Jan 8, 2026 The Halifax Thunderbirds are gearing up for an important early-season doubleheader this weekend. They’ll kick things off on Friday with a game against the Black Bears in Ottawa at Canadian Tire Centre. Then, on Saturday, they will face the Oshawa Fire Wolves to finish their season series at Tribute Communities Centre. Both games are set to start at 8:00 p. m. AT Head To Head This season, Halifax has managed to win both encounters against Ottawa since relocating from New York. They first claimed a 14-9 victory at Canadian Tire Centre and followed it up with a close battle last March in The Nest, winning 17-16. During their time as the Riptide, the Thunderbirds boasted an impressive record of 7-0 against this team, making them a perfect 9-0 overall versus this franchise. However, Ottawa has one of the strongest offenses in the league now along with improved defense and top-notch goaltending in the NLL. This match will be challenging as they hit the road against a squad looking to make it to the playoffs this year. Halifax also secured a solid win over Oshawa during their home opener earlier this season, dominating with an 11-2 scoreline thanks to an outstanding performance from starter Warren Hill. Despite that victory, Oshawa is always a tough opponent. After losing earlier this year to Halifax, they’ll be eager to settle the score. Coming into this matchup after playing another game back-to-back will likely lead to a gritty contest between these two teams. Scouting the Thunderbirds The Thunderbirds are aiming for a win this weekend and will face significant challenges on offense. Leading Halifax’s scoring efforts is Clarke Petterson (7G, 11A), who recently had an impressive outing with three goals and five points. Following closely is Randy Staats (5G, 12A). Dawson Theede (9G, 5A) leads in goal scoring and netted another two goals last week in Saskatchewan. Captain Cody Jamieson (6G, 4A) has also found the net in all four games played so far this season. Ryan Terefenko continues excelling in transition for Halifax. He’s contributed points in every game thus far-scoring two goals and tallying seven points across his first four appearances. In goal for Halifax is Warren Hill who has been consistently performing well between the pipes. This season he holds a record of 2-2 along with a goals-against average of 7.49 and saves made percentage of.856. Scouting the Black Bears The Black Bears have benefited from some fresh talent on their right side and currently lead all teams in goals scored early in the season. Jeff Teat (12G, 28A) tops the league charts for scoring after an incredible ten-point showing last weekend. The addition of veteran Rob Hellyer (13G, 20A) has greatly boosted their offensive capabilities by alleviating some pressure off Teat’s left side. Additionally, Reilly O’Connor (9G, 16A) is enjoying strong production so far and appears set to achieve personal bests with projections suggesting he could hit new career highs of goals (32) and total points (90). Ottawa also features talented complementary players like Larson Sundown (9G, 8A), Connor Kearnan (8G, 7A), and Sam Firth (4G, 2A), all capable of making plays when carrying ball possession. This year Brent Noseworthy has been effective transitioning play; he’s accumulated two goals alongside seven total points throughout five games played thus far. Kevin Brownell (3G, 3A) and Jake Stevens (2G ,2A) have shown efficiency moving forward as well; however Callum Jones leads defensively as he tops loose ball statistics while tying for most caused turnovers across NLL standings too. Zach Higgins has faced challenges as Ottawa’s starting goalie; he’s allowed fifty-eight scores over just five matches leading him toward holding an average GAA of eleven point eighty while posting save percentage numbers around.767% A look ahead at the Fire Wolves The Fire Wolves have encountered difficulties so far during this campaign; they’ve lost four consecutive matches following their opening win. Nevertheless , their latest contest saw Oshawa rack up fourteen goals-a seasonal high -with Alex Simmons recording eleven points which marked his standout performance thus far. Tye Kurtz(6 G ,10 A ), Ethan Walker(5 G ,8 A ), and Dyson Williams(6 G ,5 A ) contribute heavily offensively for these Fire Wolves. Taggart Clark(2 G ,4 A ) offers secondary support within scoring threats during his inaugural year playing alongside them while Patrick Kaschalk(1 G ,4 A )and Corson Kealey(1 A )help create opportunities offensively lately too. Defensively speaking they possess strong foundations led by Colton Watkinson, Kyle Rubisch, Nicholas Chaykowsky, Mike Byrne, and Will Johansen. Additionally emerging talents include Jaxon Fridge, Zach Young, and Zac Masson enhancing depth levels through defensive contributions. Between posts Doug Jamieson remains reliable once again despite facing adversity yielding only less than ten per contest despite suffering through poor records thus maintaining respectable averages such as nine point twenty-two goals-against average coupled alongside eight hundred-ten save percentages respectively. Milestone WatchGraeme Hossack needs one caused turnover to be the seventh player in NLL History to reach 250 for a career Graeme Hossack needs one game played to surpass Shawn Williams for fifth all-time in games played in franchise history (161) Dawson Theede needs four goals to reach 100 for his career Clarke Petterson needs six goals to surpass Tim Soudan for seventh all-time in franchise history (157) Cody Jamieson needs seven assists to become twelfth player in NLL history to reach 650 for a career Jason Knox needs eight points to reach Ryan Terefenko needs eight points to reach1
