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NAHL Maryland Black Bears

Series Preview: Black Bears Set to Battle Rebels

October 2, 2024 - North American Hockey League (NAHL)
Maryland Black Bears News Release


The Maryland Black Bears won two of its three games at the NAHL Showcase last week, improving their record to 5-2-0 and showing talent on both ends of the ice. This Friday and Saturday, they'll take on the Philadelphia Rebels who are 4-2-1 on the year. These two teams met eight times last year, with Maryland winning the last five meetings between the two on its way to a 6-1-1 record against Philadelphia.

Maryland shined during its first game of the NAHL Showcase in the battle of the Bears as it took on the Kenai River Brown Bears of the NAHL's Midwest Division, winning the contest 4-1. Forward Luke Janus took over the contest with a four-point day (one goal and three assists). Forwards Riley Fast and Luke Rubin registered their first goals of the season along with defenseman Mason Stenger while goaltender Benji Motew made 25 saves in the win. The Black Bears suffered heartbreak in game two of the showcase against the South Division leaders Amarillo Wranglers, falling 2-1 thanks to a last-minute Wranglers goal. Game three of the showcase went the Black Bears' way for a strong bounce-back win, defeating the South Division's El-Paso Rhinos 4-3. Rubin started the scoring with his second of the showcase and Stenger scored in his third straight game, along with goals from forwards Kareem El-Bashir and Harrison Smith. Black Bears' goalie Logan Hughes made 18 saves in his first win with Maryland.

In 2023-2024, Maryland and Philadelphia split the first two sets of games between the two, with the Black Bears picking up 3-1 and 4-2 wins while the Rebels scored a 5-4 win and a 2-1 shootout win. However, Maryland took control and never looked back, sweeping the last two series outscoring Philadelphia 14-5, and recording two shutout wins. Despite that stat, outside of a 5-0 Black Bears win on March 15th, the games between these two teams were very close. Out of the eight meetings between these two, four games were decided by one goal and three were decided by two goals.

Last season, the Rebels just missed out on the postseason, finishing 7th in the East Division after finishing its last ten games with a record of 4-4-2. This season they are starting out well, with Philadelphia's 27 total team goals tied with Northeast for the most in the East Division. The Rebels started out the season 3-0-1, splitting its opening weekend series with the Northeast Generals before sweeping the Johnstown Tomahawks. At the showcase, Philadelphia lost to the Midwest Division's Wisconsin Windigo 4-2 before bouncing back to defeat the Central Division-leading Bismarck Bobcats 4-2. The Rebels concluded the showcase with a 4-3 loss to the South Division's New Mexico Ice Wolves. Philadelphia is led by veteran forward Charles Panchisin who returns to the Rebels for his third season, recording two goals and nine points in the first seven games of the season. Goaltender Owen Crudale has led the way for Philadelphia in between the pipes with a record of 4-1-1 so far through the season.

Players to Watch

Brock Jones (F): Jones is back with the Rebels for his third season with the organization looking to build off of last season where he recorded 30 points in 60 games. It's fair to say so far so good for Jones, who has two goals and seven points in his first seven games, with six of those points coming against East Division opponents.

Mason Stenger (D): The Black Bears' 8th overall pick from the 2024 NAHL Draft made his mark last week at the showcase, recording a goal in all three games in Blaine, Minnesota. The puck-moving defenseman has continued to find ways to make plays and put pucks on net, leading to offensive success for Maryland while playing steady defense in his own zone.

Philadelphia and Maryland face off on Friday, October 4th at 7:00 p.m. ET and Saturday, October 5th at 7:30 p.m. ET at Piney Orchard Ice Arena. All games can be streamed on NAHLTV.

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