FPHL Ice Chips - Game Recaps

Published on April 4, 2026 under Federal Prospects Hockey League (FPHL) News Release

Game Recaps for the Federal Prospects Hockey League for Saturday, April 4, 2026.

View photos, box scores and much more at federalhockey.com

PORT HURON PROWLERS at DANBURY HAT TRICKS

HAT TRICKS OUTLAST PROWLERS 4-3 IN OVERTIME

By Patrick Grudberg

Danbury, CT - The Danbury Hat Tricks (20-24-5-5) won their third straight game Saturday night, defeating the Port Huron Prowlers 4-3 in overtime. With the win, Danbury finished the season series with Port Huron on a high note.

Austin Pickford got the Hat Tricks on the scoreboard first, narrowly missing a wraparound attempt before slotting home a wrister from the slot. Just over a minute later, Brett Lockart's left-circle wrist shot beat Kyle Penton to level up the score for Port Huron 1-1 after the first period.

Matt Graham gave the Prowlers their first lead of the night two minutes into the second, finishing off an impressive solo effort with help from Grayson Dietrich. Despite a 5-on-3 opportunity for Danbury halfway through the period, it would stay 2-1 through the second.

To start the third, Danbury found some energy from Dave MacIsaac, former Trashers forward and the team's celebrity player of the night. Out of a scrum with Reggie Millette that saw both players tossed, the Hat Tricks were given a four minute powerplay. Just under two minutes into the man-advantage, Konstantin Chernyuk's point shot beat Jameson Bourque, tying it 2-2. Bobby Price responded with 4:35 left to give the Prowlers a lead, but another powerplay chance saw Chernyuk net his fourth powerplay goal of the weekend, sending the game to OT tied 4-4.

Just over a minute into overtime, Grady Friedman tucked home a loose puck that trickled past Bourque's outstretched pad, giving Danbury a 4-3 overtime win in dramatic fashion. The Hat Tricks will be back in action on Friday, April 10th vs the Binghamton Black Bears. Puck drop is set for 7:30pm.

Prowlers Drop OT Game in Danbury

By Will Wiegelman

Danbury, CT - The Port Huron Prowlers saw the first overtime goal scored against them this season as they fell 4-3 to the Danbury Hat Tricks on April 4. Port Huron ended its weekend road trip with one out of a possible six points.

Austin Pickford got the scoring started five-and-a-half minutes in for Danbury, but Brett Lockhart tied it 1:02 later.

Matt Graham got the only goal of the second period to make it 2-1 Prowlers heading into the third.

Konstantin Chernyuk's power play goal made it 2-2 and that lasted until the final five minutes. With 4:35 to go, Bobby Price put Port Huron back ahead. Danbury got a late man advantage and Chernyuk tied the score again to send it to overtime.

After some back and forth play in the extra session, Grady Friedman shoveled home a rebound at the side of the net to give the Hat Tricks the extra point.

Grayson Dietrich dished out a pair of assists and Jameson Bourque made 29 saves in the loss.

Kaidan Kanderka and Eli Rivers each had two helpers for Danbury. Kyle Penton stopped 21 shots for the win.

The Prowlers return home for the final weekend of the regular season against the Watertown Wolves on April 10 and 11. Friday is Flags Rebrand Night and Saturday is Fan Appreciation Night.

BATON ROUGE ZYDECO at TOPEKA SCARECROWS

Goals Aplenty, But Zydeco Play Last Note, 7-6 in Overtime

By Jon Kliment

Topeka, KS - A night after clinching their first ever playoff berth the Scarecrows lined up against the Zydeco for their final meeting of the regular season. Topeka came in having taken 9 of the 13 matchups so far looking to put an exclamation point on the season series. Baton Rouge was looking for redemption after a 6-0 loss last night as they closed out their road schedule.

