The Maine Nordiques rolled to a victory over the Danbury Jr. Hat Tricks in a NAHL East Division contest Friday.
Behind David Helledy’s goal and two assists, the Nordiques defeated the Hat Tricks 5-1 in Danbury, Connecticut.
Normally a defenseman, Helledy played center because the Nordiques were shorthanded at the forward positions.
“We had to move him to forward this morning, and he ended up scoring the game-winner as a third-line center,” Nordiques coach Nick Skerlick said.
Nine Nordiques recorded a point in the win.
Hayden Stocks gave Danbury a 1-0 lead with the only goal of the first period when his shot beat Nordiques goalie Carter Richardson (20 saves).
Maine (8-4-2, 18 points) responded midway through the second period. Charles Tardif tied the contest with his 10th goal of the season, and Helledy gave the Nordiques a 2-1 lead a short time later with a shot that beat Hat Tricks (3-10-2, 8 points) goalie Miles Roberts (31 saves).
Skerlick said he isn’t surprised by Tardif’s strong start to the season. In fact, he expected it.
“I think my staff, when I told them Charles was coming in, looked at me because I told people he would be the best player in the league,” Skerlick said of Tardif. “He’s the best player in the league, and I will put him up against any other player in this league on the other 31 teams.”
Defenseman Anderson Sandquist scored late in the middle frame to give the Nordiques a 3-1 advantage. Sandquist has been practicing with Maine since the start of the season. He spent the 2022-23 season with the Maine Nordiques Academy 18U team.
“He scored a big goal, which was kind of the nail in the coffin because I don’t think Danbury recovered after that one,” Skerlick said. “… I was really happy for him, and he was the player of the game today.”
Forward Matthew Lewis extended Maine’s lead with a goal early in the third period. Nicholas Bernardo, a defenseman, scored his first goal of the season to push the Nordiques’s cushion to 5-1 with about six minutes remaining in the game.
Helledy assisted on Tardif’s and Bernardo’s goals. JP Steele, Nick Romero and Nordiques newcomers Ryan Panico and Nils Forselius earned one assist each.
Maine goes for the sweep on Saturday at 7 p.m. in Danbury.
NORDS NOTES
• The Nordiques made a trade with the Johnstown Tomahawks this week that brought in Panico, a 20-year-old forward, in exchange for second-year forward Kim Hilmersson. Panico, who had two goals and four assists in 11 games with the Tomahawks this season, spent the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons with the Maine Nordiques Academy 18U team. Hilmerrson tallied three goals and three assists in nine games for the Nordiques. Johnstown then sent Hilmersson to the New Hampshire Mountain Kings in a separate deal.
• Maine acquired Forselius from the Corpus Christi IceRays. The 19-year-old forward is committed to play at Army. He had five goals and two assists in 11 games this season with the IceRays.
• Helledy committed to Bentley University, an NCAA Division I school, in Waltham, Massachusetts, this week. The 20-year-old has three goals and 11 assists in 15 games.
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