Burrell hockey team eager to play in national tournament in March while keeping an eye on Penguins Cup

By: Michael Love
Sunday, February 2, 2025 | 5:57 PM

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Burrell hockey coach Drew Burkett remembers well the trip he and his Bucs teammates made to the 2019 USA Hockey High School Division II National Championship tournament.

The goaltender for that year’s Burrell team, Burkett helped the Bucs reach the championship game before losing to Boulder/Monarch from Boulder, Colo.

Current Bucs assistant Bryce Schueler was a top-line defenseman on that 2019 squad.

“It was, honestly, my most memorable hockey experience I had in my life,” said Burkett, who will guide this year’s Bucs team in a return trip to nationals at the end of March. “I played since I was really little, and no other trip really amounted to that. There’s something special about playing high school hockey and getting to spend four years with the same group of guys and seeing where it takes you. Getting to stay in a hotel and hanging out with 20 of my best friends and adding winning to that, it was very fun.”

Burrell hockey is enjoying a strong 2024-25 season in PIHL Division II. The Bucs are 12-2-0-1 overall and have won six games in a row through a 6-3 victory over Elizabeth Forward last Monday.

They hope to make a run through the D2 playoffs, which will come to a close right before they begin play at nationals from March 26-30 in Irvine, Calif.

“When we went out there (in 2019), we didn’t have any expectations on how we would do,” Burkett said. “We had the goal of winning one game and then go from there. We ended up finishing second in the whole tournament.

“This year, the guys have set pretty high expectations for themselves in the (PIHL) season, and I know they will do that again for the national tournament. I told them that I would do anything I could to help them get there.”

Burrell is one of two teams from the PIHL that will represent the league at nationals. The other is Class 2A Cathedral Prep.

Burkett said he knows his players will grasp the responsibility and opportunity they will have in representing an entire league.

“I am sure it will start kicking in once playoffs starting rolling around,” Burkett said.

The PIHL Penguins Cup championship game for D2 will fall around the second or third week of March. If Burrell wins the title, it would advance to the state championship game March 22 in Cranberry. The Bucs then would have, Burkett said, roughly four days to gather themselves and make their way out to California for the start of the national tournament.

“I don’t think they would mind having to make a quick turnaround for nationals,” Burkett said.

Burrell earned their trip to nationals in a bid process through the PIHL. The organization submitted a resume of qualities it felt would be desirable to represent the PIHL.

“We’re not privy to the actual selection process, but I believe record is very important,” said Dave Burkett, Drew’s father and Burrell’s team president. “They always look for teams who will represent the league well through clean play and good sportsmanship. I feel we’ve shown that over the past several years while producing a winning culture of making it to the PIHL championship several times and consistently putting out good teams.”

Dave Burkett believes Burrell will represent the PIHL in the Class A bracket, which is a mix of pure teams, all the players being from one school; and co-op teams, those with players from a number of area schools.

Burrell is a team made up of players from its school as well as those from Valley, Highlands, Penn Hills and Riverview.

“We are still waiting to get all the information about the divisions and how everything breaks down,” Dave Burkett said. “But we’re just excited to make this trip to nationals. This year’s teams, I think, has a little more depth than the team we took in 2019. That team had a little more top-end talent.

“We have coaching with Drew and Bryce that has the experience of playing at nationals and knowing what it takes to be successful there. We want to play our brand of hockey and see how it goes. The guys have put the work in this year and are deserving of this opportunity.”

Senior forward Luke Mink, an alternate captain for the Bucs, is excited for the opportunity to play in a tournament of this stature.

“It should be a very good time for all of us,” he said. “We’ve just locked in these last three years. We’ve gotten better and have kept progressing. Every game is a new chance to show who we are. It feels good that our hard work is paying off. We’re still battling for the Pens Cup, obviously, but we’re also looking forward to nationals.”

Dave Burkett said that a trip of this magnitude will not be cheap, and the Burrell organization has begun fundraising efforts to cover all of the costs.

“We weren’t able to start fundraising until we got our bid, and that was about two weeks ago,” he said. “We have approached local businesses for support. The parents are doing a great job organizing local fundraising, and the boys have done some fundraising activities.”

Burrell hockey will host a Bingo event March 8 at the VFW Post 92 on Wildlife Lodge Road in Lower Burrell. The cost to play is $45 with various prizes available. Doors open at noon, and games begin at 2 p.m.

Dave Burkett said those willing to donate to the effort can do so by directing funds to the team’s Venmo: @burrellhockey.

“We want to do everything we can do to take the edge off those costs,” he said. “We’re still trying to get the word out. The mayor of Lower Burrell has put some posts out for us, and the response through that has been great. The other schools who have players on the team are aware of what we are hoping to do and are starting to embrace it.”

Michael Love is a TribLive reporter covering sports in the Alle-Kiski Valley and the eastern suburbs of Pittsburgh. A Clearfield native and a graduate of Westminster (Pa.), he joined the Trib in 2002 after spending five years at the Clearfield Progress. He can be reached at mlove@triblive.com.

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