After a delayed start due to Topeka's end of the season awards Baton Rouge wasted no time as Tyler Larwood broke in on Matt Lenz going forehand backhand just 26 seconds in to give the Zydeco the 1-0 lead. 32 seconds later Austin Weber tipped home a Curtis Hansen shot over Lenz for a 2-0 lead before the first minute had even passed. Hunter Alden found the back of the net next 8:51 into the period to give the Zydeco a 3-0 lead before Hansen put one more by Lenz for the fourth goal in a row at 12:28. Topeka found something at 15:19 in the period as Steven Klinck broke in on a 2-on-1 with Scott Coash passed the puck across and with a tip Coash scored his 30th goal of the season to bring Topeka back to within 3, 4-1.

Right after a media timeout Baton Rouge scored their 5th goal of the game as Matej Palfy slapped a shot towards the net past Lenz for the 5-1 lead at 6:22 of the second period. That fifth goal sparked Topeka as Klinck and Coash hooked up again with a stretch pass that saw Klinck deke out Coffey and put the puck behind him at 8:56 of the frame closing the gap to 5-2. 56 seconds later Klinck was at it again as he found Jacob Gagnon who fired the puck past Coffey to bring the Scarecrows back to within two goals, 5-3. On the power play Trevor Lord took a pass from Trevor Grasby cross zone and fired it between the legs of a falling Coffey to bringTopeka back to 5-4. Klinck added another point late in the period as he broke in on Coffey one more time and while Coffey made the initial save the puck sat loose behind him and Klinck shoveled it home to tie the game at 5-5 at 15:56 of the second period.

Coash put himself on hat trick watch in the third with a power play goal on a perfect cross zone pass from Connor Lind to give the Scarecrows their first lead of the night at 9:41 of the third period. Late in the game with just 99 seconds to go Narek Aleksanyan tied the game up on a cross zone pass at 6-6. In overtime Blake Keller finished the series off with a Zydeco win just 25 seconds into the extra frame.

Lenz stopped 12 of 19 in the loss.

Topeka returns home to take on the Indiana Sentinels Thursday at 7:05pm.

TWIN CITY THUNDERBIRDS at PEE DEE ICECATS

PEE DEE PUNCH POST-SEASON PASS

By Tom Callahan

Florence, SC - The Pee Dee IceCats clinched a playoff berth with a 5-2 win over the Twin City Thunderbirds on Saturday night at Florence Center.

Timur Rasulov's first goal of the season couldn't have come at a better time, as his tip-in of a Domenic Della Civita point shot with 30 seconds remaining in the second period broke a 2-2 tie and stood up for the game winner.

Patriks Marcinkevics scored twice in the third period, his 40th and 41st of the season, to ice the win for Pee Dee. Charlie Bedard and Dennis Zaichyk also scored to help Breandan Colgan's 15-save performance earn the win.

With the victory, the IceCats clinch a playoff berth in the team's inaugural season and will finish fourth in the Continental Division regardless of the results of next weekend's regular season finale in Columbus. Pee Dee will face either the Athens Rock Lobsters or Monroe Moccasins, depending on who finishes first in the Continental.

Thunderbirds Drop Road Decision to IceCats

By Kendall Grayson

Florence, SC -The Twin City Thunderbirds dropped a 5-2 road decision to the Pee Dee IceCats Saturday night at the Florence Center. The loss eliminated Twin City from playoff contention for the 2026 Commissioner's Cup Playoffs.

Roman Kraemer and Jacob Schnapp scored goals for the Thunderbirds in the loss.

Roman Kraemer gave the Thunderbirds a one-goal lead at 6:03 of Saturday's opening period. Kraemer's goal was netted on the powerplay, and was assisted by Zach White and Kayson Gallant. Dzianis Zaichyk tied the game with an even-strength goal with less than five minutes to play in the 1st period. Elijah Wilson collected an assist on the scoring play. Twin City was outshot by a 12-4 margin during Saturday's 1st period, and the 2nd period began in a 1-1 tie.

Charlie Bedard scored an even-strength goal at 4:30 of the 2nd period to give Pee Dee a 2-1 lead in the battle. Bedard's goal was assisted by Dzianis Zaichyk. Jacob Schnapp netted an unassisted goal at 9:33 of the middle period to tie the game at 2-2. The goal was scored shorthanded. The final scoring play of Saturday's 2nd period was from Pee Dee's Timur Rasulov. Rasulov's goal was scored with less than thirty seconds to play in the period, and was assisted by Domenic Della Civita. Twin City was outshot by a 15-5 margin during the 2nd period, and trailed by one goal entering the 3rd period of Saturday's matchup.

