FPHL Ice Chips - Game Recaps
FPHL Federal Prospects Hockey League

FPHL Ice Chips - Game Recaps

Published on January 16, 2026 under Federal Prospects Hockey League (FPHL) News Release


DANBURY HAT TRICKS at PORT HURON PROWLERS

Hat Tricks Snap Prowlers Streak

By Will Wiegelman

Port Huron, MI - The Port Huron Prowlers saw their seven-game win streak come to a close in a 3-2 defeat to the Danbury Hat Tricks. It was the Hat Tricks' first win over the Prowlers this season.

A ceremony to raise Dalton Jay's 92 to the rafters preceded the game and the action started early. Kadyn Fennell tipped home a shot from Ian Tookenay to break the ice for Danbury. That 1-0 lasted to the intermission despite a 12-3 shots advantage for Port Huron.

Eli Rivers made it 2-0 in the second with his fifth tally in his third game as a Hat Trick. Anton Rubtsov got a breakaway goal in the third and Danbury seemed comfortable in front.

"In the second period, we had a lot of uncharacteristic mistakes that resulted in odd-man chances," said Prowlers associate head coach Chris Paulin. "The shots were heavily in our favor all night, but the chances we gave up in that second period were crazy."

Port Huron didn't go down without a fight. Jamie Bucell entered the offensive zone and sent a back-door pass, helped by Nick Favaro, to Lukas Lacny who tapped it home. Then, Reggie Millette ripped a shot high glove on Kyle Penton to make it a one-goal game. Kyle Penton stoned the Prowlers a couple of times in the final seconds to seal the win.

"I think it comes down to execution at the end of the day," Millette said. "We had a lot of chances to score goals and we just have to score them."

Reid Cooper took the loss with 18 saves.

Penton stopped 38 shots to add to his win column.

The Prowlers and Hat Tricks rematch on Saturday night at 6:05 PM.

Opportunistic Hat Tricks Hold Off Prowlers, Win 3-2

By Tyler Platz

Port Huron, MI - The Danbury Hat Tricks snapped the Port Huron Prowlers' seven-game winning streak to earn their first win over Port Huron this season.

Despite being outshot 12-3 in the first period, the Hat Tricks opened the scoring for the first time since Jan. 3. Defenseman Kadyn Fennell tipped in a point shot from Ian Tookenay past Port Huron goaltender Reid Cooper at 17:26 for the 1-0 lead.

In Hat Tricks-Prowlers fashion, the opening period also featured two fights. Danbury forward Joshua Tomasi and Port Huron forward Jamie Bucell dropped the gloves at 17:52, while Hat Tricks defenseman Jameson Milam fought Prowlers forward Matt Graham at 13:37.

Danbury flipped the script in the second period, outshooting Port Huron 12-10 and controlling the pace of play. Midway through the frame, Hat Tricks forward Eli Rivers scored on a breakaway to extend the lead to 2-0 at 9:08.

Danbury's trade for Rivers looks better with each game. With the goal, the third-year forward now has five goals in three games with the Hat Tricks and 12 on the season.

The Hat Tricks had chances to extend the lead further. On the penalty kill after a delay-of-game call on Danbury forward Genaro Fronduto, Rivers and Noah Robinson each had shorthanded breakaways within 20 seconds. Still, Cooper turned both aside to keep the score 2-0.

The Prowlers nearly cut the deficit to one goal at 15:45 of the third period when, during a pile-up in front of the Hat Tricks' net, goaltender Kyle Penton covered a puck sitting directly on the goal line as Port Huron crashed the net.

Following slashing and hooking penalties on Danbury forward Austan Bellefeuille and Prowlers forward Austin Fetterly that resulted in four-on-four play, Hat Tricks forward Anton Rubtsov extended his point streak to six games with a breakaway goal after intercepting a Port Huron pass at 13:13 to make it 3-0.

The Prowlers avoided the shutout at 10:17 when Bucell made a pass through the offensive zone for forward Lukas Lacny, who tapped it in on the backdoor to cut the Danbury lead to 3-1.

