A first period goal would not be enough as the New Jersey Titans gave up three unanswered goals to fall to the Lone Star Brahmas 3-1 on Thursday night at the NAHL Showcase in Blaine, Minnesota. New Jersey has now dropped four straight games.
The Titans would strike first for the second time at the 2024 Showcase when Ryan Shaw wired a wrist shot upstairs for his first NAHL goal after Nikita Meshcheryakov forced a turnover in the neutral zone and found the RPI commit alone on the left wing. The Titans would continue to press offensively, outshooting the defending Robertson Cup Champions 9-6 in the period, but a defensive lapse in the dying moments allowed Lone Star to tie the game with 0.2 seconds remaining in the period to tie the game.
Deflated after giving up the late goal, the New Jersey offense never seemed to get back into gear, officially recording only 8 shots on goal for the rest of the game, evenly split between the second and third periods. A deflected shot from the point gave the Brahmas the lead at the 6:04 mark of the second which would prove to be the game winner. Lone Star picked up an insurance marker in the third, sending the Titans to their second consecutive loss at the Showcase. Austin McNicholas stopped 15 of 18 shots in the losing effort.
Now with a 1-4-1 record, the Titans sit in 8th place in the 10 team East Division. They’ll have the opportunity to end their NAHL Showcase on a high note when they face the Anchorage Wolverines tomorrow at 10:00am Eastern time for the first time since the teams met in the 2022 Robertson Cup Final. The game will be available to watch on NAHLtv.com.