Patriks Marcinkevics netted back-to-back goals in the final five minutes of the game to give the IceCats a three-goal victory. The first goal was netted at 15:39 of the 3rd period, and the final goal was scored into an empty net with less than two minutes to play. Each team recorded 8 shots on net during the 3rd period, and Twin City was outshot by an overall margin of 35-17 during the matchup. The Thunderbirds fell to 25-28-1 on the 2025-2026 season in the loss.

Boris Babik dropped the game in net for Twin City in a 31-save-on-35-shot performance. Brendan Colgan won the game in goal for Pee Dee by making 18 saves on 20 shots during the battle.

The Thunderbirds have one final home game remaining in the 2025-2026 regular season. The Thunderbirds will host the Blue Ridge Bobcats on Friday, April 10th for Fan Appreciation Night. The battle will begin at 7:35pm ET.

INDIANA SENTINELS at ATHENS ROCK LOBSTERS

Ford's Reaches 200 as Sentinels Strike Back

By Matteen Zibanejadrad

Athens, GA - The Athens Rock Lobsters were defeated by the Indiana Sentinels 4-3 on Star Wars Night on Saturday, closing out the home slate for the regular season at Akins Ford Arena.

The Sentinels took their first lead of the Lobsters this season exactly seven minutes into the first period, through Zachary Ross' one timer past Matt Sayles.

Gus Ford answered back with a history making goal seven minutes later. His shot from distance found a path through John Werber for the veteran's 200th goal of his FPHL career. He becomes just the sixth player in FPHL history to accomplish the feat.

Kristers Bormanis logged the first multi-goal of his career with two in the second period, sandwiching a Gus Ford goal in between. Outscoring Athens 2-1 in the middle frame, the Sentinels took a 3-2 lead into the final 20 minutes of regulation.

Indiana added on with a power-play goal through Donovan Powell in the third period, the first in the professional career of the collegiate signing out of Buffalo State.

The Lobsters pulled Sayles from the net and scratched one back through Eric Neiley to make it 4-3, but the extra-attacker goal wasn't something the hosts could duplicate.

A brawl erupted at the final whistle after frustrations boiled over, and Athens now heads into a crucial weekend on the road to end the regular season.

The Rock Lobsters (34-11-7-1, 119 pts) travel to the Monroe Civic Center to take on the Moccasins with the top spot in the Continental Division still up for grabs. Puck drops on the Friday-night contest at 8:05 p.m. EST.

Indiana Outworks Athens in Exciting 4-3 Victory

By Andy Poetzinger

Athens, GA- On Friday night, the Indiana Sentinels put together one of their best performances of the season. Even though it was a 5 to 3 loss, it was still a full 60-minute effort, and they gave Athens all they could manage.

They were hoping to get more of the same tonight, and they were arguably better at the start of the game. Indiana was the better team for the majority of the first and were rewarded for their efforts with a goal from Zach Ross, his first in a Sentinels uniform. All in thanks to a friendly bounce in the neutral zone past one of the Athens defensemen, and great hustle by Brendan Bauer below the goal line, Ross snuck in from the point and blasted a one-timer past a surprised Sayles for a 1-0 Sentinels lead.

Athens would strike back on a historic goal, the 200th in his FPHL career. He was set up after Athens spent a good thirty to forty-five seconds circling the zone waiting for an opening and Ford found it with net front presence screening Werber to pick up his 38th of the season and 11th in a Rock Lobster sweater.

The Sentinels would not pull their foot off the gas in the second period, as they continued to be the better team by winning puck battles, pinning Athens in their own end on multiple occasions, and eventually getting the opening goal of the period from Kristers Bormanis. On a delayed penalty, Ivan Ponivanov faked a shot and moved the puck to Bormanis who was all alone at the side of the net, and he had a wide-open cage to cash in and make it 2-1 Sentinels.