Nearing the five-minute mark, Prowlers forward Reginald Millette skated through the neutral zone with speed, closed in on Penton and beat him with a high wrist shot on a two-on-one to make it a one-goal game, 3-2.

Despite a pulled goalie and extended offensive-zone time late for Port Huron, the Hat Tricks held on for the 3-2 win.

Danbury returns Saturday at 6:05 p.m. for the second game of the road weekend series against the Prowlers.

MONROE MOCCASINS at BILOXI BREAKERS

Mocs Sweep Season Series

by Devin Dobek

Biloxi, MS - One last chance for David to slay Goliath as the Breakers and Moccasins hit the sheet for one final go. In a competitive battle that came down to the final period, Monroe was able to outlast Biloxi en route to a 3-goal-3rd and with it a 6-3 win.

Hard to believe the Moccasins and Breakers would be squaring off for the 12th and final time Saturday night in Biloxi, and the fans were looking to witness a big time upset. Monroe came out hot and ready, taking just 2:54 off the clock before Jared Christy potted a powerplay goal to make it 1-0. Biloxi was not going to go away quietly, and the answer came at 4:06 with Brandon Lucchesi scoring just outside the crease off an initial Lare Pahtayken shot to tie the game at 1. A couple moments later the Breakers headed to the powerplay and cashed in with rookie DonHeaven Veilleux sniping over the glove of Egbert to put his group ahead at 2-1. Everything was coming up Biloxi, and heading to another powerplay they looked to tack on another mark. However, Austin Albrecht had other plans. Forcing a turnover at the Breaker blue line, Albrecht finished with a snapshot for his 3rd shorthanded goal of the season to lock things up at 2 with exactly 9 minutes remaining. A few more scrums took place in the backhalf, with AJ Schlepp being ejected for continuing an altercation and inciting an opponent. Physicality seemed to be a theme that would pick up in the final 40, but only time would tell. Tied at 2, the teams went to the room with Monroe leading 13-12 in shots.

The second period began similar to the first, with Monroe striking early. At 4:16, Casey Gerstein fired a rocket to the far side over the shoulder of Sharma to restore the Moccasins' lead at 3-2. Every time it felt like the Mocs were going to pull away, the Breakers would storm back with pressure of their own. Back and forth we went, with Masternak and Sharma both refusing to give an inch. It was a clean period as well, with neither side taking a single penalty minute in the middle chapter. In the closing moments of the 2nd, Kyle Heitzner forced a turnover off a great forecheck and found Aimy Royer for a one-timer from the honey-hole to tie the contest at 3 with just over a minute to go. The clock hit triple zeros with the game deadlocked once more, and the Mocs holding a 31-28 shot advantage.

The 36th out of 36 total periods in this season series was set to kick off, deadlocked at 3. After both teams exchanged some chances early, a Brandon Lucchesi high-sticking call put the Mocs back on the powerplay. Sure enough they would cash in, with Kyler Matthews ripping the pill high and tight past Sharma to put Monroe ahead 4-3 with 13 minutes left to play. Unfortunately, the frame was lopsided in Monroe's favor. They controlled the tempo, shots, and possession the rest of the way. The dagger came at 17:41 with Jared Christy sliding a no-look shot through the five-hole of Sharma to make it 5-3. An empty netter from Hagan Moe cemented a 6-3 victory for the Snakes, who with it sweep the 12 game season series against Biloxi. Monroe outshot Biloxi 25-9 in their 3-goal 3rd.

The Breakers fall to 6-23-1, and will hit the road for a pair with the Athens Rock Lobsters next Friday and Saturday at Akins Ford Arena. Monroe improves to 25-4-2, and will carry a 16 game win streak back to the Monroe Civic Center for a 2 game set next Friday and Saturday with the Topeka Scarecrows.

WATERTOWN WOLVES at BINGHAMTON BLACK BEARS

Tmej Records 1st Career Shutout

By Brooks Hill

Binghamton, NY - The Binghamton Black Bears blasted by the Watertown Wolves 8-0 on Friday night. Dominik Tmej turned away all 21 shots he faced, earning him his first career shutout, in front of a sold out crowd. Seven different players scored a goal for Binghamton as they recorded their 28th victory of the season.

