A new team will be skating with the Class AAA Penguins Cup Saturday night.

Canon McMillan (16-7-1), the No. 8 seed in the tournament, knocked off top-seeded and defending champion Shaler 6-5 in overtime in the semifinals Tuesday night.

That win earned the Big Macs a date with fourth-seeded Seneca Valley (18-5-1) in the Penguins Cup title game at 9 p.m. Saturday at Mellon Arena.

The Raiders lost to Shaler in overtime of last year's championship game.

"We stumbled a bit in the middle part of the season, but our goal was to get back here and here we are," SV coach Denis Kirstein said. "That's what counts."

The Raiders didn't get their rematch with Shaler. They did get a rematch against a Big Macs team that beat them 7-4 Feb. 1. SV is unbeaten in seven games since.

"It better make our kids be ready," Kirstein said of that loss. "They stuck it to us pretty good. They've got three great forwards, an excellent defenseman and strong goalie.

"You can win championships with a roster like that."

Canon McMillan had never reached the semifinal round before this season, let alone the finals.

Brett Oldaker led the team with 22 goals and 39 points during the regular season. Joseph Mottiqua added 13 goals and 27 points — and scored the overtime game-winner against Shaler.

"I told the kids we had nothing to lose, to relax, go play hockey and whatever happens, happens," Canon McMillan coach Yuri Kuvokuha said. "That's the way we treat every game.

"I don't put too much stock in our regular season win over them. Upper St. Clair also beat Seneca Valley 7-4 in the regular season and just got shut out by them. Playoffs are a different animal," the coach added.

Exchange student Alexander Baskakov, a defenseman with eight goals and 23 points, has played for the Russian amateur national team.

"His father knows the agent for Evgeni Malkin and Sergei Gonchar of the Penguins and wanted his son to come over here and get more accustomed to the physical style of North America," Kuvokuha said. "We were fortunate to get him. He's a tremendous player."

Goaltender Ryan Palonis has a 7-3 record and a 1.64 goals-against average for the Big Macs. Teammate Brandon Smolarek is 6-3-1 with a 2.30 GAA and also plays for the Pittsburgh Hornets.

Canon McMillan defeated North Allegheny 3-1 and State College 2-1 in the playoffs before knocking off Shaler.

"We're underdogs, that's for sure, but we don't look at the seeding too much," Kuvokuha said. "Anything can happen in a one-game elimination tournament.

"If we play Shaler five more times, they probably beat us all five times. But they didn't beat us this time."

Logan Peffer scored both goals in the Raiders' 2-1 quarterfinal win over Bethel Park. Brandon Platt scored all five goals in the 5-0 semifinal win over Upper St. Clair.

"We'll take it," Kirstein said of the unbalanced goal production. "It still takes five players on the ice to score a goal. An assist and a goal in hockey are both worth a point.

"We entered this season as a veteran team with high expectations and had to back it up," the coach added. "You can never get too high on your horse. Every game is a battle in the playoffs."

Sam Jarrett and Tyler Mesisca are 20-goal scorers who have yet to light the lamp in the playoffs. They scored 43 and 40 points, respectively, during the regular season.

Peffer (13), Platt (12) and Sean Sokolowski (11) are other double-digit goal scorers for the Raiders.

Veteran goaltender Ryan Schutte is carrying a 2.19 goals-against average.

"This game is going to be a test for us," Kirstein said. "Canon Mac just keeps coming at you."

"Team effort is our biggest strength right now," Kuvokuha said. "Playing as a team is why we're still playing."