Saturday Scores: Rhinos Score Overtime Win

The Rhinos celebrate a goal (Photo: Jesse Morrison)

Johnstown 4 @ Northeast 2 - The Johnstown Tomahawks and Northeast Generals faced off again after their high scoring game Friday night. The Tomahawks would complete the weekend sweep of the Generals with a final score of 4-2. During the first period, both teams took penalties that they survived. However, the Tomahawks struck first with 2:24 left in the first by Marshall. During the second, the Tomahawks took a cross-checking penalty that the Generals would capitalize on. Moyer found the net at 15:33 in the second on the power play evening the score 1-1. In the final frame, the Generals Poulin scored at 11:29 in the third giving them the 2-1 lead. The Tomahawks didn’t give up, as they scored three goals by Zetterkvist, Jarmain, and Cowgill in the last minute of play sealing their 4-2 win over the Generals.

Elmira 2 @ Maryland 6 - It was a fiery night for the Maryland Black Bears taking on the Elmira Aviators. This is the second win in a row for Maryland, who shut out Elmira the night before. Max Campbell, assisted by Jack Kohlmann, got the Aviators started with a power-play goal but the team just couldn’t keep up with the Black Bears. Maryland used home ice to their full advantage in a lively first period, with goals from Trey Hinton and Cole Peters, as well as two power-play goals from Jaden Sikura. Maryland continued to dominate in the second with two more goals from Lachlan Bommer and Sokrat Markarian. Campbell attempted a comeback for Elmira, scoring his second of the night in the high slot, assisted by Zach Buffone. However, Maryland’s goaltender Dilans Birkans denied any further attempts to round off the win for the Black Bears.

Rochester 1 @ Danbury 2 - It was an exciting Saturday night rematch for the Rochester Jr. Americans and Danbury Hat Tricks. Scoring started early with a goal from Danbury’s Evan Dantas, who earned his second goal of the season in the first period. Danbury’s scoring streak continued into the second with another goal, this time from Matt Dabrowski, assisted by Dantas. Ryan Shaw answered back, scoring Rochester’s only goal of the night shortly after. The third period added no goals to this match, and Luke Brassil secured Danbury’s win between the pipes. Brassil fought off a total of 30 shots to bring home this 2-1 win for the Hat Tricks. 

New Jersey 0 @ Maine 1 (OT) - The Maine Nordiques remain undefeated with their fourth win of the season against the New Jersey Titans. This shutout victory secures the Nordiques their current spot at number one in the East Division. This game’s single goal was the overtime winner scored by Josh Itri, assisted by Pete Luecke, after a rather quiet sixty minutes of regulation. Lukas Fursten was a brick wall for the Nordiques, denying all 18 shots from the Titans to complete this weekend sweep. 

New Hampshire 3 @ Philadelphia 2 - The Philadelphia Rebels fell to the New Hampshire Mountain Kings in a close game Saturday. The Rebels struck first with a goal halfway through the first period from Abzal Alibek. That was the lone goal of the first frame. The Mountain Kings came out fast in the second period with Benjamin Tauscher’s goal three minutes into the frame. The Rebels regained the lead quickly as a power play was ending with the score coming from Johnny Conlin. Less than a minute later, Nicholas Vrtiel evened the ice back out for the Mountain Kings. The score was tied at 2-2 going into the third period. While on the advantage late in the third, Jackson Hone shot past the goaltender to win the game.

Aberdeen 6 @ Watertown 3 - The two South Dakota rivals faced off on Saturday night with the Wings completing the weekend sweep 6-3. Neither team would score until mid-way through the first period when the Shamrocks would cash in on the power play with a goal by Gudridge. The Shamrocks would take a 1-0 lead into the first break. In the second, the Shamrocks would take an interference penalty that Pitters of the Wings would score on, evening up the score 1-1. Later on, the Wings would score 5 on 3 on the power play with a goal by Kuhl at 8:46. The Wings would continue to differentiate themselves with two more goals by Spari-Leban and Scheetz within the last four minutes of the second period. The Wings took a 4-1 lead into the second intermission. During the third, Pitters would score his second of the night at 14:30 for the Wings extending their lead 5-1. The Shamrocks dug into the deficit with a goal by Gudridge at 12:38 and Podein at 4:18 to make the score 5-3. The Wings would seal the deal with an empty net goal with 6 seconds left bringing the final score 6-3 Wings.