It didn't take long for the Black Bears to score the game-winning goal on Friday night. Gavin Yates recorded the opening goal at 21 seconds into the first shift of the night. Binghamton was outshooting Watertown 10-1 in the first ten minutes. Zac Sirota scored at 12:42 giving the Black Bears a 2-0 lead going into the break.

The power play came alive in the second period for the home team. The Black Bears converted three-straight times on the man advantage, as Kirkby, Ramaekers and D'Orazio all scored, pushing the lead to 5-0. Nick Swain added one more for good measure before the horn sounded with 11 seconds left, making it 6-0 after two periods.

In the third, Sirota managed to become the only skater to record multiple goals. At 8:11, he recorded a power play goal. The final marker of the night came at 12:28 as Kyle Stephan scored on the breakaway attempt.

For the final seven minutes, everybody just watched Dominik Tmej. The defense anchored down and only allowed four shots in the final period and Tmej saved them all. Tmej earned his first career shutout in a 21 save performance, as Binghamton cruises to a 8-0 victory at home.

ATHENS ROCK LOBSTER at PEE DEE ICECATS

ATHENS COMES BACK TO BEAT PEE DEE 4-3

By Tom Callahan

Florence, SC -The Athens Rock Lobsters scored twice in the final five minutes of regulation to turn a 3-2 deficit into a 4-3 win over the Pee Dee IceCats on Friday night at Florence Center.

Pee Dee started the game shorthanded due to a penalty for leaving the ice late for warmups, but the league's most dangerous shorthanded team struck just 1:37 into the first period to take a 1-0 lead. Patriks Marcinkevics scored on a breakaway for his 19th goal of the season and the team's league-leading 11th shorthanded marker of the year.

Athens responded with a pair of goals 1:44 apart to establish a 2-1 lead 8:17 into the second, but Pee Dee would dig back into the game.

Trevor Lord evened the game with a late second period goal, a wrist shot from the blueline that found a way through the legs of Rock Lobsters goaltender Carter McPhail. Then the IceCats opened the third period with a goal from Alexandr Legkov just after the expiration of a power play chance to take a 3-2 lead.

Once again, Athens knocked out a pair of goals in quick succession, this time in the final five minutes to take a lead Pee Dee could not overcome despite pulling goaltender Sean Kuhn for the extra attacker.

Notes:

Dennis Zaichyk recorded a pair of assists, his first two-assist game with the IceCats.

IceCats part owner and 26-year Marine Corps veteran Kevin Boggs signed as a celebrity player on Friday as part of Military Appreciation Weekend.

Tomorrow night's Military Appreciation Night game is close to sold out, with a record crowd expected at Florence Center.

The same two teams will rematch on Saturday at 7:15 pm for Military Appreciation Night, with the Powers Properties pregame show starting at 7 pm on 100.5 FM and the IceCats YouTube Channel @PeeDeeIceCats.

Crustaceans Comeback Against Cats Yet Again

By Matteen Zibanejadred

Florence, SC -The Athens Rock Lobsters came from behind for a 4-3 win against the Pee Dee IceCats Friday night in the Florence Center.

Starting the game on the power play after a pregame warmup violation from Pee Dee, Athens got off on the wrong foot after Patriks Marcinkevics netted the Ice Cats' league-leading 11th shorthanded goal of the season.

The visitors came out with a little more fire in the second period after being kept to just two shots on goal in the first, and Gleb Bandurkin leveled the scoreline with a rebound at 6:33.

Carter Shinkaruk spat out the taste of the power-play misstep from the Rock Lobsters at the beginning of the game, and went coast to coast before sniping the top shelf past Sean Kuhn with a man advantage at with 12 minutes to go in the middle frame.

The score would get knotted back up at two with Trevor Lord picking up some loose rubber and finding a way through traffic at the 13:15 mark.

It wasn't his first goal in the Florence Center, but it was Alexander Legkov's first as an IceCat to give the hosts a lead right after a power play expired 1:15 into the final period.

Doubts grew higher for the Rock Lobsters in the third period, but they were able to put the early-game power play woes in the rearview mirror with a turnaround shot from Bandurkin with a late man advantage.

