The Maryland Black Bears faced off against its East Division rival, the Main Nordiques, in a heated battle as the two teams fight for playoff positions within the division. The Maryland Black Bears hold the first seed in the east while Maine holds the fourth, which is the last playoff spot in the East Division. In a gritty, back-and-forth defensive battle, it was the Maine Nordiques capturing a win in the final minutes of the game to walk away with a 1-0 victory.

The two goaltenders for the contest, Maine’s Kael Depape and Maryland’s William Hakansson, played spectacularly throughout the contest. Each team’s defense came up with crucial plays in the crease to knock away rebounds to aid their goaltenders as the game went on. Despite the great effort from both sides, something had to give. And unfortunately for Maryland, it was the Maine Nordiques who were able to capitalize. With just 1:15 left to go in the game, Nordiques’ forward Brendan Gibbons found forward Aidan Coupe in the slot who chipped the puck past the left shoulder of Hakansson and into the net for the 1-0 lead, a score that would hold up as final despite a furious effort in the game’s final minute by the Maryland Black Bears. This is the second consecutive shutout by the Maine Nordiques over the Maryland Black Bears, with Kael Depape recording the shutout win in both contests for Maine.

The Black Bears and Nordiques rematch on Saturday, February 19th, at Piney Orchard Ice Arena. All games can be streamed on HockeyTV.