Friday Finals: Goalies shine in close battles
Minnesota Magicians 0 @ Minnesota Wilderness 4 – In the first regular season meeting between the two intra-state rivals, the Wilderness got 19 saves from goaltender Kasimir Kaskisuo in a 4-0 shutout of the Magicians. It was all Wilderness from the start as they scored three goals in the 1st period from Johno May, Terry Leabo and Jaycob McCombs. Nolan Culver added a 2nd period goal. The Wilderness outshot the Magicians 42-19 in the win. Bryan Nies made 38 saves in the loss. Boxscore
Michigan Warriors 3 @ Janesville Jets 4 (SO) – Janesville pick up their second win of the season thanks to two goals from Robin Hoglund. The Warriors struck first in the 1st period on a goal from Josh Shellman. The Jets tied the game at 1-1 in the 2nd period on a goal from Grant Stueve. In the 3rd period Hoglund struck twice for the Jets, while Jake Faiella had both Michigan goals. Hoglund added a shootout goal and Adam Winborg won the game as the 6th Jets shooter. Boxscore
Port Huron Fighting Falcons 2 @ Soo Eagles 3 (SO) – In a goaltending duel, it was Soo’s Colin Brennan, who edged out the Falcons Max Milosek in a 3-2 shootout win by the Eagles. The Eagles led 1-0 in the 1st period on a goal from Bruno Birzitis. Port Huron took a 2-1 lead in the 2nd period on two straight goals from Matt Jones and Logan Lambdin. Mike Sabatini would tie the game at 2-2 late in the 2nd period. In the shootout, Michael Caruso scored the lone goal. Brennan made 35 saves in the win, while Milosek stopped 39 shots in the loss. Boxscore
Bismarck Bobcats 4 @ Aberdeen Wings 3 – The Bobcats got 40 saves from Aaron Nelson and withstood a late-game flurry by the Wings to move into a 2nd place tie in the Central with a 4-3 road win. It was all Bobcats through the first two periods as they led 3-0 on goals from Filip Starzynski, Joonas Huovinen and Chris Diver. A Stanislav Dzakhov goal in the 3rd period for Bismarck would prove to be the game-winner as Aberdeen battled back with goals from Erik Gollenbeck, Jake Horton and Jordan Heller. Boxscore
Austin Bruins 4 @ Brookings Blizzard 1 – Despite 43 shots on goal, the Blizzard remained winless on the season thanks to 42 saves from Austin’s Nick Lehr in a 4-1 road win for the Bruins to move into sole possession of 1st place in the Central. Brennan Sanford provided all the scoring Austin would eventually need in the game with two 1st period goals. Brian Bachnak added the other two for the Bruins. Nick DeCenzo scored the lone goal for Brookings, which came while on the power play in the 3rd period. Boxscore
Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees 3 @ Odessa Jackalopes 2 – A late 3rd period goal from Anthony Croston proved to be the game-winner as the Killer Bees spoiled the Jackalopes home opener with a 3-2 win. The other Rio Grande Valley goals came from Nathan Flynn in the 1st period and Ben Greiner in the 2nd period, while Odessa’s goals came off the stick of Mathieu Briand in the 1st period and Robb Stautz, who scored a 3rd period power play goal. Olli Kalkaja made 19 saves in the win while Yoshihiro Kuroiwa took the loss making 33 saves. Boxscore
Lone Star Brahmas 2 @ Topeka RoadRunners 4 – The RoadRunners scored two goals in the final seven minutes to break a 2-2 deadlock and defeat the Brahmas, 4-2. Lone Star led late in the 2nd period 2-1 on goals from Paul Fregeau and Alex Dagnal, but Topeka would respond with goals from Jake Kamrass and Sly Sutter to knot the game at 2-2 after two periods. 3rd period goals from Clint Garris and Sam Rennaker secured the win for Topeka. Drew Vogler had to make just 11 saves in the win, while Mattias Soderqvist made 34 saves in the loss. Boxscore
Amarillo Bulls 1 @ Wichita Falls Wildcats 0 (SO) - The Wildcats fought hard for 65 minutes on Friday night, but were outlasted by the Amarillo Bulls in the end, falling 1-0 after a seven-round shootout. Chase Munroe made 19 saves in the losing effort, with Collin Delia of the Bulls posting 33 stops of his own to claim the win. In a battle of teams with two good offenses, the Wildcats outshot the Bulls 33-19. In the shootout, Cody Gylling beat Munroe in the fourth round to give the Bulls the edge. Rudy Junda evened the shootout at one goal apiece in the fifth round to send it to extra frames, where Kyle Gattelaro scored the decisive tally in the seventh round to give Amarillo the 1-0 win. Boxscore
Minot Minotauros 0 @ Wenatchee Wild 3 – In front of a crowd of almost 3,000 fans on Opening Night in Wenatchee, the Wild got 24 saves from goaltender Chase Perry in his first NAHL shutout as Wenatchee blanked Minot, 3-0. The Wild got off to a good start and took advantage of their special teams on Friday. Power play goals from Trey Bradley and David Powlowski gave Wenatchee a 2-0 lead in the 1st period. Another power play goal from Troy Loggins late in the 3rd period secured the win. Brandon Wildung played well in the loss, making 34 saves. Boxscore
Coulee Region Chill 2 @ Kenai River Brown Bears 3 – A power play goal from defenseman Tyler Andrews with two seconds remaining in regulation was the difference as the Brown Bears edged the Chill on Friday, 3-2. Sebastian Fuchs scored twice for the Brown Bears including a deflection goal and another on an odd-man rush. The Chill got both their goals in the 2nd period via special teams as Eddie Matsushima scored a shorthanded goal and Gordon Wells added a power play goal. Andrews game-winner came after he fired a shot from the left face-off circle that bounced its way through traffic. Boxscore
Corpus Christi IceRays 3 @ Fairbanks Ice Dogs 2 – The IceRays success continued in Fairbanks in front of a sold out Opening Night crowd of 2,242 thanks to 48 saves from goaltender Ben Myers in a 3-2 win. Eric Purcell kept his hot hand going in the 1st period with the opening goal for the IceRays. That was answered by two straight markers from the Ice Dogs as Colton Wolter and Chandler Madry scored. Jake Durflinger and Wes Michaud scored in the opening five minutes of the 3rd period to give Corpus Christi a 3-2 lead and the rest of the way was all Myers. Boxscore
