Game Preview: Hat Tricks at Binghamton Black Bears | March 28, 2025

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LAST TIME OUT

A four-goal third period provided the Hat Tricks with a 6-3 home win against the Dashers on Saturday.

38 seconds into the third, Chase Harwell (:18) and Jonny Ruiz (:38) scored back-to-back goals 20 seconds apart in the third to stretch the lead to 4-1. Harwell (1g, 2a) and Ruiz (2g, 1a) each tallied three points and Ruiz potted his first game-winning goal of the season.

Dylan Hullaby put Danbury ahead, 5-2, from the middle of the left circle at 8:48 of the third before Blake Siewertson got the Dashers back within two with 3:58 left.

Aleksandr Vasilyev scored in the game’s final 20 seconds, burying his third goal in three contests from just above the crease.

Danbury’s penalty kill delivered in all five opportunities, including a five-on-three as Zach Pamaylaon and Josh Labelle sat for goalie interference and a delay of game. The Hat Tricks finished 1-for-3 on the power play as Ruiz backhanded their second goal of the game for a 2-0 lead at 5:32.

HEAD-TO-HEAD

The Hat Tricks and the Black Bears meet for the ninth time this season. Danbury trails the season series, 6-2, and takes on Binghamton two more times in the regular campaign. Through their first eight matchups with the Black Bears, the Hat Tricks are 1-5-1-1.

The two sides last met on March 14 in Binghamton, N.Y., as Danbury fell, 4-3, in a thriller between the top two seeds in the Empire Division. The Hat Tricks took control of the game early in the second period on shorthanded goals from Gleb Bandurkin and co-head coach and captain Jonny Ruiz, at 55 seconds and 7:47. But the Black Bears rattled off three unanswered goals to finish the game, including Dakota Bohn’s game-winning power play goal at 3:24 of the third, Binghamton’s lone goal on the man advantage.

Danbury’s last win in the series came on Nov. 23 (7-4) in Danbury when it netted three consecutive goals in the second to break a 2-2 tie and never trailed. Aleksandr Gamzatov and Binghamton’s Donald Oliveri each had two goals and an assist.

After Friday, the Hat Tricks and the Black Bears face off in Danbury on Saturday to wrap up their home-and-home. The teams meet for the final time on April 11 when Danbury plays at Binghamton.

Danbury’s only other win in the series came at Binghamton (4-3SOW) on Nov. 2. Josh Labelle’s goal was the only one in the eighth and final round of the shootout. The Hat Tricks took a 3-1 lead into the third period thanks to two goals from Chase Harwell but the Black Bears clawed back with goals from Ramaekers and Matt Christopher. The victory marked Danbury’s first of four shootout wins this season.

Bandurkin leads the Hat Tricks in the series with three goals and four assists.

Ruiz and Cory Anderson also each have three goals. Conor McCollum is 2-5-1 with a .922 save percentage.

For Binghamton, Tyson Kirkby paces the Black Bears with three goals and six assists and Dakota Bohn holds a goal and seven assists in eight contests.

Connor McAnanama is 4-0-1 with a .945 save percentage in the series. Nolan Egbert is 2-1 with a .922 save percentage. CJ Hapward faced the Hat Tricks for the first time in the teams’ meeting on March 14 and made 22 saves on 25 shots faced in the win.

ABOUT THE BLACK BEARS

Binghamton enters tonight’s matchup as Empire Division champions for the second straight season. It has also clinched the top spot in the FPHL with 128 points (39-5-1-5) and stands 35 points ahead of Danbury. The Black Bears have won five games in a row and 23 of their last 24, with their only loss at Blue Ridge (5-2L) on March 8 that broke a season and franchise-long 18-game win streak.

The Black Bears return home following a two-game sweep of Watertown (7-4W, 6-1W) on March 21–22. Their last five victories have been decided by 2.6 goals per game. Binghamton has scored six or more goals in six of its last 10 contests. The Black Bears have not lost at home since Dec. 6 against Port Huron (5-3L) on Dec. 6 and have only dropped three games at Visions Veterans Memorial Arena all season, including Nov. 2 versus the Hat Tricks. Their six total losses, five in regulation, are the fewest in the league.

