The visiting Maryland Black Bears scored three, unanswered third period goals en route to a 5 – 3 win over the Rebels in game one of this two-game series. The Rebels were up 2 – 0 after the first period and led 3 – 2 at the second intermission. Charles Panchisin, Joe Stauber and Caesar Björk scored for the Rebels.
It was the Rebels third straight loss and sixth out of their past eight games.
The game started on a great note when the home team went up 2- 0. At 3:16 into the game Charlie Spencer was called for checking from behind to put the Rebels on the penalty kill. Fifteen seconds later Panchisin gave the Rebels a 1 – 0 lead.
With play behind the Rebels net, Bryce Strand sent the puck all the way to the opposite end of the rink where Brocks Jones out hustled a Maryland defender. As Jones retrieved the biscuit behind the Maryland net, he reversed, cut towards the left side of the cage and made a centering pass out front to Panchisin in the slot and Panchisin took a wrist shot that beat Black Bears goalie Ryan Denes low, glove side for Panchisin’s tenth goal of the season.
It was the only the second short-handed goal this season in which the Rebels have scored (which is now 25th in the league).
Three minutes later Stauber doubled the Rebels lead. With Maryland pressuring in the offensive zone, Black Bears defenseman Mason Stenger had the puck at the far side point and went to take a shot that was blocked by Jackson Vaites (Ryan’s brother). As the loose puck bounced to the boards, it was picked up by Vaites who skated through center ice and into the Maryland zone. As Vaites gained the line on a two-on-one with Stauber, he made a cross-ice pass from the top of the circle to Stauber who took a one-timer that beat Denes short side for Stauber’s third goal of the season.
Maryland then scored two consecutive goals of their own starting at 7:59 into the middle stanza. The Black Bears’ Tanner Duncan brought the puck from center ice and into the offensive zone along the near side boards. As Duncan gained the line, he passed the biscuit to Jaden Duprey just inside the far side faceoff circle. Duprey passed the puck to Stenger. As Stenger went to the near side faceoff circle’s hash marks, he made a backdoor pass to Duncan who slammed the puck past fallen Rebels netminder Owen Crudale to cut the Maryland deficit in half.
Three minutes later, Maryland’s Victor Mannebratt scored on a nifty move to even the score at two. After four-on-four hockey has just completed and a Rebels powerplay about to expire, the Black Bears’ Harrison Smith brought the puck into the offensive zone along the near side boards. As he reached the top of the faceoff circle, he sent a cross-ice pass to Trey Hinton in the circle. Hinton immediately sent a pass down low through the slot to Mannebratt, who was to the right of Crudale. Mannebratt cut towards the slot and deked around Crudale in the goalmouth and Mannebratt deposited the biscuit into the back of the net for his seventh goal of the season.
The Rebels regained the lead with 5:23 remaining in the second period. Midway through the Rebels powerplay and Philadelphia looking to set up in the offensive zone, the puck went back to Ryan Vaites at the near side point. As Vaites walked the line, he went to the far side faceoff dot and made a cross-ice pass through the slot to Björk who immediately took a shot that beat Denes low, short side for Björk’s tenth goal of the season as well.
The Black Bears then went onto score three, unanswered goals starting at just thirty-five seconds into the third period. Duncan brought the puck out of his own zone along the near side boards and sent a long pass to Smith just outside the Rebels zone. As Smith gained the line and went towards the far side boards, he made a centering pass to Kareem El Bashir in the slot. El Bashir took a shot that was saved by Crudale but the rebound came right back to El Bashir who slammed the biscuit past Crudale to give Maryland their first lead of the game.
With Drew Belleson off for high sticking at 9:34 into the third, Maryland’s Josh Frenette doubled the Black Bears lead as the their powerplay was winding down. The Black Bears’ Markas Samenas started the played inside the Rebels zone at the near side half wall and sent the biscuit back towards Stenger by the far side point. Stenger took a clapper that was saved by Crudale but the rebound came out to Frenette who took a whack at the puck and the biscuit went by Crudale for Frenette’s fifth goal of the season.
Samenas scored an empty net goal with 1:16 remaining in the game to close out the scoring and make it 5 – 3. Crudale stopped 33 of 37 shots while Denes turned aside 17 of 20. Click HERE for the complete box score.
