Titans head coach and general manager Craig Doremus was extremely busy over the weekend looking to bolster his lineup with the NAHL’s trade deadline this past Saturday and the waiver wire set to expire on Wednesday.
In separate deals, the Titans sent forward Joe Schubert and defenseman Nate Boak to the Odessa Jackalopes and goaltender Berk Berkeliev to the Chippewa Steel while signing veteran NAHL and United States Hockey League (USHL) netminder Christian Stoever.
Schubert had seven points (4 goals and 3 assists) in 13 games with the Titans while Boak had five points (all assists) in 18 games. Both are 2002 birth year.
Berkeliev, 20, appeared in 17 games and posted a 6 – 5 record with 3.18 goals against average and .911 save percentage with no shutouts.
“It was a busy couple of days for our staff around the trade deadline” stated Doremus. “This year has presented different challenges in regards to our roster size as opposed to the normal NAHL roster size. We had some opportunities to move a couple of players to spots where they could play a bigger role for their current development. It allowed us to acquire some additional draft capital which will be critical for our staff as we build our team in the future. At the goaltender position we were able to acquire a familiar goaltender to us. Christian led Wilkes Barre to the Robertson Cup years ago before heading to the USHL. We had the opportunity to acquire him and we think his ability and experience will be valuable to us as we make a push towards the playoffs. For Berk it was an opportunity to get play additional games in the league and continue his quest to get an opportunity to solidify a Division 1 commitment. We are extremely excited to welcome Christian Stoever to the Titans. At the same time, I would be remiss to not thank Joe, Nate, and Berk for all of their hard work and commitment to the Titans. We wish each of them nothing but continued success moving forward with their new respective clubs” concluded Doremus.
Stoever was the backbone of the 2017-18 Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Knights (now Danbury Jr. Hat Tricks) team that defeated the Titans in the divisional semi-finals in five games. The Knights then shocked the regular season East Division champion Philadelphia Rebels by sweeping them in the three game divisional finals and advancing to their only trip to the Robertson Cup tournament. During that run Stoever had a 1.89 goals against average and .949 save percentage in nine games.
After playing in the NAHL, he moved on to play three seasons (including the 2020-21) in the USHL with a few teams, most recently with the Sioux Falls Stampede. In 75 USHL games, Stoever had a 30-27-8 record with a 3.69 goals against average and .890 save percentage with two shutouts. He is committed to play NCAA Division I ice hockey for Bowling Green State University in the fall of 2021.