Thursday Night Thriller: Fairbanks Secure Fifth-Straight Win

Photo Credit: Kristen Pearson

Chippewa 1 @ Fairbanks 5 - The red-hot Ice Dogs play host to the Steel for a Thursday night thriller. The contest kicked off with Fairbanks lighting up the scoreboard first with a tally by Mason Knaffla at the 7:14 minute mark in the first frame. Following close behind him, the Captain, Luca Ricciardi, finds the back of the net on the power play, marking his first power-play goal of the season. With less than two minutes on the clock in the first, Gage Leonard extends Fairbanks’ lead to 3-0. The Ice Dogs had primary possession of the puck in the opening frame, outshooting Chippewa 20-2 on net. Moving into the middle period, Alex Hall scores his fourth goal of the season as an Ice Dog and helps to give the Ice Dogs a 4-0 lead. Heading into the final 20 minutes of the contest, the Steel lit the lamp thanks to a tally by Sam Schulte at the 14:11 minute mark. However, Fairbanks responds to that lone goal thanks to Leonard finding the back of the net for the second time in the matchup. The Ice Dogs would defeat the Steel in a 5-1 fashion and now ride a five-game win streak heading into Friday night. Between the pipes for the Steel, Alex Reedy featured a 40-save performance, while Fairbanks’ Mason McElroy turned away 17 out of 18 shots.