The newest Lobster on the roster, Brandon Walker secured three points with less than three minutes to play with his third goal in the past four games.

The Rock Lobsters (21-4-5-0, 73 pts) return to the Florence Center tomorrow night to finish off the two-game set against the Pee Dee IceCats at 7:15 p.m.

BATON ROUGE ZYDECO at TOPEKA SCARECROWS

Scarecrows Turn Down Zydeco, 4-2

By Jon Kliment

Topeka, KS- Topeka returned home after a 5 game trip to the south that saw the Scarecrows take 4 of 5 and look to continue a hot streak in their home barn. Baton Rouge on the other hand had found point in 7 of their last 11 and were looking to continue their rise out of the Continental division basement.

After a delayed start and some technical issues both sides saw a little bit of everything in the first period from broken glass to power plays, penalty kills, big saves and unique opportunities. Though these teams didn't need to reintroduce themselves it was right back to where the action left off on NewYear's Eve. After a successful penalty kill of a Trevor Grasby high stick Topeka got a chance of their own on the power play as Kim Miettinen was charged with the hold and newcomer Aldiyar Nurlan found Scott Coash with a perfect pass that beat Connor Green for the 1-0 lead for Topeka 19:36 into the period.

The Scarecrows found themselves on another power play 3:23 into the second period as Steven Ford took a high sticking minor on Trevor Grasby. On the ensuing power play Cameron Clark ripped a one timer past Green for the 2-0 lead and put Topeka a perfect 2 for 2 on the power play. Though the Scarecrows had to kill another penalty on a too many men minor they weren't done with the offense. With just 12 seconds left to go Cameron Clark once again found the back of the net over Green on another set up from Nurlan for each of their second of the night and Topeka's 3-0 lead stood tall after 40.

Baton Rouge constantly battles when it comes to the Scarecrows however and tonight was no different. After a Quinn O'Reilly tripping minor saw the Zydeco's Dmitry Kuznetsov fire one past Sammy Bernard to break the shutout bid and bring Baton Rouge to 3-1. 16 seconds later Bailey Bilney-Morrissette scored his first as a Zydeco closing the gap to 3-2. After a lot of back and forth with just 2:16 to go in the game Trevor Grasby was the beneficiary of a tic-tac-toe passing performance and deposited it behind Green for the 4-2 victory.

Bernard stopped 30 of 32 in the win, his 9th of the season.

The Scarecrows and Zydeco meet up again tomorrow night, Saturday January 17th at 7:05pm

TWIN CITY THUNDERBIRDS at BLUE RIDGE BOBCATS

Bobcats Use 3rd Period Surge To Take 4th Straight Win

By Brett Wiseman

Wytheville, VA - Before a season-high crowd of 2,312 in the first home game at Hitachi Energy Arena in just over a month, the Blue Ridge Bobcats potted a pair of unanswered goals in the first 4:32 of the final frame to surge to a 4-3 win over the Twin City Thunderbirds and their fourth consecutive victory.

The Thunderbirds scored the first and only goal of the opening frame, as Zach White finished off a 2-on-1 break with Roman Kraemer off a turnover forced by Richard Durina, who picked up an assist on the play in his team debut.

Nikita Kozyrev, the game's second star, finished off the first of two Bobcats man advantage markers on the evening when he one-touched home a cross crease feed from Mike Mercurio to tie the game at 1 just three minutes into the middle frame.

In a a back-and-forth affair between two of the league's most evenly matched teams and fiercest rivals, each club traded chances and each punch was countered by the opposition. Twin City moved ahead 2-1 thanks to a turnover my Robin Eriksson in front of Anthony Shrum, who was beaten five-hole by Thunderbirds captain Jon Buttitta just under 6 minutes into the second period.

Exactly five minutes later, Daniel Klinecky held the offensive blueline by inches, then found Brandon Reller down the far wing. Reller ripped a rinkwide pass to Carson Andreoli who finished off the beautiful passing display to tie the game back up at 2. The Thunderbirds answered with nearly indefensible passing of their own just under three minutes later with Roman Kraemer converting on the power play to give Twin City a 3-2 lead headed to period three.

