Friday Finals: Brahmas blank Ice Wolves to clinch playoff spot
Kenai River forward Hayden Walters had the game-winning goal in a 4-3 win on Friday over Fairbanks, which put the Brown Bears into the 4th and final playoff spot in the Midwest.
Lone Star 1 @ New Mexico 0 - William Gramme stopped all 25 shots he faced as the netminder grabbed his second shutout of the season to help the Lone Star Brahmas knock off the New Mexico Ice Wolves by a final score of 1-0. The win clinched a spot in the Robertson Cup playoffs for Lone Star. Collin Kleiser scored the only goal of the game at the 7:35 mark of the third on the power play. Carsen Stokes gave up just the one goal and made 26 saves in a losing effort.
Fairbanks 3 @ Kenai River 4 - Hayden Walters late third period goal gave the Brown Bears a 4-3 win over Fairbanks and put Kenai River into a playoff spot. The Brown Bears took a 2-0 lead just 66 seconds into the action as Hunter Newhouse and Noah Holt each registered their 10th goal of the year. Fairbanks would fight back to tie things up at two before the first frame ended thanks to Mac Gadowsky and Tyler Herzberg. Colin Goff put Fairbanks ahead for the first time of the evening but that lead was short lived as Garett Drotts knotted things up just 23 seconds later. The game remained tied late into the third before Walters’ tally. Nils Wallstrom was victorious in between the pipes as he made 32 saves. Kayden Hargraves ended up with the loss as he stopped 30 shots.
Northeast 6 @ Maryland 2: The Northeast Generals topped the Maryland Black Bears in a 6-2 game. Northeast picked up a 1-0 lead to end the first period with Matthew DeSpirit. In the second, Maryland evened the game 1-1 with a goal from Adam Schankula. The Generals added three unanswered goals to end the period with a 4-1 lead as Frank D’ancona, Ryan Remick and David Anderychuk all scoring. In the third, Maryland got back on the scoresheet with Dimitry Kebreau for a 4-2 game. The Generals took care of business adding two more goals with Jake LaRusso and David Andreychuk for a 6-2 final. Cullen DeYoung picked up the win in net after turning away 41 shots.
New Jersey 5 @ Maine 3: The New Jersey Titans defeated the Maine Nordiques after adding three goals in the third period, 5-3. The game was tied 1-1 after the first period with Micheal Young for New Jersey and Laurent Trepanier for Maine. In the second, both teams scored again as Aiden Coupe and Joe Harney netted goals for their respective teams for a 2-2 score. In the third, Sylas Oberting got the Titans ahead 3-2. Soon after, Kim Hilmersson evened the game 3-3 for the Nordiques. Anthony Calafiore and Eric Charpentier both scored for the Titans to seal the win, 5-3. Zakari Brice stopped 23 shots in the win.
Philadelphia 1 @ Johnstown 2: A third period goal sent the Johnstown Tomahawks past the Philadelphia Rebels, 2-1. In the second, Justin Rapp got the Tomahawks on the board for a 1-0 score. Soon after, Maxwell Marquette evened the game for the Rebels, 1-1. In the third, Nick Ahern scored the game-winning goal for a 2-1 final. Goaltender Alec Rajalin-Scharp turned away 27 of the 28 shots he faced in the win.
Wisconsin 2 @ Chippewa 5: The Chippewa Steel defeated the Wisconsin Windigo in a 5-2 final. The Windigo added a goal in the opening period from Victor Widlund for a 1-0 score. The Steel added back-to-back goals with Logan Cleary and Sam Rice for a 2-1 lead. In the second, Mason Johnson extended the Steel lead, 3-1. In the third, Sam Rice added his second of the night getting the Steel ahead 4-1. Wisconsin scored later in the period with Frank Jenkins for a 4-2 score. With less than a minute to play, Sam Rice netted his third of the night for the hat-trick and a 5-2 final. Carter Wishart was great in net as he stopped 37 shots.