The Black Bears last took home ice against the Thunderbirds (1-0W) on March 15 in a rematch of last season’s Commissioner’s Cup Finals. Austin Thompson’s goal at 1:27 of the second period lifted Binghamton to victory in its lone meeting with Carolina in the regular season.

At the beginning of their mission to repeat as Cup champions, the Black Bears won 10 of their first 13 games to storm to the top of the division. From Dec. 7–Jan. 3, Binghamton won eight contests in a row before losing a barnburner at Port Huron (8-6L) on Jan. 4.

Binghamton is the FPHL’s best on the power play (25.8%) with a league-high 64 goals. Its penalty kill (85.5%) ranks third and remains tied with Motor City for the fourth-fewest goals allowed (33) in the league, but has surrendered a goal in five of the last seven games (84.4%). The FPHL’s most penalized team, the Black Bears have accrued 1229 penalty minutes but have scored the most shorthanded goals (14), nevertheless.

Kirkby holds the most points (84), goals (33), and assists (50) on the Black Bears, but missed the team’s series against Watertown last weekend as part of a three-game suspension upheld from March 10 at Blue Ridge. Austin Thompson leads Binghamton’s active skaters in points (61) and goals (29). Dakota Bohn has a team-high 41 assists. 

Connor McAnanama is the league’s wins leader (28) with a 26-2-1 record and has a league-best 1.99 GAA. Nolan Egbert is 14-3 with a 3.30 GAA.

HAT TRICKS HEADLINES

The Hat Tricks swept the Dashers for their fifth weekend sweep of the season and have won 21 of their last 28 games (17-4-3-4) with points in 22 of the last 24.

Danbury takes on Binghamton riding a three-game win streak and the chance to extend it to four games for the first time since Feb. 2 against HC Venom (5-4W) during its season-long seven-game win streak.

Saturday’s game is the only one on the road for the Hat Tricks this week. They will return to Danbury for the back of a home-and-home on Saturday before heading to Biloxi, Miss., next Friday for a two-game set as part of a three-game road trip.

Winning three straight games for the first time since Feb. 23 (4-3OTW) at Watertown, Danbury has relied on heavy offensive performances, 6.7 goals per win, as it tries to clinch the two-seed in the Empire Division.

With six games left in the regular season, the Hat Tricks are 25-12-8-5 (93 points) and hold a nine-point lead over Port Huron for second place in the Empire Division. A regulation win for Danbury and a Port Huron regulation loss at Motor City would increase its advantage to 12 points.

Danbury’s power play is third (24.6%) in the FPHL with 50 goals, tied with Watertown for the second most. On the penalty kill, the Hat Tricks rank 10th and have allowed 45, tied with Port Huron for the fifth-most. Despite this, Danbury is 33-for-39 (84.6%) over its last seven games and 75-for-85 (88.2%) across the last 18.

The Hat Tricks have scored 12 shorthanded goals, two behind Binghamton for the league lead.

Gleb Bandurkin leads the Hat Tricks in points (56) and goals (28). Jacob Ratcliffe has a team-high 35 assists.

RED-HOT RUIZ

Co-head coach and captain Jonny Ruiz scored two goals in Saturday’s win, extending his point streak (5-8-13) to seven games. The franchise’s all-time leader in points (321), goals (171), and games played (242) holds three multi-point performances through his past seven games, including a season-high four assists against the Dashers (9-0W) on March 21, and 31 points (14g, 17a) over his previous 15 games. Ruiz has 15 multi-point games this season and leads the FPHL in shorthanded goals (5).

