Series Preview: Playoff Battle of the Cats

For the first time ever, the Port Huron Prowlers and Blue Ridge Bobcats will meet in the Commissioner’s Cup Playoffs as they battle in the quarterfinals. 

The Prowlers enter the postseason at 37-17-2 with 107 points which makes it their second-most successful season in terms of wins and points. They did endure a franchise-record six-game losing streak from late November into early December but that feels far away. Bobby Price led the team with 29 goals after tying for the FPHL lead in goals during last year’s playoffs. Alex Johnson had a team-high 36 assists and Price and Matt Graham tied for the most points at 52. They went big-game hunting in the collegiate signing season as they grabbed three NCAA DI players; forwards Grayson Dietrich and Ryan Alexander and defenseman John Larkin. All three can make serious noise in the postseason. Between the pipes, Reid Cooper had one of the all-time seasons in Prowlers’ history. He finished 23-9-1 with a 2.28 goals-against average and .930 save percentage. The win, GAA and sv% totals are all second in franchise history and his three shutouts are the most by a Prowler in one season. They also have rookie Bailey Huber and April waiver claim Dysen Skinner. Port Huron is looking to build on a semifinal appearance last season to reach its first Commissioner’s Cup Finals since 2018.

The Bobcats are in the midst of a franchise-best campaign as they finished 32-21-3 with 96 points, eclipsing 30 wins for the first time. They enter the postseason as one of the hottest teams but saw a franchise-record 10-game win streak end in the season finale. Nicholas Stuckless had a team-high 29 goals as one of four players with 20+ tallies this season. Nikita Kozyrev finished atop the Blue Ridge roster with 47 assists and 67 points. They have a lot of size on their blue line with seven of their eight defensemen standing six feet or taller led by 6’6” 220-pound Denis Radchenko. Blue Ridge has nine players on the roster listed at 6’2” or taller. Anthony Shrum has taken the reins between the pipes in his first full pro season and finished 19-12-2 with a 3.01 goals-against average and .916 save percentage. Veteran Gregory Hussey and collegiate rookie Max Macchioni are also in the mix but it’s Shrum’s crease. The Bobcats reached the quarterfinals last season after winning a wild-card game in their first playoff appearance in franchise history, but they have yet to win a game in a non-wild card round.

REGULAR SEASON SERIES (PORT HURON WON 4-2)

Nov. 7 @ Blue Ridge: Bobcats 4, Prowlers 3

Nov. 8 @ Blue Ridge: Prowlers 4, Bobcats 3

Nov. 21 @ Blue Ridge: Prowlers 4, Bobcats 1

Nov. 22 @ Blue Ridge: Bobcats 5, Prowlers 1

Dec. 19 @ Port Huron: Prowlers 3, Bobcats 2

Dec. 20 @ Port Huron: Prowlers 7, Bobcats 1

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Prowlers - Ryan Alexander (F) - The collegiate rookie out of Colorado College has been pushing for his first pro goal with 13 shots in five games. Although he hasn’t found the back of the next yet, he has six assists and once he finds the twine, it could lead to a lot more.

Bobcats - Michael Mercurio (F) - The 2022 Commissioner’s Cup Champion hit career highs in games played (52), assists (42) and points (55) this season. Against Port Huron, he had two goals and five assists in five games.

STAT CENTRAL

The Prowlers have home-ice advantage in a playoff series for the first time since 2018 … The Bobcats saw the four highest point totals in franchise history this season (Nikita Kozyrev 67, Daniel Martin 64, Michael Mercurio 55, Nicholas Stuckless 49) … Matt Graham (PHP) has the most games of playoff experience of any player in the series with 23 … Michael Mercurio and Gregory Hussey (BRB) both won the Commissioner’s Cup with Watertown in 2022 and are the only players in the series who have won the cup

SERIES SCHEDULE

Apr. 15, 7:30 P.M. at Hitachi Energy Arena (Wytheville, VA)

Apr. 17, 7:05 P.M. at McMorran Place (Port Huron, MI)

Apr. 18, 7:05 P.M. at McMorran Place (Port Huron, MI)*

*if necessary

Game 1 can be seen live on the PHP Network YouTube channel. Tickets to Games 2 and 3 are available at phprowlers.com/playoffs.