A fixture in Pennsylvania for a half century, Ice Hockey is still not sanction by the PIAA

Eastern and Western powers clash in thrilling Pennsylvania Cup finals as three champions, complete PA's longest interscholastic sports season

Cathedral Prep and Fox Chapel battled in the 2025 Class 2A Penguins Cup final at the UPMC Lemeiux Complex. / Josh Rizzo

Three state ice hockey champions were crowned in Pennsylvania on Saturday. The Robert Morris University Island Sports Center in suburban Pittsburgh was the setting for three state-championship games matching teams from the eastern and western sides of the Commonwealth for the Pennsylvania Cup in their respective divisions.

The Class A championship game saw Garnet Valley from suburban Philadelphia defeat Avonworth from suburban Pittsburgh 7-2. The Class AA game saw North Penn from the East score a 4-1 win over Erie Cathedral Prep. The Class AAA finale saw Seneca Valley from the West score a 7-2 decision over Holy Ghost Prep.

Ice hockey has been a fixture in Pennsylvania high schools for half a century but it is not sponsored by the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association.

Many of the teams, particularly in the East, are club teams. The students use the school’s name and wear their colors but are generally responsible for fundraising and taking care of their own expenses, although some club teams do receive support from their schools.

And at some schools, ice hockey is a full-fledged varsity sport.

The regular season takes place from mid-October and early November. League playoffs are staged in late February leading up to March and the Flyers Cup tournament in the East and the Penguins Cup tournament in the West, making hockey the longest season of any interscholastic sport.

Sponsored by the Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins, the Flyers Cup and Penguins Cup tournaments are the highlight of the scholastic hockey season, matching the top teams against each other in a single-elimination format. The winners advance to the state championship concluding a long and sometimes arduous journey.

Stephane Carboneau was behind the bench for Garnet Valley’s win in Saturday’s Class A final. He said the state title marked the climax of a long journey that featured contribution from the entire group.

“We all had a job to do,” he said. “We went one by one. We asked our guys ‘What is your job for your team and what are you going to do and what are you going to sacrifice?’”

North Penn coach Kevin Vaitis felt at the start of the season that this could be a special season for his team.

"At the beginning of the season when we met with them for the first time, we knew with the team we were going to have and the talent we were going to have what we were capable of doing," he said. "We believed in them and it was a matter of them understanding of they were able to put the work in, just how special the season could be for them."