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87's sweep the week, maintain winning streaks

By Anthony DiPaolo, 10/18/18, 7:30PM EDT

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Jack Lane, Brad Heuer and Ryan Crane lead the way as 87's extend winning streaks

The New Jersey 87's EHL and Premier teams had another successful week and extended their winning streaks to seven and five games, respectively. Both squads sit atop of their divisions as the EHL team defeated three different teams while the Premier team swept the Renegades over the weekend.

 

EHL: Lane selected for All-Star team after 87's win three in a row

The EHL team started its week with a Saturday night tilt against New York Applecore at Brewster Ice Arena. Tyler English and Race Bennett put Applecore ahead 2-0 with a pair of 1st period goals, but the 87's would go on to control the game after the first intermission. Tim DeBord scored in between a pair of goals from Trent Shanley as New Jersey held a 3-2 lead after two periods. Alex Borowiec, Jack McDonough and DeBord added goals in the third while Dalton Jerzak made 18 saves in the 6-3 victory.

On Monday afternoon, the 87's faced the Vermont Lumberjacks of the New England Conference's North Division. Just 26 seconds after the opening faceoff, Trent Shanley picked up a loose puck and fired a wrist shot high-glove side to put the 87's up 1-0. The team never looked back as they scored five more goals in the first 40 minutes of the game. Zach Tarantino, Jake Ondrejko, Cam Lindsay, Kyle DePalma and Jack Lane all contributed to the 6-0 win as Jon Kopak pitched a 31-save shutout. Lane, who finished the game with two points, spoke about the chemistry he has with Tarantino and Borowiec on the first line.

"I've been playing with Zach for a very long time, so it's good that we can come to the 87's and produce together. Alex is also a very skilled guy, he wins battles and when you have player like that on your line it's good for us," Lane said.

Their final game of the week came on Wednesday when the 87's faced the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Knights at Revolution Ice Centre. It proved to be a tug-of-war with each team scoring a goal in the first two periods. Geoff LaMorre buried a rebound at 2:58 of the third period to give New Jersey a 3-2 lead, and the score held thanks to clutch goaltending from Dalton Jerzak in the waning minutes of the game. 

Lane, who finished the week with three points in as many games (2g, 1a), was selected to the EHL All-Star team. They will go up against a pair of Division III schools this weekend, facing Plymouth State on Friday at 4 p.m. and UMass Boston on Saturday at 4 p.m. The games will serve as a tremendous opportunity for Lane and the rest of the participating EHL players to get exposure at the collegiate level.

 

Premier: Heuer and Crane lead 87's to weekend sweep over the Renegades

Friday night marked the renewal of the New Jersey rivalry between the 87's and Renegades. Nick Graziano opened the scoring 59 seconds into the first period and gave the Renegades a 1-0 lead. Anthony Tavares knotted the score at 13:55 with a shorthanded goal, as he picked off a pass from Renegades goaltender Jake Lakatos and ripped a shot short side for his third of the season. The goal barrage continued in the final two periods when Mike Clougherty and Ryan Crane scored two goals each. Brad Heuer picked up the team's second shorthanded tally on a breakaway and joined Crane as the two players who finished with five-point nights in the 8-2 victory. 

"We realized that we weren't playing so great after the first, so we kind of sat each other down and said that we had to connect on these passes and start moving the offense a little more, and it worked out," Crane said of Friday's win.

The 87's were able to match its offensive output on Sunday with eight more goals. Heuer and Carver each scored twice while Joe Minio, Mike Clougherty, Simon Fitzgerald and Cameron Satkowski added goals in the win. Cameron Carmen stopped 24 of the 28 shots he faced as the Premier team won its fifth consecutive game. 

Heuer (3g, 6a) and Crane (2g, 4a) were named TSR Hockey stars of the week for their performances in the weekend sweep over the Renegades.

 

Look ahead:

The EHL team will not play again until Oct. 26-27 in a home-and-home against the Lehigh Valley Jr. Rebels.

Premier: 

Saturday Oct. 20: @ Vermont Lumberjacks - 7 p.m.

Sunday Oct. 21: @ Vermont Lumberjacks - 10 a.m.