Friday Finals: Wisconsin Closing In On Division Title

Johnstown 3 @ Rochester 1 - In the first period,no goals were scored.  During the second period, Charlie Zetterkvist scored an unassisted goal for Johnstown. In the third period, Gavin Carr with help from Dexter Kichline and Owen King put the Jr. Americans on the board. Cullen Emery with help from Adam Csabi took the lead for the Tomahawks. Hank Reed scored an unassisted goal for the win. Nick Avakyan made 27 saves for the Johnstown Tomahawks and Danick Leroux made 31 saves for the Rochester Jr. Americans.

Danbury 7 @ Philadelphia 3 - In the first period, Niko Tournas scored a goal for Danbury assisted by Ryan Lukko. Ryan Bunting tied up the game for the Rebels with an assist from Billy Sheridan. During the second period, Danbury’s Alexis Billequey scored with help from Kai Elkie and Ameen Ghosheh. Hudson Weber scored a goal for the Rebels assisted by Linus Dedinas. Abzal Alibek increased Philadelphia’s lead with help from Joe Stauber. In the third period, David Utkin scored with assists from Brendan Boring and Tournas. Jack Harney scored assisted by Andre Gibbons and Ben Dempster. Ghosheh scored with help from Elkie and Billequey. Salvatore Cerrato added to the Hat Tricks’ lead with help from Pierre Larocque and Joey Mallozzi. Tournas scored assisted by Larocque and Cerrato. Josh Reburn made 27 saves for the Danbury Hat Tricks and Anthony Sciere made 31 saves for the Philadelphia Rebels.

New Jersey 4 @ Maryland 3 (SO) - In the first period, Owen Drury scored for the Maryland Black Bears assisted by Tyler Stern and Kareem El Bashir. Nikita Meshcheryakov scored a goal for the Titans assisted by Ty Creech and James Taylor. Matthew Croxall scored for Maryland assisted by Harrison Smith and Victor Mannebratt. Nikolai Meshkantsov scored for New Jersey with help from Lazurus Ebanoidze and Meshcheryakov. During the second period, New Jersey’s Alex Papaspyropoulos scored a goal with help from Owen Leahy and Jack Hillier. Stern scored assisted by Sebastian Brockman and Dylan Gordon. In the third period, there were no goals scored.  In overtime, nobody scored a goal. During the shootout, Papaspyropoulos scored a goal for the Titans to clutch the win. Austin McNicholas made 21 saves for the New Jersey Titans and Ryan Denes made 14 saves for the Maryland Black Bears.

Elmira 1 @ Maine 3 - Luke Chappelle’s third period goal proved to be the game winner as the Maine Nordiques defeated the Elmira Aviators by a score of 3-1. Ethan Wongus broke the scoreless tie with his 20th goal of the season. Chappelle added insurance in the third and it would be needed as Jack Kohlmann notched his fifth of the campaign. Kellen Murphy scored an empty net tally to secure the win for the Nordiques. Matthew DellaRusso was the winner in goal with 28 saves while Wesley Jefferson-Swint II suffered the loss after making 33 saves. 

Northeast 5 @ New Hampshire 7 - In the first period, Jack MacDonald scored for New Hampshire assisted by Kim Hilmersson and Jaden Johnson. Jack Montaldo put the Generals on the board with assists from Benjamin Campeau and Spencer Hirsch. Campeau scored a goal with help from Montaldo and Kai Dunits. Alexander Duhon tied up the game with help from Thomas Quast and Jaden Davis. During the second period, Johnson scored assisted by Tommy McDonough and MacDonald. Hilmersson scored a goal with assists from Oli Genest and Johnson. Genest scored assisted by Hilmersson and Rogiero Cacciarelli. Mikey Bartkowski assisted by Alejandro Blum and Rich Rucireto scored a goal for Northeast. Vinny Ipri scored a goal with help from William-Francisco Parent and Rucireto. In the third period, Aidan Palmeter scored for the Generals assisted by Jack Laferriere and Drake Scrozo. Johnson scored assisted by MacDonald and Hilmersson. New Hampshire’s Cole Roenicki scored a goal with help from Tanner Anctil and Quast. Ryan Nolan made 30 saves for the Northeast Generals and Sam Scopa made 22 saves for the New Hampshire Mountain Kings.

