HAT TRICKS TRAVEL TO BINGHAMTON TO START BUSY WEEKEND

BINGHAMTON, NY – The Danbury Hat Tricks (17-9-3, 50 pts) kick off a four-games-in-four-nights stretch on Thursday when they travel to face the Binghamton Black Bears (15-13-0, 43 pts).

Thursday marks the sixth meeting between the two teams and is the fifth clash in Binghamton.

“We have a busy stretch here,” said head coach Dave MacIsaac. “We have to make sure we keep up our intensity and discipline for the whole weekend.”

Binghamton has won three of the first five meetings, including an overtime win last Saturday night.

The Hat Tricks have stumbled out of the gates in January, winning just three of their eight games. However, Danbury has points in three of its last four games, including two wins.

One of those wins came over league-leading Watertown on Jan. 21. The other win came at home against Binghamton in a 10-7 shootout on Jan. 15.

Jonny Ruiz has stayed hot into 2022, leading the Hat Tricks with 47 points and 26 goals. In eight January games, Ruiz has six goals and 15 points. His 26 goals are good enough for third-most in the league.

Binghamton forward Nikita Ivashkin is tied for the league lead with 59 points and leads the league with 36 goals in 28 games.

Thursday’s game can be seen on the Black Bears YouTube channel and begins at 7 p.m.