By Mason Lyttle (@MasonLyttle) | Dec 8, 2017 | 4:28pm
KENAI RIVER BROWN BEARS at JANESVILLE JETS — Janesville Ice Arena
Fri 12/8 | 7:00pm | Janesville, WI
LIVE STREAM: HockeyTV | TWITTER: @JanesvilleJets1
LAST WEEKEND: The Janesville Jets beat the Brookings Blizzard, 6-5 and 2-1, in a pair of games last weekend for their first series sweep since a Saturday/Sunday set in La Crosse in October. The Jets battled back on Friday with three goals on one major penalty to mount a comeback, and won the thriller in overtime. Saturday’s 2-1 win saw the extra man unit go 0-3 but the Jets never trailed across the 60 minutes. Daniel Lebedeff was in net both nights, following up Friday’s win with a 26/27 performance Saturday. Captain Kip Hoffmann picked up Bauer Midwest Division Star of the Week honors with four points on the weekend, including two goals on Friday.
TONIGHT: The Kenai River Brown Bears have lost seven of their last 10, but are riding high after a huge overtime win in Fairbanks last Saturday to cap the three-game series against their arch rivals. Janesville is the first stop for coach Josh Petrich and the Brown Bears as they begin tonight an eight-game swing in the lower 48, stretching past the holiday break.
The Jets defeated Kenai River, 2-1, in September’s NAHL Showcase Tournament, with goals from Erik Palmqvist and Jakov Novak. Daniel Lebedeff made 19 saves in the net.
Janesville swept Kenai River 4-0-0-0 last season and carry an all-time record of 14-0-1-3 against the Brown Bears.
Tonight is the Jets’ second annual “Ice Out Hunger” event. The organization will donate $2 to the School District of Janesville’s Bags of Hope program, a food drive that last year fed 350 families and 50 seniors in the Janesville area, according to a recent Gazette article. Fans are also encouraged to receive $1 off their admission by bringing canned goods and nonperishables to benefit ECHO of Janesville.
SEASON SERIES (Jets 1-0-0-0)
| Sept. 20 | Kenai River (Showcase) | W, 2-1 |
| Dec. 8 | Kenai River | 7:00pm |
| Feb. 2 | Kenai River | 7:00pm |
| Mar. 9 | @ Kenai River | 10:30pm |
| Mar. 10 | @ Kenai River | 10:30pm |
Midwest Division Standings:
| Place | Team | Record | Pts |
| 1 | Fairbanks Ice Dogs | 15-5-3-2 | 35 |
| 2 | Janesville Jets | 16-7-2-0 | 34 |
| 3 | Springfield Jr. Blues | 14-9-1-1 | 30 |
| 4 | MN Magicians | 14-10-1-1 | 30 |
| 5 | Kenai River Brown Bears | 9-16-1-0 | 19 |
| 6 | Coulee Region Chill | 6-12-1-5 | 18 |
JETS BITS
- KILLER INSTINCT: The coaching staff spoke last Friday about the team’s defensive zone coverage in the 6-5 overtime win over Brookings. On two occasions, the penalty kill lost focus and let Blizzard attackers slip into empty areas of the ice. The Jets allowed two power play goals on three chances Friday, but tightened screws Saturday, going a perfect 3-3. Kenai River brings a 27.7% man advantage unit to Janesville tonight, ranked 4th in the league. A big test awaits tonight for Janesville.
- FINDING A GROOVE: Chippewa Falls native Jordan Steinmetz had himself a weekend. The forward scored his first NAHL goal Friday on a beautiful neutral zone read and tacked on a Saturday ticker to boot. When illness and injuries betide a team like Janesville, success often comes because depth players start producing.
- JAKOV APPLESEED: Veteran forward Jakov Novak continues to produce on the top line with Kip Hoffmann. The future Bentley Falcon picked up four assists on the weekend and now finds himself tied with the captain for the team lead at 17 helpers each.
MILESTONE ALERT
- Kip Hoffmann is 3 points away from moving past Ross Mauermann for sole possession of 3rd place in Jets’ all-time scoring
- Kip Hoffmann is 4 points away from 100 in his NAHL career
- Carter Ekberg is 2 games away from 75 in his NAHL career
- Alec Semandel is 4 games away from 75 in his junior hockey career (USHL, NAHL)
- TJ Polglaze is 8 games away from 75 in his NAHL career
- Kip Hoffmann is 10 games away from tying Cullen Munson’s Jets record of 175 regular season games
CLIMBING THE LADDER
Current Jets, ranking among the franchise all-time leaders:
GAMES PLAYED (regular season)
| RANK | Player | Pos | GP |
| 1 | Cullen Munson | F | 175 |
| 2 | Adam Winborg | F | 170 |
| 3 | Kip Hoffmann | F | 165 |
| 4 | Adam Roeder | D | 147 |
| 5 | Bryan Kronberger | D | 137 |
| 6 | Jeff Alderfer | D | 120 |
| 7 | Jordan Himley | F | 120 |
| 8 | Alex Smith | D | 118 |
| 9 | Lordanthony Grissom | D | 115 |
| T-10 | Ross Mauermann | F | 113 |
| T-10 | Connor McBride | F | 113 |
GOALS (regular season)
| RANK | Player | Pos | G |
| 1 | Adam Winborg | F | 62 |
| 2 | Connor McBride | F | 48 |
| 3 | Cullen Munson | F | 43 |
| T-4 | Jordan Himley | F | 40 |
| T-4 | Kip Hoffmann | F | 40 |
| 6 | Ross Mauermann | F | 39 |
| 7 | Cole Paskus | F | 35 |
| 8 | Drew Callin | F | 34 |
| 9 | Jordan Bancroft | F | 32 |
| T-10 | Brandon Schultz | F | 30 |
| T-10 | Pijus Rulevicius | F | 30 |
POINTS (regular season)
| RANK | Player | Pos | Pts |
| 1 | Adam Winborg | F | 145 |
| 2 | Cullen Munson | F | 113 |
| 3 | Ross Mauermann | F | 99 |
| 4 | Kip Hoffmann | F | 96 |
| 5 | Connor McBride | F | 92 |
| 6 | Jordan Himley | F | 77 |
| 7 | Cole Paskus | F | 74 |
| 8 | Evan Feno | F | 73 |
| T-9 | Jordan Bancroft | F | 72 |
| T-9 | Alex Smith | D | 72 |
KENAI RIVER BROWN BEARS OVERVIEW:
Record: 9-16-1-0 (5th, Midwest)
Road Record: 4-5-0-0
Goals For/Goals Against: 73GF/104GA
Power Play: 27.7% (4th in the NAHL)
Penalty Kill: 67.8% (23rd in the NAHL)
Top Scorers: Luke Radetic (26GP—16G-14A—30PTS), Gil Garcia (26GP—12G-8A—20PTS); Cameron McDonald (25GP—1G-17A—18PTS)
JANESVILLE JETS
OVERVIEW:
Record: 16-7-2-0 (2nd, Midwest)
Home Record: 7-4-1-0
Goals For/Goals Against: 71GF/66GA
Power Play: 21.3% (9th in the NAHL)
Penalty Kill: 75.5% (17th in the NAHL)
Top Scorers: Jakov Novak (23GP—11G-17A—28PTS); Kip Hoffmann (25GP—10G-17A—27PTS); TJ Polglaze (25GP—3G-14A—17PTS)
KENAI RIVER BROWN BEARS at JANESVILLE JETS — Janesville Ice Arena
Fri 12/8 | 7:00pm | Janesville, WI
LIVE STREAM: HockeyTV | TWITTER: @JanesvilleJets1