The New Jersey Titans will travel to the Tri-Town Ice Arena in Hooksett, New Hampshire, for the first time in franchise history this weekend as the face the New Hampshire Mountain Kings for the final two times in the regular season on Friday and Saturday nights. A pivotal weekend, the Mountain Kings trail New Jersey by only 3 points for the 6th and final playoff position in the East Division.
The Titans enter the weekend on a four game slide after falling to the Danbury Jr Hat Tricks on Wednesday night. They will look to getting the offense back on track, after three straight games of being unable to hold a 2-0 lead. Previously, New Jersey won both games against New Hampshire when the Mountain Kings made their first trip to the Garden State prior to the holiday break. Dominik Bartecko was the overtime hero in the first ever game between the teams as the Titans emerged with a 2-1 win. New Jersey handled business the next evening, with goals from Dominick Rivelli, Jack Hillier, and Nikita Meshcheryakov for a 3-0 victory. Zak Brice stopped all 32 shots to record his second shutout of the season so far.
Up front, New Hampshire is led by Hunter Fetterolf with 6 goals and 17 assists, good for 23 points. The former El Paso Rhino has dwarfed his point total from last season, where he scored once in 29 games. Tommy McDonough leads in scoring by Mountain Kings defenseman with 21 points, including 8 on the power play. Aiden Wright continues to hold down the New Hampshire crease, with a record of 11-8-2, a 2.88 goals against average, and a .923 save percentage.
New Jersey’s offensive troika of Rivelli, Bartecko, and Meshcheryakov all enter the weekend with 14 goals. Bartecko leads the team with 40 points. Defenseman Matej Teply is second on the team with 30 points. Zak Brice and Dylan Krick continue to split time in the New Jersey goal as both have put up similar numbers with Krick holding the advantage in goals against average and save percentage, while Brice has recorded more wins.
Games are scheduled for Friday and Saturday nights, with both games beginning at 7:30pm.