St. Cloud 4 @ Minnesota M 2 - The St. Cloud Norsemen took on the Minnesota Mallards in the second of a home and home series on Saturday. The visiting Norsemen would walk away with a 4-2 win in Forest Lake, Minnesota. The first period was a clean one with no penalties. The Norsemen struck first with Sandhu at 3:08 of the first. Shortly after, the Mallards evened it up with Hasbargen finding nylon, 1-1. In the second, the Norsemen wasted no time taking back the lead with Crane scoring at 19:37. The Mallards wouldn’t answer until 32 second left with a goal by Gordon, once again tying it up. In the third, the Norsemen would once again regain the lead off a goal by Williams at 5:47. Shortly after the team’s exchanged a few pleasantries, but the Norsemen would get the last word with a buzzer beater goal by Hart, sealing the Norsemen’s win 4-2.

Fairbanks 4 @ Janesville 2 - Fairbanks squeaked out a 4-2 victory over Janesville on Saturday night, earning their second win of the season. Alex Hall opened the scoring early to put Fairbanks up 1-0, off the assists from Clarke Nehman and Nick Madsen. Matthew Volkman and Jace Sebert added goals before the end of the first to make it 3-0, taking control of the game. The second period was scoreless, as Fairbanks carried the three-goal lead into the third. Janesville struck early in the final frame when Hans Hedlund found the back of the net off assists from Shawn Truby and Ty Bashaw. Nathan Tobey cut the deficit to one midway through the third, giving Janesville momentum. But the comeback fell short, as Nick Madsen sealed the win for Fairbanks with an empty-net goal. In net, Kaenan Smith kept Janesville close with 27 saves on 30 shots, but it was Fairbanks goaltender Mason McElroy who stole the show, stopping 37 of 39 attempts to shut down the rally.

Lone Star 2 @ Corpus Christi 4 - Corpus Christi earned a 4-2 home victory over Lone Star on Saturday night. The Ice Rays struck first when Grayson Gerhard scored off assists from Jack Mackenzie and Jonathan Cifaldi, giving them a 1-0 lead heading into the second period. Lone Star tied the game early in the second as Leo Isaksson found the net with help from Vincenzo Capano and Gustav Lexell. Before the frame was over, Trent Coleman restored the Corpus Christi lead on the power play, assisted by Emil Obstfelder and Nick Peragine. In the third, the Ice Rays extended their lead to two when Easton Swift scored off a setup from Lucas Hihn. Lone Star responded as Aaron Martikainen cut the deficit to one, with Gustav Lexell and Nolan Davis recording assists. However, the comeback attempt fell short, and Nick Sinani sealed the win for Corpus Christi with an empty-net goal. Goaltender Xander Miceli finished with 21 saves on 23 shots, backstopping the Ice Rays to their second win of the season.

Amarillo 4 @ Shreveport 1 - The Amarillo Wranglers wrapped up their weekend with a 4–1 road victory over the Shreveport Mudbugs, completing the two-game sweep. Amarillo jumped ahead midway through the first period when Jacob Miller notched his first of the season halfway through the first, assisted by Tyler Tsoukalas and Hayden Hedquist. Just a few minutes earlier, Ty Izadi extended the lead later in the period, finishing off a feed from Mason Lupo to put the Wranglers up 2-0. Shreveport answered back late in the first on the power play, as Jacob Stock scored his first of the year off a setup from Johnathon Berndt to make it a 2–1 game after one. The second period was tightly contested, with both goaltenders turning aside quality chances to keepthe score unchanged. In the third, Amarillo secured the win behind Daniel Rassega, who struck twice in the final minute. The forward buried a pair of unassisted empty-net goals, just 36 seconds apart, to put the game out of reach and seal the 4–1 victory. Trenton Peterson in net made 32 of 33 saves as well, shutting down the Shreveport offense to secure the win.

Austin 1 @ Bismarck 2 - The Bismarck Bobcats survived the Austin Bruins in a tight thriller Saturday night. To get the game going, both teams were sent to the box for minors. Mark Evans for the Bobcats got the game rolling at the end of the first frame. The Bruins were called for too many men on the ice just as the first period wound down. The second period was scoreless, but the penalties did not end in the first. The Bruins were called for hooking and tripping, while the Bobcats were assessed for tripping and high-sticking. In the final frame, there were eight penalties called, and still, no goal. On a power play, Eddie Revenig added to the Bobcat lead to make the game 2-0. In a last-ditch effort, Nathan Williams scored on the power play for the Bruins. However, it was not enough, and the Bobcats won. 

