Series Tied, Spots Clinched, and Double OT Drama

Photo Credit: Tony Haas

New Jersey 3 @ Long Beach 1 - A three-goal first period was all the No. 4 seeded New Jersey Titans needed to take Game 2 of their East Division Semifinal series as they took down the top-seeded Long Beach Sharks by a final score of 3-1. Trailing 1-0 in the series, the Titans put together a dominant first period with their season on the line. In addition to the three-goal outburst, New Jersey outshot the Sharks 15-10 in the season-saving 20-minute span. The Titans knot up the series with the Sharks at 1-1 and force a deciding Game 3 with the win. All the Titans’ offense came in just an eight minute span. Lincoln Walters (first) got New Jersey on the board with 7:58 to go in the first period. Yosef Pievsky (first) doubled the Titans’ lead with just under two minutes to go in the first period. Then with just 1:05 remaining, Brody Acropolis capped off the dominant first period with his first goal of the postseason to send New Jersey to the break with a 3-0 lead. The Sharks did not go down quietly in the second period. Eli McCarthy got his squad within two goals with his first goal of the postseason just over five minutes into the middle frame. Long Beach pushed for more offense – outshooting New Jersey 13-7 in the middle 20 minutes – but could not find another goal as the teams entered the third period with New Jersey leading 3-1. The Sharks continued to press the attack looking to spark a comeback, but New Jersey goaltender Tony Shaw turned away all eight shots he faced in the third period to seal the 3-1 win and force a winner-take-all Game 3. 

Granite City 7 @ Mason City 1 - An all-around dominant performance from the top-seeded Granite City Lumberjacks lifted them to a series-clinching Game 2 victory in the West Division Semifinal over the No. 4 seeded Mason City Toros by a final score of 7-1. Granite City got contributions up and down the lineup. A whopping 14 different skaters recorded at least a point for the ‘Jacks in Saturday’s contest – five of which recorded at least two points. The Lumberjacks punch their ticket to the West Division Final with the win and await the winner of the Minnesota Moose/Alexandria Blizzard series, where Alexandria forced a deciding Game 3 on Saturday. The ‘Jacks wasted no time pulling away on the scoreboard. Tyler Starich (second), Garrett Plaude (first) and Ty Smith) all scored before the seven minute mark of the first period to give them a quick 3-0 lead. Luke Gustafson (first) stabilized the Toros with a goal of his own with 11:25 to go in the first period, cutting the deficit down to 3-1. The ‘Jacks had a response late in the period. Michael Schmidt’s first goal of the playoffs restored Granite City’s three-goal cushion heading to the middle frame. Granite City pulled even further away from Mason City in the second period. Mason Ray (first) and Riley Berg (first) each scored in the late stages of the second period to push the ‘Jacks’ lead to 5-1 heading to the third period. With a comfortable lead intact, the Lumberjacks cruised through the third period without allowing any Mason City offense. Alexander Zelazowski nabbed his first goal of the postseason late in the game for good measure to secure the 7-1 win and a spot in the West Division Final. 

Bayou State 0 @ Louisiana 15 - Louisiana beat Bayou State 15-0 on Saturday to complete the series sweep and punch their ticket to the Southeast Division Final. The Drillers got on the board early in the first period when Emerson Laroche scored with assists from Brody Neish and Brayden Pelcl. Luke Whitehead followed with a goal assisted by Riley Schmidt and Loghan Weber. Logan Woods added a power-play goal with assists from Daniel Vihavainen and Lucas Dyer, and Brody Neish scored on the power play with assists from Emerson Laroche and Brayden Pelcl to make it 4-0 after one period.  Louisiana added to the lead in the second period. Trent Laroche scored with assists from Emerson Laroche and Brody Neish. Lucas Dyer followed with a power-play goal assisted by Carter Gnau and Loghan Weber. Weber later found the net with assists from Matthew Killen and Jack Slotka. Neish added another goal with assists from Emerson Laroche and Trent Laroche. Daniel Vihavainen then scored with assists from Matthew Killen and Jack Slotka. Neish completed the hat trick with assists from Daniel Vihavainen and Jack Slotka, and Matthew Killen scored with assists from Loghan Weber and Riley Schmidt to give the Drillers  a commanding lead heading into the third period.  Louisiana continued the offense in the third period when Weber scored with assists from Riley Schmidt and Trent Laroche. Later in the period, Jack Slotka added a goal with assists from Carter Gnau and Lucas Dyer to cap the scoring. 

New Mexico 2 @ Texas B 3 (2 OT)  - Texas earned a must-win 3-2 overtime victory over New Mexico on Saturday, forcing a Game 3 in their South Division playoff series. New Mexico opened the scoring in the first period when Tanner Ross found the net with an assist from Calahan Butler. Texas answered later in the period with a power-play goal from Jayani Benson assisted by Joshua Reaska to tie the game 1-1 after one. Texas pulled ahead in the second period when Peyton Deperno scored with an assist from Aleksandrs Jelisjevs to give Texas a 2-1 lead heading into the third period. The Ice Wolves tied the game early in the third period when Grant Sexton scored to make it 2-2. After a scoreless 20-minute overtime period forced double overtime, the Brahmas secured the win when Caden Michael buried a power-play goal with an assist from Aleksandrs Jelisjevs. 

