Springfield, Illinois – The Springfield Jr. Blues traveled up to Richfield, MN today to start a three game series against the Minnesota Magicians. The action kicks off tonight at 7:00 pm CST with game two set for Friday at 7:15 pm CST and game three on Saturday at 7:00 pm CST.
For the Record:
The Springfield Jr. Blues have climbed their way up and into playoff position with an impressive start to 2019 going 8-2-1-0 in their last 11 games. This hot stretch includes a two game sweep of Minnesota in Springfield in the beginning of January. 
The Jr. Blues are now sitting comfortably in 4th place with a 20-16-3-1 record for 44 points, just two points behind the 3rd place Janesville Jets.
The Minnesota Magicians have been the best team in the Midwest Division all season as they are 27-11-2-0 and are seven points ahead of Fairbanks for first place. In their last 10 games the Magicians are 6-2-2-0 with all four defeats coming in sweeps at the hands of Springfield and the Austin Bruins.
Between the Pipes:
The Jr. Blues are backstopped by two NAHL Top Prospect Tournament players in Jack Williams (Selects Red) and Janis Voris (Midwest). Williams, a Michigan St. commit, has played in 26 games this season for Springfield and boasts a 13-10-1-1 record with a 2.92 GAA and .894 save percentage. Voris joined the Jr. Blues after Christmas break and in 6 games played he is 4-1-0-0 with a 2.42 GAA and a .914 save percentage.
Minnesota’s netminders have been equally as impressive. Ethan Haider sports a 14-7-2-0 record with a 2.50 GAA and a .921 save percentage in 24 games this season. Haider, a Clarkson University commit, was named to the NAHL Selects Blue roster. Minnesota’s second goalie, Jack Robbel has been a reliable partner in net to Haider. In 17 games played, Robbel has a 12-3-0-0 record with a 2.08 GAA and a .937 save percentage.
On the Scoresheet:
Brandon Puricelli and Max Brainin will each represent the Jr. Blues on the Midwest Division team at the Top Prospects Tournament. Puricelli leads the team in goals and assists with 21 and 25 respectively. Brainin has put up good numbers this as well, scoring 13 goals and 24 assists. Joining them at the top of the statistics is forward Ben Schmidling. Schmidling has 20 goals and 19 assists on the season including 5 goals and 1 assist in his last four games.
The Magicians themselves have four players with 30+ points. Cameron Buhl (16 goals, 32 assists), John Keranen (19 goals, 22 assists), Matthew Stanton (14 goals, 16 assists), and Andrew Kruse (6 goals, 24 assists) are the offensive leaders on a team that has four players on the Midwest Roster and one player each on the Selects Red and Selects Blue rosters.