Once again Gus Ford would answer for Athens on a quick give and go between he and Eli Leiffers that got Ford a mini breakaway from the hashmarks in. He beat Werber upstairs on the backhand to tie the game at two apiece.

Even when tied, Indiana was still the better team without question and Athens could recognize that. So, they tried to get the Sentinels off their game by inviting some fisticuffs into the game which sat down Bormanis and Greco. As their penalties expired, Dawson found Bormanis on a two-on-one break and Bormanis roofed a shot over the glove of Sayles to give Indiana a 3-2 lead that they would take into the third period.

Donovan Powell opened the scoring in the third period with his first career FPHL goal. On the power-play, Maximus Marek-Tortorella fired a shot on net, and it redirected off Powell's foot and in to give the Sentinels a 4-2 lead.

Athens trimmed the lead to one with an extra attacker late in the third period. Shinkaruk let a one-time bomb go from the point that Werber got 90% of, but the rebound laid loose in the crease for Eric Neilly to pot home and make it 4-3 with 2:19 to play.

The Sentinels hunkered down and battled to the bitter end and held off Athens to pick up the huge win, but not without a final round of fisticuffs that saw both benches empty and a mass of humanity that eventually subsided with minor difficulty.

Final shots in the game were thirty-eight for Athens, and twenty-seven for Indiana. On the power-play, the Sentinels were one for six while the Rock Lobsters did not convert on their six opportunities.

Indiana heads to Topeka next week for their final games of the 2025-26 season. The puck drops at 8:05 ET, and the Body Armor Pre-Game Show starts at 7:45 pm with Andy Poetzinger. Catch all the action on the Sentinels Hockey Network!

BINGHAMTON BLACK BEARS at WATERTOWN WOLVES

Bears Bite the Wolves, 9-1

By Jeff Barrett

Watertown, NY - The Wolves Darion Benchich got the home team on the board first at the 2:23 mark with a short handed goal, assisted by Brad Reitter.

The Black Bears would then rattle off 3 unanswered goals to take a 3-1 lead.

First it was Dan Wieber at the 5:34 mark, unassisted. to tie the game.

Mac Jansen would give the Black Bears their first lead of the game at 8:38, assisted by Ivan Bonderenko and Austin D'Orazio, making it 2-1.

Zac Sirota extended the lead to 3-1 at 17:38 of the frame, assisted by Wieber and Scott Ramaekers.

Gehrett Sargis lengthened the Black Bears lead at 7:33 of the second period, with the assists going to Kyle Stephan, making the score 4-1.

Binghamton wasn't done quite yet as Emerson Emery lit the lamp at the 13:47 mark, assisted by Jacob Shankar, and extended the lead to 5-1.

Zac Sirota started the scoring for the Black Bears in the third at the 4:27 mark as he was able to get his own rebound and put the Bears up 6-1.

At the 13:38 mark, Nicholas Swain redirected a CJ Stubbs shot, and put Binghamton up 7-1.

Kyle Stephan added a power play goal at the 15:44 mark making it 8-1 for the Bears and sending them to victory.

The Wolves will be back in action next weekend as they travel to Port Huron to take on the Prowlers for the final two games of the regular season.

Revolving Door Slammed Shut

By Brooks Hill

Watertown, NY - The Binghamton Black Bears defeated the Watertown Wolves 9-1 on Saturday night. Kyle Stephan had four points, Zac Sirota had a pair of goals and Connor McAnanama stopped 36 shots in his return for the Black Bears.

The Wolves got little going offensively on Saturday. Darion Benchich scored the only goal for Watertown at the 2:23 mark of the first period. It was a shorthanded goal and gave the home team their only lead of the night at 1-0.

The Black Bears tied the game three minutes later off the stick of Ivan Bondarenko. After Bondarenko's 93rd point of the year, came two more goals from Mac Jansen and Zac Sirota. The Black Bears had 18 shots on goal in the first period and led 3-1 after the frame.

Things slowed down a bit in the second period in terms of scoring. Gehrett Sargis and Emerson Emery both scored at even strength, pushing the Black Bears lead to 5-1.

