Janesville, Wisconsin – The Springfield Jr. Blues are poised to take on the Janesville Jets this weekend in a two game series with a lot on the line. Springfield is determined to right the ship and get back to winning, while Janesville looks to continue their hot play as of late.
Springfield is heading into this weekend having lost three of their last four, including a shootout loss to Minnesota last Saturday night. The Jr. Blues sit in 5th place in the Midwest Division with a 4-4-1-1 record. Janesville, however, has won three of their last four, including two wins against 1st place Kenai River and a series split against Fairbanks. The Jets are currently in 3rd place in the division with a 7-5-0-0 record.
Between the Pipes:
Springfield Jr. Blues – Caleb Hannon (Buffalo, NY) has been a boost for the Jr. Blues this season. Hannon’s 34 save shutout against Topeka (10/6) helped halt a soaring Pilots offense that had posted 5 goals the night before (10/6). His 2.10 GAA and .931 save percentage place him near the top 10 for both categories.
Janesville Jets – Cole Brady has been hot. With a 4-2-0-0 record, a 1.97 GAA, and a .933 save percentage Brady is among the league’s best in every category. Last weekend against Kenai River, Brady stopped 75 of 77 shots and has allowed one or fewer goals in four of his seven games played this season.
On the Attack:
Springfield Jr. Blues – Ben Schmidling (St. Joseph, MO) and Brandon Puricelli (St. Louis, MO) have been leading the Jr. Blues offensively all season long. Schmidling’s four goal performance in the NAHL Showcase turned heads, but it’s been Puricelli consistency that has kept their attention. In 10 games so far this season, Puricelli has points in eight of them and he leads the team with six goals.
Janesville Jets – The Jets offense has been spread around evenly to this point. Erik Bargholtz has three goals and two assists, as does Andrew Hicks, but leading point scorer Tommy Middleton only has six points on the season with five of them being helpers. The offense, primarily, has been grounded having scored two or fewer goals eight times.
Puck drop for both games is at 7:05 pm and can be streamed live on HockeyTV. Follow our Facebook and Twitter pages for in game updates and player news.
