminy's Michael Gorman fought and Healy wrestled Gorman to the ground and both players were shown the door, and got ejected. With under two minutes left in the period is when the most exciting aspect of the game occured. Pennsbury goaltender Corey Chapin was run into, Chapin reacted with a hook and his teammates jumped in. Dobzanski was ejected from the game for fighting and looks like he could face a probable four game suspension which would hurt the power play and defense unit. He wasn't the only Falcon, as Matt Mager also got thrown out. Nick Burkhart, who was also running a show out there was shown the penalty box with Sean Harlow as the two only got off with two minute penalties a piece. Ironically enough, Harlow would score the Falcons eighth goal not too long in the third period after getting out of the penalty box. Erik Rinehold and Colin Gannon were paired for a majority of the third period, and their work ethic together shut down any Redskin rushes. At the end, Luke Matthews goal was just a smack in the face as Pennsbury embarrassed Neshaminy 9-1.

Game Notes:
-The Falcons outshot the Redskins 38-11
-Pennsbury forward Ken Mccormick had a 6 point game (1 goal, 5 assists)
-Pennsbury forward Mike Hlatky did not play
-Pennsbury's Dobzanski could face a four game suspension
-Neshaminy pulled goaltender Collin Mazer after the game was out of reach
-Collin Healy (PEN) and Michael Gorman (NES) were removed from the game after fighting
-A line brawl broke out with under two minutes left in the second period
-Matt Mager and Alex Dobzanski were removed for fighting in the second period
-Pennsbury beat Neshaminy for the second time this season

Pennsbury falls to Archbishop Wood 2-4

Not much went right as the Pennsbury JVA Falcons team stepped on the ice with a 1-9-1 record. They would go up against Archbishop Wood, who have a convincing 8-2-1 record and hold sole possession of third place. The Falcons went in hitting hard and put in the effort, but Archbishop Wood was just too much and displayed that throughout the game as they doubled Pennsbury in shots, totaling over 30. The game started off with a bang when Sean Costello had a big hit in the defensive zone but was called for interference. It was a very questionable call, considering the puck was in the corner where the hit was taken, so no one really knows what the ref was doing? Pennsbury was able to kill of the penalty thanks the impressive work of the penalty kill and the always good, Ben Herring in net. Herring had a good overall game but was hung out to dry which resulted in some goals against. The first goal Archbishop Wood scored was bad fortune for the Falcons as the puck deflected off John Gindhart and past Herring for the 1-0 Archbishop Wood lead. The Falcons were quick to respond as captain Kyle Boltersdorf was able to finish off a nice passing display by Jesse Perlstein and Jason Millen. The first period came to a close at a 1-1 tie. The officiating wasn't great, but the Falcons did take some bad penalties during the course of the second period. The penalty kill was kept aggressive as forwards Sean Costello, Liana Eyre and Jeff Stitt did a nice job pressuring the point and clearing the puck down. Eyre almost found herself looking at a few breakaways, almost taking the puck from the defense but some unlucky bounces neglected this out. Sean Costello did a great job all game, delivering great hits and putting on a show. Now why doesn't he get more playing time? Falcons defenseman Derek Faro may not be the biggest guy, but him and Gindhart were also apart of making some big hits in their zone as they tried to protect Herring in net. Seeing that they were down in the third period, something motivated Coach Millen to pull Herring for the hell of it. The Falcons took advantage of having the extra man as the extra attacker, Eric Michael sniped his third goal of the season as the Falcons fell 2-4.

I do suggest that the JVA coaches try helping the goal scorers and playmakers of the team up and give them a chance to get some chemistry. There are a few lines I'd suggest that would end up for some success.

Sean Costello-Kyle Boltersdorf-Jesse Perlstein
Key Factor: Why not put together these big three? Perlstein has shown he can both pass and shoot and Costello has as well, while he may not have a big point total he hasn't really gotten the chance to and with someone like big, captain Boltersdorf aboard, it would definitely produce some offense. Perlstein has been Pennsbury's point leader for a while and he shows up playing great every game, Costello does the same on every shift. Match them together with Boltersdorf and after they get some chemistry, it will be a treat to watch

Liana Eyre-Dakota Morrow-Jeff Stitt
Key Factor: This would be an interesting line for sure. You got Eyre, who has displayed good speed and a constant effort on the forecheck as the energizer. Stitt, who has a great shot and Morrow would be a great guy to help Stitt out not only passing, but shooting wise. It would probably get production out of all of these players

Hank Kaufman -Eric Michael-Jason Millen
Key Factor: Now this would be an interesting line to try out, these guys don't have big size, but they do each put in a great effort and would bring interesting aspects to the line. Michael is known for his good puckhandling and shot and Jason Millen is a solid skater who can pass well while Kaufman would be the balanced player on the line. At this point, trying anything would help. You stack these three lines and give out even playing time it could work

The defensive pairings would obviously be crucial as you would like to put an offensive type like Christian Lefbvre and put him with the gritty, stay at home defenseman John Gindhart or Derek Faro. While the other could play with Paul Kim, who is also a more defensive shaded type. Faro and Gindhart like to get involved with the play so Lefbvre's shot needs some good passing.