JOHNSTOWN – The Johnstown Tomahawks (7-3-2) were defeated on home ice at the hands of the Maryland Black Bears (10-1-1) by a score of 5-1 on Friday, October 17th. The Tomahawks lone goal came from the stick of Jack Genovese. Maryland was led by their leading scorer and now NAHL leading scorer, Harrison Smith who added another two assists for a whopping 17 through 12 games. Tanner Duncan added two goals for the Black Bears as well.
The Tomahawks came into Friday night looking to respond after a difficult 12–3 loss last weekend, and Jacob Ingstrup set the tone immediately by dropping the gloves off the opening draw. The early fight injected some much-needed energy into the building and signaled a determined start. A few minutes after the fight, the Tomahawks put the Black Bears on the power play and they capitalized making it 1-0. Shortly after killing off a cross-checking penalty, the Tomahawks matched Maryland’s physical edge with several heavy hits throughout the first. With under a minute to play, Jack Genovese pounced on a rebound to tie the game 1–1 and send both teams to the locker room even. Shots after one were in favor of Maryland at 11-4.
The Tomahawks momentum had a chance to carry into the second period when Maryland took an early penalty, followed by another infraction that gave the Tomahawks a full minute of 5-on-3 time. It was a prime chance to grab the lead, but the power plays came up empty and stalled their surge. The physical tone continued, highlighted by big hits from Hudson Slenker and Conor Griffin that fired up the crowd. Defensively, the Tomahawks were sharp early, holding Maryland without a shot for the first ten minutes of the frame, though they struggled to generate chances of their own. With seven minutes left in the period, Maryland broke through on a sharp shot over the right ear of Zach Ferris to take a 2–1 lead. A second goal moments later was waved off after review, briefly restoring some life to the Hawks, but just 47 seconds later the Black Bears scored again to make it 3–1, in a moment of pure “puck doesn’t lie”. Through two periods, shots were heavily in Maryland’s favor, 19–9, and the energy inside the arena had noticeably began to fade.
The Tomahawks entered the third needing their best period of the season, but Maryland’s 200-foot structure allowed little room to operate. Offensive chances were scarce, with only three Tomahawks shots through the first fourteen minutes of the frame. A defensive lapse midway through the period made it 4–1, and Maryland tacked on another just two minutes later to stretch the lead to 5–1 and put the game out of reach. Any attempts at Tomahawks rushes were quickly neutralized, often outnumbered or broken up at the blue line. The chippiness persisted late, but beyond Maryland’s two goals, quality chances were limited on both sides as the clock wound down on the final moments of the contest. Maryland claimed a 5–1 victory and outshot the Tomahawks 29–12. Despite a spirited start and physical effort, missed opportunities and offensive struggles proved too much to overcome.The Tomahawks will look to respond in a big way tomorrow and keep themselves within striking distance of the 1st place Black Bears as the season chugs on.
Your Johnstown Tomahawks will be back in action tomorrow night at 7:00PM for another showdown with the Black Bears. Get your tickets right now https://www.ticketmaster.com/johnstown-tomahawks-tickets/artist/1760594 Catch all of the action on NAHLTV and follow our social media accounts @tomahawkshockey to keep yourself in the loop!
BY: DREW P. PFEIL