BINGHAMTON HOLDS ON OVER DANBURY, 4-3

BINGHAMTON – The Binghamton Black Bears held on for a 4-3 victory over the Danbury Hat Tricks on Saturday night in front of 3,310 fans inside Visions Veterans Memorial Arena.

Tyson Kirkby gave the Black Bears a 1-0 lead on the power play in the opening period. Kirkby took a pass and lifted a backhand shot over the left shoulder of goaltender Peter Di Salvo. The goal was Kirkby’s second goal in two games since joining the Black Bears with assists from Tyler Gjurich and Kyle Powell. The goal came at 11:57 of the first and Binghamton took the one-goal lead into the intermission.

Tyler Gjurich scored early in the second period to give Binghamton a 2-0 lead. The pass came to Gjurich from below the goal line and he beat Di Salvo for his 39th of the year. The lone assist went to Geno DeAngelo and the goal came 2:41 into the second.

John Macdonald fired a wrist shot on the power play over the left shoulder of Owen Liskiewicz to get Danbury on the board. The goal was Macdonald’s fourth of the year with assists from Cory Anderson and Vinnie Susi at 8:00 of the second.

Gjurich struck again to give Binghamton a 3-1 lead on a wild bounce below the goal line. The puck hopped up on the wall and in behind the net. Geno DeAngelo took the puck in traffic and fed it to Gjurich who had a wide-open net for his 40th of the year. The goal came at 12:39 from DeAngelo for the two-goal lead. 

Binghamton took a 4-1 lead on the power play just over two minutes later. Emil Strom put a great move on and beat Peter Di Salvo for his 14th goal of the year. Assists were credited to Tyson Kirkby and Tyler Gjurich and the Black Bears took that 4-1 lead into the third period. 

In the third period, Jonny Ruiz rifled home a power-play goal early on and Binghamton’s lead was decreased to two. The goal came just 31 seconds into the third with assists from Zachary Lazzaro and Cory Anderson. 

With their net empty, the Hat Tricks scored to pull within one. Cory Anderson tapped the puck in while on the power play and the Black Bears led 4-3 with under one minute remaining in regulation. 

Danbury pulled the goalie again for the extra attacker and the Black Bears held on for the 4-3 victory. Owen Liskiewicz denied 35 of 38 shots in the victory.

The Black Bears are back home Friday, April 1 for College Night. College Students can get $5 tickets to the game. Saturday, April 2 is the Heart Cup game to benefit American Heart Association. Watch the Binghamton Police Department and Binghamton Fire Department play at 3:30 p.m. and the Black Bears host Columbus at 7 p.m. Tickets are just $15 to watch both games with $5 of each ticket going back to American Heart Association. Get your tickets for the Heart Cup game HERE and tickets for all other games at www.binghamtonblackbears.com/tickets. 

Stay current with the latest team news by visiting www.binghamtonblackbears.com, by calling 607-722-7367, or visiting the front office on the third floor of the Visions Veterans Memorial Arena. Follow the Black Bears all year long on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.