Close competition closes out Day 1 of Showcase
Fairbanks 3 vs. Aberdeen 2 – Fairbanks jumped out to an early lead and survived a Wings comeback attempt to move to 5-0 on the season and stay undefeated with a 3-2 win. The Ice Dogs jumped out to an early 2-0 lead with 1st period goals from Cayden Cahill and Tyler Tomberlin. The Wings answered back with two goals in a :09 second span in the 2nd period as Gavin Payne and Carter Roo scored their first goals of the season. The game-winner came midway through the 2nd period as Reggie Lutz scored his second goal of the season. Gavin Nieto got the win in goal for Fairbanks making 12 saves in his Ice Dogs debut, while Peter Thome played well in the loss for Aberdeen, making 42 saves. Boxscore
MN Magicians 3 vs. Kenai River 2 – The Magicians erased a two-goal deficit and scored three unanswered goals to beat the Brown Bears 3-2. Things looked good early for Kenai River as they took a 2-0 lead in the 1st period with power play goals from Jordan Hank and Jack Gessert. The Magicians stormed back in the 2nd period with goals from Johnny Panvica and Trey Rooney to tie the game at 2-2. The game-winner came late in the 3rd period off the stick of Travis Brown, who netted a power play goal with 5:15 remaining. Will Ulrich made 25 saves in the win in his NAHL debut, while Nick Nast made 32 saves in the loss. Boxscore
Lone Star 5 vs. Springfield 0 – The Brahmas used a big 2nd period and 16 saves from Darion Hanson to blank the Jr. Blues 5-0. Hanson, who is an NAPHL graduate, posted the shutout in his NAHL debut. Peter Bates started the scoring in the 1st period for Lone Star. The Brahmas then erupted for three goals in the 2nd period from Dalton Skelly, Kyle Patava and Joseph Fallon. Fallon then scored again in the 3rd period to make it 5-0. Cameron Clarke and Tomas Brejcha each had two assists. Niko Della Maggorie made 27 saves in the loss for the Jr. Blues. Boxscore
Janesville 2 vs. Topeka 0 – Jack LaFontaine made 22 saves and posted his second straight shutout as the Jets blanked the RoadRunners in the opening game of the Showcase for both teams. After a scoreless 1st period, the Jets took a 1-0 lead with a power play goal from Martin Sundberg less than a minute into the 2nd period. Late in the 3rd period, Nils Rygaard added Janesville’s secong goal. Topeka goalie Vladimir Cibulka played well in the loss with 34 saves. Boxscore
Johnstown 2 vs. Corpus Christi 1 – Jacob Gwillim made 25 saves as Johnstown held off a late rally to beat Corpus Christi, 2-1. After a scoreless 1st period, Luke Lynch put Johnstown on the board late in the 2nd period. The game-winner came early in the 3rd period as Kelly O’Brien scored his first goal of the season. The IceRays answered with their first goal late in the 3rd period as Carter Johnson scored on the power play, but could not find the equalizer. Graham Hunt made 14 saves in the loss. Boxscore
Brookings 2 vs. Aston 1 – Blizzard goalie Josh Kuehmichel made 34 saves in his NAHL debut as the Blizzard stayed perfect on the season with a 2-1 win over the Aston Rebels. The Blizzard opened up a 1-0 lead with a late 1st period goal from Kane Durment. After a scoreless 2nd period, the Blizzard took a 2-0 lead early in the 3rd period with a goal from Chase Gamelin. Aston got on the board late in the 3rd period as Matt Acciaoli scored his first goal of the season. Rebels goalie Trevor Micucci played well in the loss making 22 saves. Boxscore
New Jersey 3 vs. Bismarck 2 – Jack Berry made 30 saves as the New Jersey Titans picked up their second win of the season as they handed Bismarck their first loss of the season in a 3-2 win. The Titans were fueled by two goals in the 2nd period, which ended up being the difference in the game. The Titans scored first thanks to a goal from Anthony Cusanelli. Willie Brown would answer for the Bobcats just five minutes later to tie the game at 1-1. In the 2nd period, goals from Michael Gelatt and Dakota Ford put New Jersey up 3-1. Bismarck closed to within 3-2 on a 3rd period tally from Aaron Herdt, but it would be all they could get. Hunter Shepard made 19 saves in the loss. Boxscore
MN Wilderness 2 vs. Odessa 1 – Wilderness goalie Chase Munroe made 28 saves as the defending Robertson Cup Champions picked up their first win of the season with a close 2-1 victory over Odessa. After a scoreless 1st period, the Jackalopes were the first t get on the board as early in the 2nd period Zach Zech lit the lamp for his first goal of the season. Just over a minute later, the Wilderness responded with a goal from Ryan Bloom to tie the game at 1-1. Just over a minute into the 3rd period the Wilderness would strike for the eventual game-winning goal as Mitch Slattery scored on a 2 on 1 on a nice backdoor pass from Tyler Cline. Odessa goalie Dean Shatzer made 24 saves in the loss. Boxscore
Austin 8 vs. Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 0 – It was all Bruins as they outshot the Knights 36-13 on their way to their first win of the season in an 8-0 shutout. Veteran forward Jade Miller had a hat-trick in the game, which includes the game’s first two goals in the 1st period. The Bruins added two more goals in the 2nd period on tallies from Evan Cholak and Paul O’Connor. The Bruins would then score four more goals in the 3rd period as Miller added his third, O’Connor added his second and John Pesek and William Riedel also lit the lamp. Bruins goalie Austin Smith stopped all 13 shots for his first NAHL win and shutout. Anthony Yamnitsky was saddled with the loss for the Knights making 22 saves. Grant Valentine stopped all six shots that came his way in a relief appearance. Boxscore
Wichita Falls 2 vs. Minot 0 – It was the Justin Kapelmaster show as the Wildcats goalie stopped all 31 shots that came his way for his first career NAHL shutout as the Wildcats picked up their second win of the year with a 2-0 win over Minot, who dropped to 0-3 with the loss. The game was scoreless through the first two periods as Kapelmaster and Minot goalie Lucas Murray put on a great goaltending display. The Wildcats were finally able to breakthrough in the 3rd period as Ryan Burnett scored a power play goal to make it 1-0. Adam Goodsir added an empty-net goal with :25 seconds remaining to make the final 2-0. Murray made 19 saves in the loss. Boxscore
Coulee Region 3 vs. Amarillo 2 – The Chill survived a late comeback attempt by the Bulls to win their season-opening game by a 3-2 score. The Chill took an early lead late in the 1st period with a goal from Jackson Charlesworth on the power play. The lead swelled to 2-0 with a 2nd period tally from veteran Dominik Florian. Early in the 3rd period, the Chill made the score 3-0 with a goal from Spencer Zwiener. The Bulls were finally able to solve Chill goalie Matiss Kivlenieks in the 3rd period as George Mika and Trent Dillinger scored in the final five minutes, but the Bulls could not find the equalizer. Kivlenieks made 24 saves in the win, while Anton Martinsson took the loss making 30 saves. Boxscore
