Shootouts and Celebration: Saturday Delivers Big Wins and Playoff Clinches

Photo Credit: Bulldog Photography

Norwich 1 @ New Hampshire 2 - The New Hampshire Jr. Mountain Kings narrowly took down the Norwich Sea Captains on home ice, securing another back-to-back win Saturday. Despite the final score, the Sea Captains outshot the Mountain Kings in every period, firing 46 shots on net against Liam Fish. New Hampshire struck first, as Nick Brophy opened the scoring after connecting with Jacob Landry, then later added a second goal with help from Noah Levesque. In the middle frame, Trenton Impens netted what would stand as the final goal for either side, with Ryan Janik picking up the assist, as the Mountain Kings held on the rest of the way to close out the victory.

Pelham 0 @ Bayou State 8 - TThe Bayou State Rougarou had themselves a blast last night for Saturday's Southeast Division action in the 3-Show, shutting out the Pelham Prowlers 8–0. In the first period, Denis Portnoy opened the draw, and after that they put up four more. Ethan Tierman followed after Portnoy, then Portnoy double-tapped another one; then Evan McCreary followed suit a minute after. And not even a minute after that, Tierman sauced Braylin Loftin to make it five-nothing. Late into the second, Peyton Essex knocked in a shorty to keep the scoring from going stale. For the third, Kamdyn Smith quickly pushed the lead to seven after getting help from Nathan Daniels. To cap it all off, Portnoy found Tierman to collect his second goal and fourth point of the night. Between the pipes, Rougarou netminder Jared Lang earned his first shutout of the season after turning away all 35 shots.

Atlanta 2 @ Carolina 5 -  In the first period, Cooper Angelelli opened the scoring for the Rage. Then, with just 13 seconds remaining in the frame, Tristan Hall fed Jaylen Fluhr, who buried the puck to tie the game heading into the first intermission. Late in the second, Hall set up Mike McQuigg for the go-ahead goal, giving the Rage a 2–1 lead. The third period saw the tide shift again, as Reece Beckwith knotted the score at two. Moments later, Rob Wattie capitalized on a rebound from Thomas Meena to break the tie and give the Rage the advantage once more. Late in the final frame, Angelelli extended the lead, and James Parnell capped the scoring with an empty-net goal to seal the victory for the Rage before they head to Atlanta on Sunday.

Austin 12 @ Tulsa 3 - The Austin Ice Bats delivered a dominant performance, rolling past the Tulsa Oilers 12–3. Matthieu Leblanc opened the scoring in the first period, assisted by Jake Bamback and Sven Svensson, and just over a minute later, Mason Manderfield doubled the lead with helpers from Arys Perardi and Guhnar Hillman. Austin closed the opening frame up 4–0, setting the tone for the rest of the night. Arys Perardi was a standout, recording a hat-trick that included a power-play goal in the second period, while Tulsa’s Chase Boswell kept the Oilers in the fight with two goals of his own. Between the pipes, Jack Salverson faced a heavy workload for Tulsa, stopping 54 of 66 shots, while Austin’s Collin Rosenau allowed just three goals on 11 shots. Guhnar Hillman also shined with four assists, fueling the Ice Bats’ offensive attack.

Louisiana 9 @ Texas R 1 - The Louisiana Drillers dominated on the road Saturday night, skating away with a convincing 9-1 victory over the Texas Roadrunners. In a performance defined by high-powered offense and suffocating defense, the Drillers took control early and never let up. In the first, Louisiana established an early lead with a pair of quick strikes. Riley Schmidt opened the scoring for the Drillers, finding the back of the net off a feed from Loghan Weber. Shortly after, Emerson Laroche extended the lead to two, scoring with an assist from Braden Bates. The second period saw the Drillers pull away with a relentless four-goal barrage. Isaac Erickson started the scoring early in the frame with an unassisted tally. Skyler Tompkins followed suit in the middle of the period, scoring off assists from Loghan Weber and Riley Schmidt. Emerson Laroche then took over, netting back-to-back goals to complete his hat trick; the first was assisted by Brody Neish, followed by a powerplay marker set up by Dayton Ruppel. The onslaught continued into the third as Louisiana added three more goals to their total. The Texas Roadrunners finally managed to answer back early in the period with a goal from Anthony Riviello, assisted by William Dyker, but the Drillers quickly responded. Isaac Erickson notched his second of the night during the middle of the frame with assists from Draydin Johnson and Gordon Guerrero. Late in the game, the Drillers' special teams shone as Dayton Ruppel and Isaac Erickson each added shorthanded goals, Erickson's fourth point of the night coming off a feed from Matthew Killen, capping off the 9-1 win. In net, Cole Schmidt for the Drillers turned away 20 shots and helped clinch the 36th win on the year for Louisiana. 