HARWELL ON A CAREER TEAR

Chase Harwell logged his third straight multi-point game on Saturday to extend his three-game point streak (6-2-8). The second-year forward has scored nine combined goals in his last seven appearances with 23 points (13g, 10a) over his past 12 outings. Harwell has posted 16 multi-point outputs this season as part of a single-season-high 25 goals and 25 assists in 36 contests.

RATTY’S ROLLING

Jacob Ratcliffe had two assists on Thursday, marking his third multi-point performance in the last four games. The Canterbury, New Zealand, native has 15 multi-point performances this season, which included three straight from Oct. 19–Oct. 26. Ratcliffe has supplied 12 goals and a team-best 33 assists in his third season in Danbury.

RESOUNDING ROOKIE RUSSIANS

Gleb Bandurkin (2a) and Vadim Frolov (1g, 1a) combined for four points in Saturday's win. Bandurkin, the team-leader in goals (28) and points (56), has three goals and eight assists through his last nine games while Frolov has registered three goals and nine helpers during that stretch. The rookie forwards have provided a combined 99 points (47g, 52a) and neither has missed more than five of Danbury’s 50 games.

VASY’S STRONG SEASON CONTINUES

With a goal and an assist in Saturday’s win over the Dashers, Aleksandr Vasilyev has recorded points in three straight games (3-2-5). Through his first FPHL season (29 games), the 35-year-old from Elektrostal, Russia has nine goals and 30 assists. Vasilyev has notched 10 points (4g, 6a) over his past seven games and points in 14 of his previous 18 outings (7-21-28). 

NOT-SO-ROOKIE HULLABY

Dylan Hullaby scored for the second straight game on Saturday. The 6-foot-5 winger buried goals in consecutive games for the first time since his three-game goal streak (4) from Jan. 18–Jan. 25. Since arriving from Monroe via trade on Jan. 13, Hullaby has provided 10 goals and nine assists in 23 contests and has 11 goals and 14 assists total in his first professional season.

WOOLLEY WOWS AGAIN

In his third season with the Hat Tricks, Connor Woolley has posted a career-best in goals (16) and points (35) through 39 games. Woolley, who just celebrated his 26th birthday on Thursday carries a four-game point streak (4-1-5) into Friday’s road game. The Pawling, N.Y. native has netted goals in three of the last four games (4) and five of the last seven (6) including a power play strike in Binghamton on March 14.

NOT OUT OF THE WOODS YET

Despite standing six games from their fifth Commissioner’s Cup playoff appearance, the Hat Tricks battle the Empire Division champion Binghamton Black Bears two more times in the next three weeks. Danbury is also tasked with winning its season series against Watertown, tied at five games, in its final meeting with the Wolves on April 12. In their final six contests of last year’s regular season, the Hat Tricks were 3-2-1-0.

ABOUT DANBURY HAT TRICKS:

The Danbury Hat Tricks are a professional hockey team based in Danbury, CT and compete in the Federal Prospects Hockey League (FPHL). Since their founding in 2019, the 2023 Commissioner's Cup Champions have brought thrilling, fast-paced, and hard-hitting hockey to the Danbury Ice Arena, earning a reputation for their competitive spirit, electric atmosphere and strong community ties. The team is dedicated to providing an unforgettable game-day experience for fans of all ages while proudly representing the city of Danbury.

Off the ice, the Hat Tricks are committed to fostering connections within the local community through outreach programs with schools, businesses and charities. By developing top-tier hockey talent and growing the sport in the region, the Hat Tricks aim to bring the community together and deliver entertainment that leaves a lasting impact.

The 2025 Commissioner's Cup Playoffs start next month, and our playoff ticket package is on sale now! Lock in your seats for the full playoff run and save. A comprehensive postseason package is just $72—only $12 per ticket, a 35% discount. If any games are not played, you will receive a refund or a credit for the 2025-26 season. To purchase a playoff package, email herm@danburyhattricks.com or call 973-713-7547.

To stay up to date on all things Danbury Hat Tricks hockey, go to danburyhattricks.com and follow the team on Facebook, Instagram, X, and TikTok (@DanburyHatTricks).