The Bobcats would get the final two punches in the heavyweight 60 minute bout. Exactly two minutes into the final frame, 'Cats captain Danny Martin clapped home a slap shot blast just as a power play was expiring and knotted things up at 3. 2:32 later, Filip Hlavac secured the eventual game winning goal stealing the puck at center, powering down the far wing and backhanding a shot off the stick of Boris Babik and into the back of the net.

Babik did everything he could and more for the 'Birds in net, stopping 58 of a whopping 62 Blue Ridge shots. Shrum survived a late Twin City flurry of shots, stopping 25 of 28 en route to his fourth straight win in net for the Bobcats.

Mercurio secured third star honors for assisting on Kozyrev's 2nd period PPG, while Kozyrev earned second star for that goal and his assist on Hlavac's GWG. Daniel Klinecky assisted on 3 of the Bobcats 4 goals in the game, garnering him first star honors in the contest.

Both teams return to action tomorrow night at 7:30 PM at Hitachi Energy Arena for the St Jude Showdown/Hockey Fights Cancer benefit game.

Thunderbirds Drop 4-3 Decision to Bobcats

By Kendall Grayson

Wytheville, VA - The Twin City Thunderbirds dropped a 4-3 decision Friday night to the Blue Ridge Bobcats at Hitachi Energy Arena. Zach White, Jon Buttitta, and Roman Kraemer each scored goals for the Thunderbirds in the loss. Boris Babik made 58 saves in net for Twin City during Friday night's contest. The Thunderbirds return to action tomorrow night in another road game against the Bobcats. Puck drop for the matchup is scheduled for 7:30pm ET.

Zachary White scored the opening goal of Friday night's game at 13:13 of the 1st period. Corey Cunningham and Richard Durina each notched an assist on the scoring play. White's goal was his seventeenth of the season, and the fiftieth of his FPHL career. The assist for Durina was the first point of his Thunderbirds career. The Thunderbirds were outshot by a 20-9 margin during the 1st period, and carried a one-goal lead into the 2nd period of Friday's game.

Nikita Kozyrev scored a powerplay goal at 3:01 of the of the 2nd period to bring the score to 1-1. Kozyrev's goal for the Bobcats was assisted by Michael Mercurio and Daniel Klinecky. Jon Buttitta gave the Thunderbirds a 3-2 lead at 5:53 of the 2nd period. Buttitta's goal was assisted by Gus Ford. Blue Ridge tied the game at 10:53 of the middle period with an even-strength goal scored by Carson Andreoli. Daniel Klinecky and Brandon Reller each notched an assist on the scoring play. Roman Kraemer gave Twin City a 3-2 lead in the matchup at 13:45 of the 2nd period. Kraemer's goal was netted on the powerplay, and was assisted by Jon Buttitta and Zach White. The Thunderbirds were outshot 24-10 during the 2nd period, and carried a 3-2 lead in the final period of Friday's battle.

Danny Martin netted a powerplay goal two minutes into the 3rd period to bring the game to a 3-3 score. The goal was assisted by Daniel Klinecky and Michael Mercurio. The final goal of Friday's matchup was scored at 4:32 of the 3rd period by Filip Hlavac. Nikita Kozyrev notched an assist on the scoring play. Twin City was outshot by an 18-9 margin in the 3rd period, and 62-28 overall in the matchup. The Thunderbirds fell to 2-8-1 in road games, and 11-16-1 overall on the season with Friday's result.

Boris Babik turned away 54 of Blue Ridge's 58 shots during the matchup, and dropped the game in net for Twin City. Anthony Shrum won the game in net for the Bobcats in a 22-save-on-25 shot performance.

COLUMBUS RIVER DRAGONS at INDIANA SENTINELS

Sentinels Outshoot River Dragons in 3-2 Loss

By Andy Poetzinger

Columbus, IN - After a weekend away from the rink, the Sentinels came back to Columbus for the first time in 2026 to face the struggling Columbus River Dragons. Coming into tonight's game, Columbus had dropped their last 6 games. Meanwhile, the Sentinels have dropped their last three straight but had 5 wins in their last 10 games.