Peoria 4 @ Rochester 8 - The Rochester Grizzlies capped off their weekend with another high-scoring home victory Saturday night, fending off the Peoria Mustangs in an 8-4 contest. Building on their momentum from earlier in the weekend, the Grizzlies' offense proved too much for the Mustangs to handle over three periods. The game opened with Peoria striking early to take the lead. Owen Gruden found the back of the net off feeds from Brendon Miller and Nathan Pleva. Rochester responded later in the period when Felix Wadstromer tied the game, assisted by Sam Paczan and Alex Arneson, leaving the score knotted at 1-1 heading into the intermission. The second period belonged entirely to the Grizzlies as they exploded for six goals to break the game open. Felix Wadstromer led the charge, netting a remarkable four goals in the frame, including a natural hat trick, to push his nightly total to five. Wadstromer’s second-period tallies were set up by a variety of teammates, including Trenton Fore, Sam Paczan, Nik Secen, Sawyer Zaruba, and Mason Decker. Rochester also saw contributions from Jace Jordan, who scored off feeds from Decker and Arneson, and Dominic Arndt, who capitalized on a power play with assists from Secen and Cameron Patrick. Nik Secen added a late unassisted goal to cap off the seven-goal Rochester outburst. In the third period, Peoria attempted a late comeback, putting three goals on the board to narrow the gap. Wyatt Duke started the late push for the Mustangs, scoring off an assist from Jordan Mini. Mini then added a goal of his own, set up by Breyon Maroney, followed by a final Mustangs tally from Maroney assisted by Cole Molaski. Despite the late pressure, the Grizzlies held firm to secure the 8-4 win and complete the weekend sweep and clinch their spot in the Fraser Cup Playoffs. 

Minnesota M 3 @ Alexandria 8 - The Alexandria Blizzard put together a dominant showing on home ice Saturday night, rolling past the Minnesota Moose 8–3 to officially punch their ticket to the postseason. By controlling the pace early and responding to every push from the Moose, Alexandria protected home ice and handed the visitors a loss after dropping game one in overtime the night prior. In the first period, the Blizzard offense outpaced Minnesota 3-1. Maxim Lazo opened the scoring early, finding the back of the net off assists from Kaden Roness and Reece Hubmer. Alexandria extended the lead during the middle of the frame with a goal from Caleb Waller, set up by Easton Schmit and Wyatt Mineheine. The Moose managed to answer back late in the period with a powerplay goal from Brady Johnson, assisted by Will Burnevik and Caleb Schwark, to make it 3-1 heading into the intermission. Shortly after, Kaden Roness added a shorthanded tally off feeds from Blake Breiland and Quinten Friborg, taking a 3-1 lead into the break. The second period saw the Blizzard continue their momentum, outscoring Minnesota 3-1 in the frame. Maxim Lazo capitalized on a powerplay early in the period, set up by Easton Schmit and Caleb Waller. In the middle of the frame, Caleb Waller added his second of the night on a powerplay with assists from Schmit and Grady Stallman. Kaden Roness followed up shortly after with his second goal, a powerplay marker assisted by Job Carpenter. The Moose found the net late in the frame with a shorthanded goal from Mark Denoyer, assisted by Luca Salak and Charlie Marchand, but the Blizzard held a commanding 6-2 advantage after forty minutes. In the third, Alexandria finalized the victory. Wyatt Mineheine extended the lead early in the period with a goal assisted by Caleb Waller and Grady Stallman. In the middle of the frame, Kaden Roness completed his hat trick with a powerplay goal, set up by Dillan Smidt and Job Carpenter. The Moose responded late in the game with a powerplay goal from George Ericson, assisted by Gavin Jensen, to finalize the 8-3 score. 

Minnesota W 1 @ Wausau 5 - The Wausau Cyclones delivered a strong performance at home Saturday night, skating to a 5–1 victory over the Minnesota Wilderness. The win secured Wausau’s place as the third team to clinch a postseason berth in the Central Division. The game opened with the Wilderness finding the back of the net first. Zacary Norberg scored early in the period, assisted by Owen Huneke, to give Minnesota a brief 1-0 lead. However, the Cyclones responded with two quick tallies to take control. Maksim Salienko tied the game in the middle of the frame off feeds from Tucker Gretebeck and Jackson Schroeder. Late in the period, Salienko struck again on a powerplay, with assists from Joel Anderson and Schroeder, to put Wausau up 2-1 heading into the intermission. In the second period, Wausau extended their lead with two more goals. Brady Knutsen capitalized on a powerplay during the middle of the frame, set up by Davis Polifka and Truman Zerse. Late in the period, Lucas Mankoff added a shorthanded tally to push the lead to 4-1. The Cyclones sealed the win in the third period with an empty-net goal from Maksim Salienko, completing his hat trick late in the frame off an assist from Jackson Schroeder.

Granite City 13 @ Willmar 0 -  The Granite City Lumberjacks delivered a dominant performance, shutting out the Willmar WarHawks 13–0 in a lopsided contest. Granite City wasted no time asserting control, scoring five goals in the opening period and never looking back. The Lumberjacks added four goals in each of the final two frames, overwhelming Willmar with sustained offensive pressure. Baylor Stebbins, Teagan Dodge, Easton Sankey, and Ty Smith each recorded two-goal performances in the offensive outburst. Granite City dominated the shot clock 54–29 as netminder Nathan Mach earned his second shutout of the season, keeping the WarHawks off the board.

