WARRENDALE— Looking for a first-round bye in the PIHL Class AAA playoffs, Seneca Valley found a whole lot more Tuesday night.

Logan Pfeffer recorded three goals and three assists, goaltender Ryan Schutte turned away 20 shots and the Raiders special teams shined in a 9-0 win over Central Catholic

Seneca Valley (12-5-5) closed the regular season with three wins and a tie in its final four games.

"We've had some guys in and out of the lineup with injuries, but we're getting healthy at the right time," Raiders coach Denis Kirstein said. "I told the guys before the game we might need this for a first-round bye and they really responded."

Central Catholic (7-13-2) had two power plays in the first period, but failed to convert. The Vikings were 0-for-5 with the man advantage.

Michael Pietrandea scored a shorthanded goal for Seneca Valley, which also converted on two of its five power-play opportunities.

"Now that guys are back, we've got two power play units we can put on the ice,"Pfeffer said. "The injuries we had early in the season have made us stronger.

"We have more depth now and we're using it."

Pfeffer made his presence felt immediately, sailing down the left wing and dishing the puck in front to Erik Larson, who beat goaltender Matt Plutt high to the right corner of the net less than three minutes into the game.

Pfeffer assisted on the Raiders' second goal as well, a rebound chance for Dominic Sarachine with 26 seconds left in the first period that came 14 seconds after SVkilled off its second penalty.

"When you have chances to score the first goal, you have to come up with it,"Central Catholic coach Bob Kennedy said. "We played a fairly even first period, but couldn't beat (Schutte)."

Schutte earned his shutout, stopping a pair of breakaways and stoning 19-goal scorer Alex Galbraith twice on backhand attempts in front of the net.

"Ryan took one shot right off the mask,"Kirstein said. "He made some brilliant saves."

Seneca Valley had a 33-20 advantage in shots on goal. The Raiders had a 17-5 shot advantage in the second period, scoring four times to put the game away.

All three of Pfeffer's goals came in the second period. The hat trick was his first of the season.

Pfeffer entered the game with eight goals and 19 assists. The junior had one hat trick last season.

"We wanted to work on the basics in this game,"Kirstein said. "We wanted to get pucks in deep, work on our cycling, play smart and not get caught pinching in.

"I thought we played effectively in all of those areas."

Tyler Mesisca added a goal and three assists for the Raiders. Team captain Michael Rohm scored his ninth goal of the year.

Seneca Valley's final goal occurred with 2:07 left and was scored by senior Jason Smith. It was Smith's first career varsity goal.

"I'm happier about Jason Smith's goal than I am about mine," Pfeffer said.

The Raiders scored nine goals without 15-goal scorers Sam Jarrett or Brandon Platt netting any. Jarrett had two assists and Platt one.

Central Catholic played with a depleted bench because four freshmen who normally dress varsity played in a freshman game at Erie McDowell.

"That was a big game for our frosh and this game didn't mean much to us,"Kennedy said, his team having been eliminated from playoff contention earlier.

"That's not an excuse, though. We came out and played hard. They were just too much for us."

Kennedy said Seneca Valley "is definitely one of the top four or five teams in Triple-A."

Playoff seedings will be announced Saturday. Kirstein anticipates his team getting a two-week break.

"We may be peaking at the right time of the year," he said.