Canton, MA | Patrick Frenette
The Hat Tricks have pushed themselves into eighth place with their second sweep over the Generals. Ameen Ghosheh and Chance Uzzell put up two-goal performances in the win, along with goals from Gavin O’Hara, Kai Elkie, and Ben Dempster. Tyler Spokane backstopped his seventh win of the season, making 22 saves on 25 shots for a .880 save percentage.
Danbury played hard in the opening frame, as they would make it difficult for Northeast to navigate through the ice. The first power play of the night would take place 16:33 into the frame, which led to Hat Tricks captain Ameen Ghosheh scoring on the man advantage with only 13 seconds remaining. The next frame would start with yet another power play, as Generals forward Divyne Apollon would get called for slashing at the end of the first.
The Hat Tricks had an offensive explosion in the second frame, which got off to a hot start following d-man Gavin O’Hara scoring his first goal in Hat Tricks uniform, as well as the second straight power play goal for Danbury. The first even strength goal of the game would come from forward Kai Elkie, who found the back of the net just 2:05 after O’Hara to make 3-0. A common theme throughout the game was the Generals not being able to stay out of the penalty box, as Generals d-man Jack Demoura got called for cross-checking. 1:31 of the power play would be erased before Chance Uzzell gave the Hat Tricks their third-straight power play goal of the contest. Uzzell would strike again 8:06 later for an even strength goal, making it 5-0 Danbury, leading to Generals goalie Ryan Nolan getting taken out of the game for Nathan McFall. The Generals would get one past Spokane with 2:50 remaining in the period, to make 5-1 heading into the final 20 minutes of play.
We would see yet another see-saw between these two teams in the final frame, Generals forward Ben Campeau gave Northeast their second goal of the night 11:45 into the frame. Desperation set in for the Generals, as they would pull McFall with 4:37 left in regulation for a 6-on-5 attempt. It would only take 40 seconds for the Hat Tricks to hit the empty net, as Joey Mallozzi sauced the puck up to an all-alone Ben Dempster to make it 6-2. The Generals only took 13 seconds to rebound from the empty net following a goal from Spencer Hirsch. 2:22 later, Ameen Ghosheh would tally the seventh Hat Tricks goal, to give him his second goal of the night.
Danbury comes home to face the Nordiques on Sunday January, 6 for a 7:30 p.m. puck drop. You can buy tickets at the door or stream the game live on NATV. Follow us on social media (@HatTricksNAHL) for game day updates, interviews, exclusive content, and more!