OT Thrills and Decisive Wins Fuel Friday’s Division Finals

Photo Credit: Tony Haas

New Hampshire 4 @ Long Beach 5 (OT) - The Long Beach Sharks continued their playoff dominance in Game 2, edging the New Hampshire Jr. Mountain Kings in a thrilling 5 to 4 overtime victory. After taking Game 1 in convincing fashion (6 to 2), Long Beach completed the series 2-0 eliminating the Mountain Kings. The opening period saw both teams strike early. Talon Shackman got New Hampshire on the board first, finishing a play set up by Sedrick Swygert Jr. and giving the Mountain Kings early momentum. However, Long Beach responded quickly, as Jace Tourillott buried a goal off a setup from James Steinberg and Spencer Nicoloff to even the score at 1–1 heading into the intermission. The second period belonged to New Hampshire. Talon Shackman struck again, this time assisted by Adam Osman, giving the Mountain Kings their second lead of the night. As the period wound down, Noah Levesque extended the advantage with a clutch goal with just 22 seconds remaining, assisted by Kyle Bouvier, putting New Hampshire up 3–1 and in control. Long Beach came alive in the third period with a relentless offensive push. Less than a minute into the frame, James Steinberg cut the deficit to one with a goal assisted by Brendan Dalton and Gustav Martinsson. The Sharks kept the pressure on, and Payton Hauge tied the game midway through the period with help from Samuel Barnard and James DiTommaso. Shortly after, Spencer Nicoloff gave Long Beach their first lead since the opening period, finishing a play from Sean Bailey and Jay Montgomery. But New Hampshire refused to go away. Talon Shackman completed his hat trick late in the third period, scoring off an assist from Andrew Chandler to tie the game at 4–4 and force overtime. In the extra frame, Long Beach once again found the hero. Jace Tourillott netted his second goal of the night, finishing a play from Eli McCarthy and Jack Baker to seal the 5–4 overtime victory. Between the pipes, Will Zinnen was outstanding for Long Beach, turning aside 51 of 55 shots in a stellar performance that ultimately secured the win. With the victory, the Sharks are headed to St. Louis, securing their first-ever Fraser Cup appearance in program history. 

Austin 2 @ Ice Bats 3 (OT) - In a decisive Game 3, the Texas Brahmas edged the Austin Ice Bats 3–2 in overtime to punch their ticket back to St. Louis and keep their championship hopes alive. Austin struck just five seconds in as Jake Bamback scored on the power play, but John Scharf answered for the Brahmas later in the first to tie it 1–1. Mason Manderfield gave Austin the lead early in the third, only for Patrick Garvey to respond on the powerplay and force overtime. Joshua Reaska then sealed the series with the game-winning goal at 13:59 of extra time. Gavin Erickson was outstanding in net for Texas, stopping 37 of 39 shots, while Austin’s Gavin Morris made 49 saves. With the victory, the 2019 Fraser Cup Champions are headed back to St. Louis, aiming for their second title.

Texas R 1 @ Louisiana 8 - In a dominant Game 1 performance, the Louisiana Drillers crushed the Texas RoadRunners 8–1, setting the tone for the series with a decisive victory. The Drillers struck early as Daniel Vihavainen scored at 3:56 of the first period, assisted by Jack Slotka and Carter Gnau. Louisiana continued their onslaught in the second, with Dayton Ruppel scoring at 14:52 and Riley Schmidt adding two quick goals at 3:10 and 2:27, while Kadyn Garcia capped the period with a buzzer-beater at 0:03. Texas’ Hillard Johnmeyer had the lone response in the second, assisted by Joseph Izzo and Jayden Hitt. In the third, Carter Gnau, Skyler Tompkins, and Brody Neish completed the scoring. Riley Schmidt starred with two goals and three assists, and goalie Cole Schmidt was strong between the pipes, stopping 12 of 13 shots. Texas goalie Brenden Patterson faced 51 shots, saving 43. With the win, the Drillers take a commanding 1–0 lead in the series, fueled by an unstoppable offense and disciplined play.

