Four teams still perfect at Showcase after Day 3
Minnesota Wilderness goaltender Kasimir Kaskisuo stopped all 24 shots that came his way for his first career NAHL shutout on Friday at the NAHL Showcase.
The Austin Bruins, Coulee Region Chill, Fairbanks Ice Dogs and Kenai River Brown Bears remained the only teams left with perfect 3-0 records after three days at the NAHL Showcase.
Watch all the Day 4 games live on FASTHockey
Here are some helpful links to assist with the five days of hockey:
HPHL Schedule and Scores (18U, 16U)
Upper Midwest High School Elite League Schedule and Scores
Day 3 summaries:
Minot Minotauros 2 vs. Springfield Jr. Blues 1 – Minotauros goalie Brandon Wildung made 36 saves as the Minotauros picked up their first win of the season with a 2-1 triumph over the Springfield Jr. Blues. Minot opened the scoring late in the 1st period as Tim Donohue lit the lamp. Donohue then assisted on the second Minotauros goal, which ended up being the game winner off the stick of Jack Forbort early in the 2nd period. Brendan Jacques spoiled the shutout bid of Wildung with less than two minutes remaining in the game as he scored the lone Jr. Blues goal. Stefanos Lekkas made 26 saves in the loss. Boxscore
Odessa Jackalopes 5 vs. Brookings Blizzard 2 – After scoring just three goals in their first five games, the Jackalopes recorded five goals in a 5-2 win over the Brookings Blizzard, giving the Jacks their first win of the season, while Brookings fell to 0-3-0. The Jacks got off to a great start as they scored three goals in the 1st period. Markers came from Lukas Laub, Jake Kreutzer and Austin Murray. Brookings closed the gap to within 3-1 on a goal from Conrad Sampair, his first NAHL goal. However, the Jacks responded with two more goals from Derek Brown and Jakob Nunez. Sampair added a 3rd period goal, his second of the game, but Odessa goalie Yoshihiro Kuroiwa made 31 saves to shut the door the rest of the way. Boxscore
Johnstown Tomahawks 3 vs. Aberdeen Wings 0 – Colin DeAugustine stopped all 17 shots that came his way for his first career NAHL shutout as the Tomahawks posted their first win of the season with a 3-0 shutout, handing the Wings their first loss of the young season. After a scoreless 1st period, the Tomahawks got on the board in the 2nd period with two goals from Brandon Reinholz and Alex Jaeckle. Cody Gylling added an empty-net goal to secure the win for Johnstown. Aberdeen goalie Chad Catt made 26 saves in the loss. Boxscore
Topeka RoadRunners 2 vs. Soo Eagles 1 (SO) – In an old-fashioned goaltenders duel, it was Topeka’s Drew Vogler who made 26 saves and then stopped all five Soo shooters in the shootout to defeat the Eagles, 2-1. Topeka moved to 5-1-0 on the season, while Soo fell to 1-1-1. Soo goalie Paige Skoog was just as good as Vogler in the loss, making 31 saves and stopping all but one shooter in the shootout. Both goals in regulation came in the 2nd period as Peter Halsh scored on the power play for Topeka and Ryan Urso answered a minute later for the Soo. In the shootout, Tyler Poulsen was the lone shooter to score, earning the win for the RoadRunners. Boxscore
Kenai River Brown Bears 4 vs. Amarillo Bulls 1 – Brown Bears goaltender Zach Quinn was sharp again, this time making 28 saves against the defending Robertson Cup Champion Bulls as the Brown Bears topped Amarillo on Friday, 4-1. It was a fairly even game through the first two periods. Kenai River struck first in the 1st period on a goal from Zack Zulkanycz just :23 seconds into the game. Tyler Gernhofer answered back for Amarillo in the 2nd period with a power play goal. The Brown Bears broke the game open in the 3rd period with power play goals from Sebastian Fuchs, Jacob Davidson and an empty-net goal from Sam Bratten. The Brown Bears improved to 3-2-0 on the season, while Amarillo fell to 1-2-0. Boxscore
