The Generals finished up eastern division play in the month of December with wins over the Norwich Sea Captains on the road on Wednesday, Dec. 13, 5-4, and at home on Friday, Dec. 15, 4-1.
Game one was a closely contested match up between the first and second placed teams, with the Generals jumping ahead early thanks to goals by forwards Gabe Vijuk and John Rodgers 15:20 and 16:16 into the first, their 20th and eighth of the year respectively. Holding onto a 2-0 lead entering the second period, the Sea Captains responded on their home ice with three straight goals, including a powerplay goal, to take the lead 3-2. Defensemen Jack Laferriere, stepping in on the blue line for the NA3HL squad, scored 17:24 into the period to tie the game up at 3-3, before Norwich scored 44 seconds later to take the lead again right before the second buzzer sounded, 4-3.
After almost 13 minutes of battling between the two sides, defenseman Owen Locke found the back of the net on the powerplay for his third of the year, tying the game at 4-4 with a little over seven minutes remaining. Neither team could find the twine for the remainder of regulation, or overtime, as the Generals entered their first shootout of the season. Forward Makhai Santiago, who was called up from the U18 academy team, scored the lone goal in the shootout for either team, helping push the Generals to a 5-4 shootout win.
Game two saw the Generals take the lead first at home, with forward Levente Pakozdi scoring a minute and 18 seconds into the period to jump ahead 1-0. Norwich responded less than two minutes later to tie the game at 1-1, before Vijuk scored his 21st and 22nd goals of the season, 11:39 and 18:42 into the period. His two goals place him in second in the NA3HL in goals this year. Forward Michael Locke then potted his fifth goal of the year with 49 seconds remaining in the period, giving the Generals an extensive 4-1 lead. Neither team found the back of the net for the rest of the contest, keeping the action low as Northeast extended their win streak to 11 straight games.
Goaltender Danny Antal received the win in both games, taking game one after coming in relief and stopping all nine shots, and the three shootout attempts, in Norwich. He walked away with the 35 save win on Friday, pushing him to 14 straight wins, placing him in first in the NA3HL in the category.
The Generals will hike to Blaine, Minnesota, where the team will take part in the NA3HL showcase in the NSC Super Rink next week. The boys in blue and white will start off with a matchup against the Rochester Grizzlies on Sunday, Dec. 17 at 8:15 PM CST, before taking on the highest scoring team in the league in the Gillette Wild on Monday, Dec. 18 at 3:15 PM CST. The Generals will round out the showcase with their final game against the Texas RoadRunners on Tuesday, Dec. 19 at 9:00 AM CST.