West Bend 6 @ Rochester 3 - The West Bend Power rolled into the Rochester Recreation Center for Game 2 with one goal in mind: level the series, and they got it done. West Bend came out with intensity, striking early as Danny Jurcich opened the scoring off assists from Jace Fitzgerald and Michael Maillette. The momentum continued to build as Nolan Mix found the back of the net shortly after, with Evan Burchardt and Maillette adding helpers to give the Power a quick 2-0 advantage. The Grizzlies responded by breaking through midway through the period. Jace Jordan capitalized on a setup from Mason Decker and Ole Fevold, cutting the deficit to 2-1 and shifting some energy back to the home side. However, the Power answered before the end of the period, as Nathan Antti buried a goal off assists from Andrew Sparacino and Jackson Hoem to extend the lead to 3-1 heading into the first intermission. The second period featured strong chances on both ends, but tighter defensive play limited scoring opportunities. Rochester managed to chip away at the lead midway through the frame with a well-executed passing sequence. Trenton Fore controlled the puck in the slot before dishing it to Felix Wadstromer along the side boards. Wadstromer sent a cross-ice pass to Decker, who fired it home to bring the Grizzlies within one at 3-2. Rochester carried that momentum into the third period and quickly evened the score less than a minute in. Wadstromer found the net off assists from Decker and Fore, tying the game at 3-3 and setting up a highly competitive final stretch. West Bend, however, responded decisively. Shaun Paulson restored the lead with help from Mason Wanka and Sparacino, sparking a late surge. Maillette followed with his second point of the night, scoring off an assist from Paulson to extend the advantage. Sparacino then sealed the game with an empty-net goal in the final minutes, capping off a strong performance and securing the 6-3 victory for the Power. In net, Sam Ahl delivered an impressive performance for West Bend, stopping 32 shots to earn the win. 

Alexandria 5 @ Granite City 3 - The Alexandria Blizzard and Granite City Lumberjacks faced off in the first match of the West Division finals. The Blizzard were outshot 35-31 by the Lumberjacks but ultimately still skated with the win. The Blizzard set the tone early and started the match with two goals from Wyatt Mineheine. Mineheine got Alexandria on the board about halfway through the first assisted by Caleb Waller. Mineheine's second came shortly after on Alexandria's first power play of the match, also assisted by Waller, as well as Grady Stallman. Maxim Lazo netted another to give the Blizzard a 3-0 lead at the end of the first. Kaden Roness extended this lead further to start the second, assisted by Blake Breiland. Then in the last 23 seconds of the period, Tyler Starich scored Granite City's first of the game, and his third goal of this playoff run. Mason Ray added a second tally for the Lumberjacks to open the third. Lumberjacks' Jackson Engberg added another point soon after, making the score 4-3. However, a late period insurance goal from Zach Benson would seal the win for the Blizzard. Jayden Serene was in net for Alexandria, making 32 saves to earn his third postseason win.

Helena 5 @ Sheridan 4 - After an overtime loss to the Sheridan Hawks on Wednesday, the Helena Bighorns bounced back with a close win on Friday night to tie the series and force game three. Lucas Paliwodzinski got Sheridan on the board, scoring his first goal of the postseason, before Zachary Marsell added a second tally for the Hawks just seconds later. Joe Viox then scored the Bighorns' first of the game shorthanded, followed by teammate Cal Kellenberg tying the score at the end of the first period. Sheridan's Jameson Clark scored the lone goal of the second on a Hawks' powerplay, assisted by Deagan Watson and Max Krueger. Chase Berg evened the score for Helena towards the start of the third. Dantae Hunziker would then respond with the Hawks' second powerplay goal of the night. Kade Pareja then tied things up again for Helena late in the period. Berg scored his fourth goal of this playoff run with 39 seconds on the clock, breaking the tie to earn the Bighorns the win. Andrew Blake was in the crease for the Bighorns, facing 28 shots from the Hawks and making 24 saves to earn his third win in this postseason.