Kyle Jeffers and Gavin Gulash each had a goal and an assist to help lead the Titans to a 4 – 1 win over the visiting Northeast Generals. It was the Titans twenty-seventh win of the season.
Josef Glamos started the scoring for the Titans just 2:43 into the opening period. Danny Dimon took a shot from the top of the near side point, but it was redirected out front and into the far side corner where it picked up by Gulash. The Robert Morris commit went to send the puck towards the net, but Northeast’s Dylan Schuett intercepted it. As Schuett tried to breakout of his own zone, Gulash stripped him of the puck and passed it to Jeffers on his right. As Jeffers went to the net, he passed it over to Glamos who buried the puck into the net and past Generals goalie Joey Stanizzi to give the Titans a 1 – 0 lead.
The Titans double their lead at 6:47 of the first period on Gulash’s fifth goal of the season. As the Generals tried to clear the puck in their own far side corner, it was intercepted by Matthew Iasenza at the half wall. Iasenza took a shot that went wide, and the puck went off the end boards and rolled up to the near side half wall where it picked up by Dimon. The assistant captain took a shot on net that was redirected out front by Gulash and through Stanizzi’s five hole to give the Titans a 2 – 0 lead.
Nick DeSantis was called for slashing at 6:08 into the second period to give the Generals the man advantage. Eight seconds later Tyler Cooper cut Northeast’s deficit in half. After Cooper won the ensuing draw deep inside the Titans zone, the puck to Gerard Marretta who was to the left of Cooper. Marretta sent the puck back to Joe Nagel at the point. Nagel passed it to Cooper at the top of the circle and Cooper took a shot that founds its way through a maze and past Titans goalie Patrick Pugliese for his ninth goal of the season.
The Titans would regain their two-goal lead with 9:47 left in the second. Titans defender David Parker intercepted the puck in his own zone at the half wall and he floated the biscuit up to Mitch Machlitt at center ice. Machlitt skated along the near side boards and entered the offensive zone on a two-on-one with Jeffers. As Machlitt reached the faceoff dot, he made a cross-ice pass to Jeffers who one-timed it past Stanizzi for his eighteenth goal of the season.
Cade Penney closed out the Titans scoring with 9:04 in the third period. As the two teams battled along end boards in the Titans zone, the puck came out to Matt Cameron at the top of the near side faceoff circle. Cameron immediately passed it over to DeSantis who skated through center ice and entered the offensive zone on an odd man rush with Penney. As DeSantis reached the slot, he passed it over to Penney on his left and the rookie defenseman lifted the puck up high and into the net past Stanizzi to make it a 4 – 1 game.
Pugliese stopped 29 of 30 shots while Stanizzi turned aside 26 of 30. Click here for the box score.
The two teams will close out their weekend series tonight at 7:00 PM on Star Wars Night. All fans who wear a Star Wars costume will receive $3 off a ticket and be eligible to win a $25 gift certificate to the Titans Café located inside the Middletown Sports Complex.