The Black Bears saved their best for the last period. Binghamton added four more goals in the final frame. Sirota grabbed his second of the night and then the power play came to life. Nick Swain, Kyle Stephan and Scott Ramaekers all tallied special team's goals, as the Black Bears continued to put the pedal to the metal.

Connor McAnanama appeared in a game for the Black Bears for the first time since January 2. After an early goal from the Wolves, C-Mac shut the door the rest of the way, finishing the night with 36 saves in net. Binghamton wins 9-1 on Saturday, finishing the season series with Watertown, going 16-0-1 against the Wolves.

COLUMBUS RIVER DRAGONS at MONROE MOCCASINS

GERSTEIN NETS HAT TRICK AS MOCCASINS ROLL PAST RIVER DRAGONS 6-2

By Joseph Furtado

Monroe, LA - The Monroe Moccasins continued their late-season surge Saturday night, defeating the Columbus River Dragons 6-2 at the Monroe Civic Center to close out the regular-season series between the two clubs.

With the win, Monroe improved to 35-9-7-3-0 on the season and moved to within one point of first place in the Continental Division. The Moccasins also improved to 18-4-5-2-0 on home ice and finished the season series against Columbus with a 6-0-2 record, including a perfect 4-0-0 mark at the Civic Center. The River Dragons fell to 26-17-5-4-1 with the loss.

Monroe, playing its third game since Tuesday, stayed hot offensively, netting six goals for the third straight game and outscoring opponents 18-9 over that span.

The Moccasins opened the scoring at 3:50 of the first period on a goal from Casey Gerstein before Columbus answered moments later with a goal from Kirk Underwood to even the game at 1-1 heading into the intermission.

Monroe took control in the second period with a three-goal outburst. Gerstein gave the Moccasins the lead early in the frame, added another midway through the period, and later completed the hat trick to put Monroe ahead 4-1.

Columbus added a goal in the third period, but Monroe responded with two more to put the game out of reach and secure the 6-2 victory.

Gerstein extended his goal-scoring streak to four games and continued his strong stretch down the final weeks of the season. Despite the loss, Columbus saw milestones from a pair of players. Former Moccasin Ben Stefanini recorded his 50th career professional point with two assists, while Nathaniel Mott scored the first goal of his professional career after picking up his first point with an assist the night prior.

With the regular-season series now complete, the two teams could meet again in the opening round of the Commissioner's Cup Playoffs, where Monroe would hold home-ice advantage in a best-of-three series if the standings hold.

The Moccasins will now turn their attention to a critical two-game set next weekend against the Athens Rock Lobsters, beginning Friday night, with first place in the division still within reach.

COLUMBUS DEFEATED BY MONROE, 6-2

By Liam Gotamer

Monroe, LA - The Columbus River Dragons fell to the Monroe Moccasins 6-2 on Saturday night at the Monroe Civic Center in Monroe, Louisiana.

Tyler Roy started in net for Columbus, while Tyler Masternak earned the nod for the home side.

Monroe struck first at 3:50 of the opening period when Casey Gerstein scored, finishing a setup from Dean Balsamo and Jared Christy.

Just 25 seconds later, Kirk Underwood electrified the crowd with a highlight-reel breakaway, lifting the puck upstairs over a sprawling Masternak to even the score.

The physical tone ramped up before the period ended, as Skate Skalde and Colten Gerkin dropped the gloves in a spirited bout that resulted in matching five-minute fighting majors. Despite the early surge from Columbus, Monroe held a 9-5 edge in shots through the first twenty minutes.

Momentum shifted decisively in the second period. Exactly five minutes in, Kyler Matthews got the Moccasins on the board, beating Roy from the outer edge of the zone. The equalizer sparked a surge for the home team.

At 8:28, Gerstein struck again, burying a feed from Balsamo and Christy to give Monroe the lead. The floodgates opened moments later. Just 28 seconds after his second goal, Gerstein completed the hat trick on the power play, snapping the puck home.

Columbus pushed back in the third period when Nathaniel Mott tallied his first professional goal, capitalizing shortly after a power-play opportunity to pull the River Dragons within two.

