In a matter of minutes, the North Hills hockey team experienced the highs and lows of playoff hockey in their 6-5 first-round loss to Shaler in the PIHL Class AA Penguins Cup playoffs last year.
The Indians rallied from four goals down to force overtime, but were unable to finish the job.
One game into the season, the Indians have already experienced the same kind of defeat, losing to Quaker Valley 5-4 in overtime in their season-opener.
“How about that for last game last year and the first game this year?” North Hills coach Carl Kelchner said.
Kelchner is in his third season as head coach of the Indians and 12th year overall with the program.
With gaps to fill in the offensive zone, Kelchner will be looking for his defense to lead the team in the early portion of the season. Although the Indians found the back of the net four times in the season-opener, three of the goals were scored by defensemen. Senior captain Matt Berner led the way with two goals. Junior defenseman Liam O'Neill also tallied a goal for the blueliners.
“We are going to need to rely on our defense,” Kelchner said. “A lot of scoring is going to come from our defense. We are trying to find some of our offensive players to click.
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