After four consecutive road series, the Maryland Black Bears finally get to take the ice in front of their fans at Piney Orchard Ice Arena for the first time in a month. Despite falling to the Philadelphia Rebels on Tuesday morning, 2-0, the Black Bears still maintain their spot as first in the East Division with a record of 13-6-1 and 27 points. This weekend, Maryland hosts the New Hampshire Mountain Kings, who sit at seventh in the division with an 8-9-1 record and 17 points. The two teams split a series in New Hampshire three weeks ago, with the Black Bears winning game one 3-2 before the Mountain Kings won game two 2-1.
Maryland entered last weekend’s series against the Danbury Hat Tricks having split their previous four series, and hoped to snap out of that funk with a sweep. However, they would once again split the series. They dropped game one in a low-scoring 2-1 loss, with forward Will Schlechtweg scoring the team’s lone goal in the third period. Cole Werthman put forth a great effort with 26 saves despite the loss. The Black Bears woke up in game two, exploding for four goals in the first period with a goal from defenseman Dominick Mack, a goal from forward Brayden Wade, and two goals from forward Joseph Gasperko. Danbury would get one the board towards the end of the first, but two goals in the second period from forward Lucas Salvatore put the game on ice. The Hat Tricks would strike again in the third, only to be answered by Schlechtweg’s second goal of the weekend for a 7-2 final. Michael Iliff was strong in between the pipes with 26 saves in the win. Maryland hosted the Philadelphia Rebels on Tuesday morning, where, despite 16 saves from Werthman, the Black Bears fell 2-0.
New Hampshire is in the midst of a rough three game losing streak that has seen them outscored 21-8, including two losses this past weekend to the Elmira Aviators. Forwards Aidan Patton, Benjamin Short, and Edgar Viskantas tallied in an 11-3 loss on night one. The second game was much closer, with the score being 2-2 headed late into the second period with goals from forwards Nicolas Vrtiel and Dylan Podergois scoring for New Hampshire. The Aviators took the lead late in the second and added another goal early in the third to take a 4-2 lead. While Short would respond with a goal of his own to cut the deficit to 4-3, Elmira would score again and hang on to beat the Mountain Kings 5-3. New Hampshire’s 74 goals against are the most in the East Division.
The Black Bears and Mountain Kings have played two games against each other this season, with each team winning a game. Ajay Rai scored the game-winning goal late in the third period to secure Maryland a 3-2 win in game one, before New Hampshire responded with a 2-1 win of their own the next day.
Players to Watch:
J.P. Saddy (D, MYD): Saddy has been an excellent addition to the Black Bears’ blue line this season. The veteran of 116 NAHL games has provided reliable defense in his own zone, while also using his size and speed to lead breakouts the other way. He has a goal and an assist in his last four games.
Benjamin Short (F, NHW): Short leads the Mountain Kings in goals (11) and is second in points (21). He has two goals and four points in his last two games, along with seven goals and 13 points in his last ten games. Short recorded one assist in two games against Maryland this season.
The Black Bears and Mountain Kings take the ice at Piney Orchard Ice Arena on Friday, November 13th, at 7:30 p.m. ET, and Saturday, November 14th, at 7:00 p.m. ET. All games can be streamed on NATV.