HAVERFORD — It had been more than two decades since Radnor ice hockey won an ICSHL Central championship.
Sophomore goaltender James Danner has a special connection to that Radnor team from way back when: His dad Jim was the starting goalie.
The younger Danner made dad proud Thursday night at the Skatium, stopping 31 of 33 shots as No. 7 Radnor crushed fifth-seeded Springfield, 8-2, to win the trophy.
“It’s special,” Danner Jr. said. “It’s the first time in 21, 22 years, and it doesn’t get better than that. It’s a great moment.”
The Raptors surprised the entire Central Division in the tournament. And perhaps Springfield took them too lightly Thursday.
Of Radnor’s eight tallies, a handful seemed to come out of nowhere, whether it was due to a Springfield turnover or a failure to hustle back on a clear. The latter occurred in the third period with Radnor clinging to a 3-2 lead. The Raptors were on the penalty kill and had cleared the puck out of their zone. Sophomore sniper Stephen Sucher beat the Springfield defenseman to the puck behind the net then jammed it past goalie Matt Razzi.
Springfield was left in a state of shock, which would worsen four minutes later when Sucher came away with a steal in the Cougars zone. Sucher was left uncovered and fired a laser past Razzi for Radnor’s fifth goal.
Sucher’s two goals effectively buried the Cougars, part of five third-period tallies.
“Coming into the third period, we had the energy,” Sucher said. “We had to take a breather, and once we took that breather, we said we were going to come into this period and we’re going to win this and we did just that. I just want to thank all of my brothers, man. We came out to work. Ever since the first practice, we knew that we were going to be a family and we were going to fight hard all season. We maybe had some bad games, but we came into this game knowing that we were going to win and that we’re brothers and that we’re going to play for each other.”
Radnor (10-11) made an improbable run in the Central tournament after winning just seven of its 18 games during the regular season. (It is the second straight year a No. 7 seed has won the tournament, Penncrest turning the trick last year.) The Raptors had lost five in a row prior to the playoffs. Nobody, except themselves, expected to see the Raptors celebrating Thursday night.
“We have quite a few kids every year that play club together but this is a unique class,” said Donald Sucher, Radnor’s head coach and Stephen’s dad. “There is excellent senior leadership on this team and that is what won us this championship. It’s all about my players. My players are top notch, great athletes and great kids. I’m just here to guide them along, you know what I mean?”
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Radnor goalie James Danner makes a save in the first period against Springfield at the Skatium Thursday night. (PETE BANNAN-DAILY TIMES)
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