BLAINE, MN– For the first time since lifting the Robertson Cup, the Maryland Black Bears retrurned to Blaine, Minnesota for the annual NAHL Showcase. With all 36 teams in the area, the Black Bears took on the Austin Bruins, Janesville Jets, and El Paso Rhinos.
WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 23rd, 2026: BLACK BEARS (3) vs. Austin (2): Two of the four division winners from last season were on display to kick off the first day, with Maryland getting a bit of a jump on Austin, keeping play in their offensive zone. Austin would have the lone penalty in the period and Tanner Terranova made them pay with a one-timer from the top of the circle to make it 1-0 for the Black Bears. Moments later, play would be suspended after a hit against the board led to a broken pane of glass, requiring an early intermission for clean-up. The last six minutes of the period did not yield much for either team, with Maryland still up 1-0.
Issues in the defensive zone reared its ugly head, as a turnover allowed Kyle Sorenson to score for Austin to tie the game. Maryland would go back to the power play a short-time later and made short work of it, as Vincent Glos needed only 10 seconds before hammering home another power play goal to put Maryland back on top 2-1. Maryland would have to kill off two penalties late in the frame, but Michael Iliff and the PK were solid to keep it at 2-1 through 40 minutes.
Austin pushed hard at the start of the frame, but Iliff was able to see the pucks thrown onto net and keep the Maryland lead intact. Later in the frame, Maryland’s power play would go back to work and Brayden Wade would put home another one-timer to make it a 3-1 score with 7:30 remaining. With four and a half minutes remaining, Austin would get to within one, with Ally Mostafaie getting his own rebound to make it 3-2. That would be as close as they would get, as the Black Bears take home the 3-2 win over Austin. Michael Iliff had 22 saves in the win.
THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 24th, 2026: BLACK BEARS (2) vs. Janesville (3) OT: Maryland got started early, with Ajay Rai keeping the puck in the zone and tapping it over to Bryaden Wade who wired home his second of the Showcase to make it 1-0 Maryland only 1:57 into the game. Maryland continued their pressure and it would pay off again ahead of the midway point, as Matthew Shpungin skated untouched through the neutral zone and snapped one from the top of the slot to make it 2-0 for the Black Bears. Janesville would try to attack, but Cole Werthman was collected in net and kept the score at 2-0 through one period.
Breaks and bounces were unkind to Maryland in the second period, as both goals came from fluky circumstances. First, a bad line change caught Maryland without coverage, allowing Hans Hedlund to score on a mini-breakaway to make it 2-1. Janesville kept their pressure and late in the frame, they would even the score as a Sean Truby shot pinballed off of several skates in front and found the back of the net to tie the score before intermission.
In the third, Maryland tried to get some momentum going, but shots and passes were getting blocked off, allowing Janesville to get some chances of their own. Werthman was solid to keep the game tied, but Maryland’s offense could only put up two shots on net for the entire third. The game would go onto overtime, with both teams picking up a point.
Overtime was frantic with action at both ends of the ice. Maryland’s best chance came on an Ajay Rai breakaway that rang off the post. Right after that chance, Janesville created a turnover in the Maryland defensive zone, leading to Hedlund’s game winning goal for a 3-2 Maryland loss. Cole Werthman had 19 saves.
FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 25th, 2026: BLACK BEARS (3) vs. El Paso (2): After an overtime game at night, the Black Bears had a short turnaround for a Friday afternoon game against El Paso. Maryland, however, kept their intensity up with the puck in their offensive zone for most of the period. It paid off past the halfway point with Ian Sherman getting his first NAHL goal after initially keeping the puck in the zone to continue the pressure. Maryland only allowed three shots in the first period, going into the intermission with a 1-0 lead.
Almost a carbon copy of the goals from Thursday happened again on Friday against Maryland, as the Black Bears got caught up in a tough line change, allowing Aidan Bergner to walk in and tie the game up at the midway mark of the period. El Paso would get a power play right after and then take the lead as Brendan Murray banked an attempted pass off a Black Bears defenseman and into the net to make it 2-1 El Paso. Michael Iliff would settle down after that, making some key saves later in the frame to keep it 2-1. Maryland would tie it up with 1:40 left in the period, as Zhenya Miles would hammer home a one-timer from the top of the circles to even the score before intermission.
Maryland would get things going in the third, with Lachlan Bommer finding a loose puck in front and poking it in for his first of the year to give Maryland the lead back at 3-2. Maryland defense would clamp down after that, keeping El Paso to only six shots in the final frame, with Iliff stopping all three of them to secure the Maryland win and claiming five out of six points in the Showcase. Michael Iliff had 16 saves.
The Black Bears will be back on the road this coming weekend, as they take on the Johnstown Tomahawks in Western Pennsylvania. Games on Friday and Saturday will be available on NAHL TV.