St. Louis 5 @ Wisconsin 4 (SO) - The St. Louis Jr. Blues outlasted the Wisconsin Woodsmen in a shootout, earning a 5–4 win in a tightly contested matchup. Wisconsin jumped ahead early, but St. Louis responded to keep the game close through the opening period. The teams traded goals in the second, and the Jr. Blues found themselves trailing 4–2 heading into the third. Mitch Nappier and Lonnie Land each found the back of the net in the final frame to tie the game and force overtime. Neither side could find the winner in the extra session, sending the contest to a shootout where Nappier again beat Travis Visvadra to seal the victory and send the Jr. Blues back to St. Louis on a high note. 

Texas B 3 @ New Mexico 2 (SO) - The Texas Brahmas earned a 3–2 shootout victory over the New Mexico Ice Wolves in a tightly contested battle at the Outpost Ice Arena. New Mexico struck first just 23 seconds into the game on a power-play goal, but Texas answered later in the period with a man-advantage tally of their own to even things up. The Ice Wolves regained the lead midway through the frame and carried the 2–1 advantage into the third. With time winding down, Patrick Garvey found the equalizer in the final second of regulation to force overtime. After a scoreless extra session, the game moved to a shootout where Malo Phillips netted the deciding goal to lift the Brahmas to the win. Goaltender Gavin Erickson turned aside 29 of 31 shots for Texas, while New Mexico’s Joshua Middleton stopped 36 of 38.

West Texas 2 @ El Paso 6 - The El Paso Rhinos powered past the West Texas Wranglers with a 6–2 victory at the El Paso County Event Center. West Texas jumped out to a two-goal lead in the opening period, but the Rhinos stormed back in the second with a five-goal outburst to take control of the game. Carter Lehmann started the rally, followed by goals from Nick Nunez, Parker Brinner, and two from Kenneth Cadwallader to flip the momentum in El Paso’s favor. Boston Cornic added a power-play marker late to cap the scoring. Cadwallader finished with a two-goal, one-assist performance, while goaltender Nathan Graybill stopped 19 of 21 shots in the win to complete the weekend sweep. 

Butte 0 @ Great Falls 11 - Saturday night in Great Falls saw the Americans go on a goal-scoring rampage against the visiting Butte Irish. The Americans got the scoring started with Ethan Miller finding the net twice in the first and Cooper Clouse once for a 3-0 lead. In the second, it was all Americans as they scored five times with Miller completing the hatty plus one, Wyatt Hanna, Jase Troyer, and AJ Prioli. In the third, the Americans kept the pressure on, adding three more goals from Brennan Pierce, Jaxen Savage, and Colton Bacon to cap off the 11–0 victory. With the win, Great Falls netminder Kaden Rhyder notched his 50th career win with the organization and surpassed the 3,000-save mark, cementing his status as a cornerstone of the program.

Gillette 3 @ Badlands 5 - The Wild hit the road to take on the Sabres Saturday night in a hard-fought tilt. Kyyan Jahner got the scoring started for the Sabres just a minute into the game. The Wild would respond four minutes and seven minutes later with two goals by Dylan Herold and Ethan Jerge for a 2-1 Wild lead. Jahner would strike again for the Sabres three minutes later at 8:58 of the first to tie it up. In the second, the Sabres would take back the lead with a power play goal by Rhylan Olson. Matthew Cordis would find twine for the Sabres with three minutes left in the second, for the 4-2 lead. In the third, Donovan Balek would chip into the deficit for the Wild with 29 seconds remaining, however the Sabres would seal the deal with Carter Kilen scoring just ten seconds later for the Sabres. The Sabres take this game 5-3.

Helena 5 @ Bozeman 0 - The Helena Bighorns struck early and never let up, rolling to a 5–0 shutout over the Bozeman Ice Dogs Saturday night to cap a perfect 2-0 weekend. Kade Pareja opened the scoring on the power play, and with a minute left in the first, Breck Buettner added another to give Helena a 2–0 lead heading into the first intermission. Austin Uecker extended the lead to 3–0 in the second, and in the final frame, Caden Feinstein scored on the power play before Lincoln Kearney added the finishing touch. The Bighorns dominated from start to finish, securing the sweep and keeping their momentum rolling. 

Yellowstone 3 @ Sheridan 8 - The Yellowstone Quake traveled to the Sheridan Hawks for a Saturday night matchup. Dantae Hunziker got the scoring started for the Hawks with just five minutes left in the first and went on to complete his third hat trick of the season, also netting the fourth and sixth goals. Elijah White added a goal for Sheridan with a minute thirty remaining in the first to help give the Hawks an early lead. Yellowstone battled back in the second with goals from Chance Bryson and Shayne Smith, keeping the game close at 4–2 heading into the third. In the final frame, the Hawks pulled away with four more goals, including two on the power play, while Dean Schlarman added one more for Yellowstone. Sheridan secured the 8–3 victory, highlighted by Hunziker’s hat trick.