Nationals look to get hot

Last weekend, the Glacier Nationals, of the North American Tier 3 Hockey League finally got themselves into the win column. Now the challenge for the Nationals will be seeing if they can build on that success and this weekend, they will have two chances to do just that.

Yet, in order to achieve that, Glacier will need to do so against the Helena Bighorns, which, traditionally, is one of the strongest teams in the Frontier Division. The two teams will play this weekend, with one game coming tonight inside the Havre Ice Dome at 7:30, followed by a matchup Saturday in Helena. The first puck will also drop at 7:30 p.m.

“I think the biggest thing right now is the win showed the boys that if they continue to work hard, good things will happen,” Nationals head coach Rob Powell said. “We have been building and working towards this and we just need to keep pushing and building on this first win.”

The biggest reason why Glacier was able to get a breakthrough win over Billings last Saturday was due to an offense that finally had an outburst, notching six goals in the win. It was the first time all season that the Nationals scored more than three goals in a game. Currently, Glacier still averages barely more than two goals per game, so as the offense goes, so goes the Nationals.

The good news for the Nationals, is that they have a number of players, who are starting to find the net consistently, led by Jamahl Eakett, who notched hat trick against Billings and has four goals in just five games this season. Gavin Cline also had four goals for Glacier, while Bailey Dorf, Grant Denton, Hunter Mason and Riggs Zeidler all have two apiece. Lindros Beard has also made an impact with a team-high four assists.

Helena, on the other hand, which comes into the game with a record of 2-4-1, is fifth in the Frontier in goals scored with a total of 26, thanks to seven goals from Bradley Estrada and six from John Heddle.

The Bighorns, who have done a much better job than Glacier of limiting opponents scoring, will have a big advantage between the pipes, thanks to the experience of Alex Kruger, who has a 2.96 goals against average this season. The Nationals, who rely on a slew of goaltenders will be looking for improved play from Brendan Schultz, Jonah Gower, Travis Green and Mikhail Pahrebets, who have all seen time in net this season.

Glacier and Helena will square off tonight at 7:30 inside the Havre Ice Dome, followed by a rematch Saturday at the same time in Helena.