Plum hockey reloads to make another run at Penguins Cup playoffs

By: Michael Love
Saturday, October 18, 2025 | 11:01 AM

The Plum hockey team went 13-6 last year in the PIHL Class A regular season and had high hopes for a run in the Penguins Cup playoffs. However, a 6-0 loss to North Hills in the first round put a halt to those plans.

“That was very tough,” third-year Mustangs coach John Gratton said. “There’s no way to sugarcoat that. We all envisioned a better run than what happened. At the same time, as a program, those moments are necessary. It’s a whole new ball game in the playoffs, and you have to learn those lessons. We’ve definitely learned a lot from it.

“Going back a couple years, this was a team that wasn’t in the playoffs and was winning single-digit games in the regular season. We’ve definitely made strides there where we are a hard team to play against and where no team is thrilled to see us. It’s to the point now where I feel we can beat anyone on any given night.”

Eight seniors graduated from last year’s team, but with 15 players back with varsity experience and several talented newcomers joining the ranks over the past few months, Gratton is energized for what his team can do.

So far, so good for Plum, which got off to a 2-0 start. The Mustangs rolled past Greensburg Salem, 7-2, in the opener Oct. 2 and exacted a measure of revenge on North Hills with a 2-1 overtime victory Oct. 9.

“We did lose a lot of experience, skill and leadership, but it was a seamless transition from last year to this season,” Gratton said.

“I attribute that to a strong leadership group that been with me all three years. There are no questions to be answered. There is no wondering with what the expectations are. I have two seniors (Anthony Smith and Marco Scheer) and a big group of juniors. We are built for success not just this year but in the future, too, if this continues to trend in the right direction. I owe all the credit to these guys and them buying in over the past three years. Now, when young guys come into the program who are filling voids, it’s not just me steering the car. I have a group of guys who have been there and are pushing the message.”

Plum is fueled at the top by a group of five captains, all juniors, in defenseman Max Keller with alternates in forwards Colby Bartos, Alex LeDonne, Andy Verrengia and AJ Leah.

They helped get the team primed for the regular season with workouts on and off the ice and with preseason play in the annual St. Margaret’s Fall Face Off.

Plum went 1-2 with a win against Baldwin and competitive losses against Central Catholic and Shaler.

“It’s always a tough tournament,” Gratton said. “That’s why we do it. You always have top-notch teams there from triple-A down to single-A. It is a very good litmus test for where your team is at. If you can go and compete in that tournament, you are in pretty good shape. I was happy with our performances all three games. We were neck-and-neck each time. It seems to have translated to the regular season.”

Plum is in the Class A Varsity Gold Division with North Hills and Greensburg Salem, as well as Mars, West Allegheny, Chartiers Valley, Avonworth, Butler, Wheeling Catholic, Westmont Hilltop and South Park.

Gratton feels there is a deep group of goal scorers this season, and it was evident in the opener as seven skaters — Bartos, Leah, Keller, junior Alex Amen, freshman Josh Lewis, junior Matthew Amen and freshman Trey Harchick — found the back of the net.

Leah and LeDonne added a pair of assists, and sophomore goalkeeper Brody Gribbin made 19 saves.

North Hills scored first in the Oct. 9 game at Pittsburgh Ice Arena, but Plum tied it in the second period on a goal from Alex Amen and won it in overtime on a goal from Bartos.

Gribbin stopped 21 of 22 North Hills shots.

With his two goals, Bartos picked up where he left off last year as one of the teams’ top scorers. The leading scorer among the returnees tallied 12 goals and added eight assists in 2024-25.

“Colby is in a role and is expected to continue to score goals and provide offense for us, but he is confident in everyone’s scoring ability, especially from the third and four lines,” Gratton said.

“That is everything to a team that is building confidence every day. Up and down the lineup, from offense to defense, there are so many guys providing quality minutes for us.”

Gratton said Gribbin, the younger brother of last year’s starting netminder, graduate Landon Gribbin-Horner, also is building more and more confidence between the pipes.

“I think a lot of people had concerns about what the goaltending situation was going to look like coming into this year,” Gratton said.

“Brody is a sophomore on the varsity hockey team, and he has all the confidence and calmness of a senior that has played for four straight years. It is comforting for me as a coach and for the guys as players to just play their games. If they make a mistake or if someone on the other team makes a nice play, they know he is back there ready to bail them out or make a top-level save.”

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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