Minot 4 @ North Iowa 3: The Minot Minotauros edged past the North Iowa Bulls in a 4-3 score after Minot scored 4 goals in the opening period. Trevor Stachowiak, Colby Joseph, Chase LaPinta and Blake Steenerson scored for the Minotauros to take a 4-0 lead. In the third it was all North Iowa as Logan Dombrowsky, Simone Dadie, and Max Scott all scored for a 4-3 final. Minot goaltender Noah Rupprecht stopped 36 shots in the win.
Oklahoma 4 @ El Paso 5 - Camden Bajzer’s goal with just over two minutes left lifted the El Paso Rhinos to a 5-4 win over the first place Oklahoma Warriors. Bajzer finished the night with three points to lead all skaters. Tyler Green and Jussi Malmi notched a goal and an assist for the home team. Tory Lund and Gavin Duckworth also tickled the twine for the Rhinos. Drew Sutton scored twice for the Warriors. William Brenner and Owen Carlile also lit the lamp for Oklahoma. Nolan Suggs got the win in goal as he turned aside 24 shots. Daniel Duris suffered the loss as he made 26 saves for Oklahoma.
Springfield 2 @ Anchorage 6 - The Anchorage Wolverines kept their playoff chances alive after beating the Springfield Jr. Blues 6-2. Six different players found the back of the net but it was Trent Powell who led the way with four assists. Aiden Westin notched three points of his own while Danny Reis, Hayden Hennen, Cameron Morris, Joe Cesario and Revelin Mack all got on the scoresheet for Anchorage. Scott Miner and Adyn Merrick were the goal scorers for Springfield. Shane Soderwell took home the win in goal as he stopped 29 shots. Aksel Reid was dealt the loss as he made 26 saves of his own.
Janesville 1 @ Minnesota 3: The Wilderness improved to 7-2-1 in their last 10 games after holding Janesville to one goal and defeating them 3-1. Bo Cosman broke the deadlock for Minnesota with his 11th goal of the season 10:17 into the opening period. Janesville evened the scores with 1:51 remaining in the 2nd period thanks to Jaden Johnson until Brian Lonergran regained the lead 1:37 later. Sawyer Scholl put the finishing touches on the win with a goal late in regulation. Isak Posch had a stellar performance in net for the Wilderness, stopping all but one of 29 shots faced in the win. Selby Warren kept out 33 of 36 for the Jets.
Corpus Christi 1 @ Amarillo 7: The Wranglers pleased their home crowd as they brushed past Corpus Christi 7-1. Zack Kent got the offense rolling for Amarillo late in the 1st with his 5th goal of the season. Chase Davis and Preston Brighton helped extend the lead in the middle frame with scores. Cooper Rice, Ronan Walsh, Pierce Patterson, and Ben Ivey all found the back of the net in the final period to provide more insurance and seal the win. Corpus Christi’s lone goal came 56 seconds into the 2nd period, scored by Nils Forselius from Anthony Cafarelli. Connor Mcdonough kept out 33 of 34 for the Wranglers while Lukas Malant made 43 stops in the IceRays’ crease.
Shreveport 3 @ Odessa 1: The Mudbugs improved their point streak to nine games after edging past the Jackalopes 3-1 on the road. Ryan Mansfield got Odessa on the board first with a powerplay goal 12:05 into the 1st period. Shreveport fired back a pair of goals before the 1st intermission to take a lead, goals scored by Eric Vitale and Drake Morse. Jaden Goldie doubled the lead for the Mudbugs with his 6th goal of the season 10:21 into the final frame. Simon Bucheler kept out 22 of 23 shots faced for Shreveport while Gergely Orosz made 28 saves for Odessa.
Aberdeen 2 @ Bismarck 3 (SO): Evan Hunter scored the lone goal in the shootout to fuel his Bobcats past Aberdeen 3-2. Brandon Reller provided Bismarck a 1-0 lead through 20 minutes of play with a score 2:38 into the period. Attila Lippai extended the Bobcats lead 11:28 into the middle frame with Aberdeen’s Luke Backel answering minutes later to cut the deficit in half. Alexander Gullichsen sent the contest to an eventual shootout with the tying goal 6:03 into the 3rd period. Hunter Garvey picked up the win in between the pipes, stopping 20 shots in regulation and all three shootout attempts. Cole Moore gave the Wings a chance, stopping an impressive 46 shots in the loss.
