DANBURY, CT – The Elmira Aviators (10-14-3-1) came up short against the Danbury Hat Tricks (13-13-1-2), falling 3-1 at Danbury Ice Arena Friday afternoon.
Elmira and Danbury have a handful of players with history at both clubs who played a part in Friday’s contest.
Former Aviator Kai Elkie leads the Hat Tricks in points. Evan Dantas, who started the season in Danbury, is tied for the Elmira team lead in points.
Princeton commit, and Aviator defenseman Andrew Horn started his NAHL career in Danbury, as did Niagara commit and forward Max McGuire.
Playing against old teammates can be a motivator, and it showed on both sides.
After the Aviators went to the first intermission trailing 1-0, an early second-period power play gave the purple and black a chance to equalize.
Cael Primanti won the puck behind the Hat Trick net and fed Max McGuire, who delivered a pristine one-time drive to level the score at 1-1. McGuire’s tally goes down as his sixth of the season and second score against his former club.
McGuire played 22 games for the Hat Tricks last season.
Danbury responded later in the frame, reclaiming a one-goal advantage heading to the third period.
Elmira attempted to stir up some offense, but the Hat Tricks played a tight checking game, limiting chances on either end. The teams combined for just nine shots in the final frame, with the Aviators accounting for only four.
Midway through the third, the Hat Tricks grabbed an insurance goal from Kai Elkie and never looked back, securing a 3-1 victory.
The Aviators will try to split their series with the Hat Tricks when they face off Saturday at 7 p.m. at Danbury Ice Arena. The game can be streamed on NATV or listened to on WINGZ93.
Mac Young is the play-by-play voice of the Elmira Aviators. To contact him, email [email protected].