Janesville 1 @ Springfield 4 - In the first period, Logan Ganz scored an unassisted goal for the Jr. Blues. Jaguar McClelland increased the lead assisted by Nico Laus and Luke Sawicky.  During the second period, it remained scoreless. In the third period, Joseph Hyten put the Jets on the board with help from Nick Messina. Tyler Smith scored for Springfield assisted by Connor Broadhead and McClelland. Laus scored an unassisted goal for the win. Frank Murphy made 23 saves for the Springfield Jr. Blues and Matthew Alberti made 32 saves for the Janesville Jets. 

Bismarck 3 @ North Iowa 2 - The Bismarck Bobcats picked up a 3-2 road win over the North Iowa Bulls on Friday night. Louie Kamienski opened the scoring on a power play in the first period to give Bismarck the early lead. North Iowa responded quickly with a goal from Eli Miller, making it a 1-1 game heading into the second. In the second period, Bismarck regained the lead with another power-play goal, this time from Jakub Kopecky. Just minutes later, Wyatt Sypniewski extended the Bobcats’ lead to 3-1. North Iowa fought back in the third period, with Michael Malatino scoring on the power play to cut the deficit to one. The Bulls pressured late, but Bismarck held on to secure the 3-2 victory.

Oklahoma 1 @ Shreveport 2 (OT) - The Shreveport Mudbugs claimed a 2-1 overtime win against the Oklahoma Warriors on Friday night. After a scoreless first period, Oklahoma’s Riley Fast netted the first goal of the game late in the second, giving the Warriors a 1-0 lead. Shreveport tied it up in the third with a goal from Charlie Fink, assisted by Gleb Akimov. Neither team found the back of the net for the rest of regulation, sending the game to overtime. Just seconds into the extra period, Brent Litchard netted the game-winning goal off an assist from Lucas Deeb to seal the Mudbugs’ victory. Oklahoma’s Billy Stuski made an impressive 51 saves on 53 shots in the loss, while Shreveport’s Nikola Goich stopped 22 of 23 shots for the win.

Watertown 1 @ Aberdeen 6 - The Aberdeen Wings dominated at home, securing a 6-1 victory over the Watertown Shamrocks on Friday night. Aberdeen’s Nikolai Tishkevich opened the scoring in the first period, but Watertown’s Zach Boren quickly answered back to tie the game. Before the period ended, Briggs Orr put Aberdeen back on top. The Wings took control in the second, with Nick Comfort finding the back of the net, followed by a power-play goal from Grant Winkler to make it 4-1 heading into the third. Aberdeen closed out the game with two more goals from Jack McDonough and Leonid Bulgakov to cap off the 6-1 win.

Chippewa 3 @ Minnesota W 4 - The Minnesota Wilderness took down the Chippewa Steel in a 4-3 battle on home ice Friday night. Chippewa’s Lance Mengel scored the first goal of the game, but Minnesota responded with a power-play goal from Noah Dziver to tie it up before the first intermission. In the second period, Peyton Struck put the Wilderness ahead, but Chippewa answered back with goals from Connor Jalbert and Hunter Whisenand to take the lead. Later in the period, Jakeb Lynch buried the equalizer for Minnesota, setting up a dramatic final frame. In the third, Lucas Jendek netted the game-winning goal, securing the 4-3 victory for the Wilderness. Minnesota’s goaltender Niklas Erickson made 28 saves, while Chippewa’s Devin Shakar stopped 17 shots in the loss.

Amarillo 3 @ Odessa 4 (SO) - The Amarillo Wranglers squeaked by the Odessa Jackalopes with a 4-3 shootout win on Friday evening. Kirill Evstigineev broke the scoreless tie late in a quiet first period to put Amariillo on top, before Daniel Regessa buried early in the second to extend the Wrangler lead to two. Odessa’s offense woke up in the third period as the Jackalopes posted three goals in 15 minutes, thanks to the sticks of David Hamr, Jordan Larkee, and Nicholas Puricelli. Anthony White scored his first career goal for the Wranglers to tie the evening up deep in the third. FIve minutes of three-on-three overtime was not enough, but all it took was one flick of the wrist in the shootout by Jeremy Jacob to secure the extra point and the win for Odessa.

