Friday Finals: Warriors punch ticket to Robertson Cup with sweep
Minnesota Wilderness defenseman Michael Quinn had two goals and an assist in a 5-1 win in Game 3 on Friday.
South Division Finals, Game 3: Oklahoma 2 @ Shreveport 1 (2OT) (Oklahoma wins series, 3-0) – The Warriors became the first team to punch their ticket to the 2023 Robertson Cup Championship as they came from behind to beat the Mudbugs in double overtime in Game 3, 2-1. The Mudbugs were first to score as Logan Gotinsky scored his third goal of the playoffs in the 1st period for a 1-0 lead. Oklahoma answered in the 2nd period on a goal from Drew Sutton, his 5th of the playoffs. After a scoreless 3rd period and 1st overtime, the Warriors netted the series-winner early in the 2nd overtime as a nice move at the point by defenseman Owen Baumgartner got him free down the left side as he dance through traffic and slid the puck to forward Joey Delgreco, who was wide open on the far post for the 2-1 win. Warriors goalie Daniel Duris made 44 saves in the win, while Simon Bucheler made 34 saves in his final NAHL game. With the win, the Warriors advance to the 2023 Robertson Cup Championship where they will be the #1 seed.
Midwest Division Finals, Game 3: Wisconsin 1 @ Minnesota 5 (Minnesota leads series, 2-1) – Wilderness goalie Isak Posch made 29 saves and defenseman Michael Quinn had two goals and an assist to lead their team to a 5-1 home win in Game 3. The Wilderness got off to a fast start, scoring the game’s first two goals in the 1st period as Oliver Stumpel and Ashton Dahms found the back of the net. The Windigo stayed close as Benjamin Anderson scored later in the 1st period to make it a 2-1 game. In the 2nd period, the Wilderness pulled away with goals from Quinn and Kevin Marx Noren. In the 3rd period, Quinn would score again to give the Wilderness the 5-1 win. Maxwell Beckford made 24 saves in the loss.
East Division Finals, Game 3: Maryland 4 @ Maine 5 (Maryland leads series, 2-1) – The Nordiques got goals from five different players and fought off a furious 3rd period comeback attempt by the Black Bears as they kept their season alive with a 5-4 win in Game 3 on Friday. Maryland was first to score in the 1st period as Gabriel Westling scored. The Nordiques then rattled off four straight goals from Patrick Schmiedlin, Henrik Hallberg, Brendan Gibbons, and Evan Orloff to take a 4-1 lead after two periods. The Black Bears tried to come back in the 3rd period with three goals from Christian Catalano, Kaleb Tiessen, and Hunter Ramos, but a late goal from Hunter Fetterolf secured the 5-4 win. Kael Depape made 47 saves in the win, while William Hakansson made 28 saves in the loss.
Central Division Finals, Game 3: Austin 5 @ St. Cloud 1 (Austin leads series, 2-1) – Austin forward Matys Brassard had two goals and an assist to lead the Bruins to a 5-1 road win in Game 3 in St. Cloud on Friday. After a scoreless 1st period, the Norsemen scored first in the 2nd period as Anthony Ruklic scored his third goal of the series. It was all Bruins after that, as Brassard tied the game with a power play goal, just over a minute after St. Cloud had scored. Gavin Morrissey added a power play goal to make it 2-1 and Brassard scored again on the power play to make it 3-1 after two periods. In the 3rd period, goals from Jack Malinski and Jackson Luther put the game away and gave the series lead to the Bruins. Trent Wiemken made 19 saves in the win, while Ethan Dahlmeir made 15 saves in the loss.
