I think you are really underestimating the SHSHL North, ESP Pennridge, They are far superior to Council Rock South, it shows by the 9-2 win against them, and it was not that close, not to mention that Ridge beat LaSalle Gold Last night with a forward playing goal 3-1. Pretty impressive. The North is far superior to the south this year, any team in the north with the exception of CB South can beat any team in the South at anytime. Ive seen just about every SHSHL game played at Hatfield Ice, and every year the SHSHL teams in the Flyers Cup make some noise and surprise people.

Don't get me wrong, I like Pennridge and I was really proud of our H-H kids, but they did come within 30 seconds of beating PR. Then 2 games later LaSalle Blue had PR beaten until a last minute goal tied them. I guess on the one hand, it shows they have the fortitude to turn losses into ties, but they only actually won 12 of 20.

I hope they go far.

By the way, that win over Gold is impressive. It does point out a bit of inconsistency, though. Maybe they will step it up when the games mean more.

as of now...and for free no less...

AA:
Pennridge, I think, is a clear favorite(along with HH) for Phantom Cup(new name for this year). Chances decrease slightly, pending any roster restrictions.

CR South, could stick around a while(if they go for the 2-1, 3-2 type of game).

CB West(strong # line and should ride heavy minutes from top 3 Dmen), Pennsbury, and Neshaminy may surprise.

McD - up & down, depends on how they finish regular season against hot CRNorth, CR South and rival Abington(that should be interesting, at Wintersport) to close regular season.

A:
PV at A, should be favorite as well. Saw them against Methacton Monday, very strong. Upper Dublin could be a surprise.

(ICSHL & SHSHL visibility).

Malvern at AAA.


Will be interesting to see which 'standards' are applied - I'm expecting a re-tightenening up, the strict hooking, holding and interferance calls may be back - so power play opps may be a key factor., especially for the teams that rely on 5-6 guys. Big Jim may have to cut-n-paste one of his early season rants....

It's sad when coaches have to check ahead to see who are the officials assigned to the game so they will know if it's actually going to be a hockey game or a referee circus.

I would hope by now everybody can work together to avoid a penalty nightmare. Inconsistancy is still a problem....

PJBERN,

What is the status on Eberle and Richards?

Pennridge has had a nice season and will most likely make the Flyers Cup, but without those two, their chances of winning are decreased tremendously.

There is also the question if the Pennridge transfer from Quakertown can play. Haven't heard anything since it was reported on a few weeks ago in the phillyburbs site.

Eberle is back now, he ahd a concussion problem but all is well as of now. Richards is a tough one he Plays for Mercer, and currently in Wisconsion for a tournament, im not sure what his commitments look like in the coming weeks. as for the Transfer, He was their goalie last night without richards and will be once again tommarrow vs. Roman Catholic. As for weather ofr not he will be eligable, if he is not there are gonna be some very, very angry pennridge members.

i just don't understand why were not eligible (we being Lower Merion.) I understood the last two years because we had Neifeld and he was a major part of our team. Major is actually an understatement, we won certain games mainly because of Will. However, this year we have 3 third line players from Harriton and thats it. Combined that have scored 3 goals all year I think. The main reason they are on the team is because its political, and Harriton has to have players on the Varsity Team. Also, I know that LM has support from other AA coaches also that we should be in. I just don't get it, how can a team call themselves the best team when they havent played the toughest competition.

Mike.
Although there is rules in place that say teams must be pure. I find it hard to believe that over the past 30 years no exceptions were made for other teams with simular circumstances?

On the other side of the coin, although it may not have been a popular decision within your club and may have Pi--ed some people off, the LM board should have made a better attempt to keep the team pure with just LM guys for one season. If those 3rd line Harriton kids are not that developed did LM have some stronger Jv kids they could have filled those spots with?

This message has been edited. Last edited by: BIGJIM,

Jim,
An exception was made for LM three years ago. This was an issue even back then. They were allowed to play in the Flyers Cup as an impure team in 2004 (Beat Clearview in Rd 1 and lost to Radnor Rd 2)

They were told then that that was a one year exception and that in the future they would have to be pure to play in the Flyers Cup.

Mike,
It doesnt matter if the kids from Harriton are super stars or third line players. The rules clearly state that all teams competing in the Flyers Cup must attend the SAME school. Combined programs are just not eligible.

Personally, from a competitive stand point, I'd love to see LM play in the Flyers Cup, But I do agree that the rules should not be altered. They are there for a reason.

I don't think LM should be eliagable, it would open the door for tons of combined programs of folded teams and could end up being a big problem

LM has kwown the rule for atleast 3 years ago and each year they choose to be impure, its not like its a suprise

Harriot is a very small school but they manage to field a football team who by the looks of it this year was pretty competive, and field teams in all other sports so if they can't field a hockey team tough luck, its ashame the kids at LM can't compete in the flyres cup but it is not unfair by any stretch

To my knowledge, Harriton is part of the LM school district (much like WCE, Henderson & Rustin are part of the WC school district AND D'town E & W are part of the D'town school district), BUT their hockey team actually falls under the jurisdiction of the school unlike the other schools that are CLUB organized. Based on what I understand, if LM has a team in a given sport and Harriton does not, the LM school district has provisions to allow the Harriton student to play for the LM team. It's really a catch 22 for the LM team.

Last I heard....and I could be wrong....the only other sport that Harriton and LM play combined is girls golf.

66,

So you're saying that as part of the same school district, LM could not prevent the Harriton players from joining the team, which thereby renders them ineligible for the Flyers Cup - that is a Catch 22.