Colorado 4 @ New Mexico 3 (OT) - The Colorado Grit secured a tough-fought 4-3 overtime win over the New Mexico Ice Wolves on Friday evening. After 20 minutes of scoreless play in the first period, the ice began to tilt all in Colorado’s direction. Carson Pavlowich scored just a couple minutes into the second period for Colorado, and though he was answered by Tolvo Lasksonen for New Mexico to knot the score at one. Colorado then scored two goals to go up 3-1, but was answered by two late lifesavers from ke Kassay and Sheldon Rioiux to force the stoppage time. Unlike in Amarillo, five minutes was more than plenty for overtime. Georges Porier buried the biscuit less than three minutes in, securing the stoppage win for the Grit.

Austin 5 @ Minot 2 - The Austin Bruins secured a solid 5-2 victory over the Minot Minotauros in a thrilling Friday night matchup. Both teams showcased impressive skill, but the Bruins' offensive prowess and strong defensive plays made the difference.After a scoreless first the Bruins took control early, with Evan Malkhassian scoring ] to put his team ahead., as well as EJ Paddington, Nathan Williams and Alex Laurenza also contributed to the Bruins’ lead with a goal each. Minot Minotauros fought back, with Adam Mahler and Noah Gibbs finding the back of the net, but their efforts were not enough to overcome the Bruins' dominance.Jack Solomon stood tall in the net for the Bruins, making 23 saves on 25 shots to keep his team in the lead. On the other end, Lukas Swedin faced heavy pressure, stopping 38 of 42 shots in a valiant effort for Minot.

Corpus Christi 6 @ El Paso 5 (OT) - The Corpus Christi IceRays edged out the El Paso Rhinos in a high-scoring Friday night tilt, securing a 6-5 victory in a nailbiter of a matchup. Both teams displayed impressive offensive firepower, but the IceRays managed to outlast their opponents with crucial plays in key moments. The IceRays were led by Pierson Sobush and Stepan Kuznetsov, who each netted two goals to fuel the Ice Ray attack. Cooper Conway and Colin Watson also added solo goals, contributing to Corpus Christi’s offensive success. Matthew Green played a pivotal role with two assists, while Cody Kempf and Will Reardon also contributed their own assists. El Paso put up a strong fight, with five different players finding the back of the net, including Paavo Hiltunen, Jacob Solano, A.J. Reed, Harper Lolacher, and Kyle Arias. Roope Tuomioksa and Rasmus Nousiainen stood out with two assists each, helping keep the game competitive until the final minutes. In net, Benji Motew made 30 saves on 35 shots for Corpus Christi, while Logan Hughes faced heavy pressure, stopping 21 of 27 shots for El Paso.

Kenai River 1 @ Anchorage 6 - Taisetsu Ushio scored twice and Cole Christian added a goal and an assist as the Anchorage Wolverines defeated the Kenai River Brown Bears 6-1. Andrew Karkoc, Toby Carlson and Romulus Riego De Dios all got on the scoresheet for the Wolverines in the victory. John Ross provided the lone tally for Kenai River in the loss. Michael Manzi was nearly perfect as he stopped 34 shots. Mitchell Mccusker suffered the loss, ending the night with 31 saves. 

Wisconsin 6 @ Fairbanks 3 - The Wisconsin Windigo inched closer to a division title with a 6-3 decision over the Fairbanks Ice Dogs. Theodore Richardson led the way with a hat trick while Braydon Beahm notched a goal and two assists for the Windigo. Hunter Hayes and Luke Baker picked up a goal and an assist for Wisconsin. Kyle Rohrer led the offensive attack for the Ice Dogs as he netted a pair of goals. Cam VanSickle also got on the scoresheet for Fairbanks. Lucas Szyszka got the win in the blue paint with 36 saves. Mason McElroy took the loss in net, he had 20 stops.

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