Andrew Husted notched a pair of goals on Saturday night as the New Jersey Titans defeated the Northeast Generals, 3-2, at the Middletown Sports Complex.
“I think his performance was inspiring,” said Titans head coach Craig Doremus about Husted. “He has become a staple for us in our lineup and does so many of the little things very well. When you see him get rewarded with a couple of goals, you can’t help but smile for the kid.”
The Titans have now won three straight games and have improved their record to 6-3-1. They have also taken the first two of a three-game homestand this weekend.
Midway through the 1st period, Husted opened the scoring by finding a loose puck near the left post and jammed the puck in for the goal. The Generals responded three minutes later with a power-play goal from Matt Wiesner. The tie did not last long, as Nick Boyagian converted on a Titans power play to make it 2-1.
Husted scored again 7:51 into the 2nd period as Generals goaltender Marko Sturma was unable to control Wade Novak’s shot from the top of the circle. The puck dropped right in front of the goal line and Husted was there to tap it in and give the Titans a 3-1 lead. Later in the period, he had a chance to pick up the hat trick when Boyagian set him up on a two-on-one, but Sturma made a diving save with the glove to keep the puck out.
Nevertheless, Husted said he was happy to get the two goals and lead his team to victory.
“It felt very good popping them in. I got two lucky bounces in front, it got the team going, and all around I thought we played very well,” he said.
Wiesner tallied another power-play goal early in the 3rd period, as he scored all four of the Generals’ goals in the two games this weekend. The Titans, however, were able to hang on as goaltender Matt Ladd stopped 29 shots in the win. Sturmo made 30 saves on 33 shots in the losing effort.
The Titans have one more game this weekend, a Sunday afternoon contest against the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Knights. With puck drop at 4:30 p.m., all of the action can be seen on hockeytv.com.