The Janesville Jets were cruising in the 2019 North American Hockey League Showcase, posting two wins by the combine score of 9-0. However, the Jets fun came to a screeching halt Friday night as the Maryland Black Bears handled business with a 4-1 win. This was the first ever meeting between the two franchises.

Maryland got the scoring started with forward Emil Gabrielson scoring his first goal of the season on a rebound in front of the net to make it 1-0. Black Bears defenseman Logan Kons scored just three minutes and seven seconds later to make it 2-0. Kons charged to the front of the net and received a pass from teammate Wilmer Skoog, which Kons tipped on goal and past Jets goalie Crisitian Wong-Ramos for the second goal of the game. It appeared that Black Bears defenseman Hampus Rydqvist had tallied his first goal as a Black Bear to make it 3-0, but the goal was disallowed as the net had come loose during the play.

The Black Bears picked up right where they left off to start the second period, as forward Jackson Sterrett got the puck off of a rebound and shot it top right side to make it 3-0. Sterrett’s goal was the lone tally of the second period.

In the third period, the Jets got some life as Nick Nardella scored a short-handed breakaway goal to make the score 3-1. This breath of life was short lived, as just five minutes later Jack Hillman scored for the Black Bears to make it 4-1. Hillman took the puck wide and shot top left corner from the left side for his first goal of the season. The 4-1 score would hold up as the final as Maryland secured its second win of the season. Cooper Black made 12 saves in his second win of the season for the Black Bears, while Wong-Ramos made 21 saves for Janesville.

Maryland will conclude its NAHL Showcase on Saturday, September 21 in a match up against the Minot Minotauros with a puck drop at 11:30 AM CDT on Super Rink 3. The Black Bears will then resume East Division play on Friday, September 27 with a match up against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Knights at Revolution Ice Center at 5:00 PM ET. All games can be viewed on HockeyTV.