The Maine Nordiques are still searching to put together two wins in a row this season.
The New Jersey Titans defeated the Nordiques 5-1 in an NAHL East Division game in Middletown, New Jersey, on Saturday night. The Nordiques (2-6, 4 points) beat the Titans 5-3 on Friday.
“We just didn’t have enough winning habits to win that game; last night we did,” Maine Nordiques coach Matt Pinchevsky said. “We need to pull together that consistency and make sure every game is the biggest game of the season.”
Reece Brednich led the Titans (4-8, 8 points) with two goals and goalie Jacob Torgner stopped 21 shots in the win.
Ben Yurchuk scored the first goal of the three-goal first period for the Titans, lighting the lamp a little over a minute into the game. Michael Young and Anthony Calafiore, a University of Maine commit, provided the assists.
Ben Muthersbaugh scored an unassisted goal midway through the first period for a 2-0 New Jersey lead.
Brednich capped the scoring late in the first stanza, and then he stretched the lead to 4-0 in the second period. Ethan Wongus notched assists on both goals.
“To be quite frank, I don’t think we were moving our feet in the right direction — we were moving our feet but not in the direction that will allow us to play northbound, and that’s why there was limited shooting in the first and part in the second period,” Pinchevsky said. “Third period, surprise, surprise, here come the Nordiques and you tie that period.”
Kellen Murphy put the Nordiques on the board just past the seven-minute mark of the second period. Linemates Laurent Trepanier and Brendan Gibbons, an Air Force commit, tallied the assists.
Murphy’s goal-scoring streak is now at three games.
“All of Kellen Murphy’s goals come from 10 feet away from the net,” Pinchevsky said. “He’s someone who makes choices and decides to get to the dirty areas of the ice where the goals live. You can be happy that he got rewarded, but I am more happy for the team because they learn from that and learn from each other.”
Brendan Dumas scored late in the second period to extend the Titans’ lead to 5-1. Muthersbaugh and former Twin City Thunder forward Levente Keresztes collected the assists.
Thomas Heaney and Kael DePape combined to stop 27 shots for the Nordiques.
Both teams were 0-for-4 on the man-advantage.
The Nordiques have next weekend off and return to action on Oct. 21 and 22 at The Colisee against the Danbury Jr. Hat Tricks.
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