The Binghamton Black Bears (48-6-2) defeated the
Danbury Hat Tricks (25-26-5) in front of a sold out Visions
Veterans Memorial Arena on Saturday night by the score of 3 to 1.
Special teams played a key role early in this one, with both teams
capitalizing on the power play. The Danbury Hat Tricks opened the
scoring after Jesse Anderson was sent off for
holding. With 5:52 remaining in the period, Eli Rivers
converted on the man advantage off a feed from Milan Breczko
to give Danbury a 1-0 lead. The Black Bears answered right back on
their own power play opportunity after Breczko was called for
holding. Ivan Bondarenko buried his 21st goal of the season,
finishing a play set up by CJ Stubbs and
Austin D’Orazio to even the game at 1-1. Binghamton kept
the pressure on and took the lead just 30 seconds later.
Jacob Shankar put a shot on goal that deflected high into
the air, where Nick Swain knocked it in for his
20th of the season, giving the Black Bears a 2-1 advantage with 3:24
left in the period. The play was reviewed for a potential high
stick, but the goal stood. The period featured steady physical play
and multiple penalties, giving both sides chances with the extra
attacker.
The middle frame saw no scoring, but plenty of
physical play and rising tension between these two familiar
opponents. Things escalated early at the 2:41 mark when a scrum
broke out in front of Danbury goaltender Ayden Pierce.
After the whistle, Austin Pickford went after
Jacob Shankar, resulting in a flurry of penalties.
Pickford was ultimately assessed 22 total penalty minutes, including
a roughing minor, a 10-minute misconduct, and a 10-minute game
misconduct for unsportsmanlike conduct, while Shankar received a
roughing minor on the play. The physicality continued throughout the
period, with both teams battling hard around the crease. Each
goaltender faced traffic in tight, with multiple instances of
players crashing the net and ending up in or around the crease. Late
in the period, with 1:38 remaining, another tense moment unfolded as
Jesse Anderson and Mac Jansen
collided in front of the Danbury net. This led to an extended
discussion among the officials, lasting several minutes, but no
additional penalties were assessed. Play resumed with a faceoff back
in the Black Bears’ defensive zone. Despite multiple power play
opportunities, neither team was able to capitalize in the second
period, as both penalty kill units held strong.
The final
frame remained tight as the Hat Tricks pushed hard to find the
equalizer, outshooting the Black Bears 13-11 in the period. Both
teams continued the physical play seen throughout the night,
highlighted by matching roughing penalties to Jacob Shankar
and Konstantin Chernyuk midway through the period.
Danbury pulled goaltender Ayden Pierce with 1:17 remaining, looking
to even the game with the extra attacker. Despite sustained
pressure, the Black Bears defense held firm, limiting quality
chances and protecting their one-goal lead. With just five seconds
remaining, Binghamton put the game away. Off a defensive zone
faceoff win by Tyson Kirkby, the puck was moved
ahead to Dan Stone, who buried an empty-net
goal—fittingly the final goal of the regular season—to secure a 3-1
victory for the Black Bears.
The Black Bears close out the
regular season with an outstanding 48-6-2 record, totaling 143
points—matching their mark from last season. Ivan Bondarenko
etched his name into the record books, tying the franchise
single-season points record with 98, matching the totals set by
Nikita Ivashkin (2021-22) and Tyler Gjurich
(2021-22). CJ Stubbs also reached an impressive
milestone, tying Tyson Kirkby’s 97-point total from
last season. With the regular season complete, the Black Bears now
turn their attention to the postseason. The team will travel to
Topeka for Game 1 of the Commissioner’s Cup Playoffs, scheduled for
Wednesday at 8:05 PM EST.
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