The Binghamton Black Bears (47-6-2) defeated the
Danbury Hat Tricks (25-25-5) in the last meeting of
the season at the Danbury Ice Arena by the score of 4-3. The Black
Bears got off to a strong start in Danbury, striking early and
carrying the pace through the opening 20 minutes. Jacob
Shankar opened the scoring just 3:51 into the game, getting
a stick on a Dan Wieber shot and tipping it past
Danbury goaltender Kyle Penton to give the Black
Bears a 1-0 lead. Binghamton continued to apply pressure throughout
the period and capitalized again late in the frame. After a misplay
by the Hat Tricks, Nick Swain buried his 19th goal
of the season, beating Penton low on the blocker side with 2:37
remaining to extend the lead to 2-0. Ivan Bondarenkno
and Scott Ramaekers picked up the assists on the
goal. Danbury’s lone penalty of the period came at 7:20 for too many
men on the ice, but the Black Bears were unable to convert on the
man advantage. In goal, CJ Hapward made his second
start of the season for Binghamton, turning aside 14 shots in the
opening period, while Penton faced 16 shots from the Black Bears.
The Black Bears carried their momentum into the middle frame,
extending their lead early and responding quickly to any push from
Danbury. Ivan Bondarenko added to his standout
season just 3:30 into the period, finishing a setup from
Mason Hoehn and Tyler Schwindt for his
20th goal of the year—and 97th point of the season—to make it 3-0 in
favor of Binghamton. The period featured a physical edge,
highlighted by a fight at the 4:00 mark between Mason Hoehn
and Josh Newberg, along with a series of penalties
that gave both teams opportunities to shift momentum. Danbury broke
through on the power play late in the period after Zac
Sirota was sent off for tripping. Genaro Fronduto capitalized
with 4:45 remaining, scoring unassisted to cut the deficit to 3-1.
However, any momentum gained by the Hat Tricks was short-lived. Just
21 seconds later, Zac Sirota answered back for
Binghamton, finishing a play off a feed from Kyle Stephan. After a brief
review by the officials, the goal stood, restoring the Black Bears’
three-goal advantage at 4-1. CJ Hapward continued his solid
performance in net, limiting Danbury to just seven shots in the
period.
The Hat Tricks came out with urgency in the final
frame and quickly made things interesting. Eli Rivers
got Danbury back within two just 1:48 into the period, finishing a
play from Anton Rubtsov and Gregory
Susinski to make it a 4-2 game. The Hat Tricks struck again
moments later, as Chance Adrian found the back of
the net just 1:13 after Rivers’ goal, cutting the Black Bears’ lead
to 4-3 early in the third. Danbury continued to press, outshooting
Binghamton in the period and pushing for the equalizer late. The Hat
Tricks used their timeout with 2:00 remaining and pulled
Kyle Penton for the extra attacker, applying heavy pressure
in the final minutes. Binghamton responded by taking a timeout with
38 seconds left to settle things down, and CJ Hapward
along with the Black Bears defense held firm down the stretch to
preserve the 4-3 victory.
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