Just 68 seconds later, Frank Schumaker restored Monroe's cushion, firing a shot from the point that found its way through traffic and into the back of the net. The Moccasins kept their foot on the gas, and Jared Christy added one more shortly thereafter to seal the 6-2 final.

Roy took the loss in net for Columbus, while Masternak turned in a steady performance to earn the victory for Monroe.

The River Dragons return home on Friday at 7:35PM, to take on the Pee Dee IceCats for the first of back to back games.

BLUE RIDGE BOBCATS at BILOXI BREAKERS

Bobcats Sweep Breakers

By Devin Dobek

Biloxi, MS - In the final home game at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum, the Breakers looked to put on a show and send off the home crowd with a big victory. Hindered by bad discipline and limited pressure, the Breakers fell by a final of 7-1 as the Bobcats swept the season series.

The Breakers came out hot to begin the first period, logging the first 4 shots on net but still searching for the first punch. The momentum subsided when Cristian Glowazcki was booked for a trip, opening up a Bobcat powerplay. Although they didn't score, Blue Ridge stole the tempo and created all kinds of pressure on rookie Rob Holden, making his professional debut for Biloxi. At 8:20, off a hectic end to end play, a Demid Podrezov stretch pass connected with Nikita Kozyrev who buried the breakaway goal to give the visitors an early 1-0 advantage. Holden settled in and made some big saves to keep it tight, but the Bobcats offense felt inevitable. At 17:14, just as their 2nd powerplay had expired, Justin Daly finished a rebound in the blue paint to double the margin at 2-0. Blue Ridge outshot Biloxi 21-8 in the opening frame.

Period 2 didn't do Biloxi any favors. Just 130 seconds into the frame, Nicholas Stuckless continued the offensive fireworks with a 4-on-4 tally to improve the Blue Ridge lead to 3-0. The Breakers were victim to 7 minor penalties in the middle frame alone, which did them no favors for momentum or puck possession. At 7:07 and back on the powerplay, Daniel Martin fired a shot from the bumper position off the back bar and out to make it 4-0. The goal marks point #60 for Martin, a new career high. Into the backhalf, at 12:59 on the powerplay Justin Daly finished a loose puck from in tight to elevate the visitor's lead to 5-0. Blue Ridge outshot Biloxi 25-5 in the middle frame, and 46-13 thus far in the contest.

Period 3 began with a Breakers powerplay rolling over from period 2, and with it a great opportunity to score. 88 seconds in, Matthew Horan unleashed a howitzer one-timer from the far point to beat Anthony Shrum between the legs and make it 5-1. The answer came quickly. 42 seconds later Stephen Alvo avenged his penalty with a beautiful wrist shot over the glove side of Rob Holden to make it 6-1. 1:45 later and back on the powerplay, Nick Stuckless tallied his 2nd mark of the night to cement the scoring at 7-1. Both teams had chances the rest of the way, and the physicality certainly was coming to a boil. As the final horn sounded, there were a handful of scrums extending the night for the linesmen, but no penalties assessed. Blue Ridge carried their 7-1 win to the bus with a 61-26 shot advantage in full time. Rob Holden made 54 saves in his pro debut, while Anthony Shrum stopped 25 en route to victory.

The Bobcats sweep the 6 game season series with the Breakers, and extend their franchise record win streak to 9 games. They improve to 31-20-3, and inch closer to securing the #3 seed in the Empire Division. To close out the regular season, Blue Ridge is set for a home and home series next Friday and Saturday with the Twin City Thunderbirds. The Breakers fall to 8-43-2, and will conclude their 2025-26 campaign this upcoming Thursday, Friday, and Saturday on the road in Baton Rouge.

Federal Prospects Hockey League Stories from April 4, 2026

• Thunderbirds Drop Road Decision to IceCats - Twin City Thunderbirds
• FPHL Ice Chips - Game Recaps - FPHL
• Pee Dee Punches Post-Season Pass - Pee Dee IceCats
• Thunderbirds Travel to Florence for Battle with IceCats - Twin City Thunderbirds
• Columbus Shows Grit in Defeat, Late Call Looms Large - Columbus River Dragons

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