This game saw the return of Bohdan Zinchenko for the first time since December 5th. It also introduced four new faces to the lineup in Matthew Castillo, Nolan Slachetka, Colby Walters, and Dylan Infantino. With Denver Craig getting the call up to the SPHL's Quad City Strom, the Sentinels were hoping to get some help offensively from those five players.

The first period was controlled mostly by the River Dragons who opened the scoring with Cody Wickline being in the right place at the right time. Placed just off the near post, a Josh Colten shot from the blue line deflected off Wickline's side and into the back of the net to give the River Dragons a 1-0 lead that would stand through 20 minutes.

There was a lot more open ice play in the 2nd period as both teams traded chances back and forth. Columbus would get the first break after a blocked shot gave Kyle Moore a breakaway from the neutral zone and he roofed it over the glove of Sentinels goalie Chris Curr for a 2-0 lead.

Indiana would get within one after a faceoff win by Jonas Leas, Defensemen Vladislav Pavlov ripped home his 4th goal of the season on a seeing eye shot from the blue line that evaded River Dragons' goaltender Trevor Roy.

Before the period ended, Columbus would pick up one more goal from Kyle Moore, his second of the night, on a shot from the blue line that beat a screened Chris Curr and into the back of the net. The River Dragons would escape the second period up 3-1 after being outshot 11-10 by the Sentinels in the second period.

It was a high paced 3rd period that saw the Sentinels on the attack. They generated plenty of chances but would not beat Roy until another faceoff win by Jonas Leas created a chance from Zinchenko at the blue line, the rebound pounded home by new signee Nolan Slachetka to make it 3-2. Indiana would keep the heat on but was unable to find the game tying goal in the dying minutes.

Columbus breaks their six-game losing skid, and despite outshooting the River Dragons 18-8 in the third period and 39-27 in the game, the Sentinels would drop their fourth straight.

These two teams will face-off again tomorrow night at 7:30 pm ET at the Hamilton Community Ice Arena. If you cannot make it in person, make sure to tune in on YouTube where Jim Mirabello and Andy Poetzinger will be on the call starting at 7:15 pm with the Pre-Game Show.

RIVER DRAGONS END SIX GAME SKID, DOWN SENTINELS

By Liam Gotimer

Columbus, IN - The Columbus River Dragons defeated the Indiana Sentinels 3-2 on Friday night, at the Hamilton Community Center in Columbus, Indiana.

Tyler Roy started in goal for the River Dragons, while Chris Curr received the nod for the Sentinels.

At 14:07 of the first period, Cody Wickline fired home his third goal of the season, assisted by Josh Colten and Alex Storjohann.

In the second period, with the club ahead by one, Kyle Moore scored by protecting the puck, swinging to the outskirts of the offensive zone, and finding daylight through traffic.

At 8:46, defenseman Vladislav Pavlov put the Sentinels on the board at even strength, slicing the deficit in half.

Kyle Moore would score again at 14:37, this time unassisted, accounting for his second goal of the contest.

In the third, with the score separated by just two, it was the Sentinels who struck with the all-important next goal. Nolan Slachetka, the former River Dragon, in his first game with Indiana, made it 3-2 at 12:41.

Despite a strong push from the home side to force regulation time to expire, the River Dragons held on for the victory, ending their six-game losing skid.

Tyler Roy made 37 saves on 39 shots in the win for Columbus, while Chris Curr took the loss for Indiana.

"Tonight was a pinball game," Head Coach Jerome Bechard said. "The puck was bouncing all over the place, and there wasn't room to do much of anything. Overall, though, I'm pretty happy with the outcome. To have a long day of travel, get here this morning, and come away with three points on night one was huge for us."

Columbus will be back in action tomorrow, taking on Indiana once again at 7:30 p.m. Coverage of the contest begins at 7:00 p.m. on the River Dragons YouTube Channel!

The River Dragons are back at home next week, for back-to-back meetings with the Baton Rouge Zydeco.

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Federal Prospects Hockey League Stories from January 16, 2026


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