Bismarck Bobcats 5 vs. Janesville Jets 2 – A four-goal, 3rd period rally gave the Bismarck Bobcats a 5-2 win over the Janesville Jets on Friday. The Bobcats were first to score in the 1st period as Cullen Willox lit the lamp. The Jets answered back in the 2nd period with a goal from Adam Winborg. Janesville took an early 2-1 lead in the 3rd period on a goal from Jordan Himley, but the Bobcats stormed back with four goals in the game’s final 16 minutes to win. The comeback started with a goal from Stanislav Dzakhov and then Filip Starzynski gave the Bobcats a 3-2 lead with a power play goal. Jared Dedenbach scored to make it 4-2 and Seth Blair added a late goal to make it 5-2. Aaron Nelson picked up the win making 22 saves. Boxscore
Fairbanks Ice Dogs 1 vs. Rio Grande Valley Killer Bees 0 (SO) – Both goalies will get credit for a shutout in one of the best games of the Showcase thus far. Through 65 minutes of regulation and overtime Rio’s Olli Kalkaja and Fairbanks’ Kevin Aldridge did not give an inch. Aldridge totaled 26 saves, while Kalkaja had 31 saves. Each team put out four shooters, but to no avail as both goalies shut the door. Finally, Fairbanks forward Kyle Lee barley snuck one by Kalkaja to put Fairbanks ahead and Aldridge shut the door on the final Rio shooter for the win to keep Fairbanks undefeated on the season with a 5-0-0 record. Boxscore
Port Huron Fighting Falcons 4 vs. Lone Star Brahmas 2 – On the strength of three, 3rd period goals, the Fighting Falcons came from behind to defeat the Brahmas 4-2 on Friday. Brahmas defenseman Anthony Mousseau had two points, which included the game’s first goal. That was answered by a goal from Port Huron defenseman Jonathan Kopacka. Paul Fregeau gave Lone Star a 2-1 lead in the 2nd period, which they would take to the lockerroom. However, the 3rd period was all Port Huron as goals from Bryce VanHorn, Bryan Yim and Jon Hall secured the win for the Fighting Falcons, who sit atop of the North Division with a 4-0-1 record. Boxscore
Minnesota Wilderness 2 vs. Corpus Christi IceRays 0 – The Wilderness improved to 2-0-1 on the young season with a 2-0 shutout of the IceRays. Goaltender Kasimir Kaskisuo stopped all 24 shots that came his way for his first career NAHL shutout. The Wilderness took a 1-0 lead in the 1st period on a power play goal from Dominik Tiffels, which turned out to be the eventual game-winning goal. Brett Heikkila scored midway through the 3rd period to make the lead 2-0. Corpus Christi goaltender Ben Myers made 23 saves in the loss as the IceRays fell to 1-4-0 on the season. Boxscore
Coulee Region Chill 4 vs. Wichita Falls Wildcats 3 (OT) – In a back and forth affair between two undefeated teams, it would be the Coulee Region Chill who would triumph in overtime in a close, well-played game against Wichita Falls by a score of 4-3. The Wildcats looked good early as they took a 2-0 lead in the 1st period on goals from Jordan Jancze and Ben Kucera. The Chill would tie the game with two goals midway through the 2nd period from Jesse Tredinnick and James McGing. Colin Staub gave the Wildcats a 3-2 lead before the end of the period. The Chill once again came back to tie the game at 3-3 as John Severson poked home a loose puck in front. Just one minute into the overtime, Richard Zehnal sizzled a shot home for the game winner, moving the Chill to 3-0-0 on the season and giving the Wildcats their first non-win of the year. Boxscore
Austin Bruins 6 vs. Michigan Warriors 4 – In a game of streaks, it was the Austin Bruins who finally won out thanks to three, 3rd goals as the Bruins remained undefeated on the season and at the NAHL Showcase with a 6-4 win over the Michigan Warriors. Niko Hildenbrand scored the opening two goals for the Bruins in the 1st period. Michigan answered with a goal from Zack Szajner, but Austin regained the two-goal lead on a goal from Easton Viitala. The 2nd period was all Warriors as they scored three goals to take a 4-3 lead on markers from Colin Horton, Jake Hopfner and Connor Lyons. However, the Bruins would not be denied as they scored three straight goals in the 3rd period from Dominik Florian, Brennan Sanford and Drew Anderson. Boxscore