Minnesota M 1 @ Alexandria 4 - With their backs against the wall, the No. 3 seeded Alexandria Blizzard staved off elimination in the West Division Semifinal Saturday by taking down the No. 2 seeded Minnesota Moose by a final score of 4-1. The Blizzard put together a strong 60-minute effort while facing elimination, outshooting Minnesota in every period and by a 32-21 margin for the game. Alexandria goaltender Jayden Serene was also sharp for the Blizzard, allowing just one goal on 21 shots faced. The best-of-three series will go to a deciding Game 3 with Alexandria’s victory. Caleb Waller got the Blizzard on the board midway through the first period with his first goal of the postseason for a 1-0 lead. His goal was the only offense of the period. The teams continued to play tight in the second period until Alexandria broke through on the power play on Wyatt Mineheine’s first marker of the postseason. His goal doubled the Blizzard lead and sent them to the break 20 minutes away from forcing a Game 3. Minnesota made things interesting early in the third period. Mark Denoyer (first) cut the deficit in half just over four minutes in to set up an interesting finish. The Blizzard were not fazed by the Minnesota pressure and restored their two-goal advantage on Waller's second goal of the game and the postseason with just under 14 minutes to go. The Moose pushed to get back within a goal, but Serene did not allow more rubber past him. Grady Stallman put the game away on his first goal of the playoffs with 9:32 left to push the lead to the eventual final score of 4-1, earning the Blizzard a winner-take-all Game 3 with the Moose. 

Carolina 1 @ Texas R 2 - Texas narrowly escaped Carolina with a 2-1 win on Saturday, clinching their spot in the Southeast Division Finals where they will face reigning Fraser Cup champions Louisiana. The RoadRunners opened the scoring in the first period when Kristopher Pope scored with assists from Brady Warrington and Michael Garrett to give Texas a 1-0 lead after one.  Texas added to the lead early in the second period when Memphis Palmer Gummer found the net with assists from Hillard Johnmeyer and Kristopher Pope to make it 2-0. Carolina responded in the third period with a power-play goal from Quinn Richards assisted by Anderson Cornwell and Reece Beckwith, but the RoadRunners held on for the 2-1 win. 

El Paso 2 @ Austin 6 - Austin came out and flipped the script from the previous night, cruising to a commanding 6-2 win over El Paso on Saturday to keep their season alive and force Game 3. The Ice Bats opened the scoring in the first period when Jake Bambaek scored with assists from Arys Perardi and Guhnar Hillman. El Paso responded with a power-play goal from Kenneth Cadwallader assisted by Carter Lehmann and Boston Cornic. Austin regained the lead later in the period when Arys Perardi scored with assists from Owen Rattray and Jake Bambaek to make it 2-1 after one. The Bats extended their lead in the second period. Georgii Tokarskii scored on the power play with an assist from Guhnar Hillman. Liam Cardona followed with a goal, and Ethan Salter added another with an assist from Luke Fowler to give Austin a 5-1 lead heading into the third period.  El Paso got a power-play goal from Kenneth Cadwallader assisted by Aldiyar Irik and Donovan Bradford early in the third period, but Austin answered later when Arys Perardi scored with an assist from Gavin Morris to make it 6-2. 

St. Louis 0 @ West Bend 3 - West Bend shut out St. Louis for the second straight night, dominating the Jr. Blues 3-0 on Saturday to advance to the Central Division Final against Rochester. Neither team scored in the first period as both defenses held strong early in the game.  The Power broke through in the second period when Aidan Callaghan scored with an assist from Mason Wanka to give West Bend a 1-0 lead. The Power added to the lead in the third period when Quinn O’Connor scored with assists from Shaun Paulson and Mason Wanka. Later in the period, Evan Burchardt added an empty-net insurance goal to seal the 3-0 win. Sam Ahl was fantastic yet again between the pipes, stopping all 26 shots he faced and locking things down as the go-to guy for the Power.

Rochester 6 @ Wausau 0 - Rochester defeated Wausau 6-0 on Saturday to win the series and advance to the Central Division Finals, where they will face West Bend. The Grizz got on the board in the first period when Mason Decker scored with assists from Alex Arneson and Andrew Bastian. Later in the period, Andrew Bastian added a power-play goal assisted by Jesse Varner and Trenton Fore to give Rochester a 2-0 lead after one. Rochester extended the lead in the second period. Brett Ludvigsen scored with assists from Mason Decker and Andrew Bastian. Ole Fevold followed with a goal assisted by Jake Kusch and Tevin Stukel. Dominic Arndt then found the net with assists from Sam Paczani and Nick Kurtiak to make it 5-0 heading into the third period. The Grizzlies kept rolling, adding another in the third period when Mason Decker scored his second goal of the game on the power play with assists from Brett Ludvigsen and Julian Mollersrandh. The Grizzlies dominated from start to finish, outshooting the Cyclones 53-21 in the series-clinching 6-0 victory.