DANBURY, CT– After taking the first two games at home, the Maryland Black Bears looked to head to Danbury to close the season at Game 3. Thanks to some special teams magic, the Black Bears were able to sweep the series and get to the East Final with a 5-4 win over Danbury.
Maryland had to stave off early threats by Danbury in the early going, but Ryan Denes was equal to the task with many big saves to start. However, towards the middle of the frame, the Black Bears went down two men, which allowed Matt Dabrowski to open the scoring with a power play goal. Moments later, the Black Bears got a power play of their own and Ryan Franks was able to tie the game, picking up the rebound at the side of the net and putting it home for his third of the playoffs. The Black Bears continued a push five-on-five, but couldn’t find the back of the net before the end of the period.
Maryland had a power play early in the frame, but a bad turnover from Maryland allowed Brendan Boring was able to pick up a shorthanded goal to make it 2-1. On another power play for the Black Bears, they only took four seconds before Tanner Duncan wired home a shot from the top of the circle to even it up again. The Black Bears got another power play late in the frame, where Kris Krumins was able to tap in the power play goal to make it 3-2 Black Bears ahead of the second intermission.
The third period was a frantic affair, starting with Ryan Lukko throwing a seeing-eye shot on net that eluded everyone through a crowd to tie up the game at three. Towards the middle of the frame, the Black Bears took the lead again with Owen Drury coming off the bench and sniping a shot low far corner to put the Black Bears up 4-3. No rest for the wicked, as Danbury was able to tie it up again, with Patrik Ula getting Danbury back even with a shot over the shoulder to make it 4-4. Only a minute later, Ryan Franks was able to put the Black Bears ahead with a big snipe to make it 5-4 just after the media timeout. Despite a push late in the frame, the Black Bears held off Danbury and swept the series with a 5-4 win.
The Black Bears reach the East Division Final for the fourth time in the team’s eight year history. The East Final will start the May 1st at Piney Orchard against a team to be determined. Keep an eye on the Black Bears social media for ticket releases and more.
Clutch And Crab Hockey 