The race for Penguins Cup playoff positioning is heating up! Here’s what you need to know going into week 14 of the PIHL season.
AAA – 9 teams
All teams qualify.
No. 8 & 9 play a play-in game at a neutral site.
Current Matchups:
(Cathedral Prep vs. Canon-McMillan) @ Peters Township
Seneca Valley @ North Allegheny
Central Catholic @ Mt. Lebanon
Butler @ Bethel Park
Clinching Scenarios:
Peters Township and North Allegheny have clinched playoff berths.
This Week:
MONDAY:
Butler 3, Mt. Lebanon 2, SO at Mt. Lebanon Rec.
Mt. Lebanon def. Butler 6-3 at Frozen Pond on 10/22. Third game on 1/28 at Mt. Lebanon Rec.
TUESDAY:
Peters Township 5, Seneca Valley 2 at Printscape Arena
Seneca Valley def. Peters Township 4-1 at Baierl Ice Complex on 10/22. Final meeting.
Canon-McMillan 4, Central Catholic 2 at Printscape Arena
Central Catholic def. Canon McMillan 7-1 at Alpha Ice Complex on 10/23. Final meeting.
THURSDAY:
North Allegheny @ Bethel Park, 9:10: Spencer Family YMCA
North Allegheny def. Bethel Park 2-1 at Baierl Ice Complex on 10/22. Final Meeting.
AA – 14 teams
Northwest
Southeast
4/5 seeds play opposite conference play-in games in to the quarter-final at a neutral site. A tie for 5th requires a play-in game between the tied schools.
Current Matchups
(NW5 Quaker Valley @ SE4 Franklin Regional) @ NW 1 Pine Richland
SE3 Hempfield @ NW2 Mars
(SE5 Baldwin @ NW4 Moon) @ SE 1 Greater Latrobe
NW3 Hampton @ SE2 Upper St. Clair
Scenarios:
Pine-Richland has clinched a playoff berth. The Rams can clinch home-ice in the first round with a win.
Mars has clinched a playoff berth.
This Week:
MONDAY:
Baldwin 5, Penn-Trafford 3 at Ice Castle
Penn-Trafford def. Baldwin 6-3 at Center Ice Arena on 10/8
Hampton 7, Mars 4 at Baierl Ice Complex
Mars def. Hampton 5-0 at Frozen Pond on 10/8
Greater Latrobe 3, Franklin Regional 2 at Center Ice Arena
Greater Latrobe def. Franklin Regional 5-0 at Kirk S. Nevin Arena on 10/8
Quaker Valley 5, Shaler 4 at Baierl Ice Complex
Shaler def. Quaker Valley 5-3 at Alpha Ice Complex on 10/8
Upper St. Clair 8, Plum 4 at Pittsburgh Ice Arena
Upper St. Clair def. Plum 9-6 at Ice Castle Arena on 10/8
THURSDAY:
Pine-Richland @ Armstrong, 8:20 at Belmont Complex
Pine-Richland def. Armstrong 5-2 at Baierl Ice Complex on 10/11
Mars @ Hempfield, 8:35 at Kirk S. Nevin Arena
Only meeting of the season
Penn-Trafford @ Moon, 9:10 at Baierl Ice Complex
Only meeting of the season
A – 22 teams
NORTH
Top eight teams in the North qualify.
Beaver and Blackhawk split the season series in regulation. The tiebreaker will be total wins, and if they are still tied, then the lesser of total penalty minutes wins the tiebreaker. Beaver holds the tiebreaker currently at 122-126 penalty minutes.
EAST
Top two teams qualify automatically.
*Bishop McCort is ineligible for the postseason.
SOUTH
Top two teams qualify automatically.
**Wheeling Park and Wheeling Catholic are ineligible for the postseason.
Current Matchups:
The single-A postseason is simple, but still a bit complex. The North will remain its own division and be ranked 1-8 as per the points standings. The South and East will be combined, with the top two teams in each of the divisions guaranteed a spot in the postseason. The final four teams will be the teams with the highest point totals in the South and East regardless of division. Those eight teams will then be ranked 1-8 based off of the point totals. All tiebreakers will be consistent with the PIHL rules
The first round will see the two ‘divisions’ play each other. The top four teams will face the bottom four teams of the opposite division in the format of 1v8, 2v7, 3v7 and 4v5.
Scenarios:
Montour has clinched a playoff berth. The Spartans can clinch a first round home game with a win or an overtime loss.
West Allegheny, Meadville, South Park, Thomas Jefferson, Indiana, North Hills, Norwin and South Fayette have clinched playoff berths.
This Week:
MONDAY:
Norwin 8, Wheeling Catholic 7 at Center Ice Arena
Only meeting of the season.
North Hills 6, Sewickley Academy 2 at RMU ISC
North Hills def. Sewickley Academy 3-2 at RMU ISC on 10/22.
Thomas Jefferson 7, Kiski Area 1 at Rostraver Ice Garden
Only meeting of the season.
West Allegheny 6, Blackhawk 1 at Baierl Ice Complex
West Allegheny def. Blackhawk 10-1 at Brady’s Run on 10/25
Indiana 2, South Park 1 at Ice Castle Arena
Only meeting of the season.
Bishop McCort 6, Chartiers Valley 1 at Mt. Lebanon Rec.
Only meeting of the season.
TUESDAY:
Fox Chapel 6, Deer Lakes 3 at Alpha Ice Complex
Deer Lakes def. Fox Chapel 8-4 at Frozen Pond on 11/19
THURSDAY:
Montour @ Beaver, 6:45 at Bradys Run
Montour def. Beaver 11-1 at RMU ISC on 10/22
Chartiers Valley @ South Fayette, 7:10 at Mt. Lebanon Rec.
South Fayette def. Chartiers Valley 4-0 at Mt. Lebanon Rec. on 10/1, will play again 1/21.
Bishop McCort @ Indiana, 7:30 at S&T Bank Arena
Bishop McCort def. Indiana 5-2 at First Summit Arena on 10/30, will play at S&T Bank arena on 2/21
Division-2 – 11 teams
Top eight teams qualify.
Current Matchups:
Knoch @ Burrell
Morgantown @ Ringgold
Central Valley @ Connellsville
Carrick @ Neshannock
Scenarios:
Burrell clinched a playoff berth. The Bucs can clinch a first round home game with a loss by Carrick.
Ringgold and Connellsville have clinched playoff berths.
This Week:
MONDAY:
Burrell 9, Trinity 1 at Frozen Pond Arena
Burrell def. Trinity 12-3 at Printscape Arena on 10/16
TUESDAY:
Connellsville 5, Neshannock 3 at The Ice Mine
Neshannock def. Connellsville 2-0 at Hess Ice on 11/5
Morgantown 7, Knoch 3 at Alpha Ice Complex
Knoch def. Morgantown 4-3 at Morgantown Ice on 11/8
THURSDAY:
Trinity @ Carrick, 8:00 at Ice Castle Arena
Carrick def. Trinity 4-2 at Printscape Arena on 11/6
Ringgold @ Central Valley, 8:45 at Brady’s Run
Central Valley def. Ringgold 5-3 at Rostraver Ice Garden on 11/5
