Black Bears and Nordiques Reignite Rivalry in Postseason Clash

Sports stats



NAHL Maryland Black Bears

Black Bears and Nordiques Reignite Rivalry in Postseason Clash

April 16, 2025 - North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Maryland Black Bears News Release


The Maryland Black Bears finished the regular season second in the East Division with a 35-17-7 record and 77 points, and now look to the East Division best-of-five semi-final series, the first step in their quest to win the franchise's first ever Robertson Cup. Their opponent is a very familiar one, the Maine Nordiques, as they are the only NAHL team with multiple postseason series against the Black Bears. The Nordiques finished third in the East Division with a 35-18-6 record with 76 points and defeated the sixth seed New Hampshire Mountain Kings in the best-of-three play-in round last weekend. This will be the fourth postseason meeting between these two teams, with Maryland winning two of the three previous series.

Maryland finished near the top of the East Division in many stat categories. Their 196 total goals are the fourth most in the division, while their 160 goals against are third fewest. The +36 goal differential was third best in the division. The Black Bears' 35 wins were tied with Maine for second most in the division and marked the third consecutive season that Maryland recorded over 30 wins.

After losing a chunk of the 2023-2024 Black Bears team that made the Robertson Cup Final, Maryland knew they needed to reload with impact players while also allowing a path for returning players to step up into larger roles. The returnees did just that, like forward Luke Janus, who set a career best 34 points this past season, and forward Kareem El-Bashir, who set a new career high in goals with 16. Returning forward Tyler Stern was named captain for the 2024-2025 Black Bears and led by example, setting a new career high in points with 36. On the blue line, returning defenseman Dylan Gordon thrived, recording career highs in assists (25) and points (30).

Leading the charge for the new Black Bears, forwards Isac Nielsen and Harrison Smith helped provide that impact, becoming scoring leaders for the Black Bears. Nielsen's 25 tallies led the team this season in goals, while Smith's 43 assists led the way in the helper category for Maryland. With 43 assists, Smith surpassed former Black Bears forward Ryan Bottrill for most assists in a single season. Blue liner Victor Mannebratt was another impact player, whose 41 points were the most amongst Black Bears defensemen. Forward Sebastian Speck, who came to the Black Bears in a trade with the Oklahoma Warriors, put up 56 points between his time in Oklahoma and Maryland, good enough to be the Black Bears' team leader in points. Maryland goaltenders Ryan Denes and Marko Bilic provided stability in net as the two combined for four shutouts this season.

Up in Lewiston, the Nordiques brought in forward Ethan Wongus from the New Jersey Titans at the start of the year and the move paid off in a big way, as he led the team with 60 points. Wongus also tied with forward Zion Green for the team lead in assists with 40. Forward Laurent Trepanier led the team in goal scoring with 25 on the season. In between the pipes, returning goaltender Carter Richardson put up a 23-13-2 record with a .919 save percentage and four shutouts. The Nordiques used a strong finish to the season to secure the third seed in the division, going 6-2-2 in their final ten games.

Maryland and Maine had plenty of close battles in their season series, with the Black Bears putting up a 2-4-0 record, with Maine just outscoring Maryland 19-14. This will be the first time the Black Bears and Nordiques meet in the semi-final, as the previous three meetings between the two teams were in the East Division Final. Maine swept Maryland in three straight games in 2021 before the Black Bears got revenge in 2023, defeating the Nordiques in four games. The most recent meeting was in the 2024 East Division Final, with Maryland besting Maine in an exciting five game series. Both teams hold a 6-6 overall record against each other in the postseason.

Players to Watch:

Carter Richardson (G, MNE): Carter Richardson doesn't let the bright lights of the playoffs bother him, as his career postseason 2.003 goals against average and .937 save percentage would suggest. He only allowed four goals in Maine's three game play-in series win over New Hampshire, recording a .952 save percentage that series. Maine and Maryland's rivalry has brought out the best in Richardson, who is 2-1-0 against the Black Bears this season with a .910 save percentage. He was well known for his performance against Maryland last postseason, where he yielded one goal in the first three games with two shutout wins for the Nordiques, and a .923 save percentage throughout the five game series.

Luke Janus (F, MYD): Luke Janus was a key player for Maryland on their road to the Robertson Cup Final last year, recording four goals and 11 points in 11 playoff games, including one of the Black Bears' two goals they scored in the championship game against Lone Star. His 15 goals and 34 points are career highs in those respective categories as he stepped up to fill a scoring role left by departing players from last year's team. Janus has been a thorn in the Nordiques' side this season, recording five points in six games against them.

Maryland and Maine take the ice for game one on Friday, April 18th, at 7:00 p.m. ET, with game two taking place on Saturday, April 19th, at 6:30 p.m. ET at Piney Orchard Ice Arena. The series will shift to Lewiston, Maine, for game three on Friday, April 25th, at 7:30 p.m. ET at The Colisée. If the series requires a fourth game, that will take place Saturday, April 26th, at 7:00 p.m. ET at The Colisée. Should there be a winner-take-all game five, the series will return to Maryland on Monday, April 28th, at 7:00 p.m. ET with Piney Orchard Ice Arena hosting the deciding contest. All games can be streamed on NAHLTV.

Check out the Maryland Black Bears Statistics

• Discuss this story on the North American Hockey League message board...

North American Hockey League Stories from April 16, 2025


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

Other Recent Maryland Black Bears Stories



Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central