Anchorage 3 @ Minnesota W 2 (SO) - The Anchorage Wolverines defeated the Minnesota Wilderness in a shootout 3-2. The Wilderness got the game going with a goal from Nathan Murray. The Wolverines quickly bounced back when Sam Evert found the back of the net. The second frame was scoreless but featured numerous minor penalties. Each team saw a goal in the third period, with Luc Bydal scoring on the power play for the Wolverines and Michael Liscinsky for the Wilderness. Time dwindled, and the game was headed to overtime, which was scoreless. In the shootout, Andrew Karkoc got past Ryan Gerlich to secure the win for the Wolverines. 

Oklahoma 6 @ New Mexico 5 (SO) - The Oklahoma Warriors and New Mexico Ice Wolves faced off again in a tightly contested and physical game. The Oklahoma Warriors would emerge victorious with the 6-5 shootout win. In the first period, the Warriors struck twice with goals by Knutson and Kelly jumping out to a 2-0 lead midway through the first. Shortly after, the Ice Wolves scored with just under 6 minutes left in the period with a goal by Malyshev. The Warriors took a 2-1 lead into the first intermission. The second period was an active one with the Ice Wolves wasting no time scoring 55 seconds in on a goal by Earl evening the score 2-2. However, 30 seconds later the Wolves would take a tripping penalty that the Warriors would take advantage of. Galnor scores for the Warriors on the power play at 16:58 of the second. With just under 10 minutes left, physicality ensued with numerous penalties delt. The Warriors would take a 3-2 lead into the locker room. In the third, the Warriors would take a high sticking penalty that the Ice Wolves took advantage of. McCaffrey scored midway through the third on the power play and shortly after Earl with his second of the game would give the Ice Wolves their first lead of the night 4-3. With five minutes left, Galnor of the Warriors would score his second to make it a tie game. The Ice Wolves answered back with Fairbanks scoring with 3 minutes left, taking back the lead. However, the game’s not over until it’s over. Wade of the Warriors scored a buzzer beater with 2 seconds left in regulation, his first career NAHL goal, to force overtime. Overtime proved to be scoreless leading to a shootout. The Warriors would come away with the 6-5 win on a shootout goal by Gonyeau.

Kenai River 1 @ Wisconsin 5 - The Wisconsin Windigo started their weekend against the Kenai River Brown Bears with a bang. While the Brown Bears put up a fair fight with 33 shots on goal, it was still Wisconsin that came out on top. Windigo goals came from Joshua Sardo, Michael Ryan, Ben Norris, Alexios Georgaklis, and Beau Kralovec. It was nearly a shutout win for Wisconsin, but Massimiliano Monson scored Kenai River’s single goal with just ten seconds left in the third. However, it just wasn’t enough to beat Windigo goaltender, Easton Cody, who played a phenomenal game to secure Wisconsin's win.

North Iowa 5 @ Minot 4 (SO) - The North Iowa Bulls held out against the Minot Minotauros in a shootout to win 5-4. The Minotaruos got rolling early with a goal from Artem Prima 20 seconds into the game. That was the lone score of the first period. The Minotauros extended their lead in the second period after Lucca Orio capitalized on the checking call. The Bulls struck back less than a minute later with a goal from Ivan Berčík. Fugi Suzuki followed behind Berčík to even the game. Denis Kuzmenkov dominated the net to extend the Bulls’ lead to 3-2. Marlen Edwards for the Minotauros tied the game on a cross-checking power play. Carter Davis for the Bulls found the back of the net soon after the Minotauro goal, tying the game once more. After a slashing call on the Bulls, Edwards tallied his second goal of the night to tie the game at 4-4. The third period was quiet as the game went into overtime. The Bulls and Minotauros could not find the back of the net in the overtime period, leading the game into a shootout. Berčík and Vitaliy Korolyuk got past Devin Rustlie to secure the shootout win.

Odessa 2 @ El Paso 3 (OT) - The El Paso Rhinos secured an exhilarating overtime victory on the road against the Odessa Jackalopes. El Paso opened the scoring in the first with a goal from Ian Kastamo assisted by Hudson Bjornson and Troy Hunka. Odessa’s Jake Georgy quickly responded to tie the game heading into the break, off the feed from Jack L’esperance. The Jackalopes took the lead in the second period, with Nicholas Arrington finding the back of the net for the lone tally, giving Odessa a 2–1 advantage. The third period saw the Rhinos mount a comeback, as Charles Turner scored to tie the game off the assist from Nolan Smith and force overtime. In overtime, it was the Rhinos who would emerge victorious. In the end, Chase Nyitray scored the game-winning goal off the assist from Nolan Smith, clinching a comeback victory for the Rhinos. Jakob Hanlan made 27 of 29 saves for El Paso to clinch the first victory on the year, while Odessa’s Kevin Jones put up a valiant